Can biodiversity create health and jobs

Bournemouth University professor Adrian Newton published research earlier in the week that proves restoring the ecological environment of an area can help the negative global biodiversity losses over the last few decades while also increasing ecosystem services and help the economy via new green jobs.

Services that can be increased by ecological improvements include better water quality and carbon storage which will benefit the life spans of animals and humans in the area.

Research for the paper was performed by an international team who worked from the University of Alcala in Span.

Lead author of the study from the University of Alcala Professor Jose M Rey Benayas who is also the President of the International Foundation for Ecosystem Restoration said that besides the benefits to biodiversity that can come from ecological restoration, the research also shows that the economy can benefit as well providing green employment opportunities. Benayas stated this may help influence policy makers to take on more restorative ecosystem projects.

This is the first study to show the effect of restoration actions towards benefiting both ecosystem services and biodiversity at the same time. Previously research has shown that pollination services can undermine the sustainability of ecosystems that have undergone ecological restoration but little has been studied about the effects of pollinator services that are restored along with the ecological environment.

The team also used the results of 89 restoration assessments that were previously carried out around the globe in various types of ecosystem types.

Results on average showed that restoration efforts increased ecosystem services by 25% and biodiversity by 44%. Benefits to both were correlated against each other.