A global coalition of about 200 companies said yesterday (26 October) that it was ready to support the introduction of a price tag on ecosystem services, in the hope that a global biodiversity panel will lay the foundations for an offset mechanism to encourage trading of nature services.
A global coalition of about 200 companies said yesterday (26 October) that it was ready to support the introduction of a price tag on ecosystem services, in the hope that a global biodiversity panel will lay the foundations for an offset mechanism to encourage trading of nature services.
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Yesterday's UN talks on biodiversity saw global businesses table a series of practical regulatory recommendations to protect biodiversity and ecosystems.
A report entitled 'Effective biodiversity and ecosystem policy and regulation', published on 26 October, was compiled by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), a global coalition of some 200-odd companies advocating progress on sustainable development.
The corporations stress that a key prerequisite for nature protection is to have clearly defined goals, supported by 'SMART' - specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound - targets and regulations. Targets ought to be agreed by governments, which need "to establish and enforce accountability for their delivery and to provide adequate resources for their implementation," they note.
The coalition welcomes the idea of establishing a UN panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), as "it will set the reference for credible and relevant scientific knowledge on biodiversity and ecosystem services". It would also support decision-making on business environmental strategies and policies, the measurement of ecosystem impacts as well as accounting and reporting of these, they said.
Article continues: http://www.euractiv.com/en/sustainability/business-ready-trade-nature-services-news-499191
