"30% protected area." Nonsense promise..."Korea is less specific".

[Anchor]
The 16th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity is now being held in Colombia.

At a meeting held two years ago, the Member States agreed to designate 30% of their land as protected areas by 2030,

How long will this promise be kept?

I'm reporter Jang A-young.

[Reporter]
"At least 30% of Earth will be designated as protected areas by 2030"

Two years ago, the commitment was agreed upon by 196 participants at the United Nations Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity.

With six years to go until the target point, how much is being implemented?

Only 13 percent of 25 countries, including Korea, submitted a country-specific strategy on how to keep this promise.

Even these countries have not received positive reviews when they see if they have the budget to implement the strategy and if it is well linked to the overall national policy.

Korea also designates only 17% of land and 1.8% of the sea as protected areas, so there is a long way to go to the 30% target.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) pointed out that Korea's policy is less specific and that it has not established a fiscal plan.

At the current rate, there is also a forecast that the 30% target will not be reached until 2107 worldwide.

International environmental group Greenpeace says only 2.7% of the world's oceans are currently protected,
Academia and civic groups
have set up a "30% protected recommended area" focusing on major habitats for sea creatures such as sharks, rays, and whales, but most are suffering from overfishing, habitat destruction, pollution and climate change.

Along with wildlife, indigenous people who are bearing the brunt of environmental destruction have spoken out.

[Hector Poverty Bueno / Colombian National Indigenous Guard Member: It should not end with the signing of a trivial document legalizing the implementation of some of the Protocols or the destruction of our mother, the Earth. We don't have another planet. This is the only planet.

The main agenda of this agreement is who will pay and how much.

We have decided to allocate $200 billion and 270 trillion won every year to advanced countries and companies by 2030, but it is unclear how much compelling measures will come out.

[Gustavo Petro / President of Colombia] The owners of artificial intelligence and the people who cause climate breakdown are the same people. (The rich and powerful) become the owners of networks and lifeless information and dream of escaping to Mars.]

The meeting, which will be held until the 1st of next month, is also discussing how wealthy countries pay for "sharing genetic material" to low-income countries with many species.

I'm YTN's Jang Ayoung.


Video editing: Choi Yeon-ho
Design: Lee Won-hee