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A SICK PLANET

A SICK PLANET. SYMPTOMS. Global climate change Rising average temperatures Rising sea level Melting polar ice Warming oceans Rising use of fossil fuels: appetite for oil increasing. SYMPTOMS. Loss of two billion tons of topsoil each year due to wind and water erosion

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A SICK PLANET

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  1. A SICK PLANET

  2. SYMPTOMS • Global climate change • Rising average temperatures • Rising sea level • Melting polar ice • Warming oceans • Rising use of fossil fuels: appetite for oil increasing

  3. SYMPTOMS • Loss of two billion tons of topsoil each year due to wind and water erosion • Washing into mouths of rivers causing “dead zones”

  4. SYMPTOMS • Polluted water and air • Synthetic (man-made) chemicals ending up in atmosphere and hydrosphere

  5. SYMPTOMS • Diminishing biodiversity • Worldwide habitat destruction • Ecosystems in danger • Colony-Collapse Disorder

  6. SYMPTOMS • Destruction of tropical rain forests and marine ecosystems • More forest fires in the temperate zone

  7. SYMPTOMS • Destruction of world’s coral reefs • Bleaching of polyps due to increased solar radiation & warmer water • Killed when fishermen use explosives & cyanide to kill fish

  8. SYMPTOMS • Amphibians on the decline; more deformities • Frogs, toads, salamanders disappearing world-wide • In danger now: 12% of 10,000 bird species 24% of 4,763 mammal species 30% of 25,000 fish species

  9. SYMPTOMS • Collapse of most of the worlds oceanic fisheries • Populations of tuna, groupers and cod are plummeting. • “We are spending our savings of ocean food resources.”

  10. SYMPTOMS Four in ten species of freshwater fish in N. America are in danger. 457 species are in trouble or already extinct. These are “silent extinctions.”

  11. SYMPTOMS • Holes in the earth’s ozone layer • Stratospheric ozone filters out harmful UV rays. • On the mend due to phasing out of CFCs; repaired by 2050?

  12. SYMPTOMS • Disappearing wetlands • Being drained for agriculture, dams and development • 50% destroyed in past century

  13. SYMPTOMS • Extreme water shortages and shrinking water tables • Rivers run dry before they get to the sea: Rio Grande ran dry at its mouth last year.

  14. SYMPTOMS • More destructive storms due to rising temperatures • Hurricanes more frequent & violent • Frequency of severe storms also increasing • Tornadoes out-of-season

  15. SYMPTOMS • Deteriorating range lands • Support world’s 3.3 billion cattle, sheep and goats • Half of grasslands moderately degraded

  16. SYMPTOMS • Disappearing species • Have had five great extinctions so far • Now in early stages of 6th • Loss of species is weakening the web of life.

  17. DIAGNOSIS People-itis!

  18. PEOPLE-ITIS • Currently 6.7 billion people on the planet • Adding 73 million per year (net increase) • 1.1 billion are undernourished • India alone adds 21 million per year - another Australia!

  19. PEOPLE-ITIS • Each time your heart beats once, three new hearts begin to beat for the first time! • Stop at two!

  20. WARNING • Q: Why didn’t scientists warn us? • A: They did. Many times. We ignored their warnings.

  21. What Should We Do? • Take better care of the earth. • Use all forms of energy more efficiently. • Use more energy from the sun: • Wind • Hydrogen • Water • Stop at two kids.

  22. What Shouldn’t We Do? • Waste any more time • Wish upon a star* *Disney’s First Law Wishing will not make it so!

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