15 Reasons Why Biodiversity Is Important?

Biodiversity is the difference between living beings and living organisms at any given place. Each place has different species of plants, animals, and other organisms present. Biodiversity gives us many resources like food, clothing, shelter, and the article will share more reasons why biodiversity is important to everyone.

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15 Benefits Of Biodiversity For The Ecosystem

Biodiversity keeps the plant alive because if one type of plant dies then the other plants can survive and continue to provide us with oxygen. Biodiversity also keeps the animals alive because they depend on different types of food for survival from one another.

List down below are fifteen benefits of biodiversity:

1. Biodiversity Helps Us Find New Medicines

Do you know what penicillin is? It’s an antibiotic that comes from a type of fungus called Penicillium chrysogenum and it has saved many lives so far since its discovery in 1928. Scientists continue to investigate many organisms living in nature to find a new medicine.

If biodiversity did not exist, we would have a hard time finding medication to use against or for many illnesses. One-third of all drugs used in human health today were originally derived from plants and animals.

2. Biodiversity Helps Us Fight Against Climate Change

One of the biggest problems we face today is climate change and we cannot do much about it except reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. We all know that diverse ecosystems play a major role in keeping the global carbon cycle stable and functional. So, if we keep biodiversity intact then we might be able to combat some of the worst effects of climate change for future generations.

3. Biodiversity Is Important For Agriculture And Food Security

We all depend on agriculture as our primary source of food but most agricultural resources are now becoming polluted with chemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers which can kill non-target organisms as well. If biodiversity is reduced then it will harm our food security. Biodiversity helps us produce more food and protect against diseases that attack higher plants or animals that are harmful to agriculture.

4. Biodiversity Helps Us Fight Diseases And Parasites

Most people do not realize the importance of biodiversity in keeping ecosystems healthy, stable, and functional. Many plants, animals, birds, insects, etc., play an important role in controlling other organisms like disease-causing parasites by feeding on them directly or indirectly.

If biodiversity reduces then there will be an imbalance between species which can cause serious problems for the ecosystem as well as humans who depend on these ecosystems to survive.

5. Biodiversity Keeps Our Atmosphere Stable

The most important factor that regulates our climate is the greenhouse gas effect. We all know that GHG emissions are directly influenced by biological diversity which plays an important role in regulating carbon sequestration and other factors like air pollution, ozone depletion, etc. This helps us to maintain healthy ecosystems which provide better living conditions for humans as well as other organisms present.

So, without biodiversity, our atmosphere will be unstable and can cause serious consequences.

6. Biodiversity Helps Us Fight Against Natural Disasters

We all remember the tsunami of 2004 where thousands of people lost their lives to natural disasters. We cannot fight against nature but we should not interfere with it too much because if we do then everything will go out of control and even the smallest changes can cause serious problems for humans living on this planet.

Biodiversity is important because it helps us to prepare against natural disasters like floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, etc.

7. Biodiversity Helps Us To Fight Global Warming

Global warming is an important factor that threatens the survival of many species and biodiversity is one of the major factors that play a role in combating global warming by reducing GHG emissions. We all know that diverse biomes are better able to handle climate variability than monotypic ones so if we reduce biodiversity then our ability to deal with environmental change will also reduce considerably.

8. Biodiversity Keeps Our Ecosystem Functional

The most important role played by biological diversity in keeping ecosystems functional is nutrient cycling. It is a process that helps recycle nutrients into the system to keep it functional and healthy. The biological diversity helps in controlling nutrient availability which keeps the ecosystem’s functions going. So, without biodiversity, our ecosystems will not be able to function properly.

9. Biodiversity Helps Us To Fight Against Food Shortage

We all know that diverse ecosystems can produce more food than monotypic ones as different organisms play an important role in plant pollination and seed dispersal which increases agricultural activities and thus brings bonus outputs for humans as well as other organisms living on this planet.

If we reduce biodiversity then we will face serious food shortage problems caused by lower yields and production rates causing widespread famine and malnutrition leading to deaths every year and hunger and malnutrition are one of the biggest problems in the world.

10. Biodiversity Helps Us To Purify Water

One of the most important things on this planet is water. We need clean drinking water to survive and it’s not something we can “live without”. That’s why some plants are used for filtering dirty or polluted water so that it is safe to drink (like grasses like bamboo).

11. Biodiversity Helps Us Economically By Providing Drugs, Materials, And Income

A lot of organisms provide us with many materials and drugs that are used by humans to cure diseases or they are simply very helpful in our day-to-day life. We all know about various trees, which not only give us food but also provide us with medicines to treat various diseases.

Similarly, a lot of other organisms play an important role in our economy by providing us with building materials like timber and paper as well as oils from plants and animals which are used as fuel for different purposes.

So, if we want the economy to flourish then biodiversity must flourish as well because it is directly linked with our economic growth.

12. Biodiversity Provides Us With Energy

Do you know how most electronic devices are powered? That’s right, electricity! Biodiversity provides us with so many different types of renewable energy sources like biomass and hydropower that many countries rely on for power.

13. Biodiversity Promotes A Healthy And Active Lifestyle

If biodiversity is reduced then our ability to enjoy different things will get reduced considerably like wildflowers, butterflies, etc., Also, if we lose out on ecological services that are provided by wildlife then it can cause serious problems for us causing lifestyle diseases like obesity, cardiovascular diseases, etc.

14. Biodiversity Provides Clothing

Ever heard of a “cashmere”? No? Well, that is because their wool is very valuable and used to make high-quality clothing like sweaters! This is just one example among many others that show how biodiversity is the reason why we have access to various types of clothing.

15. Biodiversity Is Important For Our Cultural And Spiritual Growth

Biological diversity is important for our cultural and spiritual growth because not all organisms are used by humans for direct benefit but some of them play an important role in our religious ceremonies. So reducing biodiversity can affect religious practices which might harm spirituality leading to social unrest across the world.

The Importance Of Biodiversity– Conclusion

From this article, you now know why biodiversity is important for us but several factors are driving biological diversity reduction across the world including habitat fragmentation, deforestation, pollution, etc.

The main cause of increasing species extinction rates is human activity which has left several species on verge of extinction so we need to take drastic steps at present to ensure the terrestrial and marine wildlife doesn’t end up becoming extinct.

References

Ayesha Akhtar