According to this news release, a “University of Queensland and CSIRO study has found that wilderness areas - where human impact is minimal or absent - halves the global risk of species extinction.” The study authors found that wilderness areas “acted as a buffer against extinction risk, and the risk of species loss was more than twice as high for biological communities found outside wilderness areas…."This new research has identified the importance of wilderness areas in hosting highly unique biological communities and representing the only remaining natural habitats for species that have suffered losses elsewhere"…Vital 'at risk' wilderness areas include parts of Arnhem Land, areas surrounding the Madidi National Park in the Bolivian Amazon, partially protected forests in Southern British Columbia, and surrounding savannah areas within the Zemongo Reserve in the Central African Republic.”
Wilderness areas halve extinction risk