Reference no: EM132212978
Threats to Biodiversity
Land Use Changes and Habitat Fragmentation
Change in the way land is being used and fragmentation has led to depletion and disruption of the ecosystem where several animal and plant species thrive properly. Most land which has provided a good habitat for many plant and animal species has been divided and other portions develop0ed for other uses such as roads and other forms of development altering the natural habitat for such plant and animal species (Dale, 2015).
A good example is the massive clearance of massive natural habitat for agricultural purposes in America that has led to the elimination of about 98% of the prairie grass.
To eliminate or mitigate this threat, the federal government can restrict the development and land use of certain areas so as to protect them from the encroachment by private developers or the public. Moreover, international regulation can also control the manner in which several ecosystems are used and managed (Dale, 2015).
Resource Extraction
Another way through which animal and plant species are being threatened is through poorly planned resource extraction. One of the identified poorly planned resource extraction is overfishing. Since most of the water bodies have been left open for access by fishermen, some fish species have reduced drastically allowing the thriving of other species which causes an ecosystem imbalance in the waters (Dale, 2015). Logging and mining have also been identified as some of the ways biodiversity is threatened through resource extraction. In this regard, private developers or the federal government changes the natural uses of land in favor of resource altering the ecosystem.
To eliminate this threat, the federal government can identify the endangered species and once the same is identified, protection strategies can be triggered in order to protect them from exploitation by human beings or other organs (Finer et al., 2008). The federal government can also use temporary bans for resource extraction, for example, temporary bans for the fishing of endangered fish species.
References
Dale, L. (2015). Environmental policy (second ed.). Bridgepoint Education.
Finer, M., Jenkins, C. N., Pimm, S. L., Keane, B., & Ross, C. (2008). Oil and gas projects in the western Amazon: threats to wilderness, biodiversity, and indigenous peoples. PloS one, 3(8), e2932.