The mitigation of biological damage by economic and physical development is imperative as a method of conservation. As a biology major at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, I am well versed in the concepts of biodiversity and ecology. Through this experience, I have become familiar with the concept of a biodiversity index. This index is easily calculable, simply dividing the number of species in a set area by the number of individuals within that area. A simple calculation before a project is undertaken, followed by remediation of biodiversity to match or surpass this index after completion would be an easy regulation to enforce. Some, however, would rather tie biodiversity to an economic value, gaining conservation credits that they can then sell to biodiversity offsetting brokers. Not only is this method needlessly elaborate, it ultimately yields poor results and, as economical ecologist Clive L. Splash (2015) commented, "requires that society start bulldozing biodiversity"(p. 544). Tying biodiversity offsetting to a simple biodiversity index is not only a simpler, effective method of compensating for environmental damage to diversity, but vital if we truly seek to reverse the damage industry has done to our environment.
Spash, C. L. (2015). Bulldozing biodiversity: The economics of offsets and trading-in Nature. Biological Conservation, 192, 541–551. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2015.07.037
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