Environment Diary #5
This is where you'll post the 5th diary. Due Dec. 12.
posted by Mr. Enns at
9:47 AM
Geography 12
Heritage Christian School's Geography 12 Blog
Sunday, November 30, 2008
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15 Comments:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28068692/
----- Lake Mead could dry up by 2021 amid Western water shortages
who-Matt York
what-
shortage of water in Colorado River's Horseshoe Bend.
Water levels at the Colorado River's Horseshoe Bend begin to rise along the beaches just hours after the Glen Canyon Dam jet tubes began releasing water, in Page, Ariz., on March 5. Drought, climate change and an increasing population in the West are pushing the Colorado River basin toward deep trouble in coming decades, scientists say.
were- SALT LAKE CITY
when- Dec. 5, 2008
My Opinion -
I think that if this happens its gonna be a huge problem and i think we should be getting really on the ball on what to do with all the problems going on around the world. If we dont stepp up to the plate out childeren are not even going to see half the stuff and do have the stuff we have done in our life time. We have to start changing our ways of living.
Wetter and wilder: the signs of warming everywhere
http://www.enn.com/ecosystems/article/38839
December 10, 2008 10:22 AM
Who: Ordinary peoples in Australia to Brazil being changed by climate change
What: There is a lack of water, which could kill people. Food and illnesses, water-borne diseases, malnutrition, soil erosion, and disruption to water supplies
Where: Australia, Brazil. In between there.
When: December 10, 2008
Why: Maybe global warming.
How: Mmm, I don’t really know.
My Opinion: I think that would suck. I would hate to have a water shortage. The thing is, this is good to get ready for. This will probably happen even more often, to Africa first. The more global warming is happening, the worse the environment will get.
- maegan knorr
Climate change effects on imperiled Sierra frog examined
http://www.enn.com/wildlife/article/38844
Summary :
Who -Sierra Nevada Yellow-legged frogs
What -"Environmental factors that increase summer drying of small lakes are likely to bring further population decline because the larger lakes are off limits to breeding,"
When -December 11, 2008 09:42 AM
Where -The Sierra Nevada Yellow-legged frog was common in Sierra Nevada high-elevation lakes and slow-moving streams at altitudes ranging from 4,500 to 12,000 feet. But, its range has decreased more than 80 percent in the last 90 years. These lakes and streams were historically fishless, until hybrid trout were introduced.
Why - Climate change from Global Warming
How -Sierra Nevada Yellow-legged frogs need two to four years of permanent water to complete their development so repeated tadpole mortality from lakes drying up in summer leads to population decline. The scientists found the effect to be a distinct mortality mechanism that could become more important in a warmer, drier climate.
In addition, they believe it was unlikely the frogs were historically restricted to small lakes in Dusy Basin as they are today. Larger lakes free of introduced fish would have provided frogs and tadpoles an important refuge in dry years.
In my Opinion - The effects of Global Warming seems to be an issue that we cannot shake. To ever be completely rid of this massive crisis sweeping the nation, it would take lots of cut backs that we as society deem necessary. Will we ever be victorious over global warming....probably not , but that doesn't mean we just give up. We need to keep fighting, baby steps can lead to a ripple affect of accomplishment.
http://environment.about.com/od/greenchristmas/a/christmas_trees.htm
Who: Christmas tree loves everywhere
What: Fake trees or the real McCoy
Where: World wide
When: Christmas Time
Why: Fake trees are made of materials that harm the environment. Real trees cause waste
How: Exactly...
My Opinion: Personally I am in favour of the real deal. Fake trees are made of PVC, one of the most dangerous materials for the environment. Real trees can be chopped up and used for firewood which harms the environment way less than real trees and also will not fill up land fills.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081022.wlocal1022/BNStory/lifeMain/home
SEAWEED SEASONS GOT THEM ALL TIED UP
who: Mr. Urquhart and Mr. Wortham, fishermen
what: They harvest dulse (a type of stringy red seaweed) from June to October which is the off season of lobster, salmon, scallops, or herring.
where: Grand Manan, New Brunswick
When: From June to October every year
Why: They collect the dulse because they need to continue to make a living on the off season of their regular catch. The seaweed is what is available for them to make money off of from June until October. They can make up to $7 a pound, and up to 50 pounds can be collected a day.
