Reasons for Biodiversity Conservation
▪ There are three main reasons for conserving the biodiversity which have been classified into the following categories:
i. Narrowly utilitarian arguments
• Human beings derive direct economic benefits from nature, like food, firewood, fibre, construction material, industrial products (resins, gums, dyes, tannins, etc.) and medicinally important products.
ii. Broadly utilitarian arguments
• Biodiversity plays a major role in maintaining and sustaining supply of goods and services from various species as well as ecological systems.
iii. Ethical reasons
• There are thousands of plants, animals and microbes on this earth which are not useless. Every one has some intrinsic value even if it is not of any economic value to us.
