Jovana Curcic

Mrs. Medenica

ESS 11

3/20/2015

Urban Wildlife: when animals go wild in the city

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/mar/08/urban-wildlife-animals-in-city

Have you ever asked yourself that wild animals may actually live and habit in your urban surroundings? Perhaps some kind of fox, coyote, boar, or parakeet is hiding in a bush in a local park or at some abandoned, haunted house waiting for a chance to get food. This may sound strange, however, reading the article I realized that I wasn’t really aware that something like this can actually be true.

For example, London is colonized by red foxes- 2 years ago, in the 72^nd floor of the unfinished skyscraper; a worker has found a fox living on the worker’s food scraps. There is data that shows that there is 14 times more foxes in urban than in rural areas. Another article claims that more than 2000 coyotes roam in Chicago, crossing the street in busy traffic searching for food to feed themselves and their young. Hunting the small rodents and searching for food scraps, coyotes have more food options than in their natural surroundings, but the main problem became more evident when they directly attacked people. (PICTURE OF THE FOX) In this picture, you can see how the officers caught the coyote in a very urban street area of Chicago. The coyotes have also attacked children in playgrounds in the Denver suburb of Broomfield in 2011. In Cape Town, South Africa, baboons can be seen at almost every corner, jumping on cars, searching for easily available food and a safe habitat in which they can live in and survive. This is also a case where monkies of Jaipur, India are protected by the Hindu Religion so the efforts to run them out of cities are pretty tepid. This results in an increase of macaques population in urban areas from 15% in the 1980s to 86% today. Elks can often be seen in some cities of Canada calving their young in safe and green neighborhoods which might be very amusing for people to observe. But the food chain might bring the grizzly bears to hunt the elk and that may result in serious threat to the humans.

Why is this happening? The main cause is, of course, human activities that have destroyed the balance between natural and urban ecosystems and the balance within each of them. People have eradicated the natural habitat of many animals by building their settlements together with all logistics that comes with. That has resulted in climate change and habitat destruction and moved many animals to the closest cities. Searching for easy available foods; garbage and outdoor pet food, wild animals are accommodating to the urban life conditions losing their natural instinct to keep a distance from people most of the time. But this does not lead to pet friendliness… but to conflicts between the humans and the animals sharing the same space. 

Deforestation in Brazil is rising again — after years of decline

http://www.vox.com/2015/3/2/8134115/deforestation-brazil-increasing

Brad Plumer

March 2, 2015

Picture 1

Between 2005 and 2012, the amount of Amazon rainforests cut down each year fell by 70%. The recent increase in deforestation was observed by Imazon, a Brazilian non-profit that is using satellite data to track forest loss. They have estimated that 1,660 square kilometers of rainforests were cleared between August 2014 and January 2015. This is triple the amount that was cleared the year before. . The data shows increase of deforestation all around the country.In the western states Mato Grosso and Rondonia, forests are being burned and cleared away. In the state of Para, illegal logging is rising. On Picture 3, on the map you can see the activity in January 2015, the red dots are deforestation. Tree clearing is a major contributor to the rise of greenhouse-gases causeing global warming, as these trees are burned all the carbon they've stored up goes into the atmosphere. 

Picture 2

Picture 3 

Why deforestation in Brazil is rising again?

Some environmentalists blame the Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. They say, that Rousseff helped weaken the country's "Forest Code", which tells the farmers and companies how much of forest they have to leave on their lands. Rouseff's administration is making new dam projects which will take key forest areas. This is very bad, because many animals and plants will loose their home. 

I believe that it may be the Presidents fault to some extend but I mostly think that it is the people's fault who are logging for example the forests, because even if the government would put laws in there would be people who would still do it. The people who are doing this to the environment maybe do not know how much they are harming the environment and themselves actually. 

