Experts urge saving biodiversity from extinction

Speakers at seminar also highlight threat of food scarcity in near future

MULTAN:

Global warming and climate change are causing many species of animals and plants to slowly die out. This gradual extinction would pose threat to food supplies, said speakers in a seminar on 'biodiversity' at Women University Multan (WUM) on Tuesday.

Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, headed by Dr Maryam Zain, organised an online seminar on 'Biodiversity and Its Impact on Environmental Pollution'. Vice Chancellor WUM Prof. Dr Uzma Quraishi chaired the seminar, which was addressed by Dr Hira Kamal, a Postdoctoral Research Associate from the Department of Plant Pathology at Washington State University.

Dr Kamal gave a welcome address on biodiversity and sustainable tourism, highlighting the different types of biodiversity and the threats facing it.

Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr Quraishi stated that the United Nations' main goal was to make the world aware of biodiversity so it could be maintained and protected. Different kinds of animals, birds and plants meet the needs of and also depend on one another for survival, she added.

"The abundance of biodiversity makes earth habitable. However, ever-increasing pollution is having a devastating effect on environment, resulting in extinction of many species of animals and plants," Dr Quraishi emphasised.

The speakers stressed the need to address the issues pertaining to biodiversity, primarily how global warming was causing significant changes to the environment. The speakers cited a recent UN report that warned that plants, animals, flies and insects performed vital role in production of human food.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 8^th, 2022.