This report highlights "Important Plant Areas" for biodiversity and livelihoods in the South and East Mediterranean Region.
The main threats to IPAs, according to the report, include deforestation and intensive arable farming.
1 June 2011: The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) released a report titled “Important Plant Areas of the South and East Mediterranean Region: Priority Sites for Conservation. ” The report lists 207 “Important Plant Areas” (IPAs) that support an extraordinary diversity of wildlife, as well as resources for local livelihoods.
Preparation of the report was funded by the French Development Agency, through the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, and led by IUCN, WWF and Plantlife. Of the 207 IPAs, the report notes that 33 are in Syria, 20 in Lebanon, 20 in Egypt, 21 in Algeria, 13 in Tunisia and five in Libya, and 75% of those IPAs maintain endemic species. The richest IPA is Al Jabel Al Akhdar in Libya, with 1,400 species. Half of Libya’s endemic plants grow only there.
The report highlights that the main threats to IPAs are overgrazing, deforestation, tourist development, intensive arable farming and unsustainable collection of plants for medicine and culinary uses. [IUCN News Release] [Publication: Important Plant Areas]