Saving Planet Earth
Sharing Planet Earth
Sir David Attenborough sets the scene by examining the impact of humans on this over-crowded planet in Sharing Planet Earth – the opening programme in the ´óÏó´«Ã½'s exciting Saving Planet Earth season on 24 June on ´óÏó´«Ã½ One.
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David says: "We all need space to live, but our species is taking more than its fair share. According to recent figures, the average person in the UK uses six hectares of the planet every year to live. That may not sound like much, but if every human-being were to use this amount we would need three Earths to survive.
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"What does our over-consumption mean for the rest of life that shares Planet Earth? Can a growing human population still leave space for wildlife?"
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David has travelled to some of the world's most remote wildernesses during his extensive film-making career, but agrees that it is vanishing fast. With only a quarter of the habitable planet considered wilderness, David examines the struggles for survival in the remaining deserts, mountains, wetlands and forests.
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Through archive and footage from the ´óÏó´«Ã½ One smash hit series Planet Earth, he outlines the threat to the remaining planet and urges viewers to protect as much wilderness as possible.
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"During the course of my career I have had the good fortune to visit some of the most remote places on our planet – places rich in a variety of life," says David. "Now, increasing human pressure threatens many of the places and animals I have seen. Some experts believe we are in the middle of a mass extinction and our species to blame."
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David highlights the conflict that occurs as animals are adapting when their wilderness disappears and they are forced to live closer to people. In India, leopards walk into the bustling city of Mumbai, while in Africa elephants trample villagers and wreck crops. These conflicts are often a matter of life and death for both animals and humans.
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As he strolls through the Caledonian woodland, David draws parallels between the co-existence of wildlife and humans in Britain and the rest of the world. He describes how previous generations in the UK were so frightened of wolves they deliberately destroyed habitats in order to eradicate them – and they succeeded.
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Changes in agriculture have also taken their toll on the world's delicate infrastructure, as farming practices have had to adapt to increased food demand.
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The move to plant GM crops in North America's Corn Belt is destroying the habitat of the monarch butterfly, whose caterpillars feed on milkweed.
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And, after the longest migration of any insect to over-winter in Mexico, their forest refuge is also being threatened by illegal logging.
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In Borneo, it's the legal destruction of the rainforest for a world market in palm oil which is threatening the orang-utan. Forests are burned down leaving hundreds of baby orang-utan orphaned. Although some are rescued, their return to the wild is hampered by the fact that these social animals need their parents to teach them how to survive.
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David concludes: "We know we are using more than our fair share of the planet and its resources, and we must now redress this imbalance. Any effort to do so – no matter how big or small – is valuable if we wish to ensure a future that is healthy for all life on Planet Earth."
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