A new online Atlas of freshwater biodiversity
that presents spatial information and species distribution patterns was
launched on 29 January 2014 at the landmark
Water Lives symposium.
The symposium (conference) brought together the
European Union policy makers and freshwater scientists. Freshwater that is
quite important for diverse habitats covers only 1 percent of total earth’s surface and is a home for about 35
percent of all vertebrate species. A vertebrate is an animal that has an
internal backbone and a skeleton that is made of bones and it also include
humans. Some other vertebrate species are fish,
amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals, primates, rodents and marsupials.
Studies show that the freshwater life on
earth is declining at an alarming rate as it is faster than any other component
of global diversity. At present the demand of the policy is the protection of
freshwater from the energy, food and sanitation sectors. At present scenario is
to frame a policy that integrates of freshwater life and the ecosystem services
it provides. The policy calls-in with real and pressing demands on freshwater
resources from the energy food and sanitation sectors. The newly launched
online atlas is a response from freshwater scientists to key geographical
information and spatial freshwater biodiversity across different scales.
The online Atlas
adopts a book-like structure allowing easy browsing through its four thematic chapters
• Patterns of freshwater biodiversity
• Freshwater resources and ecosystems
• Pressures on freshwater systems
• Conservation and management
Atlas is an output of BioFresh (European
Union funded project) that is putting together the scattered pieces of
information about life in rivers and lakes. This will help in managing and
protecting the freshwater for generations to come. Biodiversity of Freshwater
Ecosystems: Status, Trends, Pressures, and Conservation Priorities. It is
funded by the European Union under the 7th Framework Programme with Theme
Environment including Climate Change. The Atlas has been edited by a pan-European group of freshwater science and conservation
experts from 12 research institutes. It is supported by key international
organsiation, which are active in the field of freshwater biodiversity research
and conservation.
Name of some of
the partners are:
• GEO Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO
BON)
• The International Union for Conservation of
Nature (IUCN)
• The Global Water System Project (GWSP)
• Conservation International (CI)
• Wetlands International
• The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
• The World Wildlife Fund (WWF)