Scientists of the world about global environmental problems. Scientists write about ecological disaster on Earth When planet earth dies

Global warming, asteroids, ozone holes - our planet is constantly under threat. What cataclysms will happen on Earth in the future and how will it die? Let's turn to the experts.

APOFIS 99942 (YEAR 2029)

The current headache for astronomers is the asteroid Apophis 99942, which today poses the greatest danger to the Earth. An unexpected guest, according to NASA researchers, the planet should be expected in 2029. The asteroid weighs 46 million tons and has a diameter of about half a kilometer. According to NASA forecasts, if this "baby" collides with our planet, it will cause a catastrophe, in comparison with which, the cataclysms that destroyed the dinosaurs will seem like a mere trifle.

According to 2009 data, the threat of a catastrophe is 1 chance in 250 thousand. No reason to panic? You are mistaken, such a figure by cosmic standards is a pretty significant indicator. In addition, according to William Eudor, a member of the NASA working group, this is the first time the authorities have shown an interest in asteroids.

WATER WORLD (YEAR 3000)

If humanity does not get from the impending cosmic threat, then civilization will be destroyed by the well-known global warming. True, “destroy” is a strong saying. It's just that we will live in the "water world", just like in the old Hollywood movie by Kevin Coster. Scientists predict that in a thousand years the temperature may rise by 15 degrees Celsius, and the sea level will rise by more than 11 meters. At the same time, the inhabitants of the ocean will also have a hard time - the level of acidity in the water will increase, which will lead to the mass extinction of species.

Fortunately, the dire predictions can still be avoided, according to Tim Lenton, head of the global warming study. But for this, humanity will have to urgently reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions and moderate its greed in the use of resources.

GAMMA RADIATION (600 MILLION YEARS)

And yet there are cataclysms that a person cannot avoid. True, fortunately, such a catastrophe will not happen soon, but in 600 million years. The fact is that the Earth will have to face an unprecedentedly powerful stream of gamma rays, which will be ejected by the Sun. This will create huge ozone holes, or rather destroy a good half of the Earth's ozone layer. The consequences are obvious - the transformation of our planet into a desert and the mass extinction of all living organisms. For example, one of the largest extinctions in the entire history of the planet - the Ordovician-Silurian extinction, which occurred 450 million years ago, according to one version, was the result of a gamma-ray burst from a supernova located six thousand light years from Earth.

NEW VENUS (1 BILLION - 3.5 BILLION YEARS)

Before the planet has time to recover from the next "sunstroke", as the star will bring her a new surprise. Scientists predict that in about 1 billion years the sun will begin its transformation into a red giant and all life on Earth will gradually be "burned out". After a while, the Earth will turn into the second Venus, where the temperature has reached the boiling point of toxic metals, turning the entire planet into a poisonous wasteland.

Scientists made such a conclusion on the basis of observations of the dying planets (KOI 55.01 and KOI 55.02) as part of the distant red giant KIC 05807616. By the way, Mars, which will be in the habitable zone, may become salvation for humanity, if it still exists.

NUCLEUS (5 BILLION YEARS)

The continuation of the story of two doomed planets, according to the Corriere della Sera: "does not inspire enthusiasm among astronomers." Scientists managed to see what was left of the two planets as a result of the expansion of their "Sun". From them only the nuclei remained. According to NASA, the same will happen to our planet in 5 billion years, although its death will happen much earlier.

With the beginning of the transformation of our star, the solar wind will intensify, which will throw the Earth from its former orbit, which will lead to the disruption of all life processes. Earth is too small a planet to survive such a disaster, unlike Jupiter and Saturn, which, according to astronomers, have a better chance. But people should not worry, 5 billion years is almost an eternity. For comparison, the history of "Homo sapiens" is only 60 thousand years old.

Australian professor, eminent epidemiologist Frank Fenner said that the world community will not live to see the XXII century.

- In a century - by 2110 - humanity will completely disappear from the face of the earth, - states the famous Australian scientist Frank Fenner in the London media. - The reason is that ancient human societies were distinguished by increased stability, while today's global civilization is not. Thus, the Australian aborigines have proved that without modern scientific achievements they can survive for 40-50 thousand years. However, today's society, due to its economic and social activities, has brought homo sapience to the brink of complete extinction.

