AGRICULTURE NEWS - While farmers generally see themselves as custodians of the land, the conservation of indigenous plant species is not always high on their list of priorities. This is understandable, as most farmers already struggle to make ends meet.

But urbanisation, changes in land use, agricultural expansion and climate change threaten the future of many species and habitats, and, ultimately, human existence.

According to an Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) report released in May, approximately 85% of wetlands worldwide have been lost since the 1970s, and about 25% of species in assessed animal and plant groups are under threat. 

This suggests that about one million species will face extinction within decades.

Glenneis Kriel spoke to Cape Nature botanist Rupert Koopman and Stellenbosch University researcher Rhoda Malgas - Read the full article here on the Caxton publication, Farmer's Weekly.