I just read an interesting article, “Iceland Makes Circularity Look Effortless” by Sarah Golden. You may be wondering “what is circularity?”. It an economic model that emphasizes reduce, reuse and recycle; and transforms the way we think about what goes into the garbage. It challenges manufacturers to consider what happens to products after they land in the hands of consumers. In a nutshell, it is about not creating waste. 99% of the things we buy end up in the trash within 6 months. And we have already dumped 10 million tonnes of plastic into the ocean. It would be better for humans, as well as wildlife, if more businesses and all of us adopted a circular model. No one likes to swim in plastic, neither do the dolphins
I write this blog while scorching wildfires race through eastern and western Canada. Honestly, my heart is quite heavy and I fear greatly for our precious, livable planet. The fires are out of control and over 9.4 million acres have already burned. The fires affect countless people, pets, and wild animals. The smoke from the fires is so bad it has reached down to New York, NJ, and Washington DC. Air quality levels have been frightening and New York City ranked among the worst cities in the world. People have been told to stay at home and schools are conducting remote classes. As I think about all of the animals inhaling smoke who can’t shut themselves in an enclosed space with air purifiers, I shudder. I wonder about the animals in Canada literally fleeing the fires and dying. I had to bury two dead birds that I found lying on my lawn. When will we end this chaos? When will we all wake up and drastically cut our carbon footprints and change our ways of life? This matter is so urgent and time is of the essence. Please, we must WAKE UP!!! We must make different choices. It is truly a matter of life and death.
Have you noticed? Birds such as eagles, great horned owls, pelicans and peregrine falcons are falling, dead, to the ground. David Quammen’s piece, “Why Are Birds Falling From the Sky” recently appeared in the “New York Times” and alerted me to what is happening to some of our precious wildlife. The H5N1 virus is killing our birds at a devastating pace and apparently, this virus is worse than the pesticide DDT (which was banned years ago). Sadly, we cannot ban viruses. But we can reconsider what we eat and what happens in commercial poultry farms with chickens crammed together in unhealthy spaces. If I think of any bird suffering paralysis, brain inflammation, and bleeding; it is yet another reminder to watch what I eat and choose a vegetable option.
Keystone species are animals which have large impacts on their ecosystems, despite not being abundant in their numbers. Their presence cascades down the food chain and affects the very structure the of ecosystem where they live. Sea otters in the North Pacific, for example, keep kelp forests intact, directly controlling populations of some species such as sea urchins, and indirectly controlling the populations of other species such as snails and crabs which rely on kelp as a source of food. If you remove the sea otter from the system, the sea urchins would eat all of the kelp, leaving nothing for the snails and crabs. Wolves, bees and African elephants are also keystone species. Keystone species are crucial in maintaining biodiversity, as they help create the conditions for other wildlife and plants to thrive.
I recently watched this moving video (below) where David Attenborough, a British biologist and broadcaster known for his natural history television series, talks about reducing the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and hope. He said, “Nature is a key ally. Whenever we restore the wild it will recapture carbon and help us bring back balance to our planet.” He went on to state that “we must use this opportunity to create a more equal world. Our motivation must not be fear but hope.” I urge you to continue to make a positive difference in this world.
Many of you know about reducing your carbon footprints to help mitigate climate change. Some people eat less meat, others work for companies which plant trees and re-build biodiverse forests. As we move forward in time it is also important to think about the oceans, as they absorb as much as 30% of our annual carbon emissions every year. Scientists in Florida recently tried an experiment, adding lime to the Apalachicola Bay, off Florida’s panhandle, in an effort to reduce the acidity level of the water. While the experiment did cut carbon levels and acidity, more work, on larger scales, has to be done. Increasing the oceans’ levels of carbon storage represents hope and promise as carbon levels throughout the world continue to increase.
There are numerous holidays at this special time of year and I would like to give thanks to you for reading my blog and being part of my life. Let us all rejoice in good health and many blessings, and may we remember to care for one another, and the world we live in.