According to Fenner, the main threat to the existence of mankind is represented by unrestrained consumption, a sharp increase in the world's population, rapid climate change due to global warming. " “The industrial revolution and industrialization gave birth to an era that, in terms of its impact on the planet, is comparable to the consequences of the ice age or the collision of the Earth with a large comet,” the scientist emphasized.

“I think this is an irreversible situation. I'm not saying this because something else is allowed to be done. People can only delay the inevitable for a while. Climatic changes are just beginning, but their irreversible nature is already clear. The human race will disappear just as the sea of \u200b\u200banimal species disappeared before it. "

95-year-old Frank Fenner is known worldwide for his work in the field of microbiology. He became famous for being one of the people who put the ending to smallpox in the 1980s. Now the professor is also dealing with the problems of human survival as a biological species.

Referring to the reasons for his current speech, Frank Fenner noted that he “does not aim to force a change in the civilization model of humanity, which continues to follow the path of its own biological collapse despite numerous warnings”.

Last year, the population of the Earth, according to UN estimates, was 6.8 billion people. The planet's population will exceed 7 billion next year.

If all people suddenly disappear from the Earth

Will the planet disappear without our supervision? By no means, scientists answer, on the contrary, it will become noticeably prettier

New Scientist magazine asked renowned forecasters to imagine a fantastic situation: all 6.5 billion Earth's inhabitants are transported somewhere in another galaxy in an instant - teleported. There is not a soul on the planet. In an extreme case, there remains someone alone - like the immortal Duncan Macleod. Watch what happens. And what will he see? How many years does it take for no trace of human existence to remain on Earth?

End of the world

“Visible changes will become noticeable in the next day,” says Gordon MASTERTON, President of the British Institute of Civil Engineers. - The light will start to go out. After all, there will be no one to replenish fuel supplies at power plants. NPPs and HPPs will operate for some time in automatic mode. But without human participation in the regulation of consuming networks, accidents will occur. Water pumps will stop, sewage and purification systems and all equipment will stop working. In a week or two, in a month at most, the planet will finally plunge into darkness. And in some places and in the slops. (Let us recall the recent sewage accident in the west of Moscow caused by a power outage. - Ed.)

In the meantime, even from orbit, you can see how the Earth sparkles with trillions of bulbs - ecologists call their radiance light pollution. In some countries, it is extremely intrusive - the starry sky is not visible. In Japan, for example, almost the entire territory is artificially illuminated. Which is by no means good for nature.

And the walls will fall

Modern buildings, although they are designed for at least 60 years, bridges - for 120, and dams and dams - for 250, but without proper maintenance they will come into complete disrepair much earlier. According to experts, in a couple of decades hurricanes and just bad weather will only speed up the process. An example of this is the city of Pripyat, abandoned by people after the Chernobyl disaster.

“It's only been 20 years,” says Ronald CHESSER, a biologist at the University of Texas, “and the city has changed a lot. And only from a distance it looks like "alive". I have been there many times: wooden houses fell, the roofs of concrete and brick structures, especially factory ones, sagged and collapsed in places, collapsing the walls behind them, glass shattered. Bridges will soon begin to crumble. And the arched and vaulted structures will stand the longest.

“Even when all buildings on Earth collapse, freeways crack and crumble, ruins remain,” Masterton says. “And it will take several thousand more years for the erosion from the wind and the water to erase the traces of everything we have built. Now you can find almost entire structures and recognizable remains, which are more than 3 thousand years old.

Almost 500 Chernobyls

“You don't have to worry about the fate of radioactive waste,” says Rodney Ewing, a geologist at the University of Michigan (USA). “Their storage facilities are designed for many thousands of years. But 430 nuclear power plants operating around the world will explode like in Chernobyl. After the water evaporates from the cooling systems of nuclear reactors, and they melt. Although the harm from such disasters will not be terrifying, as some think.

“The Chernobyl zone demonstrates to us the amazing ability of nature to heal itself,” Chesser agrees. “I expected to see a radioactive desert there. But the local ecosystem turns out to be thriving. Of course, first rats, mice, dogs bred. But in a few years, the local fauna suppressed all this rabble. Now in the Chernobyl zone there are 15 times more wild animals than outside, full of wild boars, wolves and other large predators.

