Biodiversity - Terra's Liege

Biopiracy: The Unethical Quest To Own Bioresources

April 30, 2022 Cindy Wanjiku 13 Comments

WHAT IS BIOPIRACY?

Indigenous communities live closely with nature and over the years, knowledge on genetic resources has been passed on from generation to generation which is known as indigenous or traditional knowledge. This includes skills and practices that are developed within a community often forming part of its spiritual and/or cultural identity. Traditional knowledge can be found in agricultural, technical, ecological, scientific, and medicinal knowledge.

It has been common practice for researchers to rely on indigenous knowledge on properties of plants, animals, microbes, and chemical compounds in search of new bioresources. Researchers will collect these bioresources and eventually confirm their effectiveness and potential use. However, when this is done without consent and excludes local communities from commercial profit, it becomes biopiracy.

Biopiracy is the act of utilizing traditional or indigenous knowledge of natural resources for commercial gain without recognizing or compensating the holders of the information or getting their consent. Biopiracy occurs in the pharmaceutical, agricultural and industrial sectors. It can be patent-based, non-patent or simply misappropriations.

Patent-based biopiracy involves the patenting of inventions that are based on bioresources and/or traditional knowledge. Those involved will extract both resources and information without any official authorization and lock out the locals from any profits earned from the commercialization of the bioresources. An example of this is the patenting of a neem tree seed extract in an antifungal spray by W.R Grace, a U.S. multinational corporation in 1994. Fortunately, after backlash from India, this patent was overturned in 2000 by the Environmental Protection Organization as it was determined to be neither new nor inventive.

Non-patent biopiracy is quite like patent-based with the only exception being the form of intellectual property (IP) control used. This IP control can be achieved through plant variety protection (PVP) or trademarks. Misappropriations on the other hand, involve unauthorized extraction of bioresources for research and development without adequate benefit sharing.

An example of misappropriation is the harvesting of microorganisms from Kenya’s Lake Bogoria by a British University researcher in 1992 who later sold them to companies in the Netherlands and US. It was only when the companies were sued that the people of Endorois were paid less than one percent of royalties by some of these companies.

Biopiracy does not always involve foreign researchers or multinational corporations unethically benefiting from traditional knowledge and bioresources. In some cases, governments may benefit from bioresources of its people and fail to adequately share the benefits from their commercial use. An example of this is the patenting and subsequent licensing of hoodia’s (a cactus utilized by the San of South Africa to suppress hunger and thirst during long hunting trips) appetite-suppressing derivative by the South African Council of Scientific and Industrial Research to Phytopharm that later sold the rights to license the drug as an obesity cure to Pfizer. It was only after legal action was taken that an agreement was made to pay any future royalties to the San.

BIOPIRACY AND COLONIALISM

Biopiracy is deeply entrenched in colonialism. Historically, resources from colonized countries would be forcibly acquired and then imported. Similarly, biopiracy is often instigated by foreign entities in developing countries at the expense of marginalized communities. Therefore, wealthy developed nations benefit from the resources of poorer developing nations.

WHAT IS BEING DONE ABOUT IT?

BIOPROSPECTING

Due to the negative connotation of biopiracy many researchers attempt to be on the right side of the law and practice bioprospecting. Bioprospecting is the exploration for products from natural resources that can be developed further for commercial use and benefits the society. Usually, they attempt to do it in a legal and inclusive manner.

Ideally, bioprospecting should include ethical consideration of and consent from the indigenous community, it should further include benefit sharing and material transfer agreements and compensation of the community as well as facilitate conservation efforts from the earnings.

LEGAL AND POLICY FRAMEWORKS

International legal and policy frameworks exist to prevent biopiracy. However, these laws tend to contradict each other. The UN Convention on Biological Diversity recognizes that member countries that have ratified it have sovereignty over their genetic resources, however, the Trade related Intellectual Property Rights agreement (TRIPS) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) does not.

