Biodiversity should be conserved because of the following three reasons :
(1) Narrowly Utilitarian
(2) Broadly Utilitarian
(3) Ethical
(1) Narrowly Utilitarian : Human beings obtain various materials for their needs from plants like edible gradients (grains, pulses and fruits etc.) fuel, dyes, timber, resin, perfume, tanin, lubricants and medicinal products etc. More than 25 percent of the drugs sold all over the world are derived from plants. Even more than 25,000 plant species are used by the people of the world to make traditional medicines. Even now we do not have knowledge how many plants are of medicinal importance there in the tropical rain forests. If the nations rich in biological wealth carry out biological exploration at the molecular, genetic and ethnic level of the products of economic importance, then in the coming time, nation can expect to reap enormous benefits.
(2) Broadly Utilitarian : It involves those uses of biological wealth whose value is difficult to estimate but they have special importance. For example, Amazon forest alone provides about 20% oxygen to the atmosphere of the earth through photosynthesis, that is why it was said to be the lungs of the earth. Although we do not estimate its price but it is vital air. Similarly, pollination process in plants is made by air, water, insects, birds and bats. This process is done by various pollinating agents (Honeybees, bumblebees, birds and bats,). Without pollination process, seeds and fruits are not formed in plants. Along with this, biodiversity enhances the aesthetic pleasure of the natural habitat. While walking in the forests, looking at the blooming flowers in spring or enjoying the songs of bulbuls and cuckoos in the morning, if we look at all these then it has no price. It is considered as a free service for human therefore, understanding the great importance of biological wealth, it is very important to conserve it.
(3) Ethical : It is our moral duty to conserve biodiversity. We know very well that humans cannot live alone on this earth. If humans have to maintain their existence, it is necessary to conserve all the plants, animals and microbe species available in the environment. Every species found on earth has its own intrinsic value. Therefore, it is our moral responsibility to take good care of the property and save this biological heritage for the future generations.
How do we conserve biodiversity?
When we conserve and protect the whole its biodiversity at all level is protected there are two main methods of biodiversity conservation :
(1) In-Situ conservation
(2) Ex-Situ conservation
(1) In-Situ Conservation : Under this, animals and plants are conserved in their natural habitats or in manmade artificial ecosystems. For the purpose of conservation, many areas have been declared protected areas by law. National parks, sanctuaries, biosphere reserves, sacred ponds and lakes etc. have been created for this conservation purpose.
In India there are 15 biosphere reserves, 19 National Park and 448 Wildlife sanctuaries. There have also been identified hotspots of biodiversity for maximum production. Biodiversity hot spots refers to the region with very high level of species richness and high degree of endemism (that is species confined to that region and not found anywhere else). At present total 34 hotspots have identified in the world however these hotspot are also facing rapid declination of due to Habitat loss three of these hotspots are Western Ghat, Indo-Burma and Himalaya. Although all the biodiversity hotspot put together cover less than the 2% of the earth land area, the number of species they collectively harbour, is extremely high and strict production of these hotspots could reduce the ongoing extinction by almost 30%.
India has a history of religious and cultural traditions like worshiping trees, wildlife and rivers that protects biodiversity. In many cultures, sacred groves are developed by leaving aside land for forests. This type of sacred groves are still present in some places like Meghalaya's Khansi and Jayanti Hills, Aravalli mountain ranges of Rajasthan, Western Ghats Karnataka and Maharashtra and Sarguja, Chanda and Bastar region of Madhya Pradesh, etc. Many rare species are safe in the sacred groves of Meghalaya. Rajasthan Vishnoi caste worships Khejri tree and deer and considers their conservation as their religion. Many communities worship cow, Peepal, Amla, Banyan, Tulsi. Such religious sentiments also help in bio-conservation of ecology.
(2) Ex-situ conservation : In this method, threatened animals and plants are taken out from their natural habitat and conserved in special places where they can be protected and given special care. For this purpose, Genetic Resource Center, Zoological Park, Botanical Garden have been established. Today, there are many animals which have become extinct in the wild but are still safe in the zoological parks. Nowadays, instead of keeping the endangered species in confined areas. They are kept in ex-situ conservation. Genes and gametes of some rare and endangered species are preserved in viable and fertile condition by cryopreservation so that when required, progeny are obtained by fertilizing the eggs through in-vitro technique. Plants can be propagated by tissue culture technique. Seeds of different genetic strains of commercially important plants can be stored in seed banks for a long time.
There is no political boundary for biodiversity conservation. It is the collective responsibility of all the nations to conserve it. Many times world level efforts have been made for these problems. In the year 1992, the Earth Summit on Biodiversity was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In this conference, all countries were called upon to take appropriate measures to conserve biodiversity and use the benefits derived from them in such a way that they continue to be available to future generations for a long time. In this sequence, the World Summit on Sustainable Development was held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in which 190 countries of the world took an oath that they will reduce the rapid rate of loss of biodiversity by 2010 and will try to increase biodiversity.