World Environment Day is observed every year on June 5 with primary motive to encourage global awareness and action to protect our environment. The concept was put forward as an annual event by the United Nations (UN) in 1972 and today World Environment Day is celebrated and recognised globally by millions of people. The day aims to encourage worldwide environmental awareness to promote on ground activity such as tree-plantation drive, educative social media campaigns, contests, clean-up campaigns, and many other activities in every country.
We as of 2021 have clearly understood that our environment is under threat. Biodiversity loss, environmental degradation and climate change are the issues which are reflected back on World Environment Day.
We are losing species at a rate 1000 times greater than at any other recorded time in human history. Ecosystems are being destroyed in exponentially, wetlands are disappearing, forest cover is in decrease, marine life and fisheries are increasingly threatened as the oceans are affected due to climate change and increase level of water pollution.
We hear the dire warnings about environmental threats virtually every day, and it seems as these warning are becoming repetitive with every passing days. Over the last three decades, ecosystem degradation has emerged as one of the world's most serious environmental problems. Almost all of our ecosystems, whether terrestrial or aquatic, have been degraded to varied degrees as a result of a variety of factors such as development pressures, population increase, over-exploitation, and so on.
The theme for World Environment Day this year is “Ecosystem Restoration”. All life on our Earth is dependent on ecosystems, ecosystem restoration aims to reimagine, recreate and restore our environment. It can also be simplified as “prevent, delay and reverse” the environmental degradation, which indeed is a need of the hour.
Now, let us know in details about “Ecosystem Restoration”;
Why is there need to restore ecosystem?
Life is built in the crucible of nature. To build a safer, resilient and sustainable planet, we have to take action to recover our ecosystems. A healthy ecosystem means a healthy planet.
What is ecosystem restoration?
Ecosystem restoration means assisting in the recovery of ecosystems that have been degraded or destroyed, or conserving the ecosystems that are still intact.
Why is ecosystem restoration important?
Ecosystem integrity, covering both biotic and abiotic aspects, forms the foundation of ecological restoration. A flourishing ecosystem can strengthen livelihood, curb climate change and stop the loss of biodiversity. Ecosystem restoration also plays a major role in regulating disease and reduces the natural calamities.
Restoration can happen in many ways; for example through actively planting or by removing pressures so that nature can recover on its own. It is not always possible or desirable to return an ecosystem to its original state. Forests, farmlands, towns, wetlands, and oceans are all examples of ecosystems that can be restored. Governments and development organisations, as well as corporations, communities, and people can all undertake restoration programmes. Because the causes of degradation are numerous and diverse, they can have an impact on many scales.
It's tough to imagine celebrating World Environment Day in the midst of a catastrophic health crisis. What does the environment even mean at this moment of enormous human anguish and loss? But take a moment to think about it.
In the previous month, the most vital ingredient that people yearned for was oxygen. Consider how many hours and day’s people spent looking for oxygen for their loved ones; how many patients died as a result of hospitals not having enough oxygen in the tanks. Our despair is difficult to describe without causing suffering. We witnessed the gasp for each breath and realised how valuable it is. So, on this World Environment Day, we must remember this.
Let's create a safer world together. One step at a time.
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