Wherever you look - a dense forest

So, it took only 20 years of desertion for life to improve in a single place. Other ecosystems will begin to revive at about the same rate. Faster - in warm and humid regions. But in the cold North or South, the matter will not drag out. After all, the person did something less dirty there. Mainly roads and pipelines. Canadian ecologist Brad STELFOKS has simulated the "non-human" future of northern Alberta on a computer. It turned out that in 50 years forests will cover 80 percent of its territory. Almost all over 200 years. And nowadays, semi-wild Siberia will probably grow even faster.

However, nature will take many centuries to "heal" the huge areas occupied by parks, in which one or two types of trees each. And agricultural land. And some ecosystems won't recover at all.

David WILCOM, a biologist at Princeton University, gives the example of the Hawaiian Islands, where forests are “blocked” by grass that burns regularly and prevents trees from growing.

What will happen to pets?

“They certainly run wild,” Chesser replies. - Breed division will disappear. Populations will also decline. For example, now there is a surplus of rams on Earth - more than 3 billion. There will be much less.

And regardless of whether a person remains on the planet or not, those species of animals that have already been brought to extinction are likely to disappear. Although, in general, according to scientists, the deserted Earth will give the animal world more chances to maintain biodiversity - both on land and in the oceans, where, in addition to fish, coral reefs and plankton will actively begin to recover.

Breathe easily

Nature will get rid of solid muck quickly.

“It will take decades to clean up the nitrates and phosphates that now turn rivers and lakes into poisonous broths,” says Kenneth POTTER, a hydrologist at the University of Wisconsin. - They will last longer in underground waters. But in a hundred or two years the bacteria will neutralize them.

Stinky gases will disappear much faster - exhaust and various factory gases that accompany the creative activity of people. Within two or three weeks, the Macleod observer will feel that breathing has become easier: during this time, the precipitation will wash out the nitrogen and sulfur oxides from the atmosphere.

Worse - with carbon dioxide, the main culprit in global warming.

“By burning fossil fuels, mankind has already emitted so much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that it will significantly affect the environment for another 1000 years,” explains climatologist Susan SOLOMON. - The surplus will remain at least 20,000 years.

“Even if it disappears, humanity will remain guilty of the ongoing warming,” says climatologist-forecaster Gerald MIIL. “And it can lead to the release of methane from under the ocean floor, which is still frozen there in the form of hydrates, from which the temperature will jump even higher. And what will happen next is unknown - either a new ice age, or a global flood, or a global fire.

- Current climate models do not yet take into account the methane threat. And it would be high time. There is evidence that gas has already begun to ooze out of the permafrost zones, says Peter TAN, an atmospheric physics specialist.

And no one will notice that we are gone

Scientists agree that in 100 thousand years there will be no visible traces of a highly developed civilization on Earth. And in this sense, our planet will be equal to Mars. Photos from orbit or from rover robots moving on the surface will not reveal a single artifact. Aliens will have to personally land and carry out archaeological excavations.

“The aliens will probably be surprised by the strange concentration of skeletons of large primates, neatly buried at the same distance from the surface,” forecasters joke gloomily, “and, of course, they will be puzzled by their golden teeth.

- You can get pieces of glass, plastic and, possibly, even paper, - says archaeologist William RATIER from Stanford University, - the preservation of some ancient things always surprised me.

And in bottom sediments, aliens will find layers that indicate a short period of massive deposition of heavy metals, especially mercury.

And somewhere in 100 thousand light years from the Earth, electromagnetic waves from our radio and television programs will continue their journey. With a certain skill, the inhabitants of distant planets could catch them.

QUESTION

Is there really only harm from people? Then for what purpose did we breed? Maybe in order to one day save the planet from an approaching asteroid by shooting it with nuclear missiles? Or are people still needed for something? What do you think, dear readers?

Scientists sound the alarm, believing that we have dirtied the planet so that it has no choice but to destroy us with all the means at its disposal.

15,000 scientists made a joint statement that the environmental problems of the Earth have reached a critical level and require immediate and vigorous action to prevent a global environmental catastrophe, writes the popular science multimedia portal Attic

As the title of the joint appeal suggests, "Scientists of the World Warn Humanity: Second Notice", this is the second appeal of scientists in recent years. The first was published in 1992 and was signed by 1,700 scientists, most of whom were Nobel laureates of different years.