Rainforest

Roy Elal

Mrs. Medenica

Environmental Systems and Societies

March 17, 2015

Costa Rica: Kids Saving The Rainforest

      

    Some of Earth's greatest biological treasures are disappearing, just as we start to gain their true value. Rain forests once covered 14% of the Earth's land surface -- while in the present day they cover a mere 6%, and experts estimate that the last remaining rain forests could be extinct in under 40 years from today. In the past years, many of the rain forest in Africa and Asia have been destroyed. Large areas in which the rain forests reside are being destroyed, in fact, rain forests are currently being destroyed at double the rate of all earlier evaluations. Unfortunately, this means that there is a very high rate of destruction, as the wildlife depending on the forest dies alongside them, therefore killing off all the biotic factors that come in to play with each of the rain forests.

People don't have to have all ecocentric worldviews in order to care or see a problem in the environment, and therefore most people can read this and feel something -- whether sympathy for the rain forests, or compassion and even pride for a girl called Janine Licare, this story is something special. After exploring different news articles and ecologically and environmentally-related events that had occurred, I found one determined teenager from Costa Rica who has tried to change the world. She believed that the smallest thing she can do for her environment will help, and maybe one day even grow out and really have made a change, instead of doing nothing like most people because they are too scared. Her name is Janine Licare and she was only nine years old when she decided to take action. She was worried, because the rain forests around her home in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica were disappearing. The animals and the bird were disappearing too, and for a nine year old that knows nothing about the world and how things work -- she became worried and confused. What Janine went on to do together with a friend, was that she started a campaign to protect her local environment. They called it “Kids Saving the Rain forest.” This organization is one that was started 15 years ago and lives on until today, expanding in size and continuing to help day by day. The aims of KSTR are to teach children about the rain forest and to help the animals that live there, especially the Moko Titi monkey. Janine and the KSTR have achieved substantial amounts of things, making a true impact. They have raised over $50,000, planted over 4,800 trees, found over 250 volunteers to work with her during the whole project, saved many injured animals, started a variety of different projects, including ‘adopt-a-tree’ which has you pay for them to go and plant a tree in your name in the rain forest in order to help for its growth, and most majorly, Janine and the KSTR work with many different schoolchildren around the world, and have developed an environmental library and research center. Janine has an amazing story, giving her all to protect the environment in which she lives in really from the beginning of her life. Janine has appeared in several magazines, and she has appeared on National Geographic to promote her projects and talk about how other people can help.

She has also developed a website: www.kidssavingtherainforest.org , I would suggest for anyone who cares to at least have a look -- just to see what this is all about.

Looking upon Janine's life achievements, which were all out of her own personal interest, time, planning and of course, making the action, is something inspiring. This shows that anyone, with the right mindset, ambition and patience, can make a difference -- even as a 9 year old American girl living in Costa Rica. So if there is something that you care about -- go for it, and when it comes to the environment and the rain forests, you will definitely have the support of Janine Licare! :-)

"It is very important that we save the rainforest. If the rainforest disappears, then so will our planet." Janine Licare     

                         

             

Janine in the forest near her home                 Mono Titi monkey, Costa Rica

Bibliography:

"Costa Rica: Kids Saving The Rainforest." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.

Janine Licare in the Rainforest. Digital image. Wylandfoundation.org. WY Land Foundation, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.

Mono Tito Monkey. Digital image. Taringa.net. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.

Red Sea water may not save drying Dead Sea

Deutsche Welle News
Ruth Krause
March 13, 2015

Link to the article

This article explains how human exploitation of the Jordan River has now resulted in a quickly drying up Dead Sea. If the water continues to evaporate at the rate it is now, which is a meter annually, the Dead Sea will be all but gone by 2050. While this in itself is not anything new (talks have been going on for over 10 years), this article is written to commemorate the fact that Israel and Jordan have signed the agreement to cooperate in an effort to create a pipeline from the Red Sea and save the Dead Sea. This is the most significant agreement between the two nations since 1994 and will hopefully bring peace to the area. However at the same time the article gives the statements of some of the environmental groups in the area which say that the creation of the pipeline will not only do nothing to solve the problem as there won't be enough water to combat the fast evaporation; the side effects of mixing Red Sea water with Dead Sea water far outweigh any possible gains.

