"An Epidemic of Extinctions: Decimation of life

on Earth" is the title to article I read today at CommonDreams website. This is the link to the original article.

http://www.commondreams.org/...

The article deals with very rapid extinction of species here on our planet, approaching today near one-third of species, unmatched in history since the great dinosaur extinction event. They cite as the reference "a report, produced by WWF, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the Global Footprint Network," which reports that, "land species have declined by 25 per cent, marine life by 28 per cent, and freshwater species by 29 per cent." Those are frightening figures, folks.

I'll add a few more points from the article,

Jonathan Loh, editor of the report, said that such a sharp fall was "completely unprecedented in terms of human history". "You’d have to go back to the extinction of the dinosaurs to see a decline as rapid as this," he added. "In terms of human lifespan we may be seeing things change relatively slowly, but in terms of the world’s history this is very rapid."

And "rapid" is putting it mildly. Scientists say the current extinction rate is now up to 10,000 times faster than what has historically been recorded as normal.

The study picked out five reasons for species decline, all of which can be traced back to human behaviour: climate change, pollution, the destruction of animals’ natural habitat, the spread of invasive species, and the overexploitation of species. At a time when America has finally added the polar bear to the endangered species list, it is emerging that the scale of species destruction reaches far beyond the headline animals. But as in the case of the polar bear, mankind’s behaviour needs to be radically changed in order to stop this pillaging of the Earth’s biodiversity.

And one last quote,

The implications of such drastic reductions in biodiversity are already having an impact on human life. "Reduced biodiversity means millions of people face a future where food supplies are more vulnerable to pests and disease and where water is in irregular or short supply," said James Leape, director general of WWF.

There is more to the article, and I suggest you read it, and they have links to the underlying studies, which can then be viewed.

Politics and policy are inseperable, and so I add this diary to a politically oriented site. Our choices of politicians determines what the policies will be that help determine our future, and those of the other inhabitants of this planet, with all included.

Our current mis-administration has been so very lacking that I'm lost for words. It seems that everything they do is anti-environmental, anti-people, anti-Earth. I'm personally sick of them, both R and D, but will vote for Obama when it happens. He seems to have more sense than most.