Mining threats in high-level biodiversity conservation policies

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Conservation Biology
• Policy Analysis

Background:

• Global infrastructure expansion drives demand for construction minerals, posing significant threats to biodiversity.
• Existing biodiversity conservation policies show limited attention to mining impacts, particularly from construction minerals like concrete.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess how national and international biodiversity policies address mining threats, focusing on construction minerals.
• To quantify the extent to which mining threats are integrated into biodiversity strategies and assessments.

Main Methods:

• Review and quantitative analysis of biodiversity goals and targets.
• Examination of national biodiversity strategies and action plans (NBSAPs).
• Analysis of Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) assessments.

Main Results:

• Mining threats were rarely included in national biodiversity targets but appeared more frequently in strategies, though often superficially.
• Coverage of aggregates mining threats exceeded that of limestone mining threats.
• Significant gaps exist in policy integration of construction mineral mining impacts.

Conclusions:

• Biodiversity conservation requires mainstreaming into extractive, infrastructure, and construction sectors.
• Key actions include improved monitoring, enhanced evidence on mining impacts, and influencing financial and business sectors.
• Sustainable construction mineral use and biodiversity protection necessitate policy and behavioral changes.