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Pollution, Climate Change & other anthropogenic effects on Biosphere
Pollution, Climate Change & other anthropogenic effects on Biosphere
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Pollution, Climate Change & other anthropogenic effects on Biosphere
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Just ten rivers are responsible for up to 95% of all river-borne plastic trash that ends up in the sea.
 *This image is copyright of its original author As this map shows, eight of the rivers are in Asia. Four are solely in China:
Two others closely involve China:
Two flow through the Indian subcontinent:
The two non-Asian rivers are both in Africa:
https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/these-10-rivers-carry-95-of-all-plastic-into-the-ocean 
Expand or Intensify? Balancing biodiversity and rising food needs: study
As the human population grows, so does our demand for food, fuel and feed for livestock. Meeting these rising demands will involve either expanding our farm lands to cover more ground or intensifying farming practices on lands already in use for agriculture. A study recently published in the journal Nature Communications examines the tradeoffs between food security and biodiversity under two scenarios (intensification and expansion) on a global scale, to determine the most sustainable route. An interdisciplinary team consisting of economists, geographers and ecologists spent seven years bringing this study from conception to publication. “Agriculture is one of the major drivers of biodiversity loss worldwide, and increases in production are almost always achieved at the expense of biodiversity. But whether and where production rises due to intensification or expansion of cropland does make a difference,” says Florian Zabel of the Department of Geography and Remote Sensing at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich, the study co-author. The researchers estimated the crop expansion and intensification potential for 17 major agricultural crops using socio-economic data (consumption patterns and population growth) as well as data on biophysical constraints (soil quality, climate change, topography). This information was overlaid with spatial data on biodiversity, specifically endemism richness — the number of different kinds of species unique to a region — to determine how each strategy would impact biodiversity in different locales.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author This world map illustrates where an expansion of agricultural use will pose a particular threat to biodiversity (marked in red). In contrast, the areas marked in yellow show low biodiversity. An expansion of agricultural land in these regions would therefore mean less loss of biodiversity. Map created by Florian Zabel and Tomáš Václavík.“Our results show that, for a given rise in food production, the impact of cropland expansion on biodiversity is many times greater than that of the intensification scenario. This is because expansion can be expected to occur in those regions with the highest existing levels of biodiversity, mainly in Central and South America,” says Tomáš Václavík, who is in the Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences at Palacký University in Olomouc, Czech Republic. Each strategy (expansion and intensification) showed different impacts on biodiversity in different places. But under all scenarios, biodiversity was hurt the most in the tropics, even as lowered food costs benefited the global market. The expansion strategy model posed the greatest threat to biodiversity in Latin America and Central Africa. These regions have expansive natural areas not currently being farmed as well as social, economic, and physical conditions likely to encourage cropland expansion in the near future. “Solely relying on expansion to address our food production needs is a really bad thing for biodiversity,” says Professor Ralf Seppelt of the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research in Leipzig. “We as a human society have already harvested the most fertile soils and it shows that where ever we go from here in producing more crops, we are required to take care of biodiversity under an intensification strategy.” *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author Rheas, large flightless birds, hunt for food in a Bolivian soy field. Image by Rhett A. Butler / Mongabay.Worldwide, there is a significant gap between the amount farms are producing and potential yields that could be achieved if plants were grown in an optimal way on minimal land. Closing this yield gap by 28 percent through land use intensification would increase production equal to expanding cropland area by 730 million hectares (281,854,576square miles). Intensification could improve yields dramatically in regions such as sub-Saharan Africa where resources such as fertilizer, irrigation and good seeds appropriate for the soil are deficient. The intensification strategy would likely have the most negative effect on biodiversity in smaller areas with high levels of endemism (unique species). Often, these hotspots are in overlooked regions such as India, Myanmar, and East Africa where small-scale agriculture could benefit greatly from more intense farming practices and which also host high levels of unprotected or unregulated biodiversity. Of course, large-scale global data sets, like those used in the study, can be course in resolution, lacking small-scale detail, according to the