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(cont.)
Internationally, China is a signatory to all major
environmental conventions and an active participant
in those related to biodiversity: the World Heritage Convention, the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES),
the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, the Convention
on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the framework
conventions on Climate Change and Desertification.
China was the first major state to ratify the CBD, and at
the national level has taken active measures to implement
it. In accordance with Article 6, in 1993 China formulated
a Biodiversity Conservation Action Plan. In China's
Third National Report to CBD, published by SEPA in
September 2005, China accords a "high" level of priority
to all CBD articles, provisions, and programmes of work,
with the exception of dryland and sub-humid land
biodiversity and mountain biodiversity (both accorded
"medium" priority)11.
Table 1: Threatened species in China (by taxonomic group) 5
|
Hong Kong SAR |
Macau SAR |
Taiwan |
China (other) |
| Mammals |
1 |
0 |
13 |
83 |
| Birds |
15 |
3 |
20 |
86 |
| Reptiles |
1 |
0 |
8 |
31 |
| Amphibians |
3 |
0 |
9 |
85 |
| Fishes |
14 |
6 |
37 |
60 |
| Molluscs |
1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
| Other invertebrates |
2 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
| Plants |
6 |
0 |
78 |
446 |
| Total |
43 |
9 |
166 |
797 |
Recent initiatives to reduce the loss of biodiversity include
plans to significantly increase protected areas and forest
cover. The State Forestry Administration (SFA) aims to
have 2,300 nature reserves under its jurisdiction by 2020,
for the protection of forest, wild animals and other natural
resources, with a combined area of 1.4 million km2, or
14.5% of China's total land area. According to SFA Vice-Minister Zhu Lieke, these reserves will protect 95% of the
country's plant and wild animal species under state "key protection" and represent all typical ecological systems.
China also aims to increase forest cover from 18.2% (in 2006) to 20% by 2010 and 23% by 202012.
Challenges to halting the loss
Like all Parties to CBD, China is committed to "achieve by 2010 a significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss."
Considerable discussion has gone into making this "2010 Target" measurable and achievable (See Appendix 1). But despite ongoing efforts and a major shift in environmental policy, China is one of many countries poised to fall short of reaching this target.
The "Southwest China Mountains", including Gaoligongshan, is one of the biodiversity hotspots of the world. |
Although China's national policies and plans for biodiversity conservation are large in scope, there are many challenges to implementation, particularly at the local level. The lack of capacity, awareness and effective measures specifically targeting biodiversity conservation means that some of China's most important environmental programmes are not effectively protecting biodiversity. For example, China's domestic logging ban (since 1998) and large-scale afforestation programme have seen forest cover increase, yet the quality of Chinese forests often remains low, with a lack of species diversity and poor management8.
Dryland degradation (land degradation is included as
a threat to biodiversity in Goal 5 of the CBD targets)
remains a significant problem, despite China's overall
achievement in reducing the rate of desertification.
Although not a high priority area in its Third National
Report to the CBD, more than 43% of China's territory
can be classified as dryland13, and this is home to around
100 million people as well as to some of China's most
fragile ecosystems and endangered species. China's drylands
are also highly degraded, with estimates suggesting that
about 34% of all grassland areas are moderately to severely
degraded and about 90% are degraded to some degree14.
Underlying the clear threats to biodiversity in China,
policy and implementation challenges include the
following:
Capacity
Perhaps the most prominent challenge to reducing the
loss of biodiversity in China is inadequate capacity and
funding. In China's Third National Report to the COP
of the CBD, "Lack of financial, human, and technical
resources" was seen almost across the board as a "high
challenge" to implementation of the CBD11. China also
lacks adequate scientific research capacities to support all
CBD objectives, and the insufficient transfer of technology
and technical expertise are consistently seen as challenges
to CBD implementation11.
Authority
A prominent difficulty in improving environmental
governance in China is the lack of authority accorded
to SEPA, which does not have the status of a ministry,
although this is expected to change in 2008. In addition,
the devolution of authority to under-resourced and
under-staffed local environmental protection bureaus,
as well as corruption, exacerbates problems in enforcing
environmental regulations.
Awareness
Another significant challenge is lack of awareness about
biodiversity and how it supports the health of ecosystems,
particularly among the business community and the broader public. One manifestation of this problem is
the illegal wildlife trade in China and consumption of
endangered species in Chinese traditional medicine and
at the table. The trade in products such as shark fin and
endangered medicinal plants (and species from other parts
of the world) continues to have an impact on biodiversity.
Countdown 2010 in China
Countdown 2010, a network of partners working together
towards the 2010 target, aims to support governments in
their efforts to reduce biodiversity loss by 2010. Launched
in Europe in 2004, Countdown 2010 now has nearly 300
partners worldwide, including the CBD, national, regional
and local governments, private sector organizations,
and a wide range of NGOs. In 2007 Countdown
2010 expanded to become a global initiative, with the
establishment of hubs in Africa, South America and Asia,
and most recently, in China
Countdown 2010 in China aims to communicate the
importance of biodiversity and the work being carried
out to conserve it. Since its launch in September 2007, a
diverse group of more than 20 Chinese and international
organizations active in China have signed the Countdown
2010 Declaration and joined the regional network.
Partners range from local environmental NGOs such as
Global Village Beijing, to big international conservation
organizations active in China, such as The Nature
Conservancy, to government-affiliated organizations such
as the Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences (NIES),
to the UN Development Programme - China.
Beyond its partners, Countdown 2010 has a broad range of
supporters, and there is significant interest in expanding its
reach. Priorities among members and supporters include
engaging the private sector and government. At present,
although government-affiliated institutions have joined the
initiative and government representatives have participated
in Countdown 2010 events, no Chinese government
ministry has signed the Countdown 2010 Declaration.
As 2010 approaches and the rate of biodiversity loss accelerates worldwide, the urgency of finding ways to reduce this loss becomes increasingly clear. In November, Countdown 2010 co-sponsored an alliance-building meeting with the EU - China Biodiversity Programme (ECBP) Visibility and Awareness Component (VAC). This meeting further confirmed the willingness of Chinese conservation organizations to collaborate on communicating the importance of biodiversity.
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