Blog 4 - Biological Diversity and Carcinogens

Readings and Summaries

 

Ecosystems and Human Well-being

The whole world depends on Earth’s ecosystems and resources for survival.  These include food, water, disease management, climate regulation, spiritual fulfillment and aesthetic enjoyment.  These ecosystems have become rapidly depleted within the last 50 years to meet the growing human and economic needs.  Many people have not benefited from this process but have been harmed.  The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment in 2005 has come up with 4 findings on the major three problems of the world’s ecosystem management.

Those three problems are:

1) Approximately 60% of ecosystems have been degraded or used unsustainably.  Those being freshwater, fisheries, air, regulation of regional and local climate, natural hazards and pests. The full costs of all these problems are difficult to measure.

2) Incomplete evidence that changes to the ecosystem are increasing the likelihood of non-       linear changes in the ecosystems such as disease, alterations in water quality, “dead zones” in     coastal fisheries and shifts in regional climates.

3) Harmful effects of degradation are being disproportionally bared by the poor, which causes poverty and social conflicts.

 (http://environmentaldegardation.blogspot.ca/2010/05/effect-of-water-pollution_12.html)

 The four finding of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment follows:

Finding 1: Over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable period of time in human history, largely to meet rapidly growing demands for food, fresh water, timber, fibre and fuel.  This has resulted in a substantial and largely irreversible loss of the diversity on Earth.

Finding 2: The changes that have been made to ecosystems have contributed to substantial net gains in human well-being and economic development, but these gains have been achieved at growing costs in the form of the degradation of many ecosystems services, increased risks of nonlinear changes, and the exacerbation of poverty for some groups of people.  These problems, unless addressed, will substantially diminish the benefits that future generations obtain form ecosystems.

Finding 3: The degradation of ecosystem services could grow significantly worse during the first half of this century and is a barrier to achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

Finding 4: The challenge of reversing the degradation of ecosystems while meeting increasing demands for their services can be partially met under some scenarios that the MA considered, but these involve significant changes in policies, institutions, and practices that are not currently under way.  Many options exist to conserve or enhance specific ecosystem services in ways that reduce negative trade-offs or that provide positive synergies with other ecosystem services

 

The Millennium Agency has develop 4 scenarios to explore the future for ecosystems, those being Global Orchestration, Order form Strength, Adapting Mosaic and Technogarden.  Three of these scenarios suggest that significant changes in policies, institutions and practices can mitigate many of the negative consequences of the pressures on ecosystems.  Protection of ecosystems, technological advances and substitutes can also help mitigate some of the ongoing degradation. 

 

Critical Thinking – In what ways does damage to ecosystems affect human well-being?

Damages to the ecosystem can have a negative impact on human well-being because the ecosystem is where we get our food, fresh water, building materials and fuel.   If the ecosystem is degraded to the point where we not long can support or sustain any life, we risk the result of death as a consequence

 

Living Downstream: An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment

Sandra Steingraber was an adoptee who was diagnosed with bladder cancer and her adopted family had a history of cancer as well.  This demonstrated that cancer is not necessarily genetic but may be a result of the living environment.  Studies were completed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology finding that bladder cancer was an alteration in the genetic DNA from guanine to thymine, ultimately altering the amino acid produced.  Suppressor genes have also been found to play a role in the formation of cancerous cells.  Mutations of the suppressor genes have been found in more than half of all bladder cancers.

 The first record of excessive bladder cancers in workers in the aniline dye industry in 1895 because the carcinogens would form adducts in the cells of the tissue lining the bladder and the urine would show contaminants.  It was found that people who are slow acetylators have low levels of enzymes and are more susceptible to bladder cancer from aromatic amines.  It is estimated that more than half of Americans and Europeans have these slow acetylators.

(http://thesurvivalistsenclave.com/files/2012/09/400341-Water-Contamination.jpg)

Bladder carcinogens were one of the first forms of cancer every detected and has provided researchers with a portrayal of the sequential genetic changes that unfold over the progression of the cancer.  Even though there has been much discovered about genetic mutations, risk factors and mechanisms has not translated into steps of preventing the disease.  Bladder cancers have increased about 10% between 1973 and 1991, and have risen 28% in 1973 in African Americans.  Half of all bladder cancers in men and 1/3 of bladder cancers in females are attributed to smoking.  Even though levels of contaminants are within legal limits, employees are still containing carcinogens in their bodies.  Even though there are known risks about carcinogens in the workplace they are till manufactured, imported used and released in to the workplace environment.