team. Therefore, the data on global biodiversity, socioeconomic potential, as well as the cultural and institutional dimensions of food security, are not as ideally robust as they could be. Likewise, the study did not address the cost of implementing intensification or expansion, or the costs of incorporating infrastructure (such as roads) needed to distribute food. “This study was designed to be interdisciplinary and to link different scales,” says Ruth Delzeit, Head of the Environment and Natural Resources Research Unit at Kiel Institute for the World Economy. “We have been working on the global scale with the goal of generating scenarios with outcomes that can be used for regional field studies. My recommendations to policymakers and ministries based on this study would be to take a look at the maps we created and to define regions where funding should go in order to then finance local field studies. From here they can decide on the best regional strategies.” Co-author Ralf Seppelt’s recommendations to policymakers would be to immediately stop the expansion of agriculture; carefully choose where and how to intensify; and to lower the pressures on food production by curtailing the use of biofuels, while also supporting changes in diets, reducing harvest losses and cutting food waste. “Most of the areas with high levels of biodiversity that are suitable for agricultural expansion and intensification in the coming years are not currently protected,” says Seppelt. “We therefore recommend developing global mechanisms which recognize land as a limited resource. Measures should be implemented to protect biodiversity in landscapes that are in use rather than focusing solely on protection sites.” In other words, we need to not only protect uncultivated wildlands, but also make the very most economically and ecologically of our existing croplands, improving production and biodiversity through best use practices. https://news.mongabay.com/2019/09/expand-or-intensify-balancing-biodiversity-and-rising-food-needs-study/amp/?__twitter_impression=true Citation: Zabel F, Delzeit R, Schneider JM, et al (2019) Global impacts of future cropland expansion and intensification on agricultural markets and biodiversity. Nature Communications 10:2844. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-10775-z
High rate of green clearances continue, puts forests and wildlife at risk
In the first six months of 2019, the expert panels of the environment ministry considered 270 proposals that sought diversion of forest land and land from wildlife sanctuaries, national parks and tiger reserves. Among them, the majority were recommended clearance while less than five percent were rejected. A latest analysis has revealed that linear projects like roads, railways, transmission lines and pipelines, mining and irrigation accounted for over 90 percent of the projects recommended for green clearance. It was also revealed that the expert panels that recommended clearances for diversion rarely looked at ensuring compliance of the Forest Rights Act 2006 while considering such proposals.
A must watch for anyone interested in the future of humanity, on system dynamics, and how we are almost at a crashing point due to our ecological footprint exceeding bio capacity.
Rupert Murdoch's Son Reveals the Climate Change Disinformation Driving his Family's Media Empire
“Kathryn and James’ views on climate are well established and their frustration with some of the News Corp and Fox coverage of the topic is also well known. They are particularly disappointed with the ongoing denial among the news outlets in Australia given obvious evidence to the contrary,” a spokesperson for James Murdoch and his wife told The Daily Beast. https://bylinetimes.com/2020/01/15/rupert-murdochs-son-reveals-the-climate-change-disinformation-driving-his-familys-media-empire/ 
David Yarrow: " This is perhaps what hell looks like, Kangaroo Island, Australia this morning. For every living animal I saw, I counted 100 dead. The west of the island has been furnaced. I was never fully prepared for these visuals and returned to base so covered in ash that I could have rolled in a smouldering barbecue all night. These surviving kangaroos have no idea what to do or how to behave. Australians have been brilliant on the ground and there are so many fire fighters on the island from around the world. The human spirit and bravery here is uplifting. "
(10-22-2019, 09:35 AM)Styx38 Wrote: Just ten rivers are responsible for up to 95% of all river-borne plastic trash that ends up in the sea. Just now, a tributary of the Brahmaptura (another major river of eastern India), that is the Burhi Dihing in Dibrugarh District, Assam State, bizarrely caught fire, allegedly due to a connected oil pipeline, leading to panic among locals. Locals said that crude oil from Oil India Limited, Duliajan plant came in a water pipe that was connected with the river. Villagers suspected that some miscreants set fire after the crude oil came into the river: https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/ri...2020-02-03, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city...890091.cms, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/new...893479.cms, https://www.guwahatiplus.com/daily-news/...r-in-assam, https://www.business-standard.com/multim...-98931.htm Credit: Hemantha Nath of India Today  *This image is copyright of its original author The Economic Times: 
Just a question for all european members. Has this winter been quite mild for you ? for me it has.
