...A Fishless Sea Sylvia Earle is to our generation as Jacque Cousteau was to the generation of the 1950’s. They are public figures in which many fellow scientists look up to. They are oceanographers, explorers, and conservationists. Earle has held an unthinkable amount of positions in her years. Positions from field research scientist, to government official, to director for both corporate and nonprofit organizations. More specifically she was the first woman chief scientist of the NOAA, the founder of Deep Sea Exploration and Research Inc. and Mission Blue, and even the chair of advisory councils of the Ocean in Google Earth. She has received countless awards such as the 2009 TED Prize, Time Magazine Hero of the Planet in 1998, and the 2011 Royal Geographical Society Gold Medal. Sylvia Earle is a woman I look up to, as I’m sure other environmentalists do in turn. She is honorable, and passionate about creatures who cannot defend themselves. Alternatively, over the...
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...the Gulf oil leak through a 'top kill' effort, a mind boggling amount of damage has already been done to this precious ocean ecosystem. It can be hard to keep track of all the devastating statistics, quotes, and facts concerning this disaster, but it is essential that the public maintain a working knowledge of what's going on, both politically and environmentally. As a people, we must demand change from both an oil industry that drills first and asks questions later, and the corrupt government agencies that let them get away with it. We must also realize that we have encouraged this sort of behavior through lifestyles that are addicted to oil, and an unwillingness to make sacrifices for a cleaner, healthier future. Here are 10 of the most horrifying facts about the Gulf oil spill. Read them and let their gravity weigh heavy on your hearts and minds. Let them motivate you to take action so our planet never experiences this kind of manmade disaster ever again. 1. New estimates show the undersea well has spilled betweendwarf those of BP, who claimed the spill had only released 11 million gallons to date, and mean that the Gulf leak is far bigger than Exxon Valdez, making it the worst spill in American history. 2. The National Wildlife Federation reports that already more than 150 threatened or endangered sea turtles are dead. And 316 sea birds, mostly brown pelicans and northern gannets, have been found dead along the Gulf Coast as a result of the spreading oil. ...
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...Global Warming “We know that if climate change is not stopped, all parts of the world will suffer. Some will even be destroyed.”— (British Prime Minister Tony Blair, September 2002) There are many environmental issues that seem to be recognized by humans in today’s society. The most important one to me is global warming because it is one of the most serious challenges facing today’s society. Throughout the world, Earth is showing several signs of climate change. Research has shown that Earth is warming rapidly than ever in the past 1000 years. Global warming is due to the substantial increase in greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide. The burning of fossil fuel has already raised levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide to their highest for the last 20 million years. The most recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), shows there is clear evidence for a 1.1 degrees Fahrenheit (0.6 degrees Celsius) rise in global temperatures and a 7 ¼ in (20 cm) rise is sea level during the twentieth century (Maslin, 2007, p. 7). For example, Arctic ice is decreasing leaving polar bears suffering from the ice loss. The following paper includes what is global warming, causes of global warming, possible global warming effects, what the government doing to prevent global warming, and what is being done at the international level to address global warming. What is global warming? Oil and coal are two of the main problems behind global warming. Global warming is...
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...most powerful forces and have plagued our lives for as long as people have inhabited the earth. These dangerous acts of the earth have been the cause of many deaths in the past century. So what can be done about these violent eruptions that take place nearly without warning? Predicting an earthquake, until now, has almost been technologically impossible. However, with recent improvements in technology and science, many lives have been saved and many more will be. What is an earthquake and how do they occur? Did you know that most of the famous mountains are a result of an earthquake? (Cosmeo, 2008) That tidbit of information was just a little side note; now back to the paper. Earth is a planet that is made up of multiple layers. These layers include an inner layer and an outer layer and layer in between. The inner layer of the earth is a ball of molten rock that rotates within the earth. The other layers that are on top of the inner layer are floating about as a pliable ball of molten rock. The outer layer is what we refer to as the crust. The crust is very thin when compared to the other layers of the Earth. For example, think of the outer layer of an orange as it relates to the interior of the orange. This example relates closely to what the Earth looks like when we examine the crust. The crust and other layers floats upon the mantle core. The crust of the earth is made up of multiple pieces. Each of these giant pieces is called a tectonic plate. What are the events that cause...
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...Introduction There are many definitions of what constitutes marine litter. But they all boil down to essentially the same thing. Marine litter or marine debris as it is also known is “any persistent, manufactured or processed solid material discarded, disposed of or abandoned in the marine and coastal environment…” (Galgani et al, 2010). Marine litter is human created waste and includes everyday items such as plastic bags, balloons, rope, medical waste, glass and plastic bottles, cigarette lighters and beverage cans as well as thousands of other products. Marine litter is becoming a major environmental concern and is causing a significant threat to marine life around the world. Some of the primary sources of this debris are storm water discharges,...
