What is an octopus? As we all know, an octopus is a squishy creature, that lives in the sea, has eight tentacles, blends in with the environment, and will shoot ink when scared. More importantly, octopi thrive in warm waters and adapt quickly to changing ecosystems. With improper waste management, an increase of greenhouse emissions, and an increase in the use of fossil fuels, humans are simultaneously overwhelming the environment and fueling a tentacle lead invasion. In this paper I will appeal to utilitarianism but have a more focused ecocentric viewpoint. Ecocentrism places value and consideration on all things within the ecosystem. We live on a very rare rock that floats through a vast nothingness, where a perfect balance to support life …show more content…
The disposal of solid waste and hazardous waste was relatively similar in the sense that the waste was disposed of into the most convenient place like, lakes or a backyard. However, because of environmentally conscious government agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency, how the environment was treated drastically changed. The EPA installed numerous acts and guidelines dictating how people and industries interact with the environment. The EPA installed three milestone acts that improved the quality of life for humans and the earth, those being the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965, the Clean Air Act of 1970, and the Clean Water Act of 1972. Before the SWDA sewage was discharged into lakes and rivers as is, contaminating the local ecosystem and preventing the use of that water by wildlife and humans alike. With the CAA the EPA ended the use of lead in gasoline, dramatically reducing lead poising related deaths. The CAA also regulated what gasses and other chemicals factories could emit, decreasing the severity of toxic rain. Before the CWA the Cuyahoga River, located in Ohio, was so polluted that it caught on fire more than a dozen times leading to deaths, unimaginable environmental effects, and unforeseen costs. The Cuyahoga River fires were not unique; due to a lack of regulations in waste disposal and pollution lake and river …show more content…
This increase in CO2 emissions is due to a massive growth in population, increased use of fossil fuels, and a general unawareness of climate change. This statistic is important because CO2 is a greenhouse gas and a large presence a greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere is detrimental to the environment. Greenhouse gasses trap energy inside the atmosphere and that energy will heat the atmosphere causing global air and water temperatures to rise. When ocean temperatures rise some organisms like plankton, are not able to handle the change and die, while others organisms like octopi thrive. The rise in temperature not only affects sea life, but all life. According to Davis and Cornwell, 30% of species will go extinct if temperatures rise three degrees Celsius due to famine, lack of fresh water, and the spread of disease. One species that the earth would not survive without is bees. According to Greenpeace, “Honey bees – wild and domestic – preform about 80 percent of all pollination worldwide”, meaning without them the worlds ecosystem will fall
For years to come there will always be a speculation on whether the climate change has really taken place or not. Many believe that large companies launched this topic in order to benefit from it in profit, as there are also those who are convinced that this are consequences that have emerged from human mistakes in understanding the environment. As humans are struggling to trust one another whether it is just a big conspiracy or not or environment changing itself, we are slowly starting to feel the effects of climate change. Because of the gasses (CO2) that are in the air, atmosphere is getting warmer, thereby triggering the Greenhouse effect. Almost 70% of emitted gasses in air are CO2, which leads us to believe that this is the main cause of Global Warming. Since it is billions and billions of metric tons per year that are being released in air, many scientists conclude that temperature will most likely be more higher in twenty years from now, than it was in near past.
The Clean Water Act of 1972 (CWA) was originally the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948. The original objective behind this act was to “to prepare comprehensive programs for eliminating or reducing the pollution of interstate waters and tributaries and improving the sanitary condition of surface and underground waters.” (U.S Fish and Wild Life Service, 2013). Throughout the duration of this paper the various amendments and their effects will be discussed, those involved both on the side of support and opposition and what influenced the amendments to be made and passed.
The present climate change is mostly human induced; the increase in CO2 is mainly because of human activities. Activities like changes in land use pattern, deforestation, land clearing, agriculture, and other activities that have all led to a rise in the emission of carbon dioxide.
Think for a moment of a world without bees; a world without our buzzing friend. They might look like they barely do much to help our ecosystem. However, bees are a vital part of our agriculture and this makes it vital that we keep them around. The bee population decline in recent years is troubling for both us and our little friends. As their friends, we must do all we can in order to ensure their survival which in turn will ensure our own.
In response to the rapid deterioration of the living environment caused by industrial and automobile pollution, its severity highlighted by the burning of the Cuyahoga River in 1969,16 Congress passed the National Environmental Policy Act, requiring all executive agencies to draft environmental assessments and impact statements for every federal project.16 Nixon not only signed the law but issued an executive order that created the Environmental Protection Agency to advance the cause of protecting nature.1 Henceforth, he endorsed a number of major environmental legislations, including the Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act.7 Nixon also encouraged Congress to devote more resources into healthcare and medical research, even suggesting the creation of a federalised Medicaid for poor households with children and the health insurance employer mandate.7 In another instance, he allied with Democrats, liberal Republicans, and the Black Caucus to cancel the construction of the Three Sisters Bridge in favour of retaining the Washington
Congress enacted legislation now known as the Clean Water Act. During the Truman era, originally called the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. The bill Congress passed in 1972 was an overhaul of the original act. The Clean Water Act set limits on the amount of pollutants industries and cities could discharge and gave the Environmental Protection Agency the power to sue and penalize polluters that exceeded those limits. Congress banned DDT, reduced emissions and sued major cities.
