David Attenborough's heartbreaking environment plea as he 'doesn't have a lot of years'

Sir David said: “Even the biggest and most awful things that humanity has done pale into insignificance when you think of what could be around the corner.

“There could be whole areas of the world where people can no longer live.

“The hottest temperatures ever have been recorded in Death Valley, yet we are such optimists that we say ‘well, that’s interesting isn’t it?’

“No, wait a few months, wait another year, and see it again.

“Coral reef is one of the most dramatic, beautiful and complex manifestations of life you can find anywhere.

“But during my last trip it was like a cemetery – all the coral had died.

“That’s because of the rising temperature and acidity.

“We live in a finite world, we depend on the natural world for every mouthful of food that we eat and every lung-full of air that we breathe.

“If it wasn’t for the natural world then the atmosphere would be depleted of oxygen tomorrow.

“If there were no trees we would suffocate.

“I think the pandemic is helping people to discover that they need the natural world for their very sanity.

“People who have never listened to a bird’s song are suddenly thrilled, excited and inspired by the natural world.

“They realise they are apart of it. By saving nature we are saving ourselves.”

In a conversation with The Guardian in 2019, Sir David admitted that he hasn't got much time left and he "can't bear" to think of the future of the planet once he has gone.

He said: "I don’t spend time thinking about that because I can’t bear it. I’m just coming up to 93, and so I don’t have many more years around here. I find it difficult to think beyond that because the signs aren’t good.”