Beachbum-
I don't have the answers. Then again, if I did I'd probably have a lot of enemies trying to shut me up! ;-)

A biologist friend of mine said it in one word, and this was over ten years ago. I have never forgotten what he said. "Overpopulation". The world cannot sustain much more human growth without destroying it's natural resources and other species along the way.

We're at 6 billion people now and by 2050, we'll be at 9 billion. We are just running out of space and resources to manage the growth.
Right now, every 1.6 seconds another acre of wild land is gone and every 2.8 seconds, another human is brought into the world. Scary statistics if you think about it.

Below is from the website:

www.overpopulation.org


Human Behaviors Said to Make Things Worse:

having too many children
agricultural burning
overconsumption of resources
failure to re-cycle
production/disposal of toxic waste
improper disposal of human waste
improper disposal of garbage
mis-use of pesticides
overcrowding
economic dependence on growth
depletion of soils by overfarming
erosion from removal of vegetation
urban sprawl
over-fishing
removal of carbon sinks (trees)
inefficient use of fuel
urbanizing farmland
urban growth where water is scarce
eating meat

So read the list and help out however you can.

I'm a strong believer that every little bit does help and one person can help make a difference.

Here is the supposed reason for today's release:

"The scientists say they are only now making public details after piecing together what occurred using seismic monitors and Canadian and U.S. satellites."

http://tinyurl.com/y5rsmh

This news is a crock. Scientists knew about this for 16 months, but decided to wait to share the details? How many news events are withheld until all the details are known. No wonder there are so many skeptics out there.

One "little thing" we can do it plant trees. It has been shown that increased levels of carbon dioxide directly correlates with increased temperatures. The more trees the more oxygen. Not to mention that they a beautiful addition to any landscape!

Maybe where you live, snowrooster, but I think we've got enough trees (and tree huggers) in Oregon, and we're still planting. ;-)

Thanks for the reasoned response, divewop. I'm betting I'm older than you, because I've been hearing/reading about overpopulation since the '60s, and agree that it is most likely the root problem. And when we are all part of the problem, the solution becomes a tough sell.

So, I would imagine, as with other species, overpopulation of homosapiens will eventually take care of itself. But it won't be pretty. And it doesn't absolve us of our responsibility to take care of the planet.

We've got enough trees? Interesting response. I was not aware.

My understanding is that they did not realize that this Ice Shelf had broken free until recently. They were looking at images from 2005 and other data and realized it broke free. It supposedly happened much sooner than anyone ever imagined.

"We've got enough trees?" Note that I'm saying that of Oregon, snowrooster. In fact, in some areas we actually have a tree overpopulation problem, naturally resulting in some of them dying off.

Glad you clarified that Beachbum. But there are never enough trees. Remember the rate of destruction of the wild lands. That includes the rainforests/jungles, which is hugely impacting the earth's eco-system.

1.6 acres every second. So for as many trees that might be planted, it still doesn't make up for the rate of destruction.

Aren't their organizations where you can give $$ towards trees being planted? That way we can all help even if it isn't in our own backyard.

I just saw this article on Yahoo news about the Amazon becoming a grassy savanna in the next 100 years: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061229/...amazon_warming

Don't know if that's true (it could be), but it does seem like there are a lot of "global warming" articles in the news lately. I personally think the subject is worth investigating, even if in the end it turns out there is no global warming or the dire consequences are over-stated - it's worth looking into.

I recall feeling uncomfortable at the massive clearcuts we saw when we traveled through Oregon and Washington. Seems like those areas could use some more trees.

yeah, MASSIVE over clearing of trees in the pacific northwest. it's completely depressing to drive through and see total bald patches on mountains and stumps of what were once beautiful trees.

so what can we do?

- starting with something us fodorites need to be better at: use the damn washcloth to dry your hands! come on people, do we really need a new paper towel- to be disposed of after one use- for every guest?

- remove your name from mailing lists to cut down on junk mail

- don't be lazy- recycle as much as you possibly can

-buy products that are recycled

-turn lights, appliances, and electronics off when not in use, and when gone for extended periods, unplug.

- don't be so fast to trash things. donate them, keep using them, turn them into something else.

- don't waste water- turn off the faucet, install low flush toilets, take shorter showers, install low-energy use appliances.

