How the Biodiversity Act 2002 Affects Conservation Efforts

How the Biodiversity Act 2002 Affects Conservation Efforts

Overview

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  • Source: Mcrobioz India

  • Date: 16 Mar,2024

One piece of Indian legislation that aims to preserve biological diversity in India is the Biological Diversity Act of 2002. This Act’s primary goals are to preserve biological diversity, use its components sustainably, and distribute benefits from the utilization of biological resources, knowledge, and technologies in a just and equitable manner. Biodiversity Act 2002 of India is an important piece of legislation with broad implications for conservation efforts. It was enacted to protect biological diversity, promote sustainable use of its components and ensure fair sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources.

The Act affects conservation efforts in several key ways:

Preserving Natural Habitats:

The Act enables the preservation of habitats, ecosystems and landscapes supporting biodiversity. This is done by establishing Biodiversity Heritage Sites which have both cultural and ecological significance.

Controls Over Biological Resources:

This Law also provides for access to bioresources as well as traditional knowledge associated with them so that they can be used without depleting such resources. Among its provisions is a requirement for prior authorization in relation to any commercial or research related activities on live organisms in the country.

Sustainable Use of Components:

Sustainable use implies using these resources in a manner that will enable their future generations to help meet their needs while simultaneously allowing resource users today to meet theirs without overexploiting such resources.

Benefit Sharing:

The Act guarantees that any gains derived from using and marketing genetic resources as well as associated traditional knowledge shall be fairly shared among local communities which have preserved and provided those resources. It is an encouragement for maintaining biodiversity and ensuring it is used sustainably.

Regulation of Access to Biological Resources:

Foreign individuals, companies, institutions have access controlled through permission requirement with benefit sharing agreements towards India’s biological resources, associated knowledge etc. This plays role in preventing biopiracy of Indian rich biodiversity including traditional knowledge.

Local Biodiversity Management:

In addition, the Act mandates the formation Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) at local levels including villages, urban wards etc., whose main function is to promote conservation, sustainable use, documentation etc. These committees are tasked with preparing People’s Biodiversity Registers (PBRs) which record the local diversity along side traditional knowledge in line with this provision.

National Biodiversity Authority (NBA):

At the same time establishment if NBA helped in creating a single centralized body responsible for managing our bio-resources such that conservation effort could align with national priorities and international commitments like Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

Awareness and Education:

The Act encourages awareness raising activities on the importance of biodiversity, its conservation and benefits of sustainable use. Conservation campaigns through education and public awareness creation are important towards bringing together diverse stakeholders for supporting conservation efforts.

To make sure that resources are used sustainably, their benefits shared equally and biodiversity conserved is the main idea of this act. The non-use value also shows the intrinsic worth of biological diversity such as social, economic, scientific, educational, cultural recreational or aesthetic values.

This law if implemented effectively can save much of India’s rich biodiversity up to 2002.

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