Scientists then drew people's attention to the threatening state of the atmosphere, drinking water, seas and oceans, soil and forests, as well as living organisms living in them. The conclusion that scientists made then was this: people came to the limit of what the biosphere can tolerate without irreversible harm. And humanity is pushing the ecosystems of the Earth beyond their ability to support the established networks.

The only exception is the adoption of effective measures to stabilize the Earth's ozone layer. Deterioration is taking place in all other environmental areas. Thus, the level of greenhouse gases continues to rise and the temperature rises due to the burning of fossil fuels, agricultural production and deforestation. There is also a noticeable reduction in the amount of clean fresh water: over the past quarter century, it has decreased by 26%.

During the same time, there has been a drop in fish catches and an increase in pollution of the oceans with industrial waste. Deforestation since 1992 has resulted in a 121 million hectare reduction in forest land. And together, all these factors have led to a 29% reduction in the number of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds and fish around the world. Humanity, according to scientists, became the cause of the sixth mass extinction of animals, replacing natural disasters such as a meteorite that destroyed animals earlier.

“To prevent catastrophic biodiversity loss, humankind must move towards more environmentally sustainable business practices than it is now. This recipe was formulated by the world's leading scientists 25 years ago, but we did not heed their warning. It will soon be too late to shift the course of our wrong trajectory, and time is running out. We must be aware in our daily life and in our governing institutions that the Earth with all its life is our only home, ”the authors of the appeal write.

The appeal was published in the journal BioScience.

What can I say to this?

Sharing the fears of scientists about a future ecological catastrophe, if we do not change the direction of our movement, at the same time, it is worth paying attention to the erroneous ideas about the causes of ecological disaster, which are clearly implanted in the minds of people, aimed at realizing unequal conditions of competition on the economic front. So the burning of fossil fuels, cited as the main culprit for the rise in greenhouse gases and rising temperatures, actually has little effect on these factors. Many unbiased scientists are trumpeting about this at all angles. And today there is not an increase in temperature on the planet, but a decrease in it. According to many forecasts, a new ice age awaits us soon.

Around this issue, there has long been talk about the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the sale of quotas from developing countries (for example, Russia) to developed countries, which actually means a cross on their ability to catch up with technologically advanced Western countries, which ultimately is fraught with the fact that undeveloped countries, as soon as they lose the opportunity to inflict fatal damage on the aggressor in the event of an attack, they will be immediately bombed into the Stone Age strictly according to the theory of the "golden billion".

But what really is of paramount importance from the point of view of the harmful impact on the environment is unreasonable human activity, as a result of which forests are destroyed in order to expand agricultural land and genetic inversions are introduced into bioorganisms and plants to obtain crops that are more resistant to the external environment. At the disposal of mankind there are enough technologies to feed the entire population of the planet and not just anything, but ecologically clean and safe food. The experience of Soviet breeders is quite suitable here. And corporations engaged in the development of GMO crops must bear a financial burden commensurate with the damage to the environment so that society can carry out a set of remediation measures that reduce damage and eliminate the harmful effects of GMO production.

But probably the most dangerous problem that mankind will face is the reduction in the volume of fresh water... And the reason for this is also unreasonable human activity, which has been changing the emerging local and global biogeocenoses for centuries, thereby disrupting the balance of the natural environment. Industrial enterprises are adding fuel to the fire by pursuing a vicious policy of consuming profits instead of introducing environmental technologies to recycle industrial waste or purify them to a level that is safe for the environment.

However, the main task facing humanity is to change the paradigm of thinking, which makes it possible to realize that we do not have another such planet and that order on it needs to be established by the whole world. Man must finally justify his high title of "the crown of nature" by moving from irrepressible consumption and contamination of the environment to the creation of a blooming garden-planet in the established quality of Homo sapiens.

The earth is rapidly approaching a turning point in its existence. The damage from human influence on our planet has reached a dangerous level. As scientists studying the interaction of humans and the biosphere using a wide range of approaches, we see a lot of evidence of the destructive human influence on the ecological systems of our own life support.

