Destruction of Nature, Unsustainable Agriculture to Blame for Pandemics - WWF Report

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th June, 2020) Humanity's destruction of nature is the main reason behind pandemics and zoonotic diseases infecting humans, a stark report from the United Nations and the World Wildlife Fund published on Wednesday said.

The report urged the advanced economies to lead the charge in keeping the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic green and sustainable.

In addition to the illegal wildlife trade and consumption of a wide variety of animals, which is the direct culprit of the pandemic, the report says that unsustainable farming practices, wholesale destruction of natural habitat and a "broken relationship with nature" are to blame.

"We must urgently recognize the links between the destruction of nature and human health, or we will soon see the next pandemic. We must curb the high-risk trade and consumption of wildlife, halt deforestation and land conversion as well as manage food production sustainably. All these actions will help prevent the spillover of pathogens to humans, and also address other global risks to our society like biodiversity loss and climate change," Marco Lambertini, director general of WWF International, said in the prelude to the report, adding that we must work with nature, not against it.

The report detailed how COVID-19, SARS, MERS, AIDS, ebola, zika virus among others crossed the human-wild animal barrier through a variety of methods based on human activity.

The report describes the current moment as an opportunity to turn around many behaviors that are both detrimental to nature and human well-being in the long run.

WWF called for a concerted effort from leaders to build incentives to preserve nature and allow it to thrive, rather than to rely on charitable actions from multinational corporations.

The organization pointed to its initiative called "New Deal for Nature and People" which lays out a roadmap to building a civilization that is symbiotic with the natural world.

"In the midst of this tragedy there is an opportunity to heal our relationship with nature and mitigate risks of future pandemics but a better future starts with the decisions governments, companies and people around the world take today. World leaders must take urgent action to transform our relationship with the natural world. We need a New Deal for Nature and People that sets nature on the path to recovery by 2030 and safeguards human health and livelihoods in the long-term," Lambertini said.

Althought the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns resulted in a sizable drop in harmful industrial emissions, many experts fear the eventual fallout will be more damaging as economies try to make up for lost business.