As our planet faces unprecedented challenges, the loss of biodiversity has become a critical concern, with far-reaching consequences for ecosystems and human well-being. These articles delve into factors contributing to biodevastation, which is the loss of biodiversity and life. The articles explore the causes, consequences, and potential solutions shedding light on the profound impacts of biodevastation on ecosystems, wildlife, and the delicate balance of our planet.
Articles range from habitat destruction and pollution to the role of human activities in exacerbating the loss of biodiversity. We bring you expert perspectives and actionable steps to address and mitigate the challenges posed by the loss of biodiversity.
Together, let’s explore ways to protect and preserve the richness of life on Earth for current and future generations.
Each article serves as a stepping stone towards a deeper understanding of biodiversity loss and environmental destruction and the urgency to adopt better practices.
Most talk about the climate crisis comes at it from the “demand side” — how to reduce demand for fossil fuels (FF) by replacing them with renewable electricity or becoming more efficient in the use of FF. We need to look at it from the “supply side” too. Ongoing extraction of oil, methane (natural gas) and coal will eventually blow through the safe limits on greenhouse gas pollution. What’s less often acknowledged is that the FF industry’s planned investments in new projects would extend their dominance for decades into the future. The infrastructure they build now will need to keep […]
In case you have lingering doubts about the reality of human-caused global warming, hop on an airplane to parts of India or Pakistan and spend a few days. And, as long as you’re there, maybe be a good citizen and pick up a few of the dehydrated birds that drop out of the sky. Then, use the syringe you brought along to feed it some water before it dies in your hands. And, maybe do the same for some of the people sprawled out on the roadside before they die right before your eyes. After all, people are already dying […]
The planet is wheezing, coughing and sputtering because of vicious attacks by worldwide droughts aided and abetted by global warming at only 1.2C above baseline. Some major metropolises are rationing water. What’ll happen at 1.5C? It’s not as if droughts are not a normal feature of the climate system. They are, but the problem nowadays is highlighted by reports from NASA and NOAA stating that earth is trapping nearly twice as much heat is it did in 2005 described as an “unprecedented increase amid the climate crisis.” This trend is described as “quite alarming.” The planet trapping heat at double […]
A long time ago in the Milky Way galaxy on a planet named Earth the trees died. It only happened once in the planet’s history. It was during the Permian-Triassic 252 million years ago. Henk Visscher, PhD, Department of Earth Sciences, Utrecht University, makes a living studying exposed fossil beds of the transitional period of the Permian to Triassic era, “The Great Dying.” Layers of fossils prior to the great extinction event contain lots of pollen, typical of a healthy conifer forest. But, in the Permo-Triassic boundary the pollen is replaced by strands of fossilized fungi, representing an exploding population […]
The wood-pellet industry has full-scale operations smack dab in the heart of British Columbia’s Inland Temperate Rainforest, the last rainforest of its kind in the North. The fabled rainforest contains cedars of up to 12–15 feet in diameter and up to 2,000 years old. Its extraordinarily rich ecosystem is home to 2,400 plant species and numerous wildlife species. It is one of only three inland temperate-boreal rainforests in the world. The others are in southern Siberia and Russia’s Far East. Of significant concern, according to criteria by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) BC’s inland rainforest is […]
East Antarctica, often times referred to as “the final frontier of global warming,” is making headlines once again. A few weeks ago East Antarctica’s temperatures soared by 50F–90F above normal. (Ref: Antarctica Crushes Records, March 23, 2022) A couple of weeks later East Antarctica’s Conger Ice Shelf (1,200 sq km) completely collapsed and two additional calving events occurred at other glaciers, all in the same week. This prompts an interesting dilemma. According to David Spratt, research director of the Breakthrough National Centre for Climate Restoration in Melbourne, early IPCC reports said Antarctica would be stable for a thousand years. Then, […]
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in many respects is a Delphic institution whose reports are a function of political discretion as it provides justification for nation-state policies that are seldom fulfilled, e.g., only a handful of the 193 signatory nations to Paris ’15 have met commitments. This scandalous outright failure at a dicey time for the climate system only serves to hasten loss of stability and integrity of the planet’s most important ecosystems. That provocative depiction is examined in a recent Nick Breeze ClimateGenn podcast interview: Existential Risk Management with David Spratt, research director of the Breakthrough National […]
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has issued its direst warning of all-time: “Climate breakdown is accelerating rapidly.” Additionally, they readily admit to overly conservative predictions: “Many impacts will be more severe than originally predicted.” (Source: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Working Group II Sixth Assessment Report, 2022) The crowning blow of this heavy-hitting report is a chilling statement: “There is only a narrow chance left of avoiding its worst ravages.” Moreover, the IPCC claims that even at current levels dangerous widespread disruptions threaten devastation of swathes of the natural world: “Many areas will become unlivable.” Interestingly enough, […]
Since the heyday of technological determinism in the 1960s, many authors have written eloquently about how developments in technology are more typically the outcome of particular social and economic arrangements. Some contributions that have significantly shaped my own thinking include: • Lewis Mumford’s observation that inventions like glass and steam engines were first developed for mainly ornamental and ceremonial purposes (opening heavy temple doors in the latter case), centuries before they were mobilized for more practical uses. • Murray Bookchin’s account of how Iroquois and Inca societies, one increasingly egalitarian and the other rigidly hierarchical, relied upon very similar late […]