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The FINANCIAL New science about the fate of freshwater ecosystems released today by the journal Sustainability, finds that only 17% of rivers globally are both free-flowing and within protected areas, leaving many of these highly-threatened systems – and the species that rely on them – at risk, WWF notes.
“Populations of freshwater species have already declined by 84% on average since 1970, with degradation of rivers a leading cause of this decline. As a critical food source for hundreds of millions of people, we need to reverse this trend” said Ian Harrison, Freshwater Specialist at Conservation International.
“While 17% of all free-flowing rivers are within protected areas, in most countries the level of protection for large rivers is far lower,” said Jeff Opperman, World Wildlife Fund s (WWF) global lead freshwater scientist, “and it’s these large rivers that are most crucial for supporting fisheries that support rural communities.”
Rivers and lakes are the most degraded ecosystems in the world. Can we save them?
We rely on fresh water for drinking, food, and sanitation, and they’re in trouble. But freshwater issues are becoming a higher priority for conservationists.
ByStefan Lovgren
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When Grand Canyon National Park was established a century ago, the Colorado River running through it was treated as an afterthought. In the decades following, states scrambled to squeeze every drop of water out of the Colorado for farming and drinking, with a cascade of huge dams constructed along its course.
Native fish like suckers and chubs, found nowhere else in the world, were replaced with invasive catfish and bass that were more attractive for anglers. In time, the mighty river that had once carved out one of America’s most iconic landscapes was reduced to a trickle, no longer able to fulfill its destiny of reaching the sea.