Time to de-list...
46 of 47 U.S. Biosphere Reserves
fail to meet
U.N. requirements
By Henry Lamb
A new study published by Sovereignty
International, Inc., reveals that only one of the 47
U.N.-designated Biosphere Reserves in the United States meets the
new "Sustainable Development" requirements of the United Nations
Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, UNESCO. Five of the
Reserves could be brought into compliance, but the remaining 41
Reserves are so far out of compliance that they may need to be
de-listed.
A similar
study in Scotland revealed that four of the U.K.'s 13 Biosphere
Reserves were de-listed, because they could not be brought into
compliance with UNESCO's new guidelines.
When the program began, in the 1970s, the goals of the program were
to "conserve biotic communities of plants and animals," and to
provides areas for research and education.
The new guidelines, established through the Seville
Strategy and the Statutory
Framework, focus more on Sustainable Development than on the
original idea of conservation.
UNESCO guidelines now require that all Biosphere Reserves:
"... provide an opportunity to explore and demonstrate approaches
to sustainable development on a regional scale."
"Link biosphere reserves with each other, and with other protected
areas, through green corridors, and in other ways that enhance
biodiversity conservation, and ensure that these links are
maintained."
"[provide]...a mechanism to manage human use and activities"
"[have]...a designated authority or mechanism to implement the
management policy or plan"
"[include]...participation of a suitable range of public
authorities, local communities and private interests in the design and
carrying out of the functions of a Biosphere Reserve."
All of the U.S. Biosphere Reserves were designated before this new
criteria was adopted by UNESCO, and only one, the Champlain-Adirondak
Biosphere Reserve, is in compliance.
Among the many compliance shortfalls is the requirement for a
"...mechanism to manage human use and activities" and the absence of
participation by "public authorities" and "local communities" in the
functions of a Biosphere Reserve.
Biosphere Reserves include core wilderness areas that are off
limits to most human activity; buffer zones, where limited human
activity is permitted; and "transitional zones" where human use and
activities are to be managed for conservation and sustainable
development objectives.
Most of the land in the buffer zones and transitional zones is
privately owned, and covers many political jurisdictions. The Southern
Appalachian Biosphere Reserve, for example, covers 37-million acres,
which stretches from near Birmingham, Alabama to Roanoke,
Virginia. Most of the people who live within the reserve, are
completely unaware that they live within a U.N.-designated reserve, or
of what is planned for them.
Neither Congress, nor any state legislature has ever voted to
designate these areas as U.N. Biosphere Reserves, nor is there any
evidence that any elected body of "public authorities" has ever voted
to be a part of such designations.
There is even less evidence that "local communities" support these
designations. In fact, the last four Biosphere Designations proposed
in the United States were blocked by local
opposition.
The U.S. Biosphere Reserve program is operated by a conglomerate of
federal and state agencies, driven primarily by environmental
organizations such as The Nature
Conservancy, the Wildlands Project, and
a host of others.
This study raises several questions that must be answered:
- Why does the U.S. participate in a U.N. program that requires
the creation of "...a mechanism to manage human use and activities" in
an area such as the Southern Appalachian Biosphere Reserve, and 46
similar areas across the nation?
- How does the United States, and more particularly, the people
who live within these Biosphere Reserves, benefit from the
U.N. designation?
- Why have these Biosphere Reserves persisted for 30 years,
without the approval of the elected "public authorities" who represent
the people?
The people of the United States deserve answers to these questions,
and Congress has the responsibility to find the answers. Unless there
are answers which demonstrate real benefits to the people of the
United States, these Biosphere Reserves should be de-listed, and
removed from any affiliation with the United Nations.
Henry Lamb is the Executive Vice President of the
Environmental Conservation Organization (ECO), and Chairman of
Sovereignty International.
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