Antarctic Ozone Hole - Essay Example

?Antarctic Ozone Hole Continues to Grow The Antarctic Ozone hole is continuing to grow and continuing to threaten our environmental safety. Studies reveal that the Antarctic hole has gotten bigger in the past decades and will get bigger without the proper precautions taken to curtail its further degeneration. We have also felt the effect of the thinning ozone layer with higher global temperatures. Man is the biggest contributor to this problem with his industries producing CFCs and other environmentally toxic compounds contributing to the thinning of our ozone. This hole and our thinning ozone are impacting negatively on living things in the planet, including man. The international conventions which were agreed upon have helped minimize the impact and the progression of ozone damage. Similar arrangements are bound to produce favorable results. The Antarctic hole is not really a hole, but it is more a thinning of the ozone layer of our stratosphere. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration described that this hole reached an area of about 26 million square km or about three times the size of Australia. This hole usually developed with each Antarctic spring since the late 1970s, and in 1998, it lasted up to December. This hole has grown in size; however, some reports have revealed that the thinning of the ozone layer is also starting to slow. The hole is in the Antarctic because the strong winds which circle the Antarctic trap the atmosphere near the pole during the winter months. The high-altitude clouds of ice crystals then gather in the extreme cold of the polar winter. During the summer months, the solar power sets off chemical actions on the surfaces of the ice crystals through the CFCs and halons which then break down the ozone into oxygen. Towards the start of the Antarctic summer months, the ice clouds melt and break down the ozone. The strong winds then weaken and warmer ozone-rich air mix with Antarctic air. The North Pole ozone also thins but the Arctic winds are not as strong as the Antarctic winds. Everglades Restoration The restoration of the everglades has been proposed as a solid effort towards restoring the ecosystem, atleast in the Everglades of South Florida. The US Army Corps of Engineers proposed this plan in order to restore the wetlands into its original and natural hydrological patterns. It is a costly enterprise which many skeptics do not trust to succeed. The Everglades were historically a slow-flowing river of grass which started at the Lake Okechobe. The winter rains often flooded the region and the summer heat dried it. It was home to fishes, herons, and other Everglade birds. The fluctuations in its water levels frustrated south Florida’s human population because the flowing threatened cities and farms. As a result, the waters of the Everglades were redirected towards the ocean and levees were built to protect the cities and roads. The natural Everglades then sank to half its original size. It also became susceptible to wild fires during the summer months and about 90% of its wading bird population disappeared. Plans to restore it to its original water system were set forth. It is bound to face difficulties because of the large human population which has already settled in the area. Skeptics are wary of the plans set forth in the restoration of the everglades because they suggest that it may be impossible to restore it to its original state. They suggest that more studies have to be undertaken in order to ensure that the restorations plans would be successful. The Everglades are being restored to their natural state in a bid to preserve the Everglades and restore ecological balance in south Florida. Not doing it now would make efforts to restore it later, more difficult. The US Army Corps of Engineers asked for $8 billion dollars to restore the Everglades and they estimated that the restoration process would span 20 years. The actual restoration may take longer, but for now, the efforts to restore the areas into its original state are in place in a bid to reverse environmental damage. India’s Rising Population By the end of 1999, the largest contributor to the world’s population was India and by then, it became one of the world’s most populous country. In August 1999, their 1 billionth resident was born and even as China had a population of 1.27 billion and was recognized as the world’s most populous country, India was fast gaining on China. If current birth rates are to continue, within the next 45 years, India will soon gain on China. India’s growth rate has grown because of its longer life expectancy and lower infant mortality rates seen in recent years. Since 1947, its life expectancy went from 39 years old to 63 years old. And even if the family sizes have decreased from 6 children to only three, the momentum which the population has already gained is already substantial. Its population has tripled since 1947 and in 15 years it will exceed the population of all developed nations combined. India is said to represent about 21% of the world’s annual population increase, whereas China contributes 16%. India has gained on China because China has implemented the one-child-policy on its citizens; India has not strictly implemented population control measures. Although family planning education has been set forth by the government, such teachings have not been taken to heart by the people. It has also become difficult to impart family planning teachings to the peasant populations who see their children as workmates in order to get a better family income. Reducing the sizes of families has been effective in the southern states of India where female literacy is higher and where women have a higher social status. Women who are educated seem to be more inclined towards postponing childbirth in favor of careers and other pursuits. However for areas which are poor, especially in the northern states of Uttar and Bihar, the poorly educated girls do not have the same inclinations to pursue careers as much as their southern Indian counterparts. As a result, getting pregnant and having a family is a natural progression for them. Kenya’s Rhino Population Reports indicate that the rhino population seems to be increasing in the national park of Kenya. The Kenya Wildlife Service reported