On Whale "culling"

This is an incredible science - measuring the amount of genetic variation in existing animals to figure out population size in the past. Proof that Japan's "Scientific Whaling" of Minke (and other, endangered, whales) is unnecessary and harmful.

The argument put forth by the Japanese whaling business is that Minke whales have increased in abundance due to the lack of other large whales that eat similar food. The argument further states that due to this population explosion, other whale species' populations are oppressed by the Minke whale being over-abundant. False estimates were put out that Minke populations currently are higher than the pre-whaling era, and therefore they should be culled.

This argument is unsupported by science. Take a look at this video to see why.

This is a picture I took of an endangered humpback whale while in Cabo San Lucas. This species is also on the list for Japan's "Scientific Research."

On A New Year

It's certainly been a gap since my last post, but I have wonderful news! I applied to attend a conference in Japan, and I got the spot! It's a conference about the environment, so I'm very excited to attend and see what other people have to say.

I am a little bit conflicted, seeing as it is a very long plane ride using a lot of fuel to get me there for a week and then back again, but this is something I might bring up at the conference. Video conferencing might be a tool they could use in the future - it would cost a lot less and could involve more people. Though, there is certainly an allure to discovering a so-distant land and actually being able to explore another culture and place. I suppose it is one of those things to weigh pros and cons for.

I just watched "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss, and it was quite profound - I think I will use it for an upcoming design project!

The Lorax Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

On Pollution

Today, I read an article on chemical pollutants in human bodies, which pretty much made it clear that no matter how careful you are about what you eat and what products you use, there is no getting around chemical contamination in our bodies. There are a multitude of culprits, such as the well known mercury and bisphenol-A, plastic contaminants and heavy metals.

We pick these up inadvertently from Teflon pans, plastic food and drink containers (and the plastic linings of soft drink cans), as well as from simply breathing the air around us, filled with car exhaust and industrial by-product.

Some days it just feels like there's no escaping it...

On a happier note, I stole this cheerful bit from the WorldChanging website:

In spite of what you may have heard, Europe's carbon market is working beautifully. The EU's Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) has been operational since 2005 and we're now getting a good look at how it functions. It turns out, it's a remarkable success story, both environmentally and economically.

So, we just need to try harder, people.

On Heat in November

Yesterday was a record-breaking *17 degrees Celsius* in Edmonton, Canada's largest northern city. The last time it was even close to this warm was in 1904...over a century ago. We're in a drought at the onset of winter.

Just sayin'.

On thinking

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately, and wondering about people's views on issues of the progression and impact of the human species on this planet. Today, I skimmed through an article that suggested a person's stance on global warming (climate change) is a belief...like a religion. Now, this struck me as odd. But even more odd was the public response to this article - not rejecting that view as I would have assumed to be done (as that is pretty much typical with the people I surround myself with) - but overwhelmingly in support of global warming as a personal belief - something faith based.

So, being a little bit confounded by this new view on what I have always taken to be truth, I did some research on why on Earth people would think this stuff is made up. The first thing that came up was a Wikipedia article that explained the "Global Warming Conspiracy Theory." Most of the arguments have to do with the government, big business and/or scientists getting support and money by scaring the public. I mean, I can see why people would want to believe that we're not impacting the planet negatively and we're not screwing our selves in the process... but blaming "the powers that be" for making it up as a scare tactic is very George Orwell.

Independent scientists are not rolling in the dough for telling the world about their research...most biologists, geologists, meteorologists and other science researchers pursue their work out of a concern and interest in learning about and solving environmental problems - which is why I find it so sad that people want to demonize science.

There is so much overlap in research, and so much physical evidence that supports their studies...the ocean ice is melting and not refreezing, and we can see that polar bears are suffering due to their changed habitat and food sources because of this. Glaciers are gone from where they once covered mountainsides, and some island nations have already had to abandon their homes due to water levels rising.