(02-05-2020, 01:09 AM)Lycaon Wrote: Just a question for all european members. Has this winter been quite mild for you ? for me it has. In the Arabian Peninsula, especially the UAE and KSA, it would have been the opposite. The UAE, especially the eastern region which shares the Hajar Mountains with neighbouring Oman, saw record rainfall that resulted in deadly floods and transformed wadis (riverbeds that are normally dry, which transform into rivers with sufficient rainfall or levels of water) into rivers: https://www.thenational.ae/uae/environme...s-1.966642, https://www.thenational.ae/uae/environme...-leave-tra, https://gulfnews.com/uae/weather/flash-f...5156940820, https://gulfnews.com/uae/weather/flash-f...5156940820 Bearing in mind that a wadi would usually look like this, or without water: Wadi Bih in the northern Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, in the vicinity of the Ru'us al-Jibal (literally "Heads of the Mountains") that includes Jabal Jais (the highest mountain in the UAE) and Jabal Al-Mebrah / Jabal Yibir (the mountain with the highest peak in the UAE, because the peak of Jabal Jais is in the Omani Governorate of Musandam), credit: Shahana Shamsuddin  *This image is copyright of its original author Look at what the heavy rainfall has done to this rather dry land: - Ras Al Khaimah: - Al Ain City, near Jabal Hafeet, the only mountain in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi (also shared with Oman): (02-08-2020, 10:23 PM)BorneanTiger Wrote:(02-05-2020, 01:09 AM)Lycaon Wrote: Just a question for all european members. Has this winter been quite mild for you ? for me it has. As for Saudi Arabia, the northwestern region of the Midian Mountains (part of the Sarat range which extends into Yemen) near the border with Jordan has experienced snow: https://www.indy100.com/article/saudi-ar...eo-9284681, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-15/s...m/11871048 Dromedaries in the snow: ABC News on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ABC/status/121735657...frame.html  *This image is copyright of its original author Reuters:  *This image is copyright of its original author
(02-08-2020, 10:31 PM)BorneanTiger Wrote:(02-08-2020, 10:23 PM)BorneanTiger Wrote:(02-05-2020, 01:09 AM)Lycaon Wrote: Just a question for all european members. Has this winter been quite mild for you ? for me it has. And the Argentine research base of Esperanza, in the northwestern part of Antarctica, has just witnessed the continent's highest temperature on record, that is 18.3 °C (64.9 °F), making it warmer than the U.S. States of Louisiana and Florida! https://www.bbc.com/news/world-51420681, https://edition.cnn.com/2020/02/07/world...index.html, https://cleantechnica.com/2020/02/07/its...a-florida/ (02-08-2020, 10:39 PM)BorneanTiger Wrote:(02-08-2020, 10:31 PM)BorneanTiger Wrote:(02-08-2020, 10:23 PM)BorneanTiger Wrote:(02-05-2020, 01:09 AM)Lycaon Wrote: Just a question for all european members. Has this winter been quite mild for you ? for me it has. Also: - The World's biggest iceberg, A68, which broke off from Larsen C Ice Shelf in Antarctica in July 2017 (measuring 150 km (93.21 miles) in length, 2,300 square miles (5,956.97 square km) in area and up to a trillion tons at the time of its separation, but also only 200 m (656.17 ft) in thickness) and was about to escape the boundaries of the continent's perennial sea ice and go into the open ocean: https://www.ecowatch.com/largest-iceberg...belltitem1, https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/the-worl...-1.4800168, https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/202...ocean.html The BBC:  *This image is copyright of its original author - Coastal cities in the UAE famed for their skyscrapers, like Abu Dhabi and Dubai, also faced flooding: https://www.thenational.ae/uae/video-hea...3481783001, https://www.thenational.ae/uae/environme...y-1.962387, https://gulfnews.com/photos/news/look-it...8808177021 Flooding in coastal cities like Abu Dhabi and Dubai: - Hail or snow in some parts of the UAE, including Al-Dhafra Region (the western region of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi) and Jabal Jais: https://www.thenational.ae/uae/environme...y-1.962387 - Deforestration in the Amazon rainforest doubled in January compared to last year, reaching a 5-year record for the month, according to officials: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-51425408, https://phys.org/news/2020-02-amazon-def...nuary.html, https://www.thehindu.com/news/internatio...768610.ece A deforestrated plot of the Amazon near the city of Porto Velho in September, credit: Reuters  *This image is copyright of its original author
Climate change could kill all of Earth's coral reefs by 2100, scientists warn