that the rhino herd grew in the past 12 years from 41 to 71. These numbers are very much significant considering that most of the animal population which are in the endangered numbers cannot seem to gain significant progress in their numbers. And when the shrinking world numbers for the rhino population are taken into consideration, then the growth in the national park is very much a major progress. To some degree, the increase in number indicates that the conservation efforts may be paying off. Kenya’s efforts to preserve the rhino population were seen in the 1980s when poaching saw their rhino population collapse from 20,000 in the 1970s to just 400 in 1983. Their ‘Save the Rhino’ national program in 1984 was initiated by then President Moi. After three years, the Wildlife Service set aside a rhino sanctuary in the Lake Nakuru, sheltering 20 animals there. Another 21 was donated from South Africa. Since then, reports were promising with the white rhino population rising in the years following and with anti-poaching efforts being firmly implemented in the African countries. The rhinos are still however very much an endangered population despite local and international efforts to preserve their numbers. And still the major reason for this decrease in number is attributed to the poaching activities. These activities were mostly carried out in order to retrieve the rhino horns which were considered valuable tools in making traditional knife handles seen in Yemen and the Middle Eastern nations. The increasing wealth of the Middle Eastern countries has also been credited for the increase in poaching in South Africa. The loss of habitat of the rhinos has not helped their situation at all. There are less than 14,000 rhinos in the world and most are white rhinos in Africa, by the black rhinos also in Africa, the Indian rhinos in South Africa, and the Sumatran and the Java rhino in Indonesia. Weather and the Dimming Sun Richard Sommerville states that we should be concerned about our changing climate; but we should watch out for the hope that our earth may produce surprises. He describes climate as something we expect and weather is something we get. There are also natural changes in the earth’s climate which may not be man-made. He offered a guide on what science knows and what it has not established yet about climate and its changes. He also discussed about computer climate models and how these may or may not help us understand climate changes. He also discussed the value of conducting research on clouds in order to understand climate changes. Schneider’s interview focuses on the best guess global scene which has been conceptualized by different scientists. He also explained how the search for carbon free energy can be carried out. He also pointed out that the Kyoto Protocol was an important and effective event which helped reduce greenhouse emissions. The irony is that the US has not yet ratified this act. Dr. Singer is of a different persuasion because he is a global warming skeptic. He pointed out that the scenarios being suggested are alarmist scenarios and the computer models show major gaps in the accurate knowledge about climate change. He further emphasized that the global warming which will be experienced in the future would not be greatly significant. Wigley’s interview presented a summary of human’s contribution to global warming. He also addressed each argument of the skeptics to the global warming phenomenon. He further emphasized how societies are not safe from the slightest change in the world’s climate. Palmer’s interview is similar to Singer’s arguments as he points out that scientists are overstating the impact of climate change. He further points out that fossil fuels are crucial to the US economic success and reducing use of said fuels would curtail world progress. Finally, Jacoby’s interview explained why global warming is different from other world issues. He also discussed the major difficulties which all countries are bound to experience if fossil fuel use is reduced. Carbon diet I learned that there are various energy preservation tips I can apply in order to save every. I can preserve the refrigerator’s energy by not opening it too much and by organizing its space. I can preserve stove energy by using appropriate pans, flat bottomed pans, by making sure that the light is burning efficiently, and by turning the heat off before the cooking it finished. I can also preserve dishwasher energy by stocking it fully before starting the wash cycle; I can preserve the microwave energy by unplugging it when not in use. Unplugging these appliances when not in use is an energy saving device for all these appliances. Beyond fossil fuels We need to look beyond fossil fuels because if we do not, then we will be left with the dilemma of having to transform our planet significantly, effectively changing our climate to one which is dramatically high. In order to make these changes, we need to realize the impact of the problem and to come up with ways to address it. We need to look beyond fossil fuels because not all our efforts may work and we need to come up with successful alternatives the soonest possible time. Dimming the sun Through the slide show, I learned that both natural and man-made disasters have caused environmental impact and changes to our climate; but man-made disasters have been more numerous than natural disasters and they have had much more impact on our environment. Man-made activities have often caused heavy particles in the air which have caused blockage of the sun’s brightness. More than blocking the sun, these aerosol particulates have largely contributed to global warming. Dimming the sun In this slide show I learned that there are ways in which the impact of industries and technologies can be reduced in order to decrease their impact on our environment. Scrubbers on exhaust pipes of factories can reduce the toxicity of plumes; baghouses can catch soot from power plants; and bioreactors can eat carbon dioxide in complex equipments. Catalytic converters can convert bacteria from car fumes to less toxic ones; wind energy, solar energy, biodiesel, as well as ethanol are a clean and healthy alternative to petrochemical fuels; and hybrid cars and fuel cell cars are environmentally safe alternatives to conventional cars.       Read More