Month: March 2022

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Why the Huntington Beach oil spill is so harmful to wildlife

Benji Jones (2021, October 6) Why the Huntington Beach oil spill is so harmful to wildlife. From https://www.vox.com/down-to-earth/22708654/oil-spills-wildlife-huntington-beach-california

On October 2, an oil pipe in Southern California ruptured, spewing an estimated 144,000 gallons of crude into the Pacific Ocean. Thuis spill created a toxic oil slick off the coast with about a 13-mile radius. This spill affects multiple marshes in the surrounding areas leading to many avian species threatened with extinction. Oil slicks also kill phytoplankton, which offsets entire food chains. 

Oil spills, one of the most toxic additives to water pollution, are very detrimental to its surroundings. Preventing oil spills would be crucial in reducing the amount of damage caused by water contaminants. This article helps show how many different things can go wrong and how badly they can affect the environment. One leak in an oil rig leading to a 13-mile  radius of toxicity is a huge problem when thinking about how much wildlife there is in such a large range of water.  

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As OC Taps New Drinking Water Sources, Worries About Contamination Arise

Renee Elefante (2022, January 4) As OC Taps New Drinking Water Sources, Worries About Contamination Arise. From   https://voiceofoc.org/2022/01/as-oc-digs-deeper-for-drinking-water-worries-about-contamination-arise/ 

As a result of drought, many are beginning to tap groundwater for drinking. While finding contaminants already in the ground water, along comes further contaminants caused by the tapping itself. Not only is groundwater used for excess water, but so is desalination. This process, removing salt from ocean water, creates brine that is run off into the ocean. This brine is extremely harmful to the marine environment. Yet another problem found with water contamination is in Anaheim with trihalomethanes. Trihalomethanes are a byproduct of chlorine put into water, but research has linked trihalomethanes to diagnoses of bladder cancer.

There are many causes of water pollution in California and many that are unexpected. Most people think desalinization is a good alternative for getting clean water because the breineleft off, or the salty substance, is okay to put back in the ocean since it is only salt. That is not true. All this brine going into the ocean is extremely harmful for wildlife and is an issue that will continue to grow until people are aware of its negative effects. 

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Clean water in California is overdue

Sean Bothwell (2021, October 19) Clean water in California is overdue. From https://calmatters.org/commentary/2021/10/clean-water-in-california-is-overdue/

Water pollution in California is plagued with unsafe substances such as pesticides which has many fish on the brink of extinction. These unsafe waters are primarily undealt with in underserved communities of color. The Clean Water Act reduced pollution for traditional industrial outfalls, but continues to ignore the places in most dire need. Communities of low-income people such as anglers need fish to be their source of food to survive but are unfortunately continuing to eat fish that are contaminated. 

Not only is water pollution affecting the stability of humans financially but is also pushing wildlife onto the brink of extinction. While all of the main causes of water pollution such as pesticides and other natural pollutants seem like smaller, solvable issues, in reality there is not much time to spare. This article highlights the differences in treatment between prioritized  communities versus communities  in most need of help. 

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Contamination a ‘huge challenge’ for affordable drinking water in California

Dan Ross (2021, October 6) Contamination a ‘huge challenge’ for affordable drinking water in California. From https://sacramento.newsreview.com/2021/10/06/contamination-a-huge-challenge-for-affordable-drinking-water-in-california/

Stanislaus County is taking a big hit from water contamination caused by agricultural runoff. This town home to low-income families is not going well considering they are now paying 300% more than state avg. for clean water. Resorting to groundwater is not an option because of a major drought. These polluting chemicals have been linked to results in many health conditions such as cancer, immunotoxicity and liver disease. These chemicals, while in low exposure with humans, are still able to cause negative effects due to their high toxicity.

Stanislaus county is taking the hits for toxic agricultural runoff into their water supply. Unfortunately, this area cannot afford to be having these problems considering almost all of its residents are of a lower-income. Preventing the use of pesticides and other chemicals used for agriculture is a very large debate and most likely will not subside in time to clear Stanislaus’s water supply.  

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Safe drinking water remains out of reach for many Californians

Kara Manke (2022, January 11) Safe drinking water remains out of reach for many Californians. From https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220111153647.htm

Access to clean and affordable water in California has become harder to come by. This article reports on the three most common contaminants, Arsenic, Nitrate, and Hexavalent chromium. These chemicals are mainly discovered in natural groundwater. It is found there is a large amount of these contaminants found in domestic wells which supports most Californians “clean” water. They combined data from California’s community water systems, domestic well permits, residential tax parcels, building footprints and census results to rule out housing being supported by contaminated wells.

Not only is wildlife being affected negatively by water pollution, but so are humans. As these natural contaminants continue to be found in groundwater, there are less options for access to clean water. Undergoing regular water testing for contaminants will be very crucial to human health. This article highlights the naturalitty of these toxins and how hard they are to terminate. 

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War Abroad and Politics at Home Push U.S. Climate Action Aside

Sengupta, Somini, and Lisa Friedman. “War Abroad and Politics at Home Push U.S. Climate Action Aside.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 2 Mar. 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/02/climate/state-of-the-union-biden-ukraine-climate.html.