Based on the best scientific information available, we conclude that the quality of human life will significantly deteriorate by 2050 if we continue to follow the current path.

Science demonstrates human influence in the following key areas:
... Climate change: the fastest and most dramatic climate change since humans emerged as a distinct species.
... Extinction: Since the death of the dinosaurs, there has not been such a rapid extinction of so many species and populations, both on land and in the oceans.
... Global loss of various ecosystems: we plowed, asphalted or otherwise altered more than 40 percent of the land not covered with ice; no place on land or sea has escaped our direct or indirect influence.
... Pollution: Record levels of ecosystem pollutants are found in air, water and soil; their volume continues to grow, affecting people and wildlife in a negative and unpredictable manner.
... Human population growth and consumption patterns: 7 billion people live on Earth today; by 2050, the population will grow to 9.5 billion, and the pressure of resource consumption by the middle class and rich people could seriously increase.

By the time children of today reach middle age, earthly life support systems that are critical to human existence and prosperity may be irreversibly destroyed by force, the global reach and the overall impact of human-induced environmental stressors, unless we take concrete, immediate steps to ensure the environment. rational, high-quality future.
As members of the scientific community actively involved in assessing the biological and social impacts of global change, we look to the world with dismay. For humanity to continue to be healthy and prosperous, all of us - citizens, businessmen, political and religious leaders, scientists and people of all professions - must work to solve five global problems, starting to act today:
1. Climate change.
2. Extinction of species.
3. Loss of ecosystem diversity.
4. Contamination.
5. Human population growth and resource consumption.

OVERVIEW OF PROBLEMS AND GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF SOLUTIONS

Changing of the climate
Reducing the impact on climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing adaptation strategies to deal with the impact of the changes now taking place. Viable approaches include accelerating the development and deployment of carbon-neutral technologies to replace fossil fuels; construction of buildings, transport and production systems, as well as settlements with greater energy efficiency; conservation of forests and regulation of land development to maximize carbon sequestration. Adapting to the inevitable effects of climate change will be critical for coastal areas threatened by sea level rise; providing many large population centers with sufficient water; supporting agricultural productivity; and managing biodiversity and ecosystem reserves.

Extinction
Slowing down extremely high rates of extinction that lead to global loss of biological diversity. Appropriate approaches include determining the economic value of the contribution of natural ecosystems to human well-being; Ecosystem management, both in human populated areas and in regions far from its direct influence, to support and enhance biodiversity and ecosystem services. It is imperative to establish collaboration between different sectors and fields to recognize and mitigate the interactions between global factors (e.g. climate change, ocean acidification) and local factors (land conversion, overfishing, poaching, rape, etc.).

Ecosystem transformation
Reducing the conversion of the remaining natural ecosystems of the Earth into farms, suburbs and other human structures. Appropriate agricultural approaches include increasing efficiency in existing areas of food production; improving food distribution systems; reduction of waste. Development approaches include reclaiming urban space and adapting to population growth instead of suburban development; development of infrastructure that reduces the impact on natural ecosystems; investing in important “green infrastructure” such as restoring wetlands, oyster reefs and forests to ensure high water quality, control floods, and increasing access to the benefits of outdoor activities.

Pollution
Limitation of production and emissions of harmful substances into the environment. Appropriate approaches include the use of current scientific knowledge of the molecular mechanisms of hazardous substances and the application of the precautionary principle (confirmation of the absence of harmful effects) in the management of existing chemicals and the creation of new ones. We have the knowledge and ability to develop a new generation of materials that are much safer than those available today.

Population and consumption growth
Rapid cessation of the growth of the world population and the beginning of a gradual decline in its numbers. A realistic and achievable goal is no more than 8.5 billion people by 2050 and a peak population of no more than 9 billion. Thanks to natural demographic processes, by 2100 this figure could drop to less than 7 billion. Ensuring access to education, economic opportunity and health care, including family planning with a focus on women's rights, would be feasible approaches.
Decrease in resources per capita, especially in developed countries. Approaches include improving the efficiency of production, consumption, trade, and use of goods, as well as environmental change in consumer behavior.

Overall, we strive to use the latest scientific advances to predict the most likely worst and best scenarios 50 years ahead, to determine policies that lead to environmental health over the long term and are able to adapt to today's crises.

