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Soto-Navarro C, Ravilious C, Arnell A, de Lamo X, Harfoot M, Hill SLL, Wearn OR, Santoro M, Bouvet A, Mermoz S, Le Toan T, Xia J, Liu S, Yuan W, Spawn SA, Gibbs HK, Ferrier S, Harwood T, Alkemade R, Schipper AM, Schmidt-Traub G, Strassburg B, Miles L, Burgess ND, Kapos V. Mapping co-benefits for carbon storage and biodiversity to inform conservation policy and action. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20190128. [PMID: 31983334 PMCID: PMC7017768 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Integrated high-resolution maps of carbon stocks and biodiversity that identify areas of potential co-benefits for climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation can help facilitate the implementation of global climate and biodiversity commitments at local levels. However, the multi-dimensional nature of biodiversity presents a major challenge for understanding, mapping and communicating where and how biodiversity benefits coincide with climate benefits. A new integrated approach to biodiversity is therefore needed. Here, we (a) present a new high-resolution map of global above- and below-ground carbon stored in biomass and soil, (b) quantify biodiversity values using two complementary indices (BIp and BIr) representing proactive and reactive approaches to conservation, and (c) examine patterns of carbon-biodiversity overlap by identifying 'hotspots' (20% highest values for both aspects). Our indices integrate local diversity and ecosystem intactness, as well as regional ecosystem intactness across the broader area supporting a similar natural assemblage of species to the location of interest. The western Amazon Basin, Central Africa and Southeast Asia capture the last strongholds of highest local biodiversity and ecosystem intactness worldwide, while the last refuges for unique biological communities whose habitats have been greatly reduced are mostly found in the tropical Andes and central Sundaland. There is 38 and 5% overlap in carbon and biodiversity hotspots, for proactive and reactive conservation, respectively. Alarmingly, only around 12 and 21% of these proactive and reactive hotspot areas, respectively, are formally protected. This highlights that a coupled approach is urgently needed to help achieve both climate and biodiversity global targets. This would involve (1) restoring and conserving unprotected, degraded ecosystems, particularly in the Neotropics and Indomalaya, and (2) retaining the remaining strongholds of intactness. This article is part of the theme issue 'Climate change and ecosystems: threats, opportunities and solutions'.
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Affiliation(s)
- C. Soto-Navarro
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
- Luc Hoffmann Institute, Rue Mauverney 28, 1196 Gland, Switzerland
| | - C. Ravilious
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
| | - A. Arnell
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
| | - X. de Lamo
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
| | - M. Harfoot
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
| | - S. L. L. Hill
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
- Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
| | - O. R. Wearn
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
| | - M. Santoro
- Gamma Remote Sensing, Worbstrasse 225, 3073 Gümligen, Switzerland
| | - A. Bouvet
- CESBIO, Edouard Belin, 31401 Toulouse, France
| | - S. Mermoz
- GlobEO, Avenue Saint-Exupery, 31400 Toulouse, France
| | - T. Le Toan
- CESBIO, Edouard Belin, 31401 Toulouse, France
| | - J. Xia
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Water Resources and Environment, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin 300387, People's Republic of China
| | - S. Liu
- National Engineering Laboratory for Applied Technology of Forestry and Ecology in Southern China, College of Biological Science and Technology, Central South University of Forest and Technology, Changsha 410004, People's Republic of China
| | - W. Yuan
- State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, People's Republic of China
- State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China
| | - S. A. Spawn
- Department of Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- Centre for Sustainability and the Global Environment, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - H. K. Gibbs
- Department of Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- Centre for Sustainability and the Global Environment, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - S. Ferrier
- CSIRO, GPO BOX 1700, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - T. Harwood
- CSIRO, GPO BOX 1700, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - R. Alkemade
- PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, PO Box 30314, 2500 GH The Hague, The Netherlands
| | - A. M. Schipper
- PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, PO Box 30314, 2500 GH The Hague, The Netherlands
- Department of Environmental Science, Radboud University, PO Box 9010, 6500 GL Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - G. Schmidt-Traub
- UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, 75009 Paris, France
| | - B. Strassburg
- International Institute for Sustainability (IIS), CEP: 22460-320, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - L. Miles
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
| | - N. D. Burgess
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
- Centre for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, The Natural History Museum, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - V. Kapos
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
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