I'm not a Tree-hugger, but I make no apologies about caring for the environment. I want my children and their children to grow up in the best possible environment.
Like age, the destruction of our environment is something which 'creeps up', it doesn't suddenly arrive with a fanfare - and for decades now it has been inexorably 'creeping up'. There comes a time when we realise and acknowledge 'I'm too old for that now - I simply can't do it' and of course, there's no turning the clock back. So it is with our environment, the destruction is slow but inexorable - as a species we humans are good at confronting immediate problems, but those problems tend to be localised, affecting the people in that vicinity and they respond as one to the perceived threat. But what happens when the threat is global?
THIS PLANET IS DYING! All across the globe the signs of distress are there to see - and therein lies the problem - it is global. What happens in Australia is rarely reported in the USA, what happens in the UK is rarely reported in Australia and on it goes. Countries acknowledge their own problems and the population is left thinking it's a 'little local difficulty' - when in fact it is a disaster of global proportion.
Our oceans and waterways should be seen as the 'blood' coursing through the veins of the global body. Right now it is poisoned in a way which threatens our very existence. This is no 'alarmist' rhetoric, the evidence is there but politically the will to deal with it is lacking. So bad is the situation that Whales are being burned alive in the toxic sludge which passes as 'Ocean' (See below from New Zealand)...
These are not 'isolated incidents' - Everything you read about below is from earlier this year...
Alabama - Tens of thousands of dead 'Spayed Fish' wash ashore.
East Coast USA - Dead Sea Turtles continue to wash ashore - a conservative estimate puts the number at more than 50 times the seasonal average.
East Coast USA - Dead Dolphins was ashore - again conservative estimates are that the numbers are 50 times greater than the seasonal average.
Madagascar - 14 people die from eating Sardines which contained toxins derived from the sea.
Ventura Harbor California - Thousands of dead fish spread across the harbor - scientists say a lack of oxygen 'probable cause' - unlikely to be true as only one species was affected - lack of oxygen would cause all species to show signs of distress.
Vapi, India - Tens of thousands of dead fish wash ashore - the fourth time such an event has happened recently.
Rouge River, Michigan - MILLIONS of fish found dead in the river
California - Sharks dying in large numbers due to 'internal bleeding'
Bangladesh - Tens of thousands of dead Sea Snails wash ashore
Manila - MILLIONS of fish found dead in Lake Taal
Redondo Beach California - MILLIONS of dead anchovies float to the surface
United Kingdom - Thousands of dead Starfish wash ashore
These are just SOME of the dead marine life reports which I gather. There are quite literally hundreds more from this year. Add into this the unusual mass bird deaths, the weird weather phenomena, not to mention quakes caused by "fracking" and it's plain to see - this truly is a Planet in Crisis.
What do we do?
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I remember as a kid when alot of fish died in Lake Michigan. This was in the 60s...so these events have been happening right along, only now do I
ReplyDeletebelieve people are taking notice. too late? perhaps? We’re bastards and that’s the real truth. I’m sorry to say I don’t know if anything can be fixed. it just might be a lost cause at this point. anyhow, thanks so much for your visit and comment. I live for joy Rory...I’ve had alot of sadness in my life and so now I need to live as if I die tommorrow and joy and happiness are a part of that. I do what I can.
Rory, all those things you mentioned (and then some), that’s the sort of $*** that angers me and makes me feel ashamed to be a human. It’s one of the reasons why we chose not to have any children. I’m appalled at the “mess” they would’ve been stuck cleaning up. The First Nations of America have a saying; “Whatever you do, you must think of the impact cast upon 7 generations ahead”. Epic fail! What kind of legacy is this?!?
ReplyDelete*rant over*
Each of us must live in such a way that every action we take is taken meaningfully. We need to think about the eventual effect what we are doing will have. In order for this to have any impact we all need to be "on the same page". Sadly, we are not. How do we get it through to a neighbour that his senseless waste of water needs to stop when his mind can only see "well, I"m paying for it so what's the problem?" How do you get people to stop using poison on their weeds and pull them out when their mindset is simply that they don't have time for it? I don't know Rory..more education at the public and high school levels perhaps...facing our young people daily with the issues.... I wish I had the answer.
ReplyDeleteI remembered recently, here in the Philippines, hundreds of thousands of fishes were killed. One factor of their death as what scientists said is due to Global Warming...Slowly but Surely, we are threatened and killed by Mother Nature, or perhaps ourselves...
ReplyDeleteIt's horrific. And it's so frustrating being one of societies peon's when greed, corruption and money control EVERYTHING. Oil is the sickest "game" on this planet. I settled on one child, in the end. I agree Cre8tivesoul... I feel guilty about bringing a child into the world. My only hope is that she overthrows government one day or leads a new society into outer-space.
ReplyDeleteThe fish- and recently bird- deaths go on and on. Big Petroleum keeps drilling the ocean floors. Bats here have "Whitenose Syndrome". Bees are dying off due to CCD, caused, they say now, by pesticides.
ReplyDeleteAbout 6 years ago, while walking to work, I counted 8 bats laying on the ground along the way. I raised an alarm, nobody cared. In fact, I was ridiculed.
I live a low-consumer life, avoiding non-recycleable packaging, reusing, reducing trash output. I buy secondhand everything and repair instead of replacing. I avoid imports and buy local when I can. I don't use pesticides or aerosols and keep cleaning chemicals at a minimum. I don't use air conditioners. That doesn't make up for the billions who don't do a thing, but I sleep better knowing I do what I can.
The Earth will one day get fed up with our species and get rid of us. It serves us right.
Thank you everyone for your comments. It is a very serious issue, indeed probably the most important which confronts us. I only took a snapshot of the marine situation but as Austan pointed out - you could look at any area be it birds, bees, food, water or land and discover the same horrific story.
ReplyDeleteI was shocked at the recently reported response by America, Russia and the UK to the melting of the Polar ice caps. Energy companies are squabbling over who can get licences to drill for oil, or mine for minerals, in the now newly revealed areas bereft of ice.
Carrie boo was spot on - Oil is the slickest game in town.
It has to stop.