Our bees are dying at the highest rates ever recorded: 42 percent of the United States bee colonies collapsed in 2015 (NRDC, 2015). 50 to 80 percent of the world's food supply is directly affected by honeybee pollination (Pennsylvania Apiculture Inc., 2011). Reduced crop pollination will make food more expensive and can even make some crops harder to grow successfully (Worland, 2015).
Some studies have found “that atmospheric CO2 concentration is approximately 383 parts per million by volume (ppmv), a level not seen in at least 650,000 years, and it is projected to increase by 0.5% per year throughout the 21st century.” (Guinotte) “This is because…the ocean absorbs about a third of fossil fuel emissions, but this amount is likely to increase to 90% in the future.” (Bralower) As a result, “the chemistry of the world's oceans is changing at a rate not seen for 65 million years, with far-reaching implications for marine biodiversity and food security, according to a new United Nations study...” (Knight) “…This change is cause for serious concern [for] many marine organisms…, [because they] may not be able to adapt quickly enough to survive these changes.” (Guinotte)
The improvement of the Clean Air Act by the US Congress prodded the advancement of comparative acts by the neighborhood and state governments of the USA and in addition by the governments of different nations. Neighborhood and state activities were greatly vital since they would make something to fill in the crevices and inconsistencies shown in the first Clean Air Act.... ... middle of paper ... ... The USA would help its districts in making wastewater the CWA would make an uncommon arrangement of elected monetary support as spoke to by development gives, which were consequently adjusted into State Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund of 1987. CWA would additionally hold fast to subject suit procurement, an uncommon pollutant exchanging framework that together with Supplemental Environmental Programs would permit the central government to better control the corporate pollutions and build a fine timetable to implement the laws (Crook, 192).
The amount of CO2 in a planet's atmosphere affects the temperature of the planet. As more and more CO2 builds up in the atmosphere, less heat can escape and the planet gets hotter. The CO2 traps radiation from the sun like a greenhouse. This is called global warming or the greenhouse effect. Global warming is becoming a serious problem and CO2 is the major cause. The earth is now warmer than it has been in 1000's of years. The amount of CO2 deposited in the earth's atmosphere from human activities is expected to double by the year 2050. It could possible increase by four in the future with developing countries, such as China, anxious to improve their standard of living.
The commonly debated “greenhouse effect” refers to “the global average temperature increase that has been observed over the last one hundred years or more” (Spencer). President Barack Obama addressed the issue in an effort to highlight its severity, "We have to all shoulder the responsibility for keeping the planet habitable, or we’re going to suffer the consequences – together” (Leader). The earth’s increasing atmospheric and oceanic temperatures result in climate changes due to cumulative amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere. As an outcome, researchers around the globe have established that the by-product of burning fossil fuels is the main culprit of the increasing temperatures. Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels have significantly increased since 1900, as shown above from a study carried out by the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center.
Over the past decade bee populations have been dropping drastically. A 40% loss of honeybees happened in the U.S. and U.K. lose 45% of its commercial honeybee since 2010. This is a phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) in which worker bees from a beehive abruptly disappear in a short time. These data are definitely not meaningless since bees are a crucial part of the reproductive cycle of many foods. The impact bees have on the agriculture and the environment is far more crucial than we may think. Crops rely on bees to assist their reproduction and bring them life. Bees are renowned in facilitating pollination for most plant life, including over 100 different vegetable and fruit crops. Without bees, there would be a huge decrease in pollination, which later result in reduce in plant growth and food supplies. On the other hand, without the pollination progressed with the assistance from bees, the types of flowers According to Dr. Albert Einstein, “If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live. No more bees, no more pollination…no more men”. That’s why bees’ extinction affects people more than we ever think, and could even forebode the doom day of human race.
Research indicates that anthropogenic climate change is the cause of the increased global warming over the last fifty years. 57% of the carbon dioxide emitted is absorbed into the atmosphere while the rest is absorbed into the oceans. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the most central greenhouse gas that is associated with global warming (Eby, Zickfield, Montenegro, Archer, Meissner, & Weaver, 2009).
Even if the reason of climate change may be the natural cycles, we humans are the major determinant to it. The huge amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is causing the climate change and this amount is rising day by day, as a result of our actions. Greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, generally absorb and emit the heat in the atmosphere to keep the Earth’s climate habitable. However, as we continue to burn fossil fuels, this habitable Earth’s temperature will blow up, and as a result, some species will die out due to various problems which are caused by climate change. According to EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), the most obvious consequence of climate change is the rising sea levels, which will cause some seashore habitats to become unavailable to live to its species.
The burning of fossil fuels has greatly harmed our environment and is a leading cause as to why climate change has become such a threat to our way of living. In May of 2013, the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere reached 400 parts per million, an increase of more than 40 percent since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. This could cause the Arctic Ocean to be nearly ice-free during the summer by 2020(Overland and Wang, 2013).