Biodiversity Strategy
Biodiversity simply means the variety of life. It includes all the different species of animals and plants, including birds, butterflies, wildflowers and humans, and even the fungi and bacteria on which we depend. A rich and varied biodiversity depends upon a healthy environment, and if an area has a network of natural habitats which are looked-after appropriately, biodiversity will thrive. The damage caused by intensive agriculture, urbanisation and pollution have all taken their toll on biodiversity. In many cases, this damage can be reversed if traditional agricultural and forestry practices are employed, and sufficient water of suitable quality is available. Links between natural areas and habitats are also important as they allow species to colonise across the landscape, ensuring healthy interbreeding populations. The future of biodiversity is therefore in our hands: we have the knowledge to restore it wherever the will exists.
Background information
In 1992, the UK government signed the Convention on Biological Diversity, at the "Earth Summit" held in Rio de Janeiro. The convention requires signatories to ‘develop national strategies…for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity…’.
This has been translated into targets for Hampshire and published in the Hampshire Biodiversity Action Plan so that individual organisations can work together to ensure that there is positive conservation benefit in the wider countryside.
Did you know that the river Loddon has its very own Loddon Catchment Biodiversity Strategy? This has been produced by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, with funding from the Environment Agency, and collates information on habitats, species, designated sites and areas under positive land management. A copy can be downloaded by clicking here.
Living Landscapes is Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council's strategy for integrating the conservation and enhancement of biodiversity and the landscape, along with compatible forms of recreation, into its work programmes. It comprises a long-term strategic framework and a five-year plan of action, as well as relevant background information about the borough and its natural features.
A copy can be downloaded at http://www.basingstoke.gov.uk/regeneration/environment/
