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["Lynda" <lurine AT softcom.net>]

Comprehensive assessment of world's ecosystems released; be very afraid

The largest and most comprehensive assessment of the world's
ecosystems ever undertaken was released today, and the results
constitute a "stark warning" that "the ability of the planet's
ecosystems to sustain future generations can no longer be taken for
granted," according to the 45-member board of the Millennium
Ecosystem Assessment. The study was written by 1,360 experts from 95
countries, including government officials, scientists, members of
civil-society groups and indigenous tribes, and industry
representatives, under the rubric of the U.N. Environment Program,
using widely agreed-upon scientific evidence. It warns of rapid
decline in biodiversity and freshwater availability, and says the
likelihood of disease outbreaks (a la SARS), "dead zones" in coastal
waters, and destructive climate shifts will rise sharply in the
coming 50 years. It recommends means of slowing some of the damage --
developing markets for freshwater, improving forestry practices,
removing some agricultural subsidies -- but stresses that none of
those means are yet being applied.

straight to the source: The Philadelphia Inquirer, Seth Borenstein, 30 Mar
2005
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=4676>

straight to the source: Scripps Howard News Service, Joan Lowy, 29 Mar 2005
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=4678>

straight to the source: The Washington Post, Shankar Vedantam, 30 Mar 2005
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=4679>

straight to the source: Planet Ark, Reuters, Alister Doyle, 30 Mar 2005
<http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=4680>