This inconsistency calls for the amendment of regional and national laws if African countries are to effectively protect their bioresources. In Africa, the African Union (formerly Organization of African Unity) adopted the African Model Legislation in 2000. This model law aims to protect the rights of local communities, farmers, and breeders, and regulate access to biological resources. This model law also has provisions for benefit sharing of genetic resources and plant breeder’s rights.

In Kenya, Article 69(1) of the Constitution of Kenya recognizes the State’s role in ensuring sustainable exploitation, utilization, management and conservation of the environment and natural resources. Article 69(1) also recognizes the need for equitable sharing of accruing benefit from commercialization of natural resources. The Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI) also established a unit known as the Traditional Knowledge (TK) and Genetic Resources (GR) unit (TK & GR – UNIT) in 2009 whose focus is to develop a TK database for Kenya and create awareness among local communities on the importance of TK and GR.

CONCLUSION

The controversies surrounding biopiracy are tangible and must not be ignored. However, the matter is not insurmountable, especially with legal frameworks in place to protect indigenous knowledge. My hope is in the future indigenous communities can get the recognition and compensation they so rightly deserve.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this, let us know in the comment section.

Biodiversity

Human-fueled Threats to Marine Life

September 23, 2021 Cindy Wanjiku 5 Comments

70% of the Earth’s surface is covered by ocean and is home to 700,000-1,000,000 species, including my personal favorites, dolphins and orcas. It offers a wide array of habitats for marine creatures ranging from sea grass, mangroves, coral reefs and the water column. Unfortunately, our beautiful oceans are used as a dump site with 80% of pollution that ends up in the ocean coming from land-based activities. Effluent from factories and industries are major sources of pollution in rivers, a main conduit of pollution that winds up in oceans.

Pollution and other human activities are posing a serious threat to the state of the ocean and its corresponding marine life. Here are the major threats:

Climate Change

Climate change is inarguably the worst threat to marine life. Global warming is causing changes to the ocean chemistry and this in turn will affect marine species that depend on the stability of the ocean. One of these changes includes warming of the ocean water which reduces the ability of oxygen to dissolve into the sea water leading to diminished oxygen levels in the ocean for marine life. In addition, coral reefs are sensitive to warming oceans; the warm temperatures lead to coral bleaching and eventually death.

Coral bleaching occurs when colourful, microscopic algae called zooxanthellae is expelled by corals due to warming waters. The zooxanthellae live in the coral and the two have a mutually beneficial relationship; they depend on each other for survival. Once the algae are expelled the coral fades (turns white) and appears to be bleached. Without the algae the coral will eventually die. The Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest reef is almost halfway bleached.

Secondly, ocean acidification caused by increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere dissolving in the ocean leads to the eroding of shells of animals such as lobster, oysters, and shrimp.

Thirdly, climate change is also causing rising sea level which affects the habitat of many marine species.

Over-fishing

Fishing is not inherently bad; it only becomes an issue when we catch more fish than can be replenished naturally. This leads to overfishing. 31% of fish stocks are already depleted (overfished) according to FAO.

The main fishing gear used for commercial fishing is drift netting and trawling which has contributed to another problem, by-catch. By-catch is the unintentional catching of sea creatures when fishing for a different species (fish and shellfish). Examples of marine animals that get entangled in the gear are whales, dolphins, turtles, seals, sharks, and seabirds. In fact, a significant number of marine creatures are killed unintentionally by commercial fisheries.

Plastic waste

There are more than five trillion pieces of plastic swimming in our oceans. All the plastic bottles, straws, bags, and packaging material we have ever used wind up in oceans. It is estimated that 8 million tonnes of plastic are discarded into our oceans each year. The danger of all this plastic in our oceans is that it can result in choking and entangling of sea creatures. In addition, the plastic breaks down into micro-plastics that sea creatures mistake for food. This is bad because large amounts of plastic are found in the bellies of whales, and tiny fish feed on micro-plastics which can lead to biomagnification. Biomagnification is a condition in which compounds (pollutant) accumulate in the tissue of an organism as it travels through the food chain.

