Earth Wise

A look at our changing environment.

You are here: Home / Archives for threat

threat

Air Pollution And Insects | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Insects can be found in every environment on Earth and play critical roles in the planet’s ecosystems.  Insects pollinate more than 80% of plants, including those that we eat and those that provide food and habitat for other species.  Without insects, we wouldn’t have the rich biodiversity that supports life on earth today.

But the world is experiencing a decline in overall insect populations as well as a collapse in insect diversity.  According to researchers from the University of Melbourne in Australia, Beijing Forestry University in China, and the University of California – Davis, air pollution particles may be the cause of the dramatic decline.  They found that an insect’s ability to find food and a mate is reduced when their antennae are contaminated by particulate matter. 

In the study, which was recently published in the journal Nature Communications, the research team exposed houseflies to varying levels of air pollution for just 12 hours and then placed the flies in a Y-shaped tube ‘maze’. Uncontaminated flies typically chose the arm of the Y-maze leading to a smell of food or sex pheromones, while contaminated flies selected an arm at random, with 50:50 probability.

Using a scanning electron microscope, the researchers also found that as air pollution increases, more particulate material collects on the sensitive antennae of houseflies. 

Insect antennae have olfactory receptors that detect odor molecules emanating from a food source, a potential mate, or a good place to lay eggs.  If an insect’s antennae are covered in particulate matter, a physical barrier is created between the smell receptors and air-borne odor molecules.

Air pollution poses a significant threat to insect populations around the world.   

**********

Web Links

Air pollution particles may be cause of dramatic drop in global insect numbers

Photo, posted June 13, 2008, courtesy of Allen Watkin via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Endangered Plants And The Changing Climate | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Plants are a critical resource because of the countless ways they support life on Earth. Plants release oxygen into the atmosphere, absorb carbon dioxide, and provide food and habitat for humans and wildlife.  Plants are also used to produce fibers, building materials, and medicines. 

Plants form the backbone of natural ecosystems, and absorb about 30% of all the carbon dioxide emitted by humans each year.  But plants are struggling to adapt in a human-dominated world.  Even though they are easier and cheaper to protect than animals, plants are often overlooked in conservation efforts.

Ironically, conservation efforts appear to be overlooking a key threat to endangered plants.  According to a new study led by researchers from Penn State University, all plants and lichens listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act are sensitive to climate change, but there are few plans in place to address that threat directly. 

The threat that climate change poses to endangered plants and lichens had not been thoroughly evaluated in more than a decade.  In the study, which was recently published in the journal PLOS Climate, the research team adapted existing assessment tools used to examine the threat of climate change for wild animals and applied them to 771 endangered plant species.  The researchers found that all endangered plant and lichen species are at least slightly threatened by climate change, and little is being done to protect the listed species from that threat.

The researchers hope their findings will be used to aid future conservation planning.  After all, plants can live without humans, but humans cannot live without plants.

**********

Web Links

Climate change threatens 771 endangered plant and lichen species

Photo, posted June 12, 2014, courtesy of Mark Freeth via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

New York Is Sinking | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The rising seas represent a threat to coastal cities across the globe.  Increasing that threat is the fact that most global cities are slowly sinking as the earth beneath them settles and groundwater is removed.   Another factor that has seldom been considered is that in major metropolises, the weight of large, concrete-and-steel skyscrapers may be hastening the sinking.

A new study by the U.S. Geological Survey published in the journal Earth’s Future estimated the weight of every building in New York City – 1.085 million of them – which they determined to add up to 1.68 trillion pounds – and estimated the downward force of those structures across the city.

The study found that buildings have a greater effect in areas that are rich in clay compared with those areas where sand or bedrock predominate.  The softer the soil, the more compression there is from buildings.  It wasn’t a mistake to build large buildings in New York, but it is important to understand that doing so pushes down the ground more and more.

The study determined that New York is sinking by around 1 to 2 millimeters each year, although some areas are sinking much faster.  The researchers say that cities must plan for future sinking, which will exacerbate the impact of rising seas. Sea levels are rising 1 to 2 millimeter each year, so the subsidence caused by the weight of buildings is equivalent to moving a year ahead in time with regard to rising ocean levels.  This is not a cause for immediate panic, but it is important to understand that this ongoing process only increases the risk of inundation from flooding.

