As threats to plant and animal species across Canada continue to escalate, a new study, led by University of Lethbridge plant ecologist Dr. Jenny McCune, has provided a baseline look at how sources of pollution overlap the known ranges of nearly 500 at-risk species.
The research paper, published recently in the journal FACETS, notes that of the nearly 500 at-risk species, on average, 57 per cent of the area inhabited by each species also contained at least one source of pollution. Yet, the official status reports for many species do not mention pollution as a potential threat, even for those with a high degree of coincidence with pollution sources.
“We probably expected the overlap to be high because Canada’s biodiversity is concentrated in the south as is our human population and therefore the bulk of our industrial activity,” says McCune, a professor in the U of L’s Department of Biological Sciences.
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Image via University of Lethbridge.