Agriculture and Sewage discharge

When nutrients are discharged into oceans in excessive amounts as sewage, fertilizers, or nitrogen oxides from burning fossil fuels, this can lead to eutrophication. Eutrophication is the excessive growth of marine plants such as algae which causes an algal bloom. This limits the sunlight that will penetrate into the water and reduces the availability of oxygen. When oxygen levels plummet it affects marine creatures, coral reefs and other vital habitats. Sewage tends to be the main source of nutrients in cities and agriculture dominates in rural areas.

Coastal development

Coastal development is change caused by human activities on an area of land adjacent to the coastline. It leads to the destruction of natural land and the fragmentation of coastal habitats. This development includes building structures that are on or near the coast either for protection, business, residential, communication or recreation. Impacts resulting from development are dredging and coral/sand mining for construction material or increased runoff of sediment and pollutants. Currently, 2.4 billion people live within 100km of the coast, putting undue pressure on coastal ecosystems.

Ocean noise

Ocean noise is sound generated by human activity that can obscure marine animals from detecting natural sounds in the ocean. Sources of ocean noise are ships, military sonar and seismic exploration for oil and gas. This is harmful to marine animals such as whales and dolphins because it can interfere with their communication channels. The noise can also prevent other animals from meeting a mate, detecting predators, and finding food.

Deep-sea mining

Deep-sea mining is a potential threat to marine animals. It is the process of retrieving mineral deposits from the deep sea. The depletion of terrestrial deposits of minerals is stimulating interest in deep sea mining. However, they are still in the exploration stage of deep sea mining to assess the size of mineral deposits.

Solutions

The establishment of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)–to protect and conserve ecologically and biologically significant marine areas by regulating human activities.

On the same note Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) should be established. These are marine conservation areas managed by the local coastal community. In fact when MPAs and LMMAs are merged, it can increase the conservation effort and enhance interconnectivity between the two which will result in a widespread and better managed conservation area.

Banning of destructive fishing methods such as trawling.

Regulations on overfishing and animals caught as by-catch should be followed and hefty penalties put in place to any organizations that do not adhere to them.

Use eco-friendly and reusable products and avoid single use plastic such as plastic straws, bottles and bags.

Support local marine conservation organizations i.e Local Ocean Trust – Watamu

Conclusion

Clearly, the state of our oceans is critical and a lot needs to be done to conserve them.

Biodiversity

African wildlife is in serious trouble!

May 12, 2021 Cindy Wanjiku 17 Comments

It’s no secret that Africa is a beautiful continent; teeming with wildlife and breathtaking landscapes. Africa harbors a diverse array of animals that cut across the animal kingdom including my personal favorites elephants and cheetahs. However, many species are at the brink of extinction and the main threat lies in human activities.

In this article, I will look at the threats facing African wildlife.

Habitat loss

Habitat loss is the greatest threat to wildlife. It affects the genetic diversity, species abundance, richness and distribution of the animals. Africa’s population is booming with an expected population of over 1.8 Billion by 2035. The surge is pushing people into animal territory in search of space and resources. Forests, savannas, swamps and other habitats are being cleared for agriculture, natural resource exploration and industrial developments. In addition, about 70% of the sub-Saharan Africa population rely on wood for fuel this is also accelerating deforestation. As a result of these human activities, large ecosystems are being broken down into fragments. Fragmented habitats are too small to support wildlife making it difficult for the animals to find food and breed which in turn has increased competition between different species. Fragmentation also disrupts vital wildlife migration corridors that are essential for keystone animals like elephants.

Evidently, the African wild dog population has plummeted to about 5000 individuals and is now the second most endangered carnivore after the Ethiopian wolf and one of the main reasons is habitat loss.

Poaching and hunting for animal parts

Illegal wildlife trafficking is said to be the 4^th most lucrative illicit commerce globally. Poaching is an environmental crime that targets – more often than not – endangered or vulnerable species for animal parts. Animals at risk of poaching are elephants for ivory, rhinos for their horn, pangolins for their scales and lions for their bones. It is worth noting pangolin scales and rhino horn are both made of keratin; the material that makes up hair and nails.

