The Marine Conservation Society of Britain is a charitable organization in the UK which took up the challenge of promoting conservation awareness in the UK’s Territorial Waters. Their report for the year 2007 shows that the threat of plastic pollution is still on the rise in spite of all the conservation and plastic re-processing efforts like the one in Ireland which has been hailed a success story in the short time that it has been in the works.
Truly, the plastic pollution crisis of our seas has become so much of a problem that even deserted islands like the former WW2 hotspot, the Midway Atoll are suffering from the scourge of plastics. The island of Midway, now a conservation site and sanctuary for migratory sea birds such as the two species of albatross that are suffering dearly with high chick mortality due to plastic ingestion. These albatross species are considered to be endangered in the US and Canada since 2002 and are further being decimated by the plastic pollution which wash up on shore as the atoll is located in between swirling sea currents. The adults collect food from the seas surrounding the islands and then feed their young sometimes regurgitating plastics, passing them on to their young. The chicks being fragile die from complications such as blocked digestive tracts and more side-effects of the ingested plastic leaving them to starve to death.
The breeding colonies that call the atoll home have considerably lost new additions to their populations due to the incidence of high chick mortality. Conservation efforts by the American and Canadian authorities are trying to help the birds get back on their normal breeding populations. The loss of a species from an ecosystem has wide and complicated implications, some of which we are beginning to understand like the demise of bees all over the world which is expected to impact global crop production which can lead to food shortages.
Categories: Activities, Animals, Campaigns, Charities, Environmental, News, Organizations | Tags: Albatross, Endangered Species, Midway Atoll, plastic, Plastic and the Seas, pollution
Charities like business organizations are regularly audited to make sure all their collections in the form of donations of cash and materials are all accounted for. The various state governments have a charity evaluation system in place to separate the good from the bad apples which are out for an easy buck or two. Charities are today harder to target because of tough regulation and control which the various states and Federal Agencies imposes on these selfless entities who work hard to give to the needy, help mother nature and even rush to the aid of people who are thousands of miles away.
Respectable charities are listed with the Charity Navigator, an NGO-run website which independently evaluates and checks each and every charity for approval and inclusion in their listing of charities to give to. Most people go to similar sites around the world to make sure they are giving to an organization that will get their donations to where they are needed. Some charities have international missions such as some religious and large scale ones who have the financial might or strong association with their governments to get aid to people halfway around the globe who have been devastated by natural disasters. Some groups are all for nature and the protection thereof like WWF, Earthshare and many more. Check out the Charity Navigator to view the best charities and their respective equivalent of a corporate standing file which details their activities, expenditures and the amount of funds they have sent out to other charities or individuals they are helping. It is important to deal with charities like dealing with a business for they are getting cash from strangers and lots of it. Financial reports are taken and studied by independent, state and federal offices to evaluate their standing.
Categories: Charities, News, Organizations | Tags: Charity Auditing
Earthsahre is a network of nationwide non-profit organizations that are represented in 18 states in America. Their goal is to empower the individual, business and other groups in their drive to help the earth with regards to the environment. The environment’s health is our health and Earthshare knows that and applies recourses to programs that helps save the environment. Global warming is a real issue that must be addressed, the impact of which is currently being felt with severe weather, unprecedented environmental destruction and many more issues such as uncontrolled pollution and misdirected government expenditures that should otherwise be directed at preserving this earth of ours. Considered to be a respectable group with a four-star rating from Charity Navigator and it is registered and recognized to be a reputable charity organization by the Better Business Bureau.
Their main target is to raise awareness in the workplace through campaigns that encourage them to take part in environmental protection. They work to safeguard the health of everybody including nature’s fragile balance. Years of neglect has led to many natural disasters, many of which have not been seen in recent history. The Antarctic ice melting, the tops of Mt. Everest without it’s glistening white crown and many more changes in the environment are warning signals of the pending danger we are going to face if we do not take action now. From recycling programs for your cell phone to volunteering they enjoin everybody to join in the effort to save the earth which we have neglected for so long. They also offer nifty tips and tricks on how you can become more friendly to the environment. Save the Earth, take action now.
