Our Green Capital
Introduction to the London
Biodiversity Action Plan - Part 1
Biodiversity - A Vital Part of
London, Our Green Capital,
The Importance of Biodiversity,
Definitions
Part
2, Part 3
Biodiversity – A Vital Part of London
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There is a new vision for London – a city where the conservation of biodiversity is integrated with social, cultural and economic values. This document is a major contribution to that vision. It arises from the new agenda of biodiversity action planning, which is an attempt to redress the loss of habitats and their associated plants and animals. |
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As a World City with natural resources unparalleled in any other major conurbation, London is perfectly placed to take advantage of this new agenda. The process began with the formation of the London Biodiversity Partnership and continues with the production of the London Biodiversity Action Plan. This strategic document addresses the concerns of landowners and land users, planners and politicians, businesses and local communities, who are beginning to recognise that biodiversity is a vital part of London life.
‘By producing an Action Plan for Biodiversity, London is giving a lead to other World Cities – not only in making its own particular contribution to conservation of global diversity, but in demonstrating that nature is a vital ingredient in the quality of life of city dwellers.’
The Partnership’s initiative will be complemented by the Greater London Authority, which will have the duty to promote a sustainable approach to the development of the capital. The Mayor will be required to draw up a Biodiversity Strategy and other strategies to tackle the major issues – and will have real powers to implement them.
Our Green Capital
The 33 Greater London boroughs cover nearly 158,000 hectares (over 600 square miles). More than 40% of the total land area is green open space and nearly half of that is considered valuable as wildlife habitat.
Our capital contains a wide variety of wildlife habitats. Consider the range of woodland for example – from the famous ancient woodlands of Oxleas and Ruislip, which have existed for hundreds of years, to the small pockets of recent woodland in Victorian cemeteries and along railway lines. The diversity of other habitats includes the flower-rich chalk grasslands of the North Downs and the amenity grasslands of the central London parks; the reservoirs of the Lea Valley and the Thames Estuary; the wet meadows of the Ingrebourne Marshes in Havering and the dry, disturbed land of inner city ‘wasteland’; the specially-created habitats of the new Wetland Centre at Barnes and the often unexpected wildlife havens provided by private gardens. Furthermore, flowing through the very heart of the city is the River Thames, perhaps London’s most valuable and well-known natural asset.
These habitats support a remarkable diversity of species. Most, like the hawfinch, bluebell and small blue butterfly, are remnants of native fauna and flora that survive in encapsulated fragments of semi-natural habitat. Other species like the robin and common blue damselfly have adapted well to the human environment of parks and gardens. Our capital also supports some species that are urban ‘specialists’. One of our rarer birds, the black redstart, can be found on sparsely vegetated industrial areas such as old power stations, wharves and factory sites that mimic the scree-slopes and cliffs of their original natural habitat further south in Europe.
The legacy of London’s trading history includes some plants that were accidentally or deliberately introduced. For example, the butterfly bush Buddleia, which originated in China, is almost ubiquitous throughout London and contributes to maintaining our native wildlife. London rocket, which flowered profusely after the Great Fire of 1666, is now confined to a few sites in the centre of the city.
For most of us it is the more common species which matter most: cormorants or herons fishing along the Thames; springtime carpets of bluebells or wood anemones; butterflies in the summertime meadows. The purpose of our action plan is to ensure that Londoners are able to experience nature in their local environment. After all, it will be the activities and aspirations of some seven million of us that will shape the future of biodiversity in the capital.
The Importance of Biodiversity
The impact of humanity on the global environment reached unprecedented levels during the 20th century and we are all now aware that biodiversity is being lost at an alarming rate. There have been huge declines in many species in the UK. We have seen reductions of up to 85% in farmland bird populations over the past 25 years and even one of our most familiar birds, the song thrush, has declined by 52% in woodland and farmland during this period. Habitats have been affected as well – for example our flower-rich lowland meadows in Britain have nearly vanished, declining by 97% between 1934 and 1984.
Many of us are saddened by our impact on the environment and realise that unless we reverse current losses to biodiversity, the quality of life of future generations will suffer.
Why Conserve Biodiversity?
Unless we reverse current declines in biodiversity, future generations will inherit an impoverished world. We are dependent upon the global biological resource for survival. The air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat ultimately depend upon natural processes. Natural processes provide ‘services’ humans could not replace – flood control, for example. Genetic information from wild species provides an invaluable resource for food and medicine. Changes in species numbers and habitat quality can provide an indicator of environmental change, giving us early warning of harm or damage to the natural environment. Some would argue that we have a moral duty to avoid causing damage to habitats and the extinction of species, which may have evolved over thousands or millions of years. Biodiversity is part of our natural heritage and provides the backdrop to our everyday lives. Many people feel that the loss and degradation of biodiversity is an affront to their spiritual, aesthetic and emotional sensitivities.
An International Commitment
The London Biodiversity Action Plan is a direct result of the process initiated at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. Key environmental issues requiring international action were addressed and over 150 national governments, including the UK, signed the Convention on Biological Diversity as a commitment to helping avert the destruction of biodiversity.
The UK Government responded by publishing Biodiversity: The UK Action Plan in 1994 and establishing the UK Biodiversity Action Plan Steering Group, set up to implement further action. As a stimulus to government, the voluntary nature conservation sector published Biodiversity Challenge, which outlined their agenda for action.
The UK Steering Group Report was published in 1995 and includes the first set of countrywide targets and action plans for habitats and species. Although the Report provides the national framework for biodiversity conservation, it also emphasises the importance of local action through Local Biodiversity Action Plans.
Definitions
Biodiversity is the ‘variety of life’ – the myriad plant and animal species and the range of habitats in which they live.
Biodiversity is all life on the planet, from the insects in the grass of an African savannah, to the ubiquitous and familiar birds which inhabit London’s parks and open spaces; from the clusters of bacteria surrounding a geothermal vent at the bottom of the deepest ocean, to the frog finding refuge in a shallow garden pond.
Sustainable Development means integrating economic, social and environmental policies to ensure a better quality of life for everyone, now and for generations to come.