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TOP STORY

FEATURE: Sounding out solutions – acoustics a frontrunner for measuring ecosystem health in new biodiversity credit mechanisms

Using acoustic monitoring devices to collect data about ecosystem health based on the sounds of different animals living in an area is a powerful and cost-effective way of measuring biodiversity and should be one of the primary data collection methods in new biodiversity crediting systems, say industry sources.

BUSINESS & FINANCE

Governments need to fix financial plumbing to stop biodiversity loss, says not-for-profit

Now is the time for regulation to hold the financial sector to account on nature loss, and tools like biodiversity credits and patient capital can catalyse action, according to a Switzerland-based NGO.

Australian banks’ lending practices contributing to the destruction of nature, report finds

The lending habits of Australia’s banks are contributing to the destruction of nature, particularly in high-impact sectors such as agriculture, property, energy, and resources, according to a report released Monday.

CORRECTION – Forest Investment Associates prepares nature positive strategy

A working forestry strategy with a nature positive objective in Latin America is in development by asset manager Forest Investment Associates (FIA), Carbon Pulse has learned.

TOOLS & GUIDANCE

Space tools launched to assess South Africa’s biodiversity hotspot

A NASA-backed project aims to map the biodiversity of South Africa using devices that are usually found on the space station to study planets and stars, according to participating scientists.

POLICY

EU signs roadmap for Congo forest partnership

A roadmap for implementing a forest partnership between the EU and the Republic of Congo has been signed by the European Commission’s environment chief Virginijus Sinkevicius.

Malaysia threatens repercussions as state reveals plan to remove forest protections

Malaysia’s federal government on Saturday said it would end biodiversity-related payments to Kelantan if the state goes through with its plans to remove protections for vast areas of rainforest.

Talks fail again to agree protection of vast Antarctic marine regions

Two weeks of negotiations among the almost 30 member nations of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) ended Friday evening in Hobart, Australia with a fresh failure to establish three marine protected areas (MPAs) in the region representing more than 1% of the global ocean.

PROJECTS

Canadian province launches old growth forests crowdfunding venture with C$300 mln

The government of British Columbia has launched a “unique” crowdfunding initiative for protecting old growth forests with C$300 million ($217 mln) of initial capital.

BUSINESS & FINANCE

Offsetting impact – Canada’s Hydro One on Monday issued a call for proposals for projects to offset the biodiversity impact from the 49 km Chatham to Lakeshore transmission line it is building in southwestern Ontario. The tender is focused on habitat creation and enhancement, and projects must be located on secured lands so the habitats can be permanent. They must also be “feasible” under the company’s undisclosed budget, sustainable to manage in the long term, and appropriate for site conditions, said Hydro One, which will accept proposals until Dec. 15.

Get moving – A group of major Swedish companies on Friday posted an op-ed in one of the country’s biggest newspapers, urging the government to put in place a nature protection law and an action plan to incentivise industry and businesses to take action on biodiversity. The move comes as the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency will by Nov. 3 submit a proposal to the government for a Swedish National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), which will be finalised by COP16 next year. The op-ed was signed by dairy company Arla, Handelsbanken, AstraZeneca Sweden, supermarket chain Coop, building materials producer Swerock, consultants Ecogain, and green group WWF.

In charge – The Responsible Investment Association Australia (RIAA) has named Pollination as its principal partner for its Nature Working Group. The group, spanning over 130 organisations across Australia and New Zealand, acts as a hub in terms of providing access to international developments on natural capital. Amplifying the recommendations of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) is one of the group’s current priorities, according to Pollination.

POLICY

Not vacant – Australia’s Biodiversity Council has expressed disappointment that La Trobe University is planning to clear a 3.5 ha site at its Bundoora campus to build a solar farm, the ABC reports.  Environmentalists are concerned the cleared land will reduce habitat for endangered species and could lead to biodiversity loss. Biodiversity Council member and conservation scientist professor Sarah Bekessy said it was a failure of the planning system that the area was considered vacant land, and that the vegetation supported threatened species like Gang Gang cockatoos. She said planners needed to be more creative and find other locations for renewable energy projects that didn’t involve losing trees.

American nature plan – The US needs a national biodiversity strategy, academics have said. The nation is “failing” to live up to expectations as a nation aiming got be global leader in biodiversity, researchers from universities in the country said in a paper published on Conservation Science and Practice. They set out five key elements that aim to lead to a strategy that incentivises innovation in nature-based solution. The US has not formally joined the Convention on Biological Diversity.

SCIENCE & TECH

Ocean going – Marine debris is increasingly facilitating invasive species expansion on India’s Southeast coast, according to a new study in Marine Pollution Bulletin. The study said that high-buoyancy litter such as bottles, buoys, and plastic bags support abundant animal communities and could spread species over long distances. Invasive mussel species were also found attached in high density in discarded finishing nets, the researchers said. A total of 3,130 specimens or colonies were identified, representing 17 species raising significant concerns about invasive species outbreaks in the area. The researchers said they will now expand their study to other regions.

Map back – Researchers at Northumbria University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences have mapped the UK’s land use change during the 20th Century. The map revealed that around 50% of semi-natural grassland has been lost, including 90% of the country’s lowland meadows and pasture due to agricultural intensification. Some 16% of species were negatively affected by climate warming, land conversion, or both and were more likely to disappear in areas where such changes have occurred. The researchers utilised a large citizen science data set of more than 1,192 species and over 20 mln distribution records.

River critters – Despite being heavily exposed to pollution, rivers in England have shown an increase in invertebrate biodiversity, according to a study produced by the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. The researchers looked at the presence of invertebrate families like dragonflies, snails, mayflies, shrimp, and worms which respond to changes in water quality from around 223,300 data points collected between 1989 and 2018.  They found a 66% increase in the number of invertebrate species in England’s rivers over the past 30 years. The findings for freshwater invertebrates buck the trend of an average 19% decrease in species abundance across all species, mostly due to steep declines in terrestrial invertebrates. Increasing species numbers coincide with the removal of key chemical pollutants, however, England’s rivers are still amongst some of the most highly exposed to wastewater and agricultural runoff in Europe.

Bee gone – Australasia’s pollination decline might be going unnoticed, according to a new study by Macquarie University. The authors analysed thousands of research papers on human-induced pollinator decline globally and found a tiny amount of papers for the region. However, the causes of pollinator decline in other regions are mirrored in Australasia raising concerns of a silent so-called “insect apocalypse”. An estimated 15,000 species in Australia specifically act as plant pollinators meaning declines could affect an estimated 20,000 flowering plants in the country including many agricultural commodities. The authors raised concerns that over-investment in introduced honey bees crowds out the more than 1,660 known native bee species, as well as pollinator decline affecting wider food security.

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