Categories: Activities, Campaigns, Charities, Environmental, Organizations, Volunteering, Websites, Wildlife | Tags: Earth Share, Environmental Charities
The move started out as a local civic move in Sydney, Australia, to raise awareness about global warming and climate change by enjoining people to turn off the lights to their homes for a full hour. The program was started by the WWF in Australia as a move to bring the attention of the world to one of the greatest polluters in the world over, coal fired power generators. The move is expected to lessen the demand for power which comes from these dirty powerhouses that if accumulated, would amount to a sizeable amount of lost revenue from these power generation firms.
This year, the event went global and people, businesses, civic groups and governments observed a full hour of darkness which is spreading like wildfire lowering the demand on a global scale. The pollution these coal-fired electricity plants produce is one of the greatest sources of greenhouse gasses that have already caused the formation of a hole on the earth’s ozone layer. The ozone layer is responsible for the screening out of the more harmful UV-C rays which is known to be the most damaging form of UV. The hole allows the harmful radiation to get through thus making the earth warm up to the point that the ice caps on the poles are melting which can lead to rising seas.
Glaciers and mountains that used to be covered with snow are now bare rock void of their white crowns. If current trends continue, the seas will rise and most of the ice in the poles would melt. If that happens, low lying areas like Manhattan and LA can become submerged disrupting life as we know it. Scientific research also indicates that this cycle of warming may give rise to a new ice-age which would devastate many countries who’s citizens are not adapted to deal with such climate changes. Do your part, support the Earth Hour movement and send a statement that you care for mother earth, even for an hour this March 29th, 2008 at 8:00pm. Reduce your carbon footprint for a better earth and tomorrow.
Categories: Activities, Campaigns, Environmental, Events, Organizations, Programs | Tags: Global Movement, WWF Earth Hour
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The Gulf of Mexico is turning bright green not due to chemicals dumped into the area but from abnormal blooming of algae which thrives due to nitrogen rich waters. Why, well due to increasing ethanol demands which comes from corn. Apparently, the rising demand for ethanol from corn has spurred farmers to begin shifting to corn and in the process utilizing more and more fertilizers which run off into the rivers and streams. The excessive nitrogen then causes algae to bloom and multiply rapidly which could affect the ecology of the Gulf area impacting fish and other wildlife in the process. Too much algae eats up a lot of the oxygen in the water and also blocks out the sun allowing less to penetrate down to plants and animals that need it to survive. The dead zone is growing and is expected to reach never seen size as the NASA article on the topic shows.
The effect has been noticed for sometime and the abnormal growth of algae which usually happens once a year or every two years making it a common occurrence. If the said event continues, it is forecast to affect fish stocks in the area due to less food that is available. As early as the race goes in attaining a sustainable alternative fuel economy goes, problems are already popping out of the most unlikely places. Marine life and all other dependent species would disappear during the said blooms and even stay away permanently due to lack of food due to competition.
Scientists have predicted some of these effects yet this one came a bit too quick and at a large scale that they have to find a solution to the problem. Fertilizer runoff is quite normal for water loaded with fertilizers and other chemicals such as pesticides eventually finds its way to a running body of water. The only problem, too much too fast and the runoff which should have normally been cleaned in the rivers and streams cannot digest the nutrients enough sending it down stream to the seas of the gulf.
Categories: Environmental, News, Organizations, Science & Tech | Tags: Alternative Fuel, Bio-Fuels, Corn, Fertilizer run-off, Mississippi Dead-Zone
The Marine Conservation Society of Britain is a charitable organization in the UK which took up the challenge of promoting conservation awareness in the UK’s Territorial Waters. Their report for the year 2007 shows that the threat of plastic pollution is still on the rise in spite of all the conservation and plastic re-processing efforts like the one in Ireland which has been hailed a success story in the short time that it has been in the works.