- buy energy saving light bulbs

-car pool

- buy a hybrid (I my Prius!)

- compost

-carpool

-walk

- reuse things- like both sides of paper

- plant a garden, bushes, and trees

- lobby, donate, sign petitions

- buy cruelty-free products

- dolphin safe tuna

- eat less meat

- stop building mc mansions

- stop buying SUV's

- sell that damn exxon stock!!

Come on folks, there are thousands of things we can do as individuals to make a difference, or at least have as little impact as possible

Well, maybe Mel Gibson can make a comeback as Mad Max.. or team up with Kevin Costner on a Waterworld XVII, when Bering Sea crabs take revenge for being fed six pack plastic and ruining our damn crab dip.

The Anchorage Daily News had several articles yesterday about the polar bears plight.. as an animal lover, it was sad to read about their habitat.. I just don't know if it's too late or not.

We know the earth has had cycles of warming and cooling, but the amount of chemicals in the air has to be altered and slowed for all our sakes.

I think about the shuttle astronauts who were looking at what seems like a healthy planet, and though I am generally upbeat about life, I worry about what we're leaving to the future generations.

I didn't watch the movie but I've seen clips on tv(I get sidetracked by Al's bottom teeth and eagle eyed glare) but he is clearly passionate about the message and I respect him for that.

Massive loss of trees due to hurricane Katrina. You probably haven't heard much about that, but hard hit areas were piney woods plus bottom lands with tons of hardwoods, and most lost. Not to mention the coastal erosion from salt water intrusion up the oil company (made-made) canals.

Has anyone seen the special about the mother polar bear that trekked over 1000 miles in one season with her cub? I can't remember the name or the station I saw it on, but it is an excellent eye-opening documentary.

lynnjoel, an awful lot of people I know do what is on your list, including me. Not enough evidently.

A thought I had the other day. Write letters to all of the companies that overpackage their goods. Complain! That is one of my biggest gripes and most everyone elses. Let companies know that we don't appreciate it. Just one small step...

C'mon folks, timber is one of the few renewable natural resources. And it may not look great, but clear cutting is an accepted method of harvesting, and has been practiced in Oregon for decades. Come back in a few years, karen, and you'll see those same clearcuts replanted.

What are we supposed to do? It seems as if you are advocating a return to pre-industrialized society. That would certainly take care of overpopulation!

great post, lynnjoel!

Bravo, LynnJoel!

I would also like to add that buying and growing organic foods helps, as well as not using pesticides in your yard at all. Also, try buying more natural cleaning products or make your own. Any less harmful chemicals going back in the system will help!

Someone help me out, here. Are we supposed to cut trees or not? If we do, should we do it in the middle of the forest so you can't see it (and thereby cause environmental damage to build infrastructure to haul the logs out), or next to infrastructure that's already built? And if we don't, how much are you willing to pay for the next house you buy? Or roll of toilet paper?

Lynnejoel makes some great suggestions, but even those could be sold to the whole of the USA, if you're buying what divewop is saying, you've only solved 5% of the problem. And it's only a temporary band-aid solution at that.

If you really believe that global warming is a problem, and can be reversed, claiming an imagined environmental moral high ground is detrimental to your cause. And if you're not willing to sacrifice your livelihood, just as you're asking the fisherman or logger to sacrifice his, your words are hollow.

Beachbum - What I've read about the trees is that you don't want to cut down the old trees.

The companies that plant several fields of trees, and rotate cutting them down and replanting are OK. They are cutting down new trees that aren't contributing that much to the environment.

Unfortunately, there are companies that don't want to wait for the cultivated trees to grow and so they go into the forests and cut the centuries old trees. Because of the size of these trees, it is much more cost effective for the companies to cut them, but it also means that these trees are contributing to the environment far more than the 20 year old tree.

In addition, stay away from the exotic woods that are grown in the Amazon. These are being cut down and are irreplaceable - every one that's cut down hurts the environment.

A 300 year old tree provides far more benefit to the health of our planet than a 20 year old tree. If we cut down all the 300 year old trees, we can't plant enough new trees to compensate. Just compare a tree in a new neighborhood to a tree in a well-established neighborhood. Look at how many more leaves are on the older trees. Now multiply that by a few hundred years and you can see just how much these old trees do.