How: They wait in the Bay of Fundy as the tide goes out. Usually it is at approximately 8am, their start of a 3 hour shift begins (until the tied comes back in). They go out and collect the seaweed into canvas bags. After collecting the fresh wet dulse, they spread it out. The seaweed is pushed through a shaker to fluff it up, and then put down on netting to dry in the sun. At midday they flip the seaweed over to makes sure both sides are dry, and by the end of the day it is rolled, weighed, and bagged. Their dulse is now ready to be sold world wide.
My opinion: Having a money making plan outside of their regular season is a very wise thing to do. I think that collecting seaweed is a very unique job, and it is so rare that they are able to make a lot of money off of it. To be honest, I have never heard of dulse, but after reading this article I am curious to sea what it really tastes like. These fishermen know how to make a living in any season, and they use the resources that are giving to them gratefully. They are able to take a simple seaweed, and transform it into something of a delicacy type. It is very neat how different a job like ‘sea-weed picking’ can be, yet it can be the most interesting and unique. Who would have ever thought seaweed picking could make a living?
Climate Change Effects Sierra Frog
http://www.enn.com/wildlife/article/38844
Summary:
Who: Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs
What: Climate change is having a serious impact on high elevation lakes and the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs that depend upon them. Most of the lakes and rivers are fed by snowmelt, but climate change models suggest that climate change on Sierra Nevada water balance will decreased snow pack, with more than half of the current snow water equivalent gone by 2090. A combination of the shallow lakes drying up in summer and predation from introduced larger trout severely limits the amphibian’s breeding habitat, which may lead to extinction. Historically, these rivers and high elevation lakes were fishless, until hybrid trout were introduced.
Where: Sierra, Nevada
When: December 11, 2008 09:42 am
Why: Climate change is having a serious impact on high elevation lakes and the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs that depend upon them. The frogs need two to four years of permanent water to complete their development. So, repeated tadpole mortality from lakes drying up in summer leads to population decline. A combination of the shallow lakes drying up in summer and predation from introduced larger trout severely limits the amphibian’s breeding habitat, which may lead to extinction.
How: The Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs will be extinct by 2090, unless something is done about global warming, and steps are taken to reducing our impact
My Opinion: Personally, I don’t understand why the hybrid trout were introduced to these high-climate lakes in the first place. They are obviously having such a negative effect on the environment and the animals around them. Again, we also need to do something about our effects on the world around us. We need to reduce our impact. We need to lower how much we pollute. I cannot impress how much we need to recognize and take action on how we are slowly ruining the world that was given so freely as a gift to us. We were created to be good stewards of the earth and it doesn’t seem like we are doing a very good job. We need to do more.
-Ashleigh Miller
jamie fielder
Coral Reef Loss Suggests Global Extinction Event
The world is on the brink of a massive extinction event, according to the United Nations.
Rapid releases of greenhouse gas emissions are changing habitats at a rate faster than many of the world's species can tolerate.
"Indeed the world is currently facing a sixth wave of extinctions, mainly as a result of human impacts," said Achim Steiner, executive director of the U.N. Environment Programme in a statement.
A study earlier this year in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science said the current extinction period, known as the Holocene extinction event, may be the greatest event in the Earth's history and the first due to human actions. Unlike previous events, however, extinctions are happening over the course of decades rather than centuries. Recent studies suggest that a quarter of the world's species may go extinct by 2050.
The UN warning accompanies an increasingly frequent round of sobering news about ecosystem failures.
The latest global coral reef assessment estimates that 19 percent of the world's coral reefs are dead. Their major threats include warming sea-surface temperatures and expanding seawater acidification.
Zooxanthellae, the tiny organisms that give coral reefs their vibrant colors, are emigrating from their hosts in massive numbers as oceans heat up, killing themselves and the coral they leave behind - a process known as coral bleaching.
The report, released by the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network Wednesday at the international climate change negotiations in Poznań, Poland, predicts that many of the remaining reefs may disappear within the next 40 years if current emission trends continue.
"If nothing is done to substantially cut emissions, we could effectively lose coral reefs as we know them, with major coral extinctions," said Clive Wilkinson, the network's coordinator, in a press release.
Overfishing, pollution, and invasive species continue to be risks as well, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The IUCN declared in October that 38 percent of the 44,838 species it studied across the world are threatened with extinction. Its Red List of Threatened Species considers 22 percent of the world's mammals, 31 percent of amphibians, and 14 percent of birds threatened or extinct.