Not all wildlife trade is illegal, certain wild plants and animals are sold as food, pets, medicine and ornamentals. However, wildlife trade becomes a crisis when it is done unsustainably. As seen in Vietnam, a recent myth states that rhino horn can cure cancer which has led to intense poaching in South Africa.

Sadly, poaching is difficult to contain because the poachers, often local people, are the ones apprehended whereas kingpins are left at large with the potential to strike again.

Subsistence and Commercial hunting

In addition to poaching, many hunters target wild animals for consumption (bush meat) either for subsistence or commercial purposes. Animals hunted as bush meat include primates, antelopes, snakes, monitor lizards and porcupines. The danger of consuming bush meat is the spread of zoonotic diseases among people. COVID-19, SARS and Ebola are examples of zoonotic diseases that are linked to the consumption of wild animals.

The bush meat trade is common in West and Central Africa for it is either legal or partly legal. Locals will turn to bush meat to supplement their diet when there is a decline in fish supply.

Due to the preservation of natural habitats, communities living close to National Parks are often economically handicapped due to lack of infrastructure and low employment opportunities. These situations push them to hunt as a means to fend for their families. Moreover, in Zambia, people living in urban areas consume bush meat in order to stay connected to their culture thus driving up demand for bush meat.

Despite its perceived threat to wildlife there are limited funds going into the research of the bush meat trade, therefore, it is difficult to assess the scale and impact on wildlife populations.

Human-wildlife conflict

Human-wildlife conflict occurs when human and wildlife needs and behaviour negatively impact on each other. Conflicts occur when wildlife damage crops, threaten, kill or injure people and domestic animals. The major causes of human-wildlife conflicts are agricultural expansion, human settlement, livestock overgrazing, and deforestation. These often lead to reduction in available natural resources hence the animals seek alternative sources of prey or food. Mitigation methods for these conflicts may lead to the loss of wildlife due to the use of traps or live fencing that may injure or kill the wild animals.

Trophy hunting

Trophy hunting refers to hunting of animals not for food or sustenance but for their body parts. In trophy hunting, animals are hunted, killed and their heads and hide put on display as trophies in the homes of hunters. It is estimated that more than 125,000 animals are killed each year in trophy hunting. The most coveted animals to hunt are the Big 5 which are some of the most endangered animals.

Trophy hunting occurs in 13 countries across Africa – South Africa, Tanzania and Namibia – to name a few. Fortunately, Kenya has had a national ban on trophy hunting since 1977.

Captive bred hunting is a grotesque form of trophy hunting. It involves breeding animals, mainly lions, specifically to be shot and stuffed. The animals are usually accustomed to humans so this gives the hunter an unfair advantage. This form of trophy hunting is practiced in South Africa. Nonetheless, it has been reported that South Africa intends to end the captive lion breeding industry. Hopefully this will have a positive impact on conservation.

Although trophy hunts cost tens of thousands, an elephant hunt can cost anywhere from USD$11,000-70,000, there is little evidence to support that the money goes to developing communities or conservation efforts.

Alas, according to research some private land conservation owners argue that trophy hunting is a major source of income and they would not be able to sustain their business on ecotourism alone, if there was a trophy ban. In the event of a ban some would probably have to remove all wildlife from their land and convert it into a livestock farm.

What can be done?

Currently, the future seems bleak for African wildlife, however; there are measures that can be taken to mitigate the situation.

Initiate community outreach programs to educate locals about the danger of bush meat and ways to avoid human wildlife conflict.
Create employment opportunities for local people in conservation as scouts and rangers.
Provide alternatives to fuel wood such as bamboo charcoal.
Do not support the trophy hunting industry or purchase any animal products from endangered wildlife.

Conclusion

African wildlife is in serious trouble and drastic measures need to be taken to conserve it. If not many of these precious animals may become extinct in our lifetime.

Sources

https://www.awf.org/threats

https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/illegal-wildlife-trade

Biodiversity

NO POLLINATORS, NO FOOD! The Importance of Pollinators in our Lives.