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...Today the world is at a cross roads in terms of energy. Since the invention of fire humans have constantly been searching for new ways to heat their homes and power all of our growing industries. The newest means if called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Fracking is the process of drilling about 2 miles, or 10,650 feet, in order to reach the shale level of the earth. The shale holds an abundance of shale gas that is formed by the decomposition of plant materials over millions of years. Once they get deep enough they pump water, sand, and a slurry of chemicals down into the shale layer in order to expand the shale thus, giving the gas the means to travel to the surface. Fracking is a very beneficial alternate means of retrieving natural gas from the ground, in the sense that it would...
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...organisms, its habitat, what capacity the natural ecosystems have to support life, and biodiversity The development of technology within society has many benefits; however it has shown adverse effects on our natural environment. The need to reach for new advances if we are not managed appropriately can collapse natural ecosystems. Regretfully our ideologies have caused the vast social problems that we are forced to deal with today. Technology advancements have positive implications, but it has also had devastating effects on the environment. We have been practicing a growth at any and all cost ideology in regards to technology and the damage it is causing to the environment. This has created an every growing social issue. This attitude has led to the loss of biodiversity that will inevitably bring the collapse of ecosystems. We take more resources from the earth and space as our population increases.As a result we are disrupting the habitats of animal species that live in undeveloped areas. As we expand our range to make room for new communities we inadvertently displace the natural order of insects, animals and plants that occupy the land. Our attitude towards growth and technology serves human needs and comfort at the expense of animals, organism and the ecosystems that sustain them. Our reliance on technology is hurting the environment at an unprecedented remarkable rate. The automotive industry for example causes pollution from manufacturing the cars that we all adore. Consequently...
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...ES8005 – Chapter 1 A system is any portion of the universe that can be isolated for the purpose of observing & measuring changes A system must have a boundary that sets it apart from its surroundings 3 basic types of systems 1. Isolated system * Boundary prevents the system from exchanging BOTH matter & energy with its surroundings. * Both matter and energy within the system are fixed & finite because none can enter and none can leave the system. * Imaginary – impossible for any real boundary to be so perfectly insulated that energy can neither enter or escape. 2. Closed system * Boundary permits the exchange of energy, but not matter within its surroundings * Matter within the system is finite but energy is exchangeable in and out of the system 3. Open system * Boundary permits exchange of both energy and matter * Ie. Island. * Open systems are more difficult to study because they have more potential for uncontrolled variation Box model * A model is a representation of something. * A box model can show the essential features of a system. i. The process by which matter enters & leaves the system and the rates at which they do so ii. The process which matter moves among the various parts of the system internally & the rates at which this happens iii. The amount of matter (or energy) in the system at a given time and its distribution within the system * The amount of matter...
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...less than 1% of the worlds ocean surface, about half the area of France, yet they provide a home for 25% of all marine species, including fishes, molluscs, echinoderms and sponges. They are most commonly found at shallow depths in tropical waters, particularly in the Pacific Ocean. Coral reefs deliver ecosystem services to tourism, fisheries and shoreline protection. The annual global economic value of coral reefs has been estimated at $375 billion. It is believed to have emerged more than 540 million years ago. New species originate 50% faster in coral reefs than in any other habitats. The fossil records show that reefs have been remarkably successful in surviving through large environmental disturbances. However the combination of drastic environmental changes that we're seeing today, such as degraded water quality, depleted fish stocks, coral bleaching, ocean acidification and loss of habitat causes them to be under great threat. Coral reefs are perhaps one of the greatest but, least known of wonders of our world. There are three different kinds of coral reefs. There are fringing, barrier, and atoll. Fringing reefs are attached to margins of an island or continent, rough, table like surface, as much as 1 kilometer wide. On their seaward side they slope steeply to the ocean floor. Fringing reefs grow in shallow water near the shore and prefer dry climates with limited river runoff. There are also barrier reefs, which are similar to fringing but separated from mainland...
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...successful implementation of the solution. Symptoms of the Problem Natural disasters or any disaster of any kind is hard to manage just for the purpose that these is no real planning for the situation and there is no real way to say who is in charge when a disaster happens. Concerning the oil spill with British Petroleum (BP) symptoms for the situation was that there was a delayed response, the impact on the environment and the citizens, federal regulations were lax, and the recovery efforts were not adequate. According to Griggs (2011), OPA 90 is a federal statute that holds all the responsible parties in containment, clean-up, and damages that result from the situation. With the symptoms that were presented their needed to be a clear understanding of what should to transpire in accordance with federal laws in the efforts to minimize the damage. The Root Cause of the Dilemma April 20 explosion of BP's Deepwater Horizon oilrig created a negative situation for the company. Oil leaks from the rig caused the oil...
