Ecosystem Loss and its Implications for Greenhouse Gas Concentration Stabilisation

The objective of the Climate Change Convention requires that atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases should be stabilised at a level which allows ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change. Yet there is substantial and compelling evidence that the degree of climate change which has already occurred is affecting both species and ecosystems, in many cases adversely. It appears very likely that species will increasingly become extinct and ecosystems will be lost as a result of little further change in the climate. In the context of the objective of the Convention, it can thus be reasonably be argued that at least some ecosystems are not “adapting naturally” to climate change and that atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases are already too high. 1. Introduction and background