January 16, 2021 Cindy Wanjiku 19 Comments

Your evening meal would look a lot different if there were no pollinators. About 75% of crops that produce fruits and vegetables depend on pollinators for food production. Unfortunately, their numbers are declining due to various human activities. In this article we shall explore the importance of pollinators, their threats and what you can do at home to save them!

WHAT ARE POLLINATORS?

Pollinators are insects, birds or mammals that transfer pollen from one flower to another. This results in fertilization that leads to the production of seeds and fruits! There are two types of pollinators: vertebrates (birds, bats and small mammals) and invertebrates (bees, butterflies, beetles, moths, wasps and flies). These account for around 200,000 different species of pollinators.

Pollen and nectar are the main source of food for pollinators. Flowers bloom at different times of the day depending on the pollinators they intend to attract. Day blooming flowers are often brightly coloured to attract bees and birds while night blooming flowers are pale and produce sweet scents to attract moths and bats. These pollinators are not only beneficial to plants but animals as well.

IMPORTANCE OF POLLINATORS

They play a vital role in the production of healthy crops that provide food, medicine, oils and fibres. The crops include garlic, beans, kale, apples, vanilla, coffee, avocado, chocolate, onions, potatoes, almonds, pumpkin, peaches etc. Even that shot of tequila would not exist had it not been for pollinators.
They take part in ecosystem regulation and provide a habitat and source of food for wild animals. 90% of wild flowering plants require pollinators to survive. The other 10% are pollinated through wind or water.
They contribute to higher crop yield in farmlands.
They are also fundamental in the maturation of savannah, tropical and temperate forests.

THREATS FACED BY POLLINATORS

Urbanization and commercial agriculture have led to fragmentation and destruction of natural landscapes that have reduced the habitat of wild species. This leaves pollinators with limited food and water sources as well as fewer nesting sites.

Changes in agricultural practices and the use of broad-spectrum pesticides can disrupt or destroy established pollinator habitats.

Climate change has altered the abundance, range and seasonal activities of some pollinators in the wild. It brings about extreme events such as high temperatures, floods, droughts and changes to flowering time that impede pollination.

Invasive species can diminish the quality of a pollinator habitat by competing with native plants or animals for resources and attract pollinators away from native plants.

Air pollution can prove a challenge for pollinators that rely on scent trails to find flowers.

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THERE WERE NO POLLINATORS?

In rural China there’s a province called Sichuan – a major fruit producer that used enormous amounts of pesticides in their farmlands, which caused the localized extinction of bee species. For pollination to occur the farmers are left to their own devices. They are required to climb trees with a container of apple pollen in hand and using specialized design brushes with long handles, manually transfer pollen to the receptive apple flowers. (Yikes!)

SO WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT? ESTABLISH A HEALTHY POLLINATOR HABITAT IN YOUR HOMES!

How you can do this:

Plant a variety of flowers of different colours and shapes to attract different pollinators.

Plant clumps of vegetation as opposed to single plants.

Go for native plants rather than exotic because native plants are better suited to the soil and climate in your region.

Avoid the use of pesticides and instead practice Integrated Pest Management techniques.

Select plants that flower at different times of the year so as to provide nectar and pollen sources through different seasons of the year.

Pollinators need water too; provide water for them in small dishes, a birdbath and bowls.

The best bird bath you can buy - Business Insider — **A birdbath** (https://www.businessinsider.com/best-bird-bath?IR=T)

CONCLUSION

It is absolutely imperative that we conserve pollinators as food demands increase. A decline in pollinators may impact the growth of vitamin rich fruits and vegetable and bring about malnutrition and other deadly diseases.

In the post Climate change and Food Security, we asked you, our readers, to suggest any topic in the comment section that you would like us to write about and we chose the topic on pollinators suggested by Douglas. Hope you enjoyed this article. We plan to write on more of the suggested topics so stay tuned. 🙂

Don’t forget to like, share, comment and follow. 🙂

Sources

https://www.museumoftheearth.org/bees/agriculture#gsc.tab=0

https://projectdragonfly.miamioh.edu/great-pollinator-project/conservation/major-threats-to-pollinators/