(CNN)Climate change could destroy almost all of Earth's coral reef habitats by 2100, according to new research. About 70-90% of all existing coral reefs are expected to disappear in the next 20 years due to warming oceans, acidic water and pollution, said scientists from the University of Hawaii Manoa, who presented their findings Monday at an ocean sciences conference. "By 2100, it's looking quite grim," said Renee Setter, one of the University of Hawaii Manoa researchers, in a press release. The new study mapped areas of the ocean that would be best suited to this type of coral restoration, taking into consideration factors like acidity, water temperature, human population density and fishing frequency. After examining the world's oceans, they reached a somber conclusion: "By 2100, few to zero suitable coral habitats will remain." Most parts of the ocean where coral reefs live today won't be suitable by 2045 -- and the health and condition of these environments are only likely to get worse by 2100, according to the team's simulations.  *This image is copyright of its original author Coral reefs in Hawaii could be damaged by a major marine heat wave, scientists say "Honestly, most sites are out," Setter said in the press release. There may only be a few viable sites for coral reef restoration by 2100, like portions of Baja California and the Red Sea -- but even these aren't ideal reef habitats because they're close to rivers. The researchers warned that climate change was the big killer -- human pollution, while a problem, is only a small part of the larger threat. "Trying to clean up the beaches is great and trying to combat pollution is fantastic. We need to continue those efforts," Setter said in the release. "But at the end of the day, fighting climate change is really what we need to be advocating for in order to protect corals and avoid compounded stressors." Coral reef die-off Scientists have been warning for years that the world's reefs are heading for "massive death" and a "planetary catastrophe," as ocean warming and acidification kill off entire swaths of reefs. The 1,500 mile-long (2,300 kilometer) Great Barrier Reef is the best-known example -- it has endured multiple large scale "bleaching" events caused by above average water temperatures in the last two decades. Then, back-to-back marine heat waves in 2016 and 2017 killed about half of the corals on the Great Barrier Reef, along with many others around the world.  *This image is copyright of its original author Dramatic coral bleaching in the Great Barrier Reef in March 2016. One of the natural wonders of the world, the Great Barrier Reef is roughly the length of Italy -- and provides a habitat for a diverse range of marine life. Up to a third of all marine species everywhere depend on the coral reefs, meaning a reef extinction could cause ecological collapse, experts warn. And these devastating effects will ripple out into human societies -- almost a billion people worldwide rely on reefs as a source of food protein, according to Mark Eakin, coordinator for the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coral Reef Watch. Coral reefs also protect shorelines and infrastructure -- meaning their death could threaten the safety and sustainability of coastal societies.  *This image is copyright of its original author Climate crisis pushing Earth to a 'global tipping point,' researchers say In recent years, activists have been scrambling to find ways to save the reefs; environmental entrepreneurs have opened coral farms, which scales up and speeds up restoration efforts. Other scientists have also tried to use underwater loudspeakers to replicate the sounds of healthy reefs, in an attempt to entice fish back to dead reefs to help them recover. These attempts have been met with some success -- and potentially buys the world's reefs a little more time -- but all of the scientists and entrepreneurs involved have warned it's not enough to save them all. Almost nothing will be, they say -- unless we take drastic action on climate change.
Alex Mustard: " For the 4%. Today is #worldwildlifeday a reminder of the wonders of our planet, like this mighty blue whale, and also how that wildlife is being squeezed out. Take mammals, for example, by weight on our planet, wild mammals only account 4% of the total, humans and our livestock are the other 96% "
 *This image is copyright of its original author Figure 1. The carbon cycle of the Earth. Numbers represent the mass of carbon in gigatonnes (not the molecules, just carbon alone) that is cycled in a year. Yellow text is the natural carbon cycle, with red text showing human effects.[2] Notice that the 9 gigatonnes of carbon that humans are emitting (~35 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide) becomes an extra 4 gigatonnes in the atmosphere, an extra 3 gigatonnes of photosynthesis and an extra 2 gigatonnes in the ocean every year. This is how humans are changing the natural carbon cycle. source |
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