 Preventing cancer’s largest obstacle is the idea that it is hereditary even though fewer than 10% of cancers involve inherited mutations.  Genetic inherited mutations play a role in the development of a particular cancer but environment plays a large part as well. If we lower the amount of environmental carcinogens we are exposed to it, the inheritance of a defective carcinogen-detoxification gene would matter less.

There are relationships between environmental contamination and human rights as human health is threatened by reckless pollution of the living world.  Our bodies still possess carcinogens that are no longer produced but linger in the environment.  A human rights approach recognizes everyone does not bare equal risks are those people living in environments where carcinogens are manufactured or disposed of are more vulnerable that those whose living environments are safer.

 The principal of the least toxic alternative should be implemented.  Finding alternatives for chemicals would not only lower our risk of getting cancer but would move us away setting maximum limit releases of these toxic chemicals.

 

Critical Thinking – What is wrong with the present system of regulating the use, release and disposal of known and suspected carcinogens?

This system does not have enough research on the effects of these carcinogens.  Even though there has been the eradication of some toxic substances, they are still found in the human body.  These regulations also set maximum levels of emissions so companies will still manufacture at the emission level they are instead of lowering them.  We still do not fully understand what happens when these chemicals are in the environment and what happens to our bodies, especially since people have different tolerance levels.

 

 

 

Our Stolen Future

Rachel Carson stated “our fate is connected with the animals” in her publication Silent Spring.  Researches have seen the damages wildlife has endured and it can be used to foreshadow symptoms that humans are seeing.  Humans think that they are unique from other animals but that is not completely true, we share many characteristics with other animals such as estrogen.  Critics believe that the uses of animals to predict the effects of hormone-disrupting chemicals are of little relevance.  We understand that synthetic chemicals disrupt hormone communication as well as DES has similar disruptions across many species including humans.  DES response curve is an inverted U meaning as science tests small and large amounts of DES concluding that high doses of DES may miss some effects of lower doses.  This evidence suggests that human are in jeopardy of endocrine disruption as these disruptions also threaten the survival of animal populations.  Humans are facing the same consequences for those laboratory and free-range animals in regards to the danger of disruptions in the human development.
 

(http://www.ncl.ac.uk/cbe/research/animal/laboratory.htm)

 

Hormone disrupting chemicals have a broad impact across the human population and are difficult to assess and harder to prove as there is a lag time before damages become evident.  There is concern about in increasing frequency of genital abnormalities in children like undescended testicles, small penises and hypospadias but the frequencies of these are difficult to document.  Problems caused by these endocrine disruptors will have to hit a crisis proportion before we know that something is going on. 

 Animals studies provide a touchstone of identifying and investigating the health effects in humans, may alert us to possible disruptions, and provide warning about current contamination levels as they are more readily exposed to the current levels of contamination.  Transgender effects, changes in behaviour, and diminished fertility are more likely to show up in animals first as they mature and reproduce more quickly than humans.  Through studies it has shown that laboratory animals have forecasted damaged that later showed up in humans but we continue to ignore the warning.

 

Critical Thinking – Is cancer the only heath effect of environmental contaminations that should concern us?

No, there are plenty other health effects caused by environmental contamination such as endocrine disruptors are mentioned but also respiratory illnesses such as asthma, neurological illnesses and sensitivity related illnesses.  Levels of contaminants can enter soils, water and air putting ourselves at risk for a multitude of illnesses.

 

 

Environmental Justice

Environmental Justice is an ongoing concept as minority communities are threatened with the risk of illnesses due to corporations polluting the environment around these communities.  These communities receive less protection in the environmental sector than white or affluent communities.  The National People of Colour Environmental Leadership Summit expanded the definition of environment to include where we work, live, play, worship, educational institutes and our physical/natural world.  This movement challenged the way environmentalism is practiced in the US and the world. The second summit produced about 24 policy papers to describe the environmental and health differences between colour and white communities.  Other gatherings targeted childhood lead poisoning, asthma and cancer in the Black community.

 

(http://www.nrdc.org/ej/)

The benchmark class action lawsuit between Bean v. Southwestern Waste Management Inc. in Huston in 1979 showed that over 80% of landfills and incinerators were located in mostly Black neighbourhoods which ultimately impacted facility siting regulations.  Highly toxic PBC laced oil was dumped in Warren County, North Carolina, a mostly Black community again.  This sparked protests and the first time an American had been incarcerated for protesting the placement of a waste facility.  This was where “environmental racism” created.  Environmental racism refers to any environmental policy, practice or negative effects of human health based on race or colour.   The Warren County events created a investigation on hazardous waste facilities and found out that ¾ off-site hazardous waste landfills were located in predominantly Black communities.  The Commission for Racial Justice documented that 3/5 Blacks live in communities with abandoned toxic waste sites.

