Experts seldom agree on anything. When they do, it’s usually because the facts are beyond doubt. That was certainly the case yesterday, when experts from all the UK’s wildlife organisations spoke with one voice and a simple, clear message: there’s overwhelming evidence that nature’s in trouble.
What's in the report?
For the first time ever, 25 nature organisations have joined forces to compile the State of Nature report - all the latest scientific data on everything that grows, creeps, crawls, flutters and flaps, collected together to give the biggest, clearest picture yet of what is happening to our wildlife. The world is full of unnecessary reports but this one is vital – it’s a world first - a modern Domesday book for Nature.
That‘s the good news... but the findings are bleak. 60% of (3000+) species for which data are available have declined over the last 50 years. In Wales, one in seven plants is threatened. 63% of our butterflies are declining. Once-common birds like the curlew, lapwing and golden plover, have declined by more than three quarters in recent decades. We have lost corn buntings and turtle doves as regularly breeding species. The pressures on the natural world are growing and our response to the biodiversity crisis is not working. The nature that we take for granted now will not be part of our children's lives when they grow up.
This makes very hard reading, but the challenge to governments and environmental bodies, conservationists and nature-lovers is clear. Business as usual is not enough – it hasn’t stopped these huge declines. Wildlife is at crisis point in Wales.
An emotional launch...
Our State of Nature launch was at Techniquest in Cardiff Bay last night. And what a night it was! Iolo Williams, delivered a challenging keynote address, combining anger and poetry in equal measure, and brought tears to many eyes in the audience as he recalled a lifetime of growing-up, living and working in Wales, and the changes to nature during his 50 years. You could hear a pin drop as he spoke with sadness of water voles gone from streams where he fished as a boy and silent valleys where no curlews call. In a voice wavering with emotion he challenged us all to make a positive difference, so that we can look our grandchildren in the eyes and know we did our bit.
Plantlife’s Dr Trevor Dines gave an equally heartfelt address. He brought the report to life with real examples of conservation success and failure from his on-the-ground experience of working to conserve Wales’ wildflowers and fungi. Trevor emphasised the value of the partnership-approach for giving all of nature a voice, and he took the opportunity to acknowledge and say a big ‘Thank you’ to the multitude of volunteers across Wales who collect the data on our wildlife that made the production of State of Nature, and conservation in general, possible.
The Minister responsible for the Environment, Alun Davies AM, spoke too. He reaffirmed his commitment to our natural environment, demonstrated during the 2010 Biodiversity Enquiry, and his desire to take this forward within his Ministerial brief. He welcomed the report, undertook to respond quickly and work closely with the partnership to find creative solutions here in Wales. After all the evidence of decline, Alun’s response gave a much-needed ray of hope for the nature of Wales.
You can read the full report here: www.rspb.org.uk/stateofnature