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...chairman and chief executive of the Exxon Corpoation was in his kitchen sipping coffee when the phone rang and received the news regarding the spilling of crude oil into the frigid waters of Prince William Sound, just outside the harbor of Valdez, Alaska. What was about to happen was the worst environmental disaster in the history of the United States. These were the documented facts that media had portrayed across the United States and to the world: Exxon Valdez, a 978-foot tanker piloted by a captain whom later revealed to be drank, ran aground on a reef 25 miles southwest of the port of Valdez. The results caused a spill of 250,000 barrels, the largest spill ever in North America. The devastating results affects, 1,300 square miles of water, damaging some 600 miles of coastline and murdering as many as 4,000 Alaskan sea otters. The disaster also enshrined the name of Exxon in the all-time Public Relations Hall of Shame. (Seitel, 2000). According to the book, Exxon’s dilemma broke down into five categories. First was the hesitation of Mr. Rawl if he is going directly and personally to Alaska. In an interview Mr. Rawl has said, “We had concluded that there was simply too much for me to coordinate from New York. It wouldn’t have made any difference if I showed up and made a speech in the town forum. I wasn’t going to spend the summer there; I had other things to do”. Secondly, Exxon failed to establish media control. Exxon, wanted to take charge of the news flow and give the...
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...chairman and chief executive of the Exxon Corpoation was in his kitchen sipping coffee when the phone rang and received the news regarding the spilling of crude oil into the frigid waters of Prince William Sound, just outside the harbor of Valdez, Alaska. What was about to happen was the worst environmental disaster in the history of the United States. These were the documented facts that media had portrayed across the United States and to the world: Exxon Valdez, a 978-foot tanker piloted by a captain whom later revealed to be drank, ran aground on a reef 25 miles southwest of the port of Valdez. The results caused a spill of 250,000 barrels, the largest spill ever in North America. The devastating results affects, 1,300 square miles of water, damaging some 600 miles of coastline and murdering as many as 4,000 Alaskan sea otters. The disaster also enshrined the name of Exxon in the all-time Public Relations Hall of Shame. (Seitel, 2000). According to the book, Exxon’s dilemma broke down into five categories. First was the hesitation of Mr. Rawl if he is going directly and personally to Alaska. In an interview Mr. Rawl has said, “We had concluded that there was simply too much for me to coordinate from New York. It wouldn’t have made any difference if I showed up and made a speech in the town forum. I wasn’t going to spend the summer there; I had other things to do”. Secondly, Exxon failed to establish media control. Exxon, wanted to take charge of the news flow and give the...
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...What is climate change? The Earth's climate has changed over the last century. Increases in average temperatures have been seen around the globe and there is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed in the last 50 years is due to human activities. While climate change is a global issue, it will affect us all. Climate change has the potential to adversely affect our environment, our communities and our economy unless we take action now to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and prepare for the impacts. Climate change will alter global and local climates. In Victoria, this means a warmer and drier future, with an increasing likelihood of more extreme events such as heatwaves, bushfires and storm surges. Climate change is the greatest threat facing our planet today. A warming planet alters weather patterns, water supplies, seasonal growth for plants and a sustainable way of life for us and the world’s wildlife. Climate change has already started, but it’s not too late to take action. There’s still time for us all to be part of the solution. A continuous flow of energy from the sun heats the Earth. Naturally occurring gases in the atmosphere, known as greenhouse gases – this includes carbon dioxide (CO2) - , trap this heat like a blanket, keeping the Earth at an average of 15 degrees Celsius – warm enough to sustain life. The overuse of fossil fuels is increasing CO2 in the atmosphere, trapping more and more heat and warming the Earth. As a result, we’re...
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...Austin Ogden 19 November 2014 Position paper SOS 220 Coral Reefs vs. Climate Change Corals reefs around the world have been fighting climate change for just over two centuries. This problem hasn’t caught much attention to the average human eye, but it’s about time everybody realizes how this is affecting their everyday lives as well. Coral bleaching is one of the main concerns with coral reefs around the world. Coral bleaching can be fatal to coral reefs, which in return could hurt us in the future. Ocean acidification is another problem that coral reefs are facing around the world. Not only is it harmful to the coral reefs but harmful to marine life as well. Although these are all negative actions towards coral reefs there can be a bright...
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...study Risk and Emergency Management Case Studies Textbook Development Project Prepared By: George Haddow and Damon Coppola Bullock & Haddow LLC 315 Boyd Ave. Takoma Park, MD 20912 301-270-5554 The purpose of this effort is to develop an Emergency and Risk Management Case Studies Textbook designed to provide a resource for practitioners and students in the crisis, disaster, and risk management disciplines that displays various best practices, lessons learned, and success stories, through in-depth case studies. The result of this effort will be the authorship of a college-level crisis, disaster, and risk management textbook containing numerous real-world case studies of disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery actions. The textbook will be developed in electronic format to support upper division undergraduate college and graduate-level emergency management classes within an emergency management major or certificate program to students who may someday enter an emergency management related profession. The planned book will include the following ten chapters: Chapter 1. Introduction to Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management Concepts Chapter 2. Preparedness Chapter 3. Mitigation Chapter 4. Response Chapter 5. Recovery Chapter 6. Communications Chapter 7. Statutory Authority Chapter 8. Business Continuity Planning Chapter 9: International Disaster Management Chapter 10: Future Trends and...
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