**********

Web Links

New York City Sinking Under Weight of Skyscrapers

Photo, posted January 29, 2016, courtesy of Always Shooting via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Here Come The Lanternflies | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The spotted lanternfly is an invasive pest from Asia that primarily feeds on tree of heaven, which is itself an invasive species that has become widespread.  The real problem is that the lanternfly can also feed on some 70 other plants such as grapevines, maples, fruit trees, and more.

The lanternfly was first discovered in the US in Pennsylvania in 2014 and has since spread to 14 states including New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.  (It was first spotted in New York in Staten Island in 2020 and has continued to spread).

The insect poses a significant threat to New York’s agricultural and forest health. Both the adults and nymphs feed on the sap of plants which stresses them making them vulnerable to diseases and other insect attacks.  They also secrete a sticky substance that attracts molds and interferes with photosynthesis.

Lanternflies are not strong fliers.  They mostly spread through human activity by laying their eggs on vehicles, firewood, outdoor furniture, and other objects that people transport.

The bout of unusually warm weather that the Northeast experienced in early spring is likely to have jumpstarted the spotted lanternfly timeline and hatching could be bumped up to as early as May.

Agriculture officials are asking for people to look for spotted lanternfly egg masses and scrape them off with implements with a sharp edge.  Adult insects should be reported to local authorities and should be killed if at all possible.  There is lots of information online about how to recognize the egg masses and the insects.  Spotted lanternflies are not a direct threat to humans, but they have the potential to cause great harm to vineyards, orchards, and forests.

**********

Web Links

Spotted Lanternfly

Photo, posted September 12, 2018, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Elephants And Global Warming | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

A study by researchers at Saint Louis University has found that elephants play a key role in creating forests that store large amounts of atmospheric carbon and in maintaining the biodiversity of forests in Africa.  Since elephants are endangered, their status represents a significant threat to an ecosystem that is very important to the Earth’s climate.

The African rainforest contains trees with both low carbon density (light wood) and high carbon density (heavy wood).  High carbon density trees grow more slowly and can be crowded out by the faster growing low carbon density trees rising above them.  Elephants affect the relative abundance of these trees by feeding more on the low carbon density trees which are more palatable and nutritious.  This thinning of the forest allows the trees that sequester the most carbon to flourish.

Elephants are also excellent dispersers of the seeds of high carbon density trees.  Essentially, elephants are the gardeners of the forest.  They plant the forest with high carbon density trees and get rid of the weeds – in this case, the low carbon density trees.  According to the study, if elephants were to become extinct, the African rainforest – the second largest on earth – would gradually lose between six and nine percent of its ability to capture atmospheric carbon.

Elephants have been hunted by humans for millennia.   Gaining support for protecting them has mostly been driven by the argument that everybody loves elephants.  Focusing on their role in maintaining forest diversity has not driven much more action.  The hope is that the evidence of how important elephants are for climate mitigation will be taken seriously by policy makers to generate the support needed for improved elephant conservation.

**********

Web Links

Can Elephants Save the Planet?

Photo, posted March 15, 2008, courtesy of Michelle Gadd/USFWS via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A Growing Threat To Wheat | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Wheat is one of the most widely-grown crops in the world and plays a major role in human nutrition.  In fact, wheat contributes approximately 20% of the protein and 20% of the calories consumed by humans globally.  It is grown on every continent except Antarctica.  

But wheat is under growing attacks from harmful toxins.  According to a new study by researchers from the University of Bath and the University of Exeter in the U.K., almost half of wheat crops across Europe are impacted by the fungal infection that gives rise to mycotoxins.

Mycotoxins are naturally occurring toxins produced by the fungus that causes Fusarium Head Blight.  Fusarium Head Blight is a disease that affects wheat and other grains growing in the field. Eating products contaminated with mycotoxins can cause sickness in humans and livestock, including vomiting and other gastrointestinal problems.

In the study, the research team examined 10 years of government and agribusiness data, which tracked Fusarium mycotoxins in wheat entering the food and animal supply chains across Europe and the U.K.  Half of the wheat intended for human food in Europe contained the Fusarium mycotoxin.  In the UK, 70% of wheat was contaminated.

Governments set legal limits on mycotoxin contamination levels in wheat that is to be consumed by humans. But with the ubiquitous nature of these mycotoxins, the effect of constant, low-level exposure in the diet over the course of a lifetime is not known. 

