Environmental Degradation

Biodiversity loss refers to the reduction of any aspect of biological diversity (i.e., diversity at the genetic, species and ecosystem levels) in a particular area through death (including extinction), destruction or manual removal; it can refer to many scales, from global extinctions to population extinctions, resulting in decreased total diversity at the same scale (IPBES, no date).

Sand mining (extraction) is defined as the removal of primary (virgin) natural sand and sand resources (mineral sands and aggregates) from the natural environment (terrestrial, riverine, coastal, or marine) for extracting valuable minerals, metals, crushed stone, sand and gravel for subsequent processing (UNEP, 2019).

Forest declines and diebacks are episodic events characterised by premature, progressive loss of tree and stand vigour and health over a given period without obvious evidence of a single clearly identifiable causal factor such as physical disturbance or attack by primary disease or insect (Ciesla and Donaubauer, 1994).

Sea-level change (sea-level rise / sea-level fall) is a change to the height of sea level, both globally and locally (relative sea-level change) at seasonal, annual, or longer time scales due to: a change in ocean volume as a result of a change in the mass of water in the ocean (e.g., due to melt of glaciers and ice sheets); to changes in ocean volume as a result of changes in ocean water density (e.g., expansion under warmer conditions), and to changes in the shape of the ocean basins and changes in the Earth’s gravitational and rotational fields, and local subsidence or uplift of the land (I

Forest disturbance is the damage caused by any factor (biotic or abiotic) that adversely affects the vigour and productivity of the forest and which is not a direct result of human activities. It includes disturbance by insect pests, diseases, severe weather events and fires (FAO, 2018, 2020).

Eutrophication is the overabundance of nutrients in a body of water that results in harmful algal blooms, fish kills, and in some cases ecosystem collapse. It is a process driven by enrichment of water by nutrients, particularly compounds of nitrogen and/or phosphorus, leading to increased growth, primary production and biomass of algae; changes in the balance of nutrients causing changes to the balance of organisms; and water quality degradation (NOAA, 2007; UNEP, 2015).

Desertification refers to land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry subhumid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities (UNCCD, 2017).

Household air pollution is one of the leading causes of disease and premature death and is associated with inefficient cooking practices using polluting stoves paired with solid fuels and kerosene (WHO, 2018).

Mangroves and the destruction of mangrove habitat is caused by both human and natural causes. Human activities in the form of farming, aquaculture, urban development and natural stressors such as erosion and extreme weather have driven mangrove habitat loss. The hazard of loss of mangroves and their ecosystem services has devastating socioeconomic and environmental consequences for coastal communities, especially in those areas with low mangrove diversity and low mangrove area (adapted from Ellison et al., 1996; Polidoro et al., 2010; and Goldberg, 2020).

A point source of air pollution is an identifiable stationary location or fixed facility from which air pollutants are released, which may be manmade or natural in origin (adapted from Kibble and Harrison, 2005 and Dunne et al., 2014).