Steiner's warnings of mass extinction came last week as the U.N. Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals added 21 migratory species to its protection list. Migratory species are among the most at-risk to climate change, according to a UNEP report released last year [PDF].
To its list of protected animals, which include the cheetah and Egyptian vulture, the convention added six dolphin species. Nearly one-quarter of the world's dolphin species are threatened with extinction, mostly due to habitat loss and live capture, according to IUCN.
The demise of coral reefs, however, affects the entire ocean ecosystem - a quarter of all marine fish species reside in the reefs, according to The Nature Conservancy. In addition, IUCN estimates that 500 million people depend on coral reefs for their livelihoods.
The coral reef assessment found that 45 percent of the world's reefs are healthy - providing hope that some species may be able to endure the changes expected from global warming. Marine biologists are now attempting to understand how certain coral reef species can survive warmer, more acidic ocean waters when others are less fortunate.
Summery:
Who: many of the world's species and the future of Zooxanthellae. 500 million people depend on coral reefs
What: 19 percent of the world's coral reefs are dead. Their major threats include warming sea-surface temperatures and expanding seawater acidification A study earlier this year in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science said the current extinction period, known as the Holocene extinction event, may be the greatest event in the Earth's history and the first due to human actions. Unlike previous events, however, extinctions are happening over the course of decades rather than centuries. Recent studies suggest that a quarter of the world's species may go extinct by 2050.
When: 12, 2008 07:12 AM
Where: The worlds oceans and seas.
Why: Zooxanthellae, the tiny organisms that give coral reefs their vibrant colors, are emigrating from their hosts in massive numbers as oceans heat up, killing themselves and the coral they leave behind - a process known as coral bleaching.
How: We help provide a sustainable environment that stays within the range of tolerance for animals and species that inhabit the area. To improve biodiversity we must help the animals flourish to keep the food chain, for we do not what one species to become extinct and create a butterfly effect.
Opinion: I think we should be more aware of how we effect the other organisms and species in the world, and try to stop the extinction of other animals because by all these animals dyeing it ultimately effects us.
From: , Worldwatch Institute, More from this Affiliate. http://www.enn.com/wildlife/article/38850
Environmental Article Summary #5
Rebekah McMurphy
December 14th, 2008
Geography 12
Australia gives $500 million
http://www.enn.com/business/article/38857
Who: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
What: He has plans to put $500 million to fund promoting renewable energy to try to stimulate the economy.
When: $100 million will be released by June 30th, 2009, and the remaining $400 million will be used in the following 12 months. And that 20% of energy should be from renewable sources by 2020.
Where: Australia
Why: It was an election promise by the ruling labor party in last year’s elections. Rudd set a goal that 20% of Australia’s energy should be from renewable sources by 2020. Australia is also expected to cut 10% from 2000 levels of emission cuts and plans for carbon trading by 2020 as well.
How: By working on biofuel development, and geothermal drilling being set up to help cut the cost of developing technologies, which will be the ones that will most likely be a big part of supplying energy and securing it over the next few decades. Rudd wants there to be a solar revolution, a renewable energy revolution. He want to use more things that don’t effect the environment, and that are reusable.
My Opinion: My opinion is that I think it is very, very important to slam down on un-needed pollution that could be prevented. I think it’s good to come up with ways to save energy, and to use the world around us more wisely to help the environment. I just don’t think it’s more important then putting more money towards global partnership for starving children in Africa and around the world. BUT he is doing a good job taking care of the countries and making sure he keeps his promise to the people through his election. It will be better for the environment, and hopefully other countries will be able to follow Australia’s examples and try to reduce there pollution habits.
Mr Enns
Had some trouble with the blog this time around.
Tried since Friday to get it to accept. Am trying one more time and then I'll email it to you.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E6D61539F932A25752C1A9659C8B63
When Will The Next Ice Age Begin?
The maxim ''what goes around comes around'' applies to few things more aptly than ice ages. In a rhythm attuned to regular wiggles in Earth's orbit and spin, 10 eras of spreading ice sheets and falling seas have come and gone over the last million years.
Through that span, in fact, the cold spells have so dominated that geophysicists regard warm periods like the present one, called the Holocene, as the oddities. Indeed, the scientific name for these periods -- interglacials -- reflects the exceptional nature of such times.
The next ice age almost certainly will reach its peak in about 80,000 years, but debate persists about how soon it will begin, with the latest theory being that the human influence on the atmosphere may substantially delay the transition.