A member of said environmental organization named Arbel fears that the mixing of waters from the 2 distinctly different regions will upset the ecosystem of the Dead Sea (which is actually not all dead) by introducing large amounts of gypsum from the Red Sea, which is used in fertilizer, plaster, and blackboard chalk.

Nevertheless plans to build this 180 kilometer long pipeline are soon to be underway. Initial figures suggest that this pipeline will be pumping out 300 million cubic meters of water a year and will cost over 800 million euros. However not all of the 300 million cubic meters is going to the Dead Sea. Only 90 million cubic meters are actually going to the Dead Sea whilst the other 210 million cubic meters are intended to be used by Israel and Jordan for irrigation, clean water, and other necessities.

While 90 million may sound like a big number, it should be noted that this is only 13% of what is required to prevent the declining water level. Environmental groups say that the decline of the Dead Sea would be better prevented by better using the Jordan River. This river which used to run into the Dead Sea has now had over 90% of its water diverted by Jordan, Israel, and Syria.  Though there are no talks in that area, the effort and resources put in by the two nations suggest that there is still hope for the Dead Sea.

I personally think that this article gives a very detailed overview of the problem with the Dead Sea. It presents the viewpoints of both the government side and the side of the environmental organizations. However the article does not give any names for the environmental groups and does not provide any qualifications for the people who are against the pipeline project which I find strange. The article does give us background information of the issue and provide statistics, which when paired with helpful images gives us a much clearer representation of the situation. In my opinion I do not think that Israel and Jordan are doing enough to help the problem with the Dead Sea. In this case I'm agreeing with the environmentalists; their money would be better spend on better managing the Jordan River instead of finding complicated and advanced alternatives that may upset the ecological balance of the Dead Sea. However I also think that it is commendable that issues such as these are being brought forward even with the hostilities that have existed between Israel and Jordan, and I think that bring issues like these to peoples attention can serve to help prevent such tragedies from occurring in the future.



Bibliography
http://www.dw.de/red-sea-water-may-not-save-drying-dead-sea/a-18284472
http://www.dw.de/image/0,,18285130_401,00.png
http://files.abovetopsecret.com/files/img/os4f554a96.png
http://files.shroomery.org/files/11-22/732512651-gypsum_water_and_verm.jpg

Deforestation in Myanmar threatens biodiversity and communities

http://www.dw.de/deforestation-in-myanmar-threatens-biodiversity-and-communities/a-18314594

Deutsche Welle News
Jennifer Collins
March 13, 2015

Concerning the Myanmar deforestation issue, this article clearly addresses the impact of the developing problem - being severe rates of deforestation in Myanmar's richest forests. Nearly 5.2 million acres of forestland has been already allocated by the government for agribusiness projects, and another 11 million are being identified. To add to that, nearly half of the country's land is covered in lush forests, home to thousands of species which live in many different levels in trees, bushes, grass and soil.

The forestland cut down is meant to be used for building rubber and biofuel plantations in the Kachin State, and oil palm and rubber plantations in the Tanintharyi Region. 

Conflict among minorities
The biggest issue which comes from this occurrence, is the dispute over the land itself. Much of the land is home to ethnic minority groups, which settle in villages near the forests. These ethnic groups have been stripped of their ownership rights, which may therefore fuel old armed conflicts with the local government. The companies and businesses are promising to provide employment and economic development to the local communities, which in fact is opposed by the villagers themselves, due to the fact that their farming fields would be taken away too. Much of the land initially would be empty prior to the allocation of employment, therefore infuriating these people rather than satisfying. The issue of mass deforestation then comes down to the people affected by it, as the unattended claim overlaps with their historical ownership of land which is no longer recognised. 

