In a report published on January 20th, DEFRA (along with the joint intelligence committee) declared that human induced climate change is threatening the UK’s national security, as the increasingly likely collapse of vitally important natural systems would bring mass migration, food shortages and price rises, and global disorder.
The hard-hitting report, initially intended for release in the autumn but delayed by Downing Street and only now released as the result of a Freedom of Information request from the Green Alliance, advises that some vital ecosystems could face collapse within five years and if current rates of biodiversity loss continue, every critical ecosystem is on a pathway to collapse. Key areas identified as significant to U.K. security include Amazon and Congo rainforests, boreal forests, the Himalayas and south-east Asia’s coral reefs and mangroves, all of which are under threat and some of which could start to collapse as early as 2030.
The report says the UK must focus on its own food systems, which are highly reliant on imports, because without strong action “it is unlikely the UK would be able to maintain food security if ecosystem collapse drives geopolitical competition for food”. It tells us that “food production is the most significant cause of terrestrial biodiversity loss”, that “animal farming at current levels is unsustainable without imports” and that “the UK does not have enough land to feed its population and rear livestock: a wholesale change in consumer diets would be required”. Many of these are of course things environmentalists and climate scientists have been warning about for years.
The report recognises that nature is a foundation of national security, and that biodiversity loss is putting at risk the ecosystem services on which human societies depend, including water, food, clean air and critical resources. Some technologies exist that could help, but need significant research, development and investment to have a chance of working at scale. Protecting and restoring ecosystems is easier, cheaper and more reliable. Preventing ecological collapse would require the reduction of human impacts, alongside restoration of ecosystems.
It makes an alarming read, but reinforces the need for us all to sit up, take notice, and then take action. We can all do this in different ways. Talk to family and friends, show them the report and encourage them to read it themselves. Make changes in your own life and lead by example. Get involved with local climate action, campaign at a national level, and engage with our political system. You might be inspired to get out on the streets and make your voice heard. There is no right or wrong way to take climate action, it is only important that action is taken.
Sign up to PeCAN’s newsletter to find out how you could take climate action, locally.
