Biodiversity or biodiversity: what is it and what is its value? Why is biodiversity declining? Why is biodiversity conservation important? What measures should be taken to conserve biodiversity? In such a scenario, what does humanity expect in the future? The participants of the information seminar dedicated to the International Biodiversity Day 2014, which was successfully held on May 22, 2014, tried to cover these and other issues. At Westminster International University in Tashkent.

What is biodiversity?

Biodiversity refers to the diversity of all life forms - plants, animals, microorganisms, the genes that make them up, and the ecosystems that they represent as separate components.

The biodiversity of a planet is a fundamental phenomenon that represents a real evolutionary process that has taken place over millions of years at many organizational levels of living matter.

250 years ago, the famous Swedish naturalist and physician Carl von Linney founded the most successful classification system of flora and fauna. Since then, scientists have found and classified nearly 1.2 million species of animals and plants. The more discoveries biologists make, the more often they think about how much life there is on Earth. Estimates ranged from 3 to 100 million. According to modern scientists, the total number of living things on earth is about 8.7 million species, but many species unknown to science are found on the ocean floor, in the high mountains, in the impassable equatorial o. It lives in forests and other hard places. to reach places on the planet ...

In Central Asia, particularly in Uzbekistan, where the region has its own geography and diverse natural conditions, the formation of flora and fauna has undergone a complex evolution, but despite this, Uzbekistan's biodiversity is very rich. The Republic of Uzbekistan is located in the middle of the Central Asian region - the CIS (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) with an area of 447.4 thousand km2. Its areas are characterized by a variety of natural landscapes and ecosystems, from lowlands to mountains. Uzbekistan's natural landscapes make up 82% of the country's territory with various levels of anthropogenic impact. Over the centuries, the people of Uzbekistan have managed to turn landscapes into arable lands, settlements, industries and industrial enterprises, which account for about 18% of the total area of natural landscapes.

An important part of the flora and fauna consists of endemic species and subspecies that are not found outside the Central Asian region. The endemism of some species and subspecies makes them vulnerable, and this part of the biodiversity needs special treatment and protection.

Some figures speak of the richness of the flora of Uzbekistan. The flora of Uzbekistan consists of more than 4,800 species of vascular plants belonging to 650 genera and 115 families. The fauna of Uzbekistan is also rich in species and diversity. The fauna of invertebrates and vertebrates consists of about 15,615 species. Many members of the Uzbek fauna are endemic, with the highest levels of endemism in reptiles and the lowest in birds and mammals.

Due to the diversity of the country's natural landscapes, its flora and fauna are not evenly distributed. Natural communities include groups of species that have their own habitats (networks) that move between adjacent communal areas to facilitate the interaction of individual species and increase the species diversity of each ecosystem. will give.

What is the economic significance of biodiversity?

In the global sense, biodiversity is of great importance to humanity and has ecological, genetic, social, economic, scientific, educational, cultural, recreational and aesthetic significance. At the same time, the entire prosperous part of our country, the entire human race, is well aware that the health, well-being and future of our society depend on the preservation of the delicate and fragile network of biodiversity.

Biological resources allow us to meet our need for food and clothing, as well as shelter, medicine, and spiritual nourishment. The gifts of nature enable the creation of the most diverse sectors of the economy, such as agriculture, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, the pulp and paper industry, construction and waste disposal. The loss of biodiversity poses a threat to our food supply, leisure and tourism industries, as well as our timber, pharmaceutical and energy sources.

Biological diversity One of the biggest problems in conserving diversity is the lack of a direct economic assessment of how many products and services biodiversity provides us with. According to experts from the World Bank and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the total cost of all ecosystem services is estimated at $ 16-54 trillion per year, with an average of $ 33 trillion (1997 prices). A better understanding of how much biodiversity we consume and what its true economic value is will allow us to use it more efficiently and wisely. To do this, it is necessary to develop an effective economic mechanism for the conservation of biodiversity.

Why is biodiversity declining?

For hundreds of years, the people of Central Asia continued to develop in many respects favorable landscapes, such as river valleys and foothills, increasing the man-made burden on these areas. But it is also a habitat for wildlife, and the diversity of species is the key to the existence and development of our society.

In addition to native species of animals and plants, a separate part of the biodiversity consists of alien species that have been targeted or accidentally introduced (introduced) into the country from other countries and geographical zones. Some introduced species, under suitable conditions, adapt quickly and create stable and independently available populations. But when alien species enter another ecosystem, there is a constant risk that aliens will quickly adapt and take over new territories and habitats, becoming an invasive species, displacing and damaging native biodiversity - aboriginal species.

The balance of energy and mass exchange in the biosphere changes with the reduction of biodiversity or the replacement of wild species with cultivated species. As a result, wildlife and human habitats are changing, the number of natural disasters is increasing, and the ecological infrastructure of life is deteriorating.

Currently, the earth's biodiversity is going through difficult times, it is declining and disappearing. The most important reasons for the loss of biodiversity are:

• Physical extinction - we accumulate, cut, hunt and otherwise consume biodiversity reserves, thereby reducing the number of individual populations and sometimes leading to the extinction of the species. we will come Mankind currently consumes 40% more of the Earth’s renewable natural resources per year;

• Habitat degradation and destruction - people take territory from nature for the existence of biodiversity. We turn landscapes into arable lands, settlements, industries and industries. We do not hesitate to render and destroy an area that cannot be taken away by animals and plants, making it unsuitable for wildlife;

• Biodiversity loss is also caused by the spread of foreign species, habitat pollution, overuse of water, climate change and other factors.

More than a hundred species of animals and plants die every day in the world! Every day! And what will happen to the biodiversity of the earth in a few years?

Due to the increase in population of Uzbekistan, the rapid development of the economy and the national economy, many species of plants and animals are exposed to anthropogenic impact. Their habitats are acquired by human activities, which ultimately leads to a significant reduction in the number of biodiversity. As a result of progressive human activities, irreparable damage is caused to natural ecosystems, resulting in 87 species of animals representing aquatic and semi-aquatic ecosystems, 46 species of animals in desert ecosystems, and 43 species of animals in mountain ecosystems. threatened state. Currently, some species are on the verge of extinction or on the verge of extinction.

Human changes in ecosystems are having a drastic impact on the diversity of life on Earth. Human society is built on biodiversity. In recent times, biodiversity is disappearing at a catastrophic rate. In order to reverse this trend, efforts are being made to draw the attention of the general public to this problem, as well as to make important political decisions at the international and national levels.

The problem of biodiversity conservation has long been recognized as a global problem and requires concerted action. In this regard, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was developed for the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. This agreement entered into force in December 1993, and 193 states, including all states in the former USSR, are its members. Uzbekistan accedes to the Convention on Biological Diversity, Biol adopted the National Strategy for the Conservation of Natural Biodiversity and officially announced its intention to safeguard and use the biological resources of the environment. Currently, the system of protected areas in Uzbekistan includes nine state reserves, two national parks and six state reserves, as well as the Republican Center for Rare Species.

Understanding the importance of biodiversity and the need to conserve it is the key to the sustainable development of human society and its economy. Biodiversity refers to the extreme diversity of plant and animal species, their habitats. The greater the diversity of species, the more sustainable our ecosystems, the products and services they provide for human life. Without these products and services, people will not survive. Food, medicine, pollination, climate regulation, oxygen are just a few of the biodiversity products and services it provides.

Biodiversity is of great importance to humanity and its conservation is especially important in eradicating poverty: the majority of the world’s poor live in rural areas and their survival and survival is directly related to biodiversity.

To be continued. Life finds its way.