Mass Extinction of Life Upon Earth
A Blog Post
Seems human greed, not Nature, not God, will eventually
destroy the planet.
We cannot accurately estimate how climate changes will
affect the earth, how much of that change is caused by human
activity and how much by the forces of Nature. However,
what is certain is that the continued destruction of plant
and animal life forms will significantly alter earth's ecosystem
and endanger our very survival.
According to an estimate we have already lost over 50%
of wildlife in the last 40 years alone due to our need for
food and recreation or due to the encroachment of their
habitats by humans, deforestation, mining, pollution of
the seas and rivers and other activities. In the last few
decades, the marine population has also considerably depleted
due to largescale fishing, resulting in the mass migration
of local communities that traditionally lived in the coastal
areas for centuries. Indiscriminate, deep sea fishing by
large trawlers has not only done irreparable damage to life
in the oceans but also uprooted many traditional fishing
communities in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Next time when you sit at a table to enjoy sea food or
fish soup, think of this. An article published on the website
of WWF states that two-thirds of the world's fish stocks
are either fished at their limit or over fished.” The UN
food and agriculture organization (FAO) reported that 70
percent of the fish population is fully used, overused or
in crisis.
According to a report by OCEANA, a nonprofit, international
advocacy organization dedicated to protecting and restoring
the world’s oceans, "Destructive fishing practices are destroying
large portions of our oceans and the life within them."
The same report further states that, "Around the world each
year an estimated 44 billion pounds of fish are wasted –
25 percent of the entire world catch. Tens of thousands
of marine mammals, birds, corals, and other forms of ocean
life are also caught and discarded. This massive destruction
of sea life puts our oceans at risk, and with them our food
supplies, our coastal economies, and even ourselves."
It is simple commonsense to predict how such a massive
of destruction of life forms will have an impact on humans
as well as on all life upon earth. Many in the scientific
community believe that we are on the verge of sixth mass
extinction of plants and animals, which happens once in
a billion or a few hundred million years. This time, it
is not caused by natural events, but by human beings. Of
the remaining 50% species that have survived human destruction,
at least half will perish or become extinct in the next
few decades, leaving us and the earth with unpredictable
consequences.
It is rather strange that on one side we are planning
to establish human colonies upon other planets in the solar
system and exploring the possibility of mass migration to
Mars, but at the same time doing everything here to turn
our own unique planet into another Mars or Venus. Are we
truly intelligent or just playing the part Nature intends
us as the dominant species of the earth ecosystem to self-destruct
ourselves like the insect that flies into fire?
We may be skeptical about Climate change, but the destruction
of life upon earth is real and provable. It is going to
become worse, as drone technology improves and as fast-paced
and highly efficient drones begin to invade the air space
and destroy many bird species. With humans on earth and
the greed of the large corporations which are exploiting
our appetite for food, no life form on the land, in the
sea and in the air is safe.