Status of Biodiversity in BC
Biodiversity BC is developing a science-based biodiversity action plan for British Columbia. To provide the science foundation for the plan, Biodiversity BC prepared two key documents, a report on the current Status of Biodiversity in BC and a report on Ecological Concepts, Principles and Applications to Conservation. These reports are designed to support the development of the Biodiversity Action Plan and they will be used to develop the priorities and options for a draft Biodiversity Action Plan discussion paper. The reports will also help to frame the discussion during consultation with governments (including First Nations), stakeholders, and the public.
This Status Report is the result of two years of consultation with local and international scientific experts. It addresses the full range of land and freshwater biodiversity, including elements that overlap with the marine (saltwater) realm, such as salmon and seabirds, as well as important elements of biodiversity not addressed at a species or ecosystem level. It also discusses the pressures on biodiversity caused by human activity, including climate change.
The Status Report confirms that the places where the great majority of British Columbians work and live-the lower elevation river valleys in the south and near the coast-are the very same places where most of the species in the province live. Competition between humans and nature for a small fraction of BC's land base has resulted in our standing as the province with the greatest number of endangered vascular plant and vertebrate species. These areas are also home to two of the four most endangered ecosystems in the country.
Climate change is complicating this already difficult conservation challenge. The planet is currently experiencing rapid and accelerating climate change, based on a combination of natural factors and human-induced global warming arising from greenhouse gas emissions, reduction in forest cover and pollution of the oceans. Overall temperatures are expected to rise and parts of the province will likely become wetter, others drier. The distribution and characteristics of ecosystems are closely tied to climate. Forests may shift northwards, or upward in elevation, grasslands may expand, wetlands and alpine regions may disappear. The speed at which the plants and animals in those ecosystems can adapt to these changes will determine whether they survive or disappear.
Click here for Component Reports and documents that were commissioned by BBC to inform the development of the Status Report.
Copyright 2007 Biodiversity BC