https://vine.co/v/hD5juauFdIJ
https://vine.co/v/hD5TBFtrD9i
Saturday, November 2, 2013
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Monday, March 11, 2013
Problems With our Enviroment
Today's plants are causing major problems for our environment. The smoke stacks they have are putting a lot of pollution into the air. That is why they should switch to CHP. This will not only convert the energy from the smoke stacks into heat, that will warm homes. Also it saves them money and it is pro environmental. Places like Japan and Russia have already changed their energy to 20% CHP. If the USA did this then it would be like taking millions of cars off the roads. The owners of these plants are looking the other way nd that needs to change. All in all we need change.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Its Time for the Tides to Turn
The New York Times presents "A World Without Coral Reefs". This is a
compelling article that talks about the danger of our world losing coral
reefs. Published on July 13th, 2012 by Rodger Bradbury. Since it is
such a recent document the problem is still on the horizon. These
beautiful beneficial areas are withering away because of humanity. This
is a one way relationship; humans are taking and not giving back. It is
time to give back and restore our coral reefs.
Coral Reefs are a very important to the oceans ecosystem. They are affected like many other bodies of water, by nutrients. When we were learning about nodules and legumes we talked about the nutrients and how its runoff goes into bodies of water, well this is happening to the coral reefs all around the world. The nutrients are causing long term damage that will permanently hurt them.
Without even knowing kids of the 21st century have already fallen in love with the thought of coral reefs. Nemo the popular fish from the movie Finding Nemo lived in a coral reef. Even before knowing about Coral Reefs I already loved them because the idea of a paradise underwater with bright colored fish and Nemo. Coral Reefs have touched all of us and have given us great memories, now its time for us to give back.
Coral Reefs aren't just beautiful areas for people to visit, but they mean something to there ecosystem. One reason coral reefs are so essential is because they are home to millions of organisms and every organism in that reef has a job, kind of like a community. Also many have symbiotic relationships, mostly all mutualism and commensalism. A Coral Reef is a very peaceful place, a safe haven for fish. Another reason we need them is because they are the great protectors of our beaches. Coral Reefs reduce erosion on beaches. Not only do they stop erosion, but they also protect the shores from storms. Also the coral reefs give jobs to the people near by and are a great tourist attraction. A clean reef will not only bring scientist, but also people looking for something different, something amazing. The reef brings jobs for the locals and boosts the local economy. Clean Coral Reefs are an all around plus for the people around them (they just have to watch their step).
Sadly the reefs are fading, all around the world they are getting killed off. Completely wiped out, the coral plants inn the reef had built up that reef some for hundreds, thousands and even for some millions of years. The main reasons for the destruction of these harmless places are coral bleaching, burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, and Anchors. Coral Bleaching is a very common killer of the reefs. Coral Bleaching occurs when the temperature rises in the ocean causing the coral's partner, the Algae (example of mutualistic relationship) to leave. This causes the coral plant to lose its color and its energy source. The coral turns white, hence why it is called coral bleaching. If the water temperature goes back down soon the reef can be saved but, if it isn't the organisms in the reef will die. Fossil Fuels are another killer of the coral reefs. The burning of fossil fuels causes a raised level of CO2 which is another way the temperatures are raised in the ocean. The over use of burning fossil fuels leads to coral bleaching. Another major factor is deforestation. When a forest is taken down, the topsoil becomes runoff and enters the ocean. When their is a coral reef near the top soil suffocates the coral and kills it. The final major killer of reefs is anchors. Although they don't seem to threatening they have a big impact on the reef. When boats lower their anchor into the reef, they are destroying what the coral built. The anchor drags to a stop and while it slows down the boat it is tearing up the coral plants and destroying years of work. This leaves the coral plants open to the strong ocean and other dangerous things.
Not only do the coral reefs benefit the marine animals, but they also benefit humanity. With the correct method of fishing, the coral reefs can provide large amounts of food. What I mean by correct method is not to over fish them or illegally fish in the coral reserves. Two ways people illegally fish is dynamite fishing and cyanide fishing. Dynamite fishing is when one throws a stick of dynamite into a reef and blowing up anything close to the stick including the reef itself. Cyanide fishing is when someone would poison the water in the reef killing not only the fish, but the plants also. Treating our reefs will be very beneficial.
Fun Fact- There are very interesting organisms in the Coral Reef, but two stood out to me. The Cleaner fish & the Parrot fish. I find the cleaner fish so interesting because it is the dentist/ doctor. What they do is they go around eating the scraps out of other fish’s teeth. The other fish don't attack them because they know that they are too small to be worth eating and they will help them. The next interesting fish is the Parrot fish. This is so interesting because the Parrot fish eats the seaweed off the reef and bite into the reef itself, which they swallow and return as sand. A parrot fish can make hundreds of pounds of sand a year.
It's time we change. If we start now we can keep the reefs and build on them for our grandchildren. If we don't start then they might not even be able to see such a beautiful sight. In order to do this we must reduce the damage we inflict on the reef and starting using the reef as an asset. The tide needs to turn, and if it doesn't, and we don't start helping the coral reefs then we will have no coral reefs at all.
Video:
http://www.youtube.com/user/OceanFuturesSociety?feature=watch
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
One Bottle at a Time
During this era of the world and at the pace we are going we are not leaving a path or a good future for the generations to come. The article that talks about the plastic waste and the waste of fossil fuels is Bottled Water: A Global Environmental Problem
by Abid Aslam. She wrote this on February 5, 2006 and posted it to "OneWorld.net". This goes on all over the world, people are wasting so much money on water bottles, it cost more for a gallon of water than it does for gas for your car. This is happening because some places that don't have water systems or plumbing need the water but in the long run it would cost less to install a plumbing system that will provide tap water. Even places with tap water, "Even in areas where tap water is safe to drink, demand for bottled water is increasing—producing unnecessary garbage and consuming vast quantities of energy,".
This a path that we don’t want to be heading down. As we learned in Biology class that an animals habitats are very important to them and the environment, the water bottles are killing it. 86% of the water bottles used in the United States are just thrown on the ground after. The bottles can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade. There are many controversies in this article because although it is killing the planet, it is also saving the people in it. In my opinion I think we should slow down the Mass production of water bottles and install water treatments and sanitation systems.
Link to original article: http://www.projectcensored.org/top-stories/articles/20-bottled-water-a-global-environmental-problem/
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)