With climate change and the war in Ukraine already impacting both wheat yield and price, preventing toxin contamination is critical to help maintain a stable crop price and to protect global good security. 

**********

Web Links

Harmful fungal toxins in wheat: a growing threat across Europe

Photo, posted July 11, 2011, courtesy of Maria Keays via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Examining The Decline Of Honey Bees | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

For many years, scientists have been sounding the alarm on the global struggle of pollinators.  Many of the invertebrate pollinator species, such as bees and butterflies, are facing extinction. And since 75% of the world’s food crops depend on pollination to some extent, the decline of pollinators poses a major threat to global food security.

Honey bees are among the struggling pollinators.  Over the past 14 years, bee colonies have been disappearing at an alarming rate in what is known as the “colony collapse disorder.” 

In an effort to understand why, scientists have often focused their research on environmental stressors, such as parasites, pesticides, and disease.  But according to new research by entomologists from the University of Maryland, honey bee life spans are simply 50% shorter today than they were 50 years ago.  In the study, which was recently published in the journal Scientific Reports, the researchers found that honey bees kept in a controlled, laboratory environment lived half as long as honey bees did in the 1970s.  This is the first study to show that genetics – as opposed to environmental stressors – may be influencing the broader trends seen in the beekeeping industry.

When the researchers modeled the effect of their findings on a beekeeping operation, they found that the resulting loss rates were about 33%.  This is similar to the average overwinter and annual loss rates reported by beekeepers during the past 14 years.

The next step is for researchers to compare trends in honey bee life spans across the U.S. and in other countries to see if there are differences in bee longevity. 

**********

Web Links

Honey Bee Lifespans are 50% Shorter Today Than They Were 50 Years Ago

Helping Agriculture’s Helpful Honey Bees

Photo, posted June 23, 2007, courtesy of Susan E. Ellis via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Trees Are Growing Bigger | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The alarming rate of carbon dioxide flowing into the atmosphere is having a real and actually positive effect on plant life. Higher concentrations of carbon dioxide make plants more productive because photosynthesis makes use of the sun’s energy to synthesize sugar out of carbon dioxide and water.  Plants make use of the sugar both as a source of energy and as the basic building block for growth.  When carbon dioxide levels go up, plants can take it up faster, supercharging the rate of photosynthesis.

In a new study published in the journal Nature Communications, scientists at Ohio State University found that trees are feasting on decades of carbon dioxide emissions and are growing bigger as a result. 

The researchers tracked wood volume in 10 different tree groups from 1997 to 2017 and found that all of them except aspens and birches grew larger.  Over that time period, carbon dioxide levels climbed from 363 parts per million to 405 parts per million.  According to the study, each 1% increase in lifetime CO2 exposure for trees has led to more than a 1% increase in wood volume.

In the big picture, the news isn’t so positive.  The global warming caused by increasing carbon dioxide levels increasingly threatens the forests of the world.  It has led to worsening droughts, insect infestations, and wildfires.  So overall, increasing levels of carbon dioxide are by no means a good thing for the world’s trees.  However, since trees are growing bigger more quickly, it means that planting them is an increasingly cost-effective method for fighting climate change because the same number of trees can sequester more carbon.

**********

Web Links

As Carbon Dioxide Grows More Abundant, Trees Are Growing Bigger, Study Finds

Photo, posted September 12, 2015, courtesy of Nicholas A. Tonelli via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Sinking Cities | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Sea levels across the globe are rising as a result of the changing climate.  Two factors are largely responsible: the melting of ice sheets in the polar regions and the fact that as the oceans get warmer, the water in them expands.  

Estimates are that by 2050, there will be over 800 million people living in 570 cities that will be at risk from rising sea levels.   The rising waters can drown neighborhoods, put people’s lives at risk, and wreck entire economies.  Unless global emissions can be reduced sufficiently, sea levels will continue to rise.

A new study, published in the journal Nature Sustainability by Nanyang Technical University in Singapore in collaboration with the University of New Mexico, ETH Zurich, and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab, has focused on yet another aspect of the threat to coastal cities.  They have found that many densely populated coastal cities worldwide are even more vulnerable to sea level rise because much of their land is sinking. 