I have talked to someone who simply thought that humans couldn't possibly have an effect on something as large as the planet Earth and its atmosphere. I mean, people are so small, right? This is insanity - we are changing the chemical composition of our planet by digging up stuff from underneath the Earth's crust and burning it by the tonne. This would not happen naturally.

The gases from that burning don't just go into the atmosphere (which not only causes global warming, but air pollution, too!) it goes into the ocean, where it exists as mercury. This is bad for plants and animals and humans - mercury is toxic to living things and causes neurological disorders. Also, the warming of the atmosphere transfers into a warming of the oceans, which makes the water more susceptible to carbon dioxide infusion. More CO2 is being absorbed and is causing the acidification of the oceans.

There is so much evidence. Humanity needs to take responsibility and make changes - if not to try and reverse these effects (they may well be irreversible, anyways) then to improve ourselves as a species.

On Sharks

I personally love sharks. They're some of the oldest creatures on the planet, having evolved over 400 million years ago - that's 150 million years before the dinosaurs, and well over 398 million years before human ancestors. They have developed keen senses for a variety of uses, and have high intelligence and long term memory.

Humans are systematically eliminating sharks from the world - whether purposefully through shark fishing and finning, or whether sharks are a product of by-catch in fishing. Fear and apathy in the general populace allows this to happen, often perpetuated by the media view that "a dead shark is a good shark."

Since sharks are slow to mature and only have a few young at a time, when their populations are devastated it takes decades for recovery. Recovery is not happening at a fast enough pace to keep up with how quickly humans are killing sharks.

Sharks are incredibly important for the ocean ecosystem, and all life on earth would be affected by the loss of sharks from the planet, as they have been the apex predator regulating the oceans for millions of years.

A great way to learn more is to watch the movie Sharkwater by Rob Stewart, a young Canadian activist fighting to save sharks. The movie is fun, and doesn't guilt the viewer - it's goal is awareness for the average person, as well as planting a love of sharks in the world.

This is a photo I took of a Grey Reef Shark in Hawaii, 2009 on a dive trip. I love diving with sharks - they're so beautiful.

On the Plastic Oceans

There is a garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean that has accumulated all of the plastic humans have thrown away that never made it to a recycle plant or garbage dump. Not only does it sit there and look nasty, it breaks down into consumable parts that fish and other marine mammals eat. This is causing them to die of lack of nutrition, and it also genetically alters them due to having chemicals in their systems. The plastic layer also chokes out the ocean by covering the surface and not allowing for oxygen to permeate into the water. This essentially suffocates all the living things and eliminates species from the bottom up.

This also affects humans, as we consume the fish and higher level creatures. As you travel up the foodchain, the concentration of chemicals increases and accumulates in larger animals - this is known as bioaccumulation, and it also happens with mercury as it gets into the ocean from the burning of fossil fuels. When humans eat these larger animals we also bioaccumulate.

See an impactful presentation on bottle cap accumulation in the Pacific Gyre by Captain Charles Moore, who has led expeditions to see the Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch.

Easy things to do that help the situation:

>Use plastic as sparingly as possible - instead of plastic bags and ziplocs, use reusable containers that can be recycled once their life is over. Make a consumer statement by refusing to purchase over-packaged food and goods.

>Buy a reusable water bottle - metal ones are very popular for good reason, as they last a long time and seep no chemicals harmful to humans (I have a klean kanteen, and I love it!) Plastic bottles are one of the biggest offenders for plastic waste.

>Sort your plastic waste into recycling - take a few seconds and make a plastic recycling bag for your home. In some places you can take your plastic bottles and your cans into a depot for a recycle refund. In places that don't have pick up for recycling, there is generally a place where you can drop it off at a centre

>Reduce the use - this is the most important one. Look at your lifestyle and pick out where you can cut the plastic out of your life - this can often be good for cost-efficiency, too! Do you eat out a lot? Often the containers from eating out are plastic or styrofoam - making this kind of lifestyle change is good for your health, your wallet and the environment :)

These are the easy changes that can be done solo - signing petitions, getting involved with organizations or donating to a cause is the next awesome step.

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