More appropriate indicators are needed to measure progress towards the species target of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) beyond the Red List, an academic paper said on Thursday.
Experts sought to clarify key terms for urgent species recovery actions, to support the implementation of the GBF, in a paper led by UK’s Newcastle University researchers published in journal BioScience.
“The current monitoring framework is unable to adequately measure progress towards implementing urgent recovery actions … appropriate indicators are needed to measure progress,” the researchers said in an article on Phys.Org.
The paper focused on Target 4 of the GBF, which aims to “ensure urgent management actions” to halt species extinction, protect genetic diversity, and manage human-wildlife conflicts.
The GBF monitoring framework has said the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Red List Index can show progress towards Target 4.
The Red List is relevant but only measures outcomes, rather than the implementation of actions called for under Target 4, the researchers said.
“There is a clear gap as there is no indicator for measuring the implementation of action identified in Target 4 that is necessary to achieve the required reduction in extinction risk,” they said.
In January, a study said GBF indicators should be regularly reviewed to ensure that contradictions are identified. It warned against the risks of relying on the same datasets, such as the Red List, for multiple indicators.
Over the last year, one paper said the Red List had numerous limitations, while another said it was key to supporting the GBF.
REFRAMING SPECIES TARGET
The researchers emphasised that achieving the ambitions outlined in Goal A of the GBF – to halt extinctions, reduce extinction risk, and increase species abundance – would require meaningful progress towards all targets, not just Target 4.
For example, targets 1, 5, 6, 7, and 8 all affect species as they consider ecosystem pressures.
“It is important that Target 4 is not seen simply as ‘the species target’ but, rather, as ‘a target for species that require focused recovery actions’,” they said.
“Put another way, in the absence of these urgent actions, such species would continue to decline and fail to recover, despite implementation of the rest of the framework.”
The paper called for more access to information to support the attainment of species elements in Goal A.
Achieving the GBF’s goal of preventing species extinction requires filling knowledge gaps, fostering cooperation across governments, and using all available resources, said Dr Alison Hutchinson of Newcastle University.
In June, IUCN added over 1,000 species of plants and animals to its Red List of Threatened Species, bringing the total to 45,000.
By Thomas Cox – t.cox@carbon-pulse.com
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