Local Biodiversity Action

The global campaign to help biodiversity began with the Earth Summit in Rio in 1992. This was followed up by various strategies and targets developed at international and national level, finally filtering down to a local level from around 2004 onwards and the development of Local Biodiversity Action Plans. It is at local level where conservation has perhaps greatest impact on us – because it involves where we live and the biodiversity on our doorstep.

• 1992 - The Earth Summit is held in Rio, and 188 countries sign up to the International Convention on Biological Diversity. Each country commits to the principles of sustainability and to global and local conservation of biodiversity
• 1994 - The UK Biodiversity Action Plan is produced
• 2000 – Biodiversity in Northern Ireland - Recommendations to Government for a Biodiversity Strategy is published
• 2001 - The target that biodiversity decline should be halted by 2010 is adopted by EU Heads of State at the Gothenburg Summit
• 2002 – The Northern Ireland Biodiversity Strategy is adopted
• 2004 onwards - Local authorities, locally based wildlife organisations, business sectors (e.g Quarry Products Association NI), and trusts (e.g. Mournes Heritage Trust) begin to employ Biodiversity Officers (helped by funding from Northern Ireland Environment Agency) and to develop Local Biodiversity Action Plans (LBAPs)