Systematic conservation assessment for most of the Colombian territory as a strategy for effective biodiversity conservation

Abstract

Colombian ecosystems maintain key ecological processes that support thousands of species, including human beings. With the expansion of the country’s population, and the implementation of a government’s development plan based on an economy centred on extraction patterns, the conservation of these ecosystems is at serious risk. It is a priority to implement effective strategies that ensure the protection of the country’s biological diversity as well as the mitigation and prevention of threats and to contribute to its proper use. Colombia’s development strategies as well as its peoples’ wellbeing depend on the suitable condition of its natural assets. The identification of surrogates of conservation, the formulation of conservation goals, the prioritization of key areas and the formulation of conservation strategies based on the preservation, restoration and sustainable use of the territory and its biodiversity are proposed for 60% of the emerged land (~ 700,000 Km2). This research aims at giving proper guidelines to manage the territory and finding common points between development and biodiversity conservation, as well as to use this input for the development and implementation of a National Decision-making Support System (DSS) that will potentially have an impact on Colombia’s environmental policies and territorial planning schemes.