Humans Have Caused Catastrophic Damage To Wildlife In Last 50 Years, Says Report

It is no secret that with human civilization thriving across continents, it is coming at a grave cost to nature and other animals that we live with.

And now, a new research has revealed that this human impact has resulted in a freefall of wildlife populations.

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This is according to Living Planet Report 2020 by wildlife conservation charity WWF. It has said that the population of creatures on our planet has gone down by a considerable 68 percent on average since the year 1970. This is more than two thirds in less than half a decade.

The report highlights that agriculture, deforestation and converting wild zones into farmland have been primarily causing this damage. At sea, overfishing by fishermen has been affecting the marine population.

The report reveals a 94 percent drop in average wildlife populations in Latin America and the Caribbean -- the biggest drop witnessed in the world. The report also shows a steep decline in freshwater fish populations especially the Chinese Sturgeon in the Yangtze River where its population is down by 97 percent.

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The report also highlights that activities like unsustainable fishing, hunting, poaching -- whether legal or illegal are affecting the population of animals. This also includes indirect exploitation where animals die unintentionally. In Central Africa, the elephant population has gone down by a whopping 98 percent.

When humans bring animals to areas where they don¡¯t belong -- either due to trading or as pets -- it affects not just them but also the animals that are living in that area, making them susceptible to diseases that they¡¯ve never experienced. This also includes the transfer of diseases from humans to other animals.

Tanya Steele, chief executive at WWF, said, ¡°We are wiping wildlife from the face of the planet, burning our forests, polluting and overfishing our seas and destroying wild areas. We are wrecking our world ¨C the one place we call home ¨C risking our health, security and survival here on Earth. Now nature is sending us a desperate SOS and time is running out.¡±

Sir David Attenborough said in the report, ¡°The Anthropocene could be the moment we achieve a balance with the rest of the natural world and become stewards of our planet."

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¡°Doing so will require systemic shifts in how we produce food, create energy, manage our oceans and use materials. But above all, it will require a change in perspective. A change from viewing nature as something that¡¯s optional or ¡®nice to have¡¯ to the single greatest ally we have in restoring balance to our world.

He added, ¡°The time for pure national interests has passed, internationalism has to be our approach and in doing so bring about greater equality between what nations take from the world and what they give back. The wealthier nations have taken a lot and the time has now come to give.¡±