The researchers processed satellite images of 48 cities from 2014 to 2020 using a system called Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar.  They found that land subsidence varied on a neighborhood and even individual block level but across all the cities studied, there was a median sinking speed of 6/10” a year.  Some places had land that is sinking at 1.7” per year.  Meanwhile, the global mean sea-level rise is about .15” per year.

The increasing prevalence of industrial processes such as the extraction of groundwater, and oil and gas, along with the rapid construction of buildings and other urban infrastructure are leading to the sinking of the urban areas. 

**********

Web Links

Rapid land sinking leaves global cities vulnerable to rising seas

Photo, posted October 24, 2015, courtesy of Jeffrey via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Propane Refrigerants | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

About 10% of the world’s total electricity supply is used for air conditioning.  If current temperature trends continue, the energy demands for space cooling will more than triple by the year 2050.  Air conditioning is a double threat to the environment.  Apart from using lots of energy, ACs also make use of halogenated refrigerants that are extremely powerful greenhouse gases.

The most common space cooling appliances are split-air conditioners, which use an indoor unit and an outdoor unit connected by pipes.  These split ACS mostly utilize HCFC-22 and HFC-410 as refrigerants, which have global warming potential scores as high as 2,256 – meaning they trap 2,256 times more heat than carbon dioxide. 

A study by the International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis in Austria has shown that propane is a far better choice as an air conditioning refrigerant.  Its global warming potential is actually less than 1 meaning it traps less heat than carbon dioxide.  According to the study, if air conditioners switched to propane refrigerants, the world would avoid about a tenth of a degree Celsius of additional warming, which is a significant contribution to meeting the goals of the Paris climate agreement.

Propane-based split-ACs are already available commercially in China and India.  Elsewhere, many national regulations prohibit their use, primarily due to codes restricting the use of refrigerants with higher flammability.  Given the increasingly urgent need for climate action, it seems to be time to reconsider regulations on refrigerants.

**********

Web Links

Propane — a solution for more sustainable air conditioning

Photo, posted March 24, 2021, courtesy of Phyxter Home Services via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Rewilding The American West | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Oregon State University scientists have proposed a series of management changes for western federal lands aimed at re-establishing ecosystems there.  Their proposal would result in more gray wolves and beavers in nearly 200,000 square miles of federal lands in 11 states.

In each of those states, the researchers identified areas containing prime wolf habitat.  Gray wolves were hunted to near extinction in the West but have been gradually reintroduced in some areas starting in the 1990s.  Wolf restoration offers significant ecological benefits by helping to naturally control the population of grazing animals such as elk.  This in turn facilitates the regrowth of vegetation species such as aspen, which ultimately supports diverse plant and animal communities.

Beaver populations, which used to be robust across the West, declined roughly 90% after settler colonialism and are now nonexistent in many areas.  By felling trees and shrubs and constructing dams, beavers enrich fish habitat, increase water and settlement retention, maintain water flows during droughts, and increase carbon sequestration.

According to the researchers, the biggest threat to these western lands is livestock grazing, which has degraded ecosystems to a great extent.  They recommend the removal of grazing on about 30% of the federal lands being used for that purpose and instead would have rewilding efforts go on. 

The American West is going through a period of converging crises including extended drought and water scarcity, extreme heat waves, massive fires, and loss of biodiversity.  Rewilding is a way to reestablish long-standing ecosystems.

**********

Web Links

More wolves, beavers needed as part of improving western United States habitats, scientists say

Photo, posted October 1, 2020, courtesy of Tina DaPuglet via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

The Great Salt Lake Is Disappearing | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Utah’s Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the western hemisphere.  According to data from the US Geological Survey, the surface water elevation of the Great Salt Lake has fallen to the lowest level since records began in the mid-1800s.  The average elevation is now 4,190 feet above sea level.   With this drop in water level, the surface area of the lake is little more than half of its historical size.  The lower water level has exposed about 700 square miles of previously submerged lakebed.

The lake now contains about a quarter of the volume of water that it did at its high point in 1987.  The precipitous drop in water is a result of water usage from the lake coupled with climate change-fueled drought.   Increased water demand is due to the rapidly growing population of metropolitan Salt Lake City.  Utah’s population is projected to increase by almost 50% by 2060.

