MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th January, 2021) An international group of scientists has called on world leaders to act urgently to avoid an environmental catastrophe on Earth since the current perception of ecological threats is underestimated, a scientific report with assessments of the environmental situation, read.
Authors of the report prepared for the journal Frontiers in Conservation Science have warned, citing dozens of studies, that the future of the planet is "more dire and dangerous than is generally understood," noting that world leaders need a "cold shower" wake-up call when it comes to the current environmental conditions on Earth.
"The scale of the threats to the biosphere and all its lifeforms�including humanity�is in fact so great that it is difficult to grasp for even well-informed experts," the abstract to the report read.
Daniel Blumstein, professor at the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at the University of California and one of the authors of the assessment, told the CNN broadcaster that the talks about a potential risk to our civilization were not an exaggeration.
"Maybe people certainly recognize it, but they don't understand the urgency, or maybe they recognize it, but they don't want to take the individual sacrifice," the scientist said.
According to the scientists, over the past five decades, the world's wildlife populations have fallen by an average of 68 percent as a result of the huge growth in human consumption and climate change.
The scientists recall that in 2010, leaders of nearly 200 countries gathered in Japan and agreed on a list of biodiversity targets designed to save our planet, however, it is, therefore, no surprise that 10 years later, none of the biodiversity targets was met.
Summarizing preconditions of a "ghastly future of mass extinction" the scientists concluded that only a realistic appreciation of the colossal challenges facing the planet might allow the human civilization to hope for an optimistic future.
