The Environmental Food Crisis

A central component in preventing loss of biodiversity and

ecosystem services, such as provisioning of water, from

expanding agricultural production is to limit the trade-off

between economic growth and biodiversity by stimulating

agricultural productivity and more efficient land use. Fur-

ther enhancement of agricultural productivity (‘closing the

yield gap’) is the key factor in reducing the need for land

and, consequently, the rate of biodiversity loss (CBD, 2008).

This option should be implemented carefully in order to

not cause additional undesired effects, such as emissions

of excess nutrients and pesticides and land degradation.

An increase in protected areas and change towards more

eco-agricultural cropping systems and sustainable meat

production could have immediate positive effects on both

biodiversity and water resource management, while increas-

ing revenues from tourism (CBD, 2008).

Loss of global biodiversity with unsustain-

able conventional expansion of cropland

Figure 26: Projected land use changes, 1700–2050.

(Source: IMAGE).