Locust Swarms

Although not yet large enough to be called a plague, an unlucky combination of environmental conditions has caused the Mexican town of Cancun to be overridden with locusts.

For the past 3 weeks, vast swarms of locusts have been causing uproar in Cancun, already having devoured 2500 acres of farmland, and making walking a couple of blocks a major chore for residents of Cancun. The reasons for this swarm are that it’s been an especially hot summer, sparking a heavy breeding season. Along with that, there has been a lack of the windy storms that usually serve as a way to keep the locust population under control.

In retaliation to the insects’ swarm, officials have dispatched squads armed with pesticide pumps to conduct nightly raids on the locusts when they are at rest and most vulnerable. With no storms coming anytime soon, the Cancun residents can only wait and pray.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/09/060928-locusts-mexico.html

Man vs. Elephant

A quickly growing population in Africa is contributing to an increasing problem for African Farmers. In the last 5 years, elephants trampling or eating crops has turned into a major problem for Kenyan farmers. A growing population has forced humans into closer living quarters elephants, and apparently the elephants are gaining the upper hand.

The farmers are in a no-win situation as their attempts to scare off elephants no longer phase the animals and are now beginning to anger them, endangering the lives of many farmers and locals. Kenyan farmers are forced to keep watch all night and now must be more cautious during the day as elephant related injuries are becoming more common. The only option the Kenyans have is to abandon their land or to keep fighting a hopeless war. Many are angry with the Kenyan government, saying that it values the animals more than its people. The people also complain that the forest guards and KWS game rangers, whose job it is to control the elephants, are not helping the situation. The Kenyans also cannot take the matter into their own hands as it is illegal to kill wildlife in Kenya.

This is obviously a touchy situation because the land belongs to the wildlife just as much as it does to the humans. I agree that the people should not be allowed to kill the wildlife themselves, but something definitely needs to be done. I think the best idea would be to introduce a new organism to the environment which will naturally limit the number of elephants. However this must be done with great caution as this strategy as backfired numerous times, severely harming the ecosystem. As of now, all the Kenyan government has been doing is moving elephants out of the area to a reservation. This has proved to be an ineffective strategy and also unfair to the elephants by taking them out of their natural habitat. The Kenyan government needs to step in and take a serious look at this developing problem in order to find a solution that will benefit both parties equally.

http://enn.com/today.html?id=11315

Update to Arctic Ice

In my previous post, I explained how Arctic Ice was now melting at a rate that was almost unbelievable, however, it appears that scientists may have actually underestimated the increase in melted Arctic Ice that we would see this year.   Apparently, an opening in the ice has become so big that it takes up more space than the British Isles and was actually big enough to allow a ship to sail clear through the normally frozen solid area, to the North Pole.  According to Mark Drinkwater of ESA’s Oceans/Ice Unit, “This situation is unlike anything observed in previous record low ice season.”  In other words, the ice has melted to such a degree that it is enormous even in comparison to the lowest ice has ever been up to this point.  These incredibly high rates of melting ice are in part due to late summer storms that increased melted ice 5% to 10% more, after it had already reached its peak of melting from the summer temperature increase.  Fortunately, with autumn temperatures coming in, the sea has begun to refreeze and these enormous openings appear to have closed.

If this trend continues in upcoming years, it is possible that this northern sea route will be open for longer periods of time.  The use of this route may have positive economic effects and even create the ability to sail around the world across the Arctic Ocean.  However, above all else it is a warning sign of the increasingly dangerous effects of global warming and that if drastic changes aren’t made soon, the world will continue accelerating down this dangerous path.    

http://enn.com/today.html?id=11298        

Arctic Ice Melting Faster

Arctic perennial sea ice, which stays frozen year-round, regularly melts by about 2 percent per decade.  However, this year the ice was was 6 percent smaller than the average amount has been over the past quarter-century.  According to scientists this is a clear sign of the increasing effects of the greenhouse affect which is contributing to global warming.

The satellite images that were taken of the ice to determine how much it has decreased also provided additional information on the degree of melting that has taken place.  Photographs of ice north of Alaska showed a large hole in the ice called a polynya.  A polynya has never been seen in this area before and this particular one was about the size of the state of Maryland.

This problem of quickly disappearing ice does not only have obviously dangerous implications for the earth itself but also the animals inhabiting the area.  The polar bear population in Hudson Bay has recently dropped by 22 percent.  Polar bears are becoming more commonly seen in Inuit settlements which means that the bears are being forced to leave their normal hunting ground on the ice due to its depletion and are having to move inland.

Scientists say most of this global warming is due to the greenhouse effect when greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere by the burning of fossil fuels.  According to James Hansen of NASA, it isn’t too late to save the Arctic, but important changes need to be made within the decade.

http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=11258

Billion Dollar Bacteria

Some of the earth’s tiniest organisms may be on their way to helping the world save billions of dollars spent cleaning toxic waste.  Microbes discovered in old waste sites in Australia have been found not only to be resistant to toxins found in contaminated industrial sites or poisoned waterways, but actually break down these substances so they are no longer a threat to humans or the environment.

Scientists working at a government-backed environmental research center located in South Australia have isolated these amazing microbes and are currently working on enhancing their amazing abilities to enable them to break down toxins even faster.

 Industrial contamination is a major threat facing societies world-wide, with Australia alone facing a $3.8 billion cleanup bill.  Anywhere there has been something like a fuel dump or old chemical factory is at risk for leaking toxic substances into the groundwater.  With the use of these microbes, the cost of cleaning these types of sites up will be virtually gone as the problem will be taken care of by mother nature herself.

However, technology like this definitely sounds too good to be 100% true.  The catch is that there is not one single type of microbe that can be used everywhere.  Scientists have to first find the bacteria at the site that is to be cleaned because this way the bacteria will be suited to that site’s type of contaminant.  Then they must enhance the toxin fighting power of the bacteria or find a way to greatly increase their numbers before they can be used to clean the site.  Researchers in India, China, and South Korea are currently being trained on how to find and cultivate the microbes in their respective areas.

Although putting these microbes to good use is not as easy as it initially sounds, with a little bit of work the world may soon see a newer and much cheaper way of dealing with contaminated sites.

 http://enn.com/today.html?id=11217