New Deal for Nature: Paying the Emperor to Fence the Wind

http://www.counterpunch.org/2020/02/24/new-deal-for-nature-paying-the-emperor-to-fence-the-wind/
Date Written:  2020-02-24
Publisher:  CounterPunch
Year Published:  2020
Resource Type:  Article
Cx Number:  CX24057

The latest idea to be heavily promoted by big conservation NGOs is doubling the world's so-called "Protected Areas" (PAs) so that they cover thirty percent of the globe's lands and oceans. This is now their main rallying cry and response to two of the world's biggest problems -- climate chaos and loss of biodiversity. It sounds good: It's easy to grasp and has numbers that are supposed to be measurable, and advertisers do love numbers. What better answer to climate change and biodiversity loss than to ban human "interference" over huge areas? If, that is, you think "everybody" is guilty of causing both crises and that everything's solved by keeping them away. The idea's been around for years, but now governments and industries are promoting it to the tune of billions of dollars, so it'll be difficult to oppose. But it's actually dangerous nonsense which would have exactly the reverse effect to what we're told, and if we want to save our world, it must be stopped.