The Great Salt Lake goes though seasonal cycles of water loss and replenishment.  Rain and snow generally refill its level.  However, because of the ongoing megadrought in the West, water evaporation and depletion continue to exceed the amount of water entering the lake.  The water levels are expected to further decrease until fall or early winter, when incoming water is expected to equal or exceed evaporation.

The decline of the Great Salt Lake is a serious threat to the economy, ecology, and people of northern Utah.  The lake generates snowpack, is a refuge for hundreds of migratory birds and other wildlife and generates millions of dollars in the economy through mineral extraction and tourism.

**********

Web Links

Utah’s Great Salt Lake is disappearing

Photo, posted October 6, 2020, courtesy of Julie Girard via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

California Trees Are Dying | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

California relies on extensive forests to help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere.  But extensive drought and increasingly frequent wildfires have been reducing the state’s tree population for the past three decades.

A comprehensive study by a team of scientists from the University of California Irvine used satellite data to study vegetation changes between 1985 and 2021.  Across the entire state, tree cover area has declined 6.7% over that time period.  The results varied from region to region across the state.

Southern California exhibited the sharpest decline, where 14% of the tree population in local mountain ranges vanished, potentially permanently.  In the Sierra Nevada mountains, tree populations were relatively stable until about 2010.  After that, a severe drought followed by historically large wildfires resulted in a 8.8% die-off of trees.  The northern parts of the state, with higher rainfall and cooler temperatures, fared better, being able to more easily recover from wildfires.

The study goes beyond measuring the tree population of the state and its effects on carbon storage.  The data is also important for understanding how changes in forest cover affects water resources and fire behavior in the state.

The decline of trees in California is affecting the carbon storage abilities of the state.  The satellite survey showed that as the tree populations have dropped, the state’s coverage of shrubs and grasses has risen, possibly indicating that permanent ecosystem shifts are occurring.  The forces contributing to the decline of trees in California are not going away any time soon.  As a result, the threat to California’s ability to mitigate the effects of climate change continues to grow.

**********

Web Links

UCI study: California’s trees are dying, and might not be coming back

Photo, posted March 24, 2016, courtesy of David Fulmer via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Building Resilient Food Systems | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

According to the United Nations and The World Bank, global hunger levels in 2021 surpassed the previous record set in 2020.  The organizations also found that acute food insecurity – defined as when a person’s inability to consume adequate food puts their lives or livelihoods in immediate danger – could continue to worsen this year in many countries around the world. 

According to a new study led by researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder, increased demand for water will be the biggest threat to food security during the next 20 years, followed closely by heat waves, droughts, income inequality, and political instability.  

The report, which was recently published in the journal One Earth, calls for increased collaboration to build a more resilient global food supply.  The impacts of conflict and climate change are already measured and studied around the world.  While these pressing threats are not new, the researchers found that better collaboration between these areas of research could fortify and strengthen global food security. 

In 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers surveyed 69 experts in various fields related to food security.  They found that many effects of climate change – such as unpredictable weather changes – could have the greatest negative impacts on food security.  The researchers also found that threats to food security from income inequality, global price shocks, and political instability and migration are highly likely during the next two decades.  More than half of the world’s food insecure populations also live in conflict-prone regions.

According to the research team, food security has never been a problem of production.  It’s a problem of distribution, access, and poverty, and can be exacerbated by conflict.   

**********

Web Links

Amid climate change and conflict, more resilient food systems a must, report shows

Photo, posted July 19, 2009, courtesy of Danumurthi Mahendra via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Space Tourism And The Climate | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Space tourism is human space travel for recreational purposes.  A few well-known billionaires have taken rocket rides in recent years and at least a dozen companies are at the vanguard of what they are expecting to be a burgeoning industry.  If space tourism truly takes off – pun intended – it could be a serious threat to the climate and the environment.

Black carbon – essentially soot – is emitted when fossil fuels, including rocket fuels, are burned.  Black carbon absorbs light from the sun and releases thermal energy, making it a powerful climate warming agent.  At lower altitudes, black carbon quickly falls from the sky, remaining in the atmosphere for only a matter of days or weeks.

Rockets are another story entirely.  They dump black carbon into the stratosphere as they blast into space, and up there black carbon is 500 times worse for the climate and sticks around for several years.

A detailed study by researchers at University College London looked at the climate impact of present-day space launches compared with the potential massive expansion of launches from a large space tourism industry.