This is no mere intellectual exercise. The equable conditions of the Holocene, which has lasted 10,000 years so far, have enabled the flowering of agriculture, technology, mobility and resulting explosive population growth that has made the human species a global force.
Any substantial climate shift is likely to pose enormous, though probably surmountable, challenges.
Just 30 years ago, after a prolonged global cool spell, many climate scientists, including some now focused on global warming, posited that Earth might already be seeing the onset of the next big chill.
Evidence from sea sediments and other sources had consistently put the duration of the previous warm spell at about 10,000 years, and it was presumed that this provided at least a rough hint of the longevity of the current interglacial.
The notion that cooling was imminent was challenged several years ago. Some scientists gleaned more details about the previous warm spell, which occurred 130,000 years ago, and concluded that it lasted twice as long as they had previously estimated -- 20,000 years instead of 10,000.
Others have proposed that an earlier warm era that lasted even longer -- 30,000 years -- was a better model for the Holocene. But many experts still say they are convinced that the current warmth should, under the influence of orbital cycles alone, near an end ''any millennium now,'' as Dr. Richard A. Muller, a physicist at the University of California at Berkeley, puts it.
But the planet is feeling a new influence, that of people. Humans may delay the dawn of the next ice age by a millennium or two, or even longer, many climate experts say, as Earth's long-buried stores of coal, oil and other carbon-rich fossil fuels are burned, releasing billions of tons of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping greenhouse gases.
That insulating blanket has a bigger climatic influence than the slight flux in incoming solar energy from changes in Earth's orientation relative to the Sun, said Dr. James A. Hansen, the director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies.
''We have taken over control of the mechanisms that determine the climate change,'' he said.
Other scientists, while agreeing with this thesis for the short term, say that eventually the buffering properties of the atmosphere, ocean and Earth will restore balance, returning most of the liberated carbon to long-term storage and allowing the orbital rhythm once again to dominate.
''Orbital changes are in a slow dance leading to a peak 80,000 years from now,'' said Dr. Eric J. Barron, the dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at Penn State. ''I can hardly imagine that human influences won't have run their course by that time.''
It may seem that human-driven global warming, although perhaps a disaster on the scale of centuries, may be a good thing in the long run if it fends off the next ice age awhile.
But many climatologists note that the complex interplay of greenhouse gases, orbital shifts and other influences on climate remain poorly understood. In fact, some experts say, there is a chance that human-induced warming could shut down heat-toting ocean currents that keep northern latitudes warmer than they otherwise would be. The result could be a faster descent into glacial times instead of a delay.
Who: Dr. Richard A. Muller, a physicist at the University of California at Berkeley, Dr. James A. Hansen, the director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, and Dr. Eric J. Barron, the dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at Penn State
What: 30 years ago many climate scientists posited that Earth might already be seeing the onset of the next big chill. Now evidence from sea sediments and other sources had consistently put the duration of the previous warm spell at about 10,000 years. Yet many scientists believe that we will be seeing an ice age sometime in the future and it is inevitable.
Where: The earth, atmosphere.
When: In the future, expected times vary.
Why: It is a part of the earthly "cycle"
My Opinion: While this article is based on many scientists who support evolution (I am basing this assumption on the fact that they date ice ages and cycles that go back millions of years into the Earth's "history") I think we can't fully support it but at the same time need to look deeper into the main message that is coming across. While humans can temporarily put off a sort-of "ice age", it will come in some shape or form and we need to be doing more than we are now to stop it.
Humpbacks make a comeback in Pacific
http://www.canadaka.net/link.php?id=33577
“Humpback whales appear to be returning from the brink of extinction in the North Pacific Ocean, a new study shows. The study, conducted by an international whale watching organization, estimates there were 18,302 humpbacks in the North Pacific between 2004 and 2006, compared with an estimated 9,819 in 1991-93 and 1,400 in 1966. Most of the current population winters off the coasts of Hawaii and Mexico, and feeds off the coast of northern British Columbia, Alaska and the nearby Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. Of concern is the Asian coasts, where humpback numbers are still scarce, the study says. The study was conducted by SPLASH (Structure of Populations, Levels of Abundance and Status of Humpbacks), an international organization that tracks humpbacks throughout the North Pacific. More than 400 researchers from 10 countries, including Canada, participated in the whale count. Experts say bans on humpback hunting have helped the population recover. Humpback whales have been protected by the International Whaling Commission since 1965 in the North Pacific and 1955 in the North Atlantic, according to Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Canada is one of many countries that bans whaling, while the Canadian government has included the North Pacific humpback as one of the threatened and protected animals listed under the Species at Risk Act. Despite the hunting bans, the Canadian government says humpbacks are still at risk because of over-fishing of their prey — including tiny crustaceans and small fish. The whales also can become entangled in the fishing nets of commercial trawlers and drown. In addition, the whales face risks from exposure to the growing number of oil spills caused by the increasing amount of tankers in coastal areas, the government says.
