Hard talks on hard targets: real work begins at Montreal biodiversity conference
Representatives from nearly 200 countries are to begin the real work Wednesday at a crucial meeting on global biodiversity -- hard talks on hard targets for saving enough of the world's ecosystems to keep the planet functioning.
"We need governments to develop ambitious national action plans that protect and preserve our natural gifts and put our planet on a path to healing," United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said as the meetings got underway.
Observers say they're optimistic the 196 countries at the COP15 meeting in Montreal can agree that nearly a third of Earth's lands and waters should come under some form protection by 2030.
"There is huge support for it," said Stephen Woodley of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, a high-profile group of governments and civil society organizations advising conference delegates.
"I believe there is really significant support for 30 per cent in quality areas."
The 30-per-cent goal is the result of years of scientific study and consensus.
"Scientists have studied this for years and years, and we know with a great deal of evidence that 30 per cent is the lower limit," said Aerin Jacob of the Nature Conservancy of Canada.
Momentum toward that goal has been building for years. It's been endorsed by the G7 industrialized countries and is supported by 112 countries from Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas, including Canada.
Other major goals include helping to fund the promotion of biodiversity in developing countries.
"We need developed countries to provide meaningful financial support for the countries of the Global South as custodians of the world's natural wealth following centuries of exploitation and loss," said Guterres.
Estimates of how much money is required range widely, from about $200 billion a year to more than $700 billion.
"Much remains to be done. The text on conservation targets being debated by delegates has more brackets in it than agreed wording.
"We've made some progress," said Woodley. "It's tough sledding."
Some of the disputed text concerns Indigenous people.
"There is a significant group who want to ensure that protecting 30 per cent of the Earth is not negative on Indigenous people or community-owned lands," Woodley said. "It certainly has been in the past, in some cases."
Others want to ensure that areas being conserved actually contribute to saving species, promoting ecosystem function, protecting against floods or wildfires or storing carbon.
"Those are all value judgments," said Jacob.
"I would argue we need to protect ourselves against all those things. We can't pick and choose."
Other issues to be settled include what constitutes protection. It doesn't need to be a park. It could be what is known as "other effective area-based conservation measures," known in COP-speak as OECMs.
The Vancouver watershed, managed to ensure water quality, is an OECM. So is Manitoba's wildlife-rich Canadian Forces Base Shiloh.
Private groups or land trusts will protect some lands. Others will be conserved by Indigenous management, an approach on which Canada is increasingly relying.
Woodley's group recognizes seven different types of conservation areas, some allowing limited resource extraction, with four different governance models.
In developed countries where natural areas are scarce and small, efforts will focus on restoration.
"There are so many solutions," Jacob said. "It's about making sure those things can survive and thrive."
And much will depend on how any plan is implemented. Discussions on finance are to begin later this week.
"An agreement without any action won't help us protect the life of the planet," said Jacob.
But both she and Woodley agree some kind of deal on conservation targets is likely to happen.
"We absolutely have to do this," Jacob said.
"It's not a question of no agreement. It's more a question of what the agreement will look like."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 7, 2020.
-- By Bob Weber in Edmonton
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
How more than 100 women realized they may have dated, been deceived by the same man
An Ontario man is being accused of changing his name, profession and life story multiple times to potentially more than 100 women online before leaving some out thousands of dollars.

Mother charged with sexual abuse of toddler in Edmonton area after FBI tip
A Strathcona County toddler has been rescued from suspected sexual exploitation, and the child's mother has been charged, police said.
LeBron James becomes NBA's all-time scoring leader, surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
LeBron James is the NBA's new career scoring leader. With a stepback jump shot with 10.9 seconds left in the third quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night, James pushed his career total to 38,388 points on Tuesday night and broke the record that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar held for nearly four decades.
Biden in State of Union urges U.S. Congress: 'Finish the job'
U.S. President Joe Biden exhorted Congress Tuesday night to work with him to 'finish the job' of rebuilding the economy and uniting the nation as he delivered a State of the Union address aimed at reassuring a country beset by pessimism and fraught political divisions.
Fears grow for untold numbers buried by Turkiye earthquake as deaths pass 7,700
Rescuers raced against time early Wednesday to pull survivors from the rubble before they succumbed to cold weather two days after an earthquake tore through southern Turkiye and war-ravaged northern Syria. The death toll climbed above 7,700 and was expected to rise further.
Canadian military plane heads home after two surveillance flights over Haiti
A Canadian Armed Forces surveillance plane was heading home on Tuesday after two intelligence-collecting flights over Haiti.
On list of 50 'most Instagrammable' places, only 1 is in Canada
A new ranking by global travel site Big 7 Travel has revealed the most Instagrammable places for people to visit in 2023, but only one Canadian location, Banff, is among them.
Spy balloon part of a broader Chinese military surveillance operation, U.S. intel sources tell CNN
U.S. intelligence officials believe that the recently recovered Chinese spy balloon is part of an extensive surveillance program run by the Chinese military, according to multiple American officials familiar with the intelligence.
From $55 to $130: Which Canadians plan to spend the most this Valentine's Day?
As Valentine's Day approaches, many Canadians are preparing to celebrate by taking their loved ones to dinner and buying them gifts, but how much are we spending on this day coast to coast?
W5 HIGHLIGHTS
W5 Investigates | Daniel Jolivet insists he's not a murderer and says he has proof
Convicted murderer Daniel Jolivet, in prison for the past 30 years, has maintained his innocence since the day he was arrested. W5 reviews the evidence he painstakingly assembled while behind bars.

W5 Investigates | Lebanese-Canadian family of 3-year-old killed in Beirut blast still searching for accountability, answers
More than two years after downtown Beirut was levelled by an explosion, a Lebanese-Canadian family of a 3-year-old girl killed in the blast is still searching for answers.

W5 EXCLUSIVE | Interviewing a narco hitman: my journey into Mexico's cartel heartland
W5 goes deep into the narco heartland to interview a commander with one of Mexico's most brutal cartels.

9 things to know about medical assistance in dying for mental illness
In Canada, Medical Assistance in Dying is changing. In 2023, people who have a mental disorder as their sole underlying medical condition will become eligible for an assisted death. Originally, that was scheduled to happen on March 17, but the government has asked for a delay. CTVNews.ca/W5 outlines 9 things you need to know about MAiD.
The mini investigations you never see, and why journalism matters
On CTVNews.ca/W5: Executive Producer Derek Miller highlights an example of a W5 mini investigation that never made it to air, but made a difference in someone's life nonetheless.
W5: The Informant | How avocados became 'green gold' to Mexican drug cartels, and a deeper dive into the Pivot Airlines saga
On CTVNews.ca/W5: Executive Producer Derek Miller highlights some of W5's upcoming investigations, including Mexico's multi-billion dollar avocado industry run by cartels, and a continuing look into the Pivot Airlines passengers and crew who were detained for months without charges in the Dominican Republic.
W5 EXCLUSIVE | Pivot Airlines crew back in Canada after being trapped in Dominican Republic since spring
The five-member Pivot Airlines crew, who had been detained in the Dominican Republic for almost eight months, is now back in Canada. An emotional airport reunion took place in a special pre-arrivals area of Toronto Pearson International Airport, as the two flight attendants, pilot, co-pilot and mechanic were greeted by family.
W5 EXCLUSIVE | W5 exposes the drug connections and money trail in the Pivot Airlines story
On CTVNews.ca, W5 exposes the suspicious company chartering a Pivot Airlines flight that ended up with 210 kilograms of cocaine onboard.