The overall result is that current space launches are not a significant source of emissions, but space launches would become incredibly significant if projections of tourist space flights proved to be true.  Currently, there are roughly 100 space launches a year world-wide.  If that number becomes thousands, the impact on the climate would be substantial.

The same researchers looked at the ozone impact of rocket launches and reached a similar conclusion.  The current impact of spaceflights is not very significant, but a massive increase in launches could have a major impact on atmospheric ozone concentrations.

Space tourism may be exciting, but it also could be very dangerous for the planet.

**********

Web Links

Space Tourism Poses a Significant ‘Risk to the Climate’

Impact of Rocket Launch and Space Debris Air Pollutant Emissions on Stratospheric Ozone and Global Climate

Photo, posted May 30, 2020, courtesy of Daniel Oberhaus (2020) via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

A Geoengineering Research Plan | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The 2022 federal appropriations act, signed into law in March, directed the Office of Science and Technology Policy to develop a cross-agency group to coordinate research on climate interventions, in partnership with NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Department of Energy.

The group is tasked with creating a research framework to “provide guidance on transparency, engagement, and risk management for publicly funded work on solar geoengineering research.”  The group is supposed to develop a five-year plan that will define research goals for the field, assess the potential hazards of climate interventions, and evaluate the level of federal funding required to carry out the work.

This marks the first federally coordinated effort of this kind and is especially significant because it contributes to the perception that geoengineering is an appropriate and important area of research as the climate continues to warm.

It is an understatement to say that such research is controversial.  Geoengineering has often been a taboo topic among scientists. There are significant questions about potential environmental side effects and concerns that the impact of any such efforts would be felt unevenly in different parts of the world.  There are challenging questions about global governance , including who should be able to make decisions about any potential deployment of climate interventions and what the goals of such interventions should be.

These are momentous issues to grapple with, but as the threat of climate change grows and nations continue to fail to make rapid progress on emissions, researchers, universities, and nations are increasingly motivated to seriously explore the potential effects of geoengineering approaches.  We can’t hide from the fact that these issues are going to be explored.

**********

Web Links

The US government is developing a solar geoengineering research plan

Photo, posted June 28, 2013, courtesy of Fernando Aramburu via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Is It Too Late To Save The Vaquita? | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The vaquita porpoise, the world’s smallest marine mammal, is on the brink of extinction.  Scientists estimate that just 10 or fewer vaquitas are left despite international conservation efforts. Found only in Mexico’s Upper Gulf of California, the vaquita is the most endangered marine mammal on the planet. 

According to the International Committee for the Recovery of the Vaquita, the number one threat facing vaquitas is gillnets. The porpoises get trapped in these nets and drown.  Gillnets are often used illegally in the region to catch shrimp and fish, including the critically-endangered totoaba.  The totoaba’s swim bladder is considered a delicacy in Asia and can fetch thousands of dollars.  Despite Mexico banning both totoaba fishing and the use of gillnets in the vaquitas’ habitat, many say the bans are not always enforced.  

But there is a reason to be hopeful.  According to a genetic analysis led by researchers at UCLA, the critically-endangered species actually remains relatively healthy and can potentially survive if illegal fishing practices cease immediately. 

In the study, which was recently published in the journal Science, the research team analyzed the genomes of 20 vaquitas between 1985 and 2017 and ran simulations to predict the species’ extinction risk over the next 50 years.  The researchers concluded that if gillnet fishing ends immediately, the vaquita has a very high chance of recovery.  If the practice continues, however, even moderately, the likelihood of a recovery plummets. 

According to the research team, the surviving vaquitas are actively reproducing and seem healthy.  But poachers’ gillnets will continue to pose an existential threat to the species until more measures are taken to protect the vaquita. 

**********

Web Links

Only 10 vaquita porpoises survive, but species may not be doomed, scientists say

Photo, posted October 18, 2008, courtesy of Paul Olson / NOAA via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Synthetic Palm Oil | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

Palm oil is the world’s cheapest and most widely used vegetable oil.  Producing it is a primary driver of deforestation and biodiversity loss in the tropics.  In Borneo, for example, oil palm cultivation has accounted for more than half of all deforestation over the past two decades.   More than one million square miles of biodiversity hotspots could be threatened by oil palm cultivation, which could potentially affect more than 40% of all threatened bird, mammal, and amphibian species.