Discontinued Planting
After forests are cut down, it is the wrongdoer's responsibility to re-plant in the region which was devastated, for future opportunities and rebirth of the environment in that case. This should be monitored by the government too, however in Myanmar there seems to be a loop hole. According to Kevin Woods, the author of an issued report on this case, only 15% of the cleared land has been planted. This leaves the remaining 85%, over 4 million acres, bare and unplanted - which concessions cannot cover. This is a great issue, as succession will take much longer than if the seed was set by human hands or even by machines, which means many species would probably become extinct by that time, as they won't have enough land to occupy if they attempt to migrate. 

Illegal Business
This whole issue in Myanmar in fact is happening illegally - logging rights to those forests are very difficult to attain, yet if they had been attained, definitely not for nearly 17 million acres of land (Forest Trends - conservation organisation). The only reason this is permitted and valued by the government and businesses, is because the timber found in Myanmar's forests (teak), is a very high quality and expensive product, with exports jumping from $1 billion to $1.6 billion in 2 years. Therefore businesses are seeking more, including European and North American markets. This economic benefit for all is also the reason for the highest rate of deforestation on earth. 

In my opinion, this is an underestimated and marginalised issue, as global economy should be in an equilibrium with nature rather than pressing to the extremes and destroying their own future for simple instant demands. Despite the economic issues in 2013, it is also Myanmar's place to restrict companies from destroying completely their precious forests, which are home to many rare species. Quite a few of the mammals which inhabit the forests of Myanmar are considered to be Endangered, and majority are considered to be Vulnerable - meaning that they have a high chance of becoming extinct. This is a call to all of us, despite our small impact on companies decisions, but as future workers and leaders, to take action and prevent extreme cases of deforestation like this. 

First pictures of Tonga's newly-formed volcanic island

March 11, 2015

Sam Bolitho for Australian Broadcast

Article

Figure 1

Figure 2

A new island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean? This is occurring since January in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. An island that Belongs to the island of Tonga is being formed by a volcano that erupted underwater is creating an island that has been growing for only some months, but already has reached a size that can be seen as something quite large. The mountains on top of the island are said to be about 250 meters high, and the island is about 800 meters wide and 1.3Kilometers long. This has only been formed since January, when in that place, a volcano erupted causing this Island to form. On the other hand, it has formed itself about 65 Kilometers away from the capital of Tonga.

As Tonga is a quite small Island, and I didn’t quite know too much information about Tonga, I decided to do some research about it. Tonga is an Island group that belongs to the continent of Oceania, so it is relatively close to Australia. It is also situated quite close to the International Date Line, where the day changes to be the day before the one on Tonga. Also they have 100,000 Inhabitants on Mainly the main Island, as this is the largest one of the whole Island chains, and its capital is Nuku’alofa. The country of Tonga is situated quite near to the other Island groups like Fiji and the other Islands that belong to Oceania.

Figure 1- A view onto the Island

Nevertheless, the article speaks about the discoverers of the Island. His name is GP Orbassano, who is a Hotel owner in Tonga. He and his son have went on the Island and have said to be the first ones to enter onto the island, as it looks like no one else has discovered this Island yet. Although he has lived in Tonga for more than 20 years, he says "This was a great location. It's not every day a new island appears in the middle of the ocean." This means that not everyday a new Island can be found in the middle of the Ocean. The downside with this is, that Orbassano wants to partially use this Island to attract tourists to Tonga, this means that the Natural environment could be destroyed on this island. This is due to that the succession is still in a full process. He claims that there are thousands of seabirds on the island, which means that they probably have brought seeds or so with them so that the Island will be habitable by animals.

Figure 2- A picture on the Island

I personally think about this article, that it is very impressive that someone has discovered a newly formed Island. This is due to that not every day a new island is just found in the middle of nowhere, due to that there are not many big islands around this small and newly formed Island. Yet on the other hand, I think that it is not such a good idea to use this Island as a tourist attraction, due to that the succession of the Island could be disturbed, as then maybe animals from outside the region could be brought in, or even that the Birds stop coming to the Island which would then mean that the Island would never be habitable in the near future. But in all, I think that this is a very impressive discovery, as the Island is very new, and not discovered before.