I was thinking about this for sometime now. To me, the biggest environmental threat is global warming and the rate at which it is harming the world. What do you guys think?
Biggest Environmental Threat.
The overall existence of humans.
IMHO,
Global warming is a natural cycle of the earth through ice ages and tropical ages. IT regulates these changes by the level of carbons present in the atmosphere and the amount of ozone. Basicly the problem is that human beings are speeding up this process to a rate at which it is dangerous for the earth.
In summary, i agree with HalfBloodPrince
Global warming is a natural cycle of the earth through ice ages and tropical ages. IT regulates these changes by the level of carbons present in the atmosphere and the amount of ozone. Basicly the problem is that human beings are speeding up this process to a rate at which it is dangerous for the earth.
In summary, i agree with HalfBloodPrince
=/ When will people stop connecting global warming and the ozone...?
Overpopulation. If there weren't as many humans on the planet, there would be a lesser human impact on the planet and we wouldn't have any of these issues.
Largest threat, even beyond simply our overpopulation is overconsumption and it's related excessive waste; ie. overtaxing resources and pollution. This ties into things like excessive use of fossil fuels, excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers, poor sewage disposal, lack of recycling and composting in many, many cities, etc etc etc.
If we could learn moderation, and slightly reduce the "convenience" aspect of "modern living" and simply consume less and make ethical choices in regards to what we buy/produce and how we manage our waste, the world would be in a better state.
If we could learn moderation, and slightly reduce the "convenience" aspect of "modern living" and simply consume less and make ethical choices in regards to what we buy/produce and how we manage our waste, the world would be in a better state.
George W Bush
| Ankhanu wrote: |
| Largest threat, even beyond simply our overpopulation is overconsumption and it's related excessive waste; ie. overtaxing resources and pollution. This ties into things like excessive use of fossil fuels, excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers, poor sewage disposal, lack of recycling and composting in many, many cities, etc etc etc.
If we could learn moderation, and slightly reduce the "convenience" aspect of "modern living" and simply consume less and make ethical choices in regards to what we buy/produce and how we manage our waste, the world would be in a better state. |
David Pimentel estimated that the world could only support a population of about 2 billion living what would be considered a comfortable Western lifestyle. In order for some to live in comfort and security, billions of people have to live in a state of 'misery' due to global resource limitations. Reading that article was kind of an eye-opener for me. I don't have the citation, unfortunately.
It's unfortunate that our life style is so very un-sustainable. 6Billion is a lot of people no matter how you look at it, but with a lesser standard of living, it is supportable (sorry, don't have a reference on hand either)... but our need for convenience and waste really reduces the numbers that can be sustained. It's unfortunate that we are way too selfish to reduce convenience to help the world.
I'd like to read that article; I'll look it up.
I'd like to read that article; I'll look it up.
Try
http://www.mnforsustain.org/pimentel_d_natural_resources_and_optimum_population.htm
and
http://www.mnforsustain.org/pimentel_d_limits_of_earths_resources.htm
(I don't agree with him, by the way, but that is another matter).
http://www.mnforsustain.org/pimentel_d_natural_resources_and_optimum_population.htm
and
http://www.mnforsustain.org/pimentel_d_limits_of_earths_resources.htm
(I don't agree with him, by the way, but that is another matter).
I've said it once, and I'll say it again:
Global warming is not our biggest environmental problem, and I do not approve of the way it takes attention away from more urgent and more easily solved problems.
The biggest problem of all is overpopulation. It is the root cause of nearly all the other environmental problems.
Global warming is not our biggest environmental problem, and I do not approve of the way it takes attention away from more urgent and more easily solved problems.
The biggest problem of all is overpopulation. It is the root cause of nearly all the other environmental problems.
| liljp617 wrote: |
| =/ When will people stop connecting global warming and the ozone...? |
Your guess is as good as mine =)
Interesting reading
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=440049&in_page_id=1965&in_page_id=1965&expand=true
| HalfBloodPrince wrote: |
| The overall existence of humans. |
There's a sure fire way to help do your part to stop it...
/self
| HalfBloodPrince wrote: |
| The overall existence of humans. |
Totally agree on that one sad thing is I am to human to end my self.
the major threat is pollution. pollution is the ultimate source for all sorts of problems like skin disease,asthma,green house effect......we should use bicycle instead of cars....a very common practice in japan....also we should not depend upon electronic gadgets....we should car pooling.......industrial waste must be disposed properly.......less use of A/c.......less Use of natural resources because they are limited in numbers......
The only environmental threat existing to the planet is the human population - they weren't that far off in the Matrix when they compared us to a virus. We consume and expand and consume and expand. The majority of projects underway at the moment are to find ways in which we can consume more but do it cheaper.
Global warming is not an environmental threat - it IS the environment. The part of it which is 'threatening' is the part which we as humans are contributing to.
I do, however, disagree with the study that the Earth can only support 2 billion people - various studies have shown that there is enough food produced (or at the very least enough arable land available) to feed every person alive. Water is available everywhere it's just that the places it is hard to find are the poor places (or other way round?) but the technology exists to find it and then to produce it efficiently. Energy sources are available that do not contribute such a large carbon footprint - solar heating of water instead of using coal/oil/gas etc. as well as the wave/wind/hydro power.