Summary
Who: Humpback Whales
What: They are beginning to return from the brink of extinction
When: Friday, May 23, 2008
Where: The North Pacific
Why: The ban of humpback hunting is the reason why they are recovering
How: Even though it seems that the Humpback whale is making a comeback, they are still in danger due to oil spills, getting tangled in fishermen’s nets, and the over-fishing of their prey
My Opinion:
It’s come to point where you only ever read or watch news about the decline of the environment. This article however was rather refreshing because it was actually positive instead of the oh-so familiar negative. It’s great to hear that the humpback whale is slowly growing in numbers. They are amazing creatures and I hope that what we have done, and are doing, to the environment will no longer harm them.
Article: http://www.globalissues.org/article/199/population-numbers
Who: The Human Race
What: The Population of the Earth is now over 6 billion. They are now determining if this is a good or bad thing.
When: As of the year 2000 the population reached over 6.1 billion
Where: All over the planet. Mostly between China and India is the larger population counts.
Why: Having too many children in already densly populated areas.
How: Lack of spreading out and the need for children to act as help.
Opinion: I think that putting resources aside there is no reason we should not let the world population grow. I just think that there should be a population cap on how many people could live in each of the major cities in the world. In fact I think it would be kinda selfish to (if able and married) to not have any children.
Jesse Ord
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28286252/
US proposes protecting 7 penguin species.
Who: Jerome Maison
What: The united states are proposing to protecting 7 species of penguins in antarctica
When: Wednesday, december 17
Where: Antarctica
Why: They are going onto the endangered list
How: They plan on putting 6 of the species onto the threatened list and 1 more onto the endangered list.
My Opinion: Penguin populations are in jeopardy, and we can't afford to further delay protections I think it's great that they are doing something its only sad that it's taken this long for the American gov to notice.
This comment has been removed by the author.
Andrei Eremia
http://www.globalissues.org/article/173/coral-reefs
Coral Reefs
Who- Clive Wilkinson
What- Coral Reefs
Were- Around the World,
When- 2004
My opinion- Coral Reefs are very useful to the environment because of the things they do, such as protect shores from the impact of waves, provide a lot of benefits to humans in the form of food and medicine and also economic benefits.
We could stop the threats against Coral Reefs by reducing these things: Coastal development, Overfishing, Inland pollution, Global climate change.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_impacts_of_dams
Summary
The environmental impacts of dams have come under renewed examination in recent years.
Dam proponents have historically understood that dams largely improve the status of water-related energy and environmental issues by, for example, producing hydroelectric power and increasing the water supply for irrigation. Recently however, the negative impacts of dams have come increasingly into focus. Discussion over whether dam projects are ultimately beneficial or detrimental--to both the environment and surrounding human populations--has emerged with a particular gravity following various public debates about the construction of Three Gorges Dam and other similar projects throughout Asia, Africa and Latin America. In evaluating the effects of dam projects, experts tend to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of river development in terms of upstream and downstream impacts. Since dams are essentially walls built across rivers, the upstream/downstream vocabulary facilitates organized discussion of the environmental and localized effects of dams, although all effects are intertwined and not necessarily easily divided.
Who: Dam
What: Dams and the negative impacts of them.
When: Now
Where: Asia, Africa, Latin America.
Why: No one really knows weather to say if they’re good or bad for our environment.
How: Because they provide us with hydroelectric power and increasing the water supply for irrigation. Dams block their migration upstream to spawn, threatening to decrease reproduction numbers and reduce the species population. So they don’t know weather or not to say dams are good or bad.
In my opinion I think that the dams are a good source of energy for humans. Its our cheapest resource and it will never run out. They could build dams with fishways a little place for the fish to swim through the dams. that way everyone would be happy.
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