 Since 1996 companies have been paying for the health of the people in communities plagues with their pollution.   Examples of these have been the relocation of citizens and preventing companies from starting up in their communities.  1992 the EPA established the Office of Environmental Justice and Clinton in 1994 issued an Executive Order in order to attempt to address environmental justice within existing federal legislation.  Unfortunately the Bush administration has deterred the hard work that previous presidents had put forth towards environmental justice.

 

Critical Thinking – How do people with money keep polluting industries out of their neighbourhoods?

Affluent people can either take these companies to court to ensure their neighbourhood does not become polluted or they use their money to back government officials to ensure that they get what they want.

 

 

Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services

Ecosystems are experiencing a loss of population and species in human dominated marine ecosystems which have unknown consequences.  The rate of resource collapse is increasing and the potential recovery, stability and water quality has been decreasing.  This loss of biodiversity in damaging the ocean’s capacity to provide food and maintain water quality, although data has suggested that these trends are reversible for the time being.  Studies have suggested that local diversity may enhance ecosystem productivity and stability although there are many issues with managing the oceans due to the scale of the ocean.   Changes in marine biodiversity are caused by pollution, habitat destruction, exploitation and the biogeochemistry of the ocean.  Regional ecosystems are rapidly losing populations and species.
 



 (http://worldwildlife.org/threats/overfishing)

 

Experiments have been conducted to examine the effects of variation in marine diversity, productivity, resource use, nutrient cycling and ecosystem stability.  Experiments have shown that diversity enhanced ecosystem stability, mixed diets optimize different life-history processes and show positive linkages between biodiversity, productivity and stability across tropic levels in marine ecosystems. 

 The closure of fisheries can help increase the population of the target fish species as well as biological diversity overall, studies show and increasing richness of species by 23%.  Also the switching between targeted fish species can help recover populations.  Experimental and correlative approaches show positive relationships between diversity and ecosystem functions.  Elimination of locally adapted populations and species not only impairs the ability of marine ecosystem to provide food sources for humans but also slows the stability and recovery potential.

 

Critical Thinking - Why are commercial fisheries in decline?

Commercial fisheries are in decline because of over-exploitation of species.  We understand that we are depleting our fish but we continue to take the resources without thinking about the future consequences.  Fisheries in international water is hard to manage unless all nations are on board with it and who would enforce regulations and policies.

 

 

 

Activity

 

I watched Jeremy Jackson's TED talk on How we wrecked the ocean.  The main points Jeremy talks about is the overfishing and pollution of the ocean.  Overfishing constitutes of the degradation of fisheries in the world not only with fish but crustations as well.  The main pollution points were about biological pollution such as toxic blooms like red tides that deplete oxygen to a point where fish die.  Deoxygenation happens when the algae dies and the bacteria use up all the oxgen to decompose the algae.  Invasive species also remove the native species in the area.

 

I know that deoxygenation not only happens in the ocean creating dead zones but can also happen in shallow lakes and attributes to summer kill of fish species as well as invasive species also destroy natural habitat of native species.  This shows that it is not only a local problem but we are facing this on a global scale.  This puts it into a large scale context that not only are our oceans suseptible of the depletion but our local fisheries are at risk as well.  This has local and global consequences are both sources of food are at risk of disappearing.

 

 

Blog Reflections

Reflect on your interactions with the economy.

1.How do you currently, or plan to in the future, contribute to a more environmentally sustainable economy?  Are there local, sustainable businesses that you support?  Have you considered your financial investments and their ethics?

 

When I reside in Swan River, our family purchases our meat from our local meat shop from local farmers, we purchase our bread from the local bakery and we shop at the local CO-OP rather than Superstore.  I eventually plan on residing in smaller communities after I graduate as well so would be basically forced to shop locally as well.  I have not considered financial investments as I do not have the money and will be paying off $15, 000+ in student loans.  As for what I see from my parents I believe that they have invested in Blue Chip companies which are those with good ethical standing and trust.  From what I have learned in Environmental Responsibility and the Law, Blue Chip companies are the best to invest in as they are reputable and are less likely to crash in the stock market.