A study on the health of Nature in the European Union, developed from data collected in 2007-2012, showed the bad condition in most marine habitats and continents. The report, published by the European Commission, said that the Mediterranean Sea has 62 percent of habitats and 56 percent of sea species in poor condition.
The results are worst in the Baltic Sea, where the 86 percent of the sea habitats and the 80 percent of the species are in bad conditions. Lasse Gustavsson, Executive Director of the non governmental organization Oceana Europe warned that the member countries of the European Union are boyccoting their own conservation efforts since they do not properly manage the areas and fail to conduct a good monitoring of threatened species and habitats.
The main threats to the habitats are the modifications on the farming practices, overgrazing, the abandonment of grazing systems, the use of fertilizers and pesticides, as well as the changes in the natural conditions caused by human activity, mainly by hydrological changes. Birds have the best results since more than the half that were evaluated (52 percent) are safe. However, the 17 percent of the species are still in danger, while another 15 percent are under threat, in decline or impoverished.
POSTED BY: Prensa Latina