The problem is not so much that we all enjoy our lifestyle and its damaging - the problem is that our current ways of supporting our lifestyle are damaging. When the unneccessary pollution is stopped, and the food is distributed fairly and water is sources efficiently then we can all live in harmony.
...and then we'll wake up
Global warming is not an environmental threat - it IS the environment. The part of it which is 'threatening' is the part which we as humans are contributing to.
I do, however, disagree with the study that the Earth can only support 2 billion people - various studies have shown that there is enough food produced (or at the very least enough arable land available) to feed every person alive. Water is available everywhere it's just that the places it is hard to find are the poor places (or other way round?) but the technology exists to find it and then to produce it efficiently. Energy sources are available that do not contribute such a large carbon footprint - solar heating of water instead of using coal/oil/gas etc. as well as the wave/wind/hydro power.
The problem is not so much that we all enjoy our lifestyle and its damaging - the problem is that our current ways of supporting our lifestyle are damaging. When the unneccessary pollution is stopped, and the food is distributed fairly and water is sources efficiently then we can all live in harmony.
...and then we'll wake up
As many others have said, overpopulation is the biggest problem as it is at the root of most of the other problems. We would not be causing global warming if there were not so many of us. If one person throws rubbish into the sea that is not a problem, if 1 billion people do then it becomes a problem. I heard recently that we need 2½ earths to keep the present population of earth at the standard of living of an average USA person.
ATTN: Everyone that thinks overpopulation is a big problem.... what are you willing to do about it? 
| BigMo420 wrote: |
| ATTN: Everyone that thinks overpopulation is a big problem.... what are you willing to do about it? |
Well, you do what you can. In my case I made the decision (for a variety of reasons, to be sure) not to have children.
What can we do about it? A good start would be to reduce world poverty. In certain parts of the world (India springs to mind) having many children is a largely a result of poverty. You find that the more 'developed' countries have a stable (or even declining) birth rate.
I really don't believe too much in global warming considering they are actually saying that we are cooling down compared to what we were. Also if you notice that other planets are actually warming up other than the earth so it may just be a myth. However, I do believe that we may be making the planet warming more worse by our pollution, but It's not completely a big deal compared to what other things are going on currently. My belief is that the biggest problem right now is not conserving our materials. We are running out of our materials and killing more trees and what not. I believe that we should recycle our paper and plastics as much as we can so that we don't waste much of everything. Eventually we're going to run out of everything and not be able to live... so if we really want to survive we really need to take action on recycling.
We can live without paper.
My school is currently working on getting rid of ALL paper use. They have givin each student their own laptop, and we get to take it home everyday after school. Almost all of our textbooks are also downloaded onto our computer, I think by next year the school wont be using text books anymore.
We are also getting rid of our white boards, and replacing them with smart boards, which is already done in every class room.
My school is currently working on getting rid of ALL paper use. They have givin each student their own laptop, and we get to take it home everyday after school. Almost all of our textbooks are also downloaded onto our computer, I think by next year the school wont be using text books anymore.
We are also getting rid of our white boards, and replacing them with smart boards, which is already done in every class room.
| Bikerman wrote: | ||
Well, you do what you can. In my case I made the decision (for a variety of reasons, to be sure) not to have children. What can we do about it? A good start would be to reduce world poverty. In certain parts of the world (India springs to mind) having many children is a largely a result of poverty. You find that the more 'developed' countries have a stable (or even declining) birth rate. |
I've decided not to reproduce as well, which if enough people did would solve the problem. I've also toyed with the idea of being a serial killer for a while, (The likelihood of being caught would decrease if one is not too picky about choosing victims...) but currently I'm in a live and let live kind of mood.
| Ghost Rider103 wrote: |
| We can live without paper.
My school is currently working on getting rid of ALL paper use. They have givin each student their own laptop, and we get to take it home everyday after school. Almost all of our textbooks are also downloaded onto our computer, I think by next year the school wont be using text books anymore. We are also getting rid of our white boards, and replacing them with smart boards, which is already done in every class room. |
This is an idea that has been around for as long as I can rememebr but the paperless office is very much a thing of the distant future. When you do exams you need to do it on paper, yes? The thing with computers is that the data can be changed and nobody will be any the wiser. If you have a written/stamped/signed bit of paper then you have an audit trail and can prove that what you worte was what the examiner marked. It is the same in business - emails are all very well, but contracts need to be on proper paper with proper ink and proper signatures.
Anyway, people like holding a book, or having lots of pages of notes in front of you whilst you type a report or just quickly jottin gdown a few notes while in a lecture, or writing in the margins when you are at a group meeting to proof-read some coursework etc.
Saying that there are a lot of bits of paper that are entirely useless - junk mail, the bit of paper that the printer at uni prints between everyones work to name a couple.
David.
| ocalhoun wrote: |
|
I've decided not to reproduce as well, which if enough people did would solve the problem. I've also toyed with the idea of being a serial killer for a while, (The likelihood of being caught would decrease if one is not too picky about choosing victims...) but currently I'm in a live and let live kind of mood. |
Be sure to let us know if you change your mind - we're all your friends here.... aren't we?
| HalfBloodPrince wrote: |
| The overall existence of humans. |
Well, obviously, but what part of their existence is worse for planet Earth, that is the question.
I know marine life is getting a pretty bad deal out of human civilization, but I don't know what human activity is worse though.
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