Wildlife Friendly Is Possible
With nature declining at an alarming rate and species extinctions accelerating it is crucial we adopt approaches that protect species diversity in palm growing regions. In farming, wildlife-friendly means using methods that sustain wildlife habitats in and around agricultural land, while also benefitting the farm and plantation.
Significant cost
With agriculture becoming increasingly intensive, little room has been left for the natural habitats that sustain biodiversity. Converting land into agricultural production has come at significant cost to natural ecosystems and wildlife.
To date the industry has taken a patchy approach when it comes to conservation, with differently sized areas of forest set aside on plantations. Though small patches of habitat within farmlands can provide important places for wildlife to breed, move through the landscape, and find shelter from predators, the conservation areas set aside are often too small to allow forests to perform key ecological functions and support biodiversity.
Minimum area size
Research conducted by University of Oxford ecologist Dr. Jennifer Lucey has demonstrated that, to effectively support biodiversity, a minimum size of conservation area needs to be set aside on plantations. A biodiversity-supportive approach demands that each tract of land must have a core area…
