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Pollution is a key factor responsible for degradation of biodiversity, water quality and human health, the IPBES Nexus Report has revealed.
The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) launched it assessment report on the Interlinkages Among Biodiversity, Water, Food and Health – known as the Nexus Report — on December 17, 2024.
The report stated that freshwater and marine coastal species are especially sensitive as they gather anthropogenic stressors such as pollutants and sediments in various ecosystems and watershed areas.
The analysis has identified ‘nexus elements’. These include biodiversity, water, food, health and climate change, which are interlinked, influence each other and have consequences when combined.
Though some developed countries such as Denmark have managed to control pollution by reducing subsidies to agricultural production systems which reduced nitrogen pollution, developing countries face multiple hindrances in taking similar steps.
About 90 per cent of premature deaths from pollution are reported from low and middle income countries, and are mainly attributed to air pollution, as per the report. “Furthermore, access to adequate sanitation services and domestic wastewater treatment is a critical issue in Latin American, Caribbean, Asian, and African countries,” the report said.
It said a number of measures can be taken to curb pollution levels by regulating international and national standards. This includes emissions standards for motor vehicles and power plants that also help improve environment protection.
“Reducing plastic pollution has led to increased water quality and wildlife protection, fewer floods and reductions in incidence of associated water-borne diseases,” it said.
However, efforts to reduce plastic pollution have remained ineffective due to lack of government intervention.
Response actions can directly and indirectly reduce pollution through regulations, incentives, reduced and efficient use of fertilisers, improved waste management and reduced use of pesticides, eventually improving water quality, air quality, ocean quality and soil health, directly supporting the target of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, as per the report.
The thematic assessment of the underlying causes of biodiversity loss, determinants of transformative change and options for achieving the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity published on December 18 by IPBES stated that increased taxes or fines on environmentally harmful activities, binding regulations on pollution and ecosystem restoration, and policies that support the not-for-profit sector are valuable tools for embodying guiding principles for transformative change toward sustainable well-being economies.