In this article by The New York Times, the authors, Somini Sengupta and Lisa Friedman explained how the war going on between Russia and Ukraine is affecting gas prices and ultimately the climate crisis in the USA. Russia is one of the leading countries in fossil fuel exports which is a problem for all of Europe and the United States. The United States is being forced to increase drilling for fossil fuels, worsening the climate crisis, something President Biden said would be a top priority to reduce under his administration.

I think that the news in this article is incredibly frustrating and unfortunate. When President Biden was elected it was great news for environmentalists around the world, especially after President Trump who was not an advocate for the environment and reducing global warming. Kadri Simson, the European Union energy commissioner  said that “This war will have deep repercussions one way or another on our own energy system.” Unfortunately, Biden, and many other presidents of European countries, are unable to live up to many of these environmentalist expectations due to the Russian-Ukrainian war, and the high demand for fossil fuels. 

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The Great Climate Migration

Morenne, Benoit. “The Great Climate Migration.” Deseret, Deseret, 24 Feb. 2022, https://www.deseret.com/2022/2/23/22946326/the-great-climate-migration-climate-change-environment-california-wildfires.

This article is about climate migration due to global warming in the USA. It starts out by giving a specific example of one family that said that they thought they would never leave California, although that was before the rapid increase of wildfires in the past couple of years. It later explains that now, in 2022 according to a recent poll, over half all Americans have had to deal with more extreme weather conditions that are a result of climate change. Adding on to that, one in six of those Americans have seriously considered moving because of climate-related natural disasters.

This is one effect of climate change that I had not really considered or given much thought to. Although I do think it is incredibly sad, I find it even more ironic that people feel the need to move away, out of their homes, because of the climate crisis which was caused by humanity. Climate change has gotten so normalized among humans that many of us are willing to leave our homes instead of changing our poor environmental habits. Many people argue that global warming is the fault of our government and huge corporations, yet we are the ones funding the corporations and electing our governmental officials.

 

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Un Panel’s Grim Climate Change Report: ‘Parts of the Planet Will Become Uninhabitable’

Pulver, Dinah Voyles, and Doyle Rice. “Un Panel’s Grim Climate Change Report: ‘Parts of the Planet Will Become Uninhabitable’.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 28 Feb. 2022, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2022/02/28/un-climate-change-report/6927625001/.

USA Today recently released an article which highlighted the UN’s recent findings which are that some areas of the Earth will become uninhabitable without change in humanity’s pollution habits. A study was done that assessed how humans, and other ecosystems, would react to the change in the climate. The report of the study said that “Human-induced climate change, including more frequent and intense extreme events, has caused widespread adverse impacts and related losses and damages to nature and people, beyond natural climate variability.” The report ended by saying that urgent action is needed to stop this tragedy from happening.

 

I find this article to be incredibly saddening yet eye-opening and inspiring at the same time. I am sad at how humanity has treated the Earth for it to come to the point where parts of it will become uninhabitable, and cause ecosystems to collapse. On the other hand, I hope that these findings will spark immense and serious change to not only laws surrounding pollution, but also humanity’s attitude towards climate change and corporations that disregard the effects they have on the Earth. I find the sad news to be inspiring and makes me want to help make a difference in the future of the world.

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US Household Air Conditioning Use Could Exceed Electric Capacity in next Decade Due to Climate Change

“US Household Air Conditioning Use Could Exceed Electric Capacity in next Decade Due to Climate Change.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 4 Feb. 2022, https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220204093124.htm.

Global warming will cause temperatures to increase by up to two degrees Celsius by the end of the century which will cause an estimated eight to thirteen percent increase in demand for air conditioning during the summer. This will exceed the USA’s electric capacity and cause city or even state-wide blackouts. Susanne Benz, a geographer, and climate scientist said that “It’s a pretty clear warning to all of us that we can’t keep doing what we are doing or our energy system will break down in the next few decades, simply because of the summertime air conditioning.” 

 

At first glance, I was really worried about how this will affect people in the future although I am now thinking that it may not be so bad. I hope that if, or when, this happens it will act as yet another wake-up call for civilians, governments, and the world as a whole. As I do wish that we will never come to this I don’t think that this will be shrugged off by many people, like how react to hearing about a slight increase in temperature every couple of years. I really do hope that when global warming continues to directly affect the common person, everyone will start advocating for real change, and start considering political views on climate change before voting.

 

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Climate Change Is Altering the Smell of Snow

Fallik, Dawn. “Climate Change Is Altering the Smell of Snow.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 5 Feb. 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2022/02/05/snow-smell-climate-change/.

The rising temperature due to climate change is affecting things that many of us would have never even thought about, for example, the smell of snow. Dawn Fallik, the author of the article “Climate change is altering the smell of snow” published by The Washington Post, explained how the scent of snow replicates what is in the air and on the ground. Johan Lundstrom, a clinical neuroscience professor said that scents are more apparent in warmer and more humid climates, so due to warmer temperatures, impurities in the air are reflected in the smell and are more apparent.

 

This is just one example of the tragedies that global warming has caused, and while this is not a huge deal, the joyous winter smell that many of us love is getting harder and harder to find. It is quite unpleasant to think that unless rapid change is made, the next generation of children will not have the experience of playing in the snow. I am also curious about how this may affect the economy of countries and states that rely on tourism to get money. In the article, it explained that even small amounts of pollution in the air make a noticeable difference in the smell of the snow, and I would suspect no one would want to go on vacation to a malodered place.