Today, the world consumes over 70 million tons of palm oil each year, used in products ranging from toothpaste and oat milk to biodiesel and laundry detergent.

Given this situation, there are now multiple companies developing microbial oils that might offer an alternative to palm oil while avoiding its most destructive impacts.

A company called C16 Biosciences is working on the problem in Manhattan, backed by $20 million from a Bill Gates’ climate solutions investment fund.  A California-based startup called Kiverdi is working to manufacture yeast oil using carbon captured from the atmosphere. 

Xylome, a Wisconsin-based startup is working to produce a palm oil alternative that they call “Yoil”, produced by a proprietary strain of yeast.  The oil from the yeast strain is remarkably similar to palm oil. 

The challenge is to be able to produce microbial oils at large scale and at a competitive price.  Unless valuable co-products could be manufactured along with the oil, it may be difficult to compete with palm oil.  Without regulatory pressures and willingness of consumers to pay more, it may be difficult to replace palm oil in many of its applications.

**********

Can Synthetic Palm Oil Help Save the World’s Tropical Forests?

Photo, posted December 9, 2008, courtesy of Fitri Agung via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Melting Himalayan Glaciers | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The great mountain ranges of central Asia, including the Himalayas, contain the third-largest deposit of ice and snow in the world, trailing only Antarctica and the Arctic.  The Himalayan range contains about 15,000 glaciers, and is part of a region widely referred to as the Third Pole due to its extraordinary reserves of freshwater.

But in recent years, scientists have observed an increase in the rate of Himalayan glacier loss.  According to a new study led by researchers from the University of Leeds in the UK, the accelerating melting of the Himalayan glaciers threatens the water supply of millions of people in Asia. 

In the study, researchers reconstructed the reach of the Himalayan glaciers during the Little Ice Age, which was the last major glacier expansion 400-700 years ago. They found that these glaciers began losing ice 10 times faster during the modern era.  In fact, the glaciers have shrunk from a peak of nearly 11,000 square miles to around 7,500 square miles today.   

This exceptional acceleration of melting of the Himalayan glaciers could have significant implications.  Hundreds of millions of people rely on Asia’s major river systems for food and energy, and depend on these glaciers to feed rivers during the dry seasons.  These rivers include the Brahmaputra, Ganges, and Indus.  The changing global climate could disastrously impact water resources and livelihoods of the Greater Himalayan region.

According to the research team, people living in these regions have already seen changes that are unlike anything witnessed for centuries.  This study is the latest to confirm that these changes are accelerating and pose a significant threat to entire nations and regions. 

**********

Web Links

Himalayan glaciers melting at ‘exceptional rate’

Photo, posted March 13, 2018, courtesy of Sarunas Burdulis via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

The Threat From Thwaites | Earth Wise

By Leave a Comment

The Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica is the widest glacier in the world. It is about 80 miles across and in places extends to a depth of about 2,600 to 3,900 feet.  The glacier is roughly the size of Florida, and it currently contributes 4% of annual global sea level rise as it continues to retreat from a warming ocean.

The International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration is a team of nearly 100 scientists dedicated to studying the glacier.  According to the scientists, Thwaites has doubled its outflow speed within the last 30 years.  The glacier in its entirety holds enough water to raise global sea levels by over two feet, which would be catastrophic.

A third of the glacier flows more slowly than the rest because it is braced by a floating ice shelf that is held in place by an underwater mountain.  The concern is that the brace of ice slowing the glacier may not last for long.

Beneath the surface, warmer ocean water is attacking the glacier from all angles.  The water is melting the ice directly beneath the glacier causing it to lose its grip on the underwater mountain.  Massive fractures have formed and are growing.

Warm water is also a threat for what is called the grounding zone, which is the area where the glacier lifts off the seabed. There are many possible scenarios under which there could be a major ice loss from the glacier.  It is unclear how quickly it could occur.  It might take decades, or it could be centuries.  The threat is large enough and real enough that continued observation and research is essential.

**********

Web Links

The Threat from Thwaites: The Retreat of Antarctica’s Riskiest Glacier

Photo, posted October 16, 2012, courtesy of J. Yungel / NASA Ice via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

WAMC Northeast Public Radio

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio is a regional public radio network serving parts of seven northeastern states (more...)