PURPOSES OF THIS STATEMENT
Since 1950, the world has been changing faster and more significantly than in the past 12 thousand years. Balancing positive changes with negative ones will be a key challenge for the 21st century.
Positive changes are associated with the Green Revolution, which reduced global hunger (although 1 in 8 people still suffer from malnutrition); with new medical breakthroughs that have reduced infant and child mortality and allowed people to live longer and richer lives; with access to numerous goods and services that enhance well-being and comfort; as well as new technological breakthroughs - computers, cell phones and the Internet, which connects billions of people on the planet into one potentially global brain.

In contrast, other related changes are driving humanity in a dangerous direction: climate change, biodiversity loss, loss of global ecosystems, pollution, and an ever-growing population of people fighting for planetary resources. Until now, this was considered the "necessary evil" of progress, or the associated damage, which, although it brings inconvenience, can not stand in the way of meeting human needs.

However, several recent reports from the scientific community show the opposite. Instead of simple inconveniences, accelerated climate change, species extinction, loss of ecosystems, pollution and human population growth threaten life support systems that affect the high quality of life that many people are accustomed to and that others crave.

The overwhelming majority of scientists studying interactions between people and the rest of the biosphere agree on a key finding: the five interconnected dangerous trends above are destructive, and if these trends continue, the observed negative impact on the quality of life of people will become even stronger over the next several decades. ... Numerous scientific evidence to support this has been cited in recent policy briefs and statements, and published in thousands of articles in peer-reviewed scientific literature. However, policy briefs and statements tend to focus on selected key issues (for example, climate change, or loss of biodiversity, or environmental pollution), and access to peer-reviewed literature is often difficult for people outside of science. As a result, politicians, faced with important decisions, may have difficulty finding relevant information and analyzing the thousands of pages on which it is distributed.

We offer a summary that aims to:
... The benefits that politicians and all those who have a responsibility to understand the most serious environmental issues affecting both local communities and the entire planet can derive from it.
... Representation of the opinion of the majority of scientists who investigate these problems, consisting in the fact that:
◦ Climate change, extinction, loss of ecosystems, pollution and population growth are a serious threat to the well-being and social stability of humankind.
◦ These five main threats are closely related to each other.

We will also outline general approaches to solutions that are scientifically required to mitigate dangerous trends. Our goal is to provide the necessary and useful information if society, governments and businesses want to increase the chances that the world of our children and grandchildren will be at least as good as the one we live in.

GENERAL INFORMATION: DANGEROUS TRENDS
IN OUR LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS
People have basic needs for food, water, health and shelter; in addition, they must obtain energy and other products from natural sources to maintain living standards that each culture considers acceptable. Meeting these needs is impossible in the absence of a healthy, well-functioning global ecosystem. The "global ecosystem" is a complex way of interaction of all life forms of the planet, including us, with each other and with the physical environment (water, soil, air). All these many interactions form planetary and our own life support systems.

Since their inception, humans have been an integral part of the global ecosystem; now we have become the dominant species in it. This means that we are seriously affecting the operation of the Earth's life support systems in both positive and negative ways. The key task of the coming decades is to make sure that negative influences do not outweigh positive ones, since it will be difficult to live in such a world. There is strong scientific evidence that five interrelated negative trends have emerged over the past few decades:
... Climate change on which we and other species depend.
... Start of mass extinction and decline in biodiversity.
... The destruction of ecosystems, which in turn destroys our own life support systems.
... Pollution of our soil, water and air with harmful emissions that negatively affect basic biological processes, cause serious illness and undermine our ability to cope with other problems.
... Rapid growth of the human population, accompanied by old patterns of production and consumption.

These five trends interact and exacerbate each other, and their overall impact is stronger than the simple sum of all the parts.
For the future of our children and grandchildren to be at least the same as the life we \u200b\u200bare leading now, it requires acceptance and understanding of the fact that we have already inadvertently pushed the global ecosystem in a dangerous direction, and that we have the knowledge and ability to bring it back into the right track if we start acting now. The longer we wait, the more difficult (if not impossible) positive change will become, and the more it will cost us financially and human suffering.
Below we provide an overview of each of the five dangerous trends, explain why they harm humanity, how they interact with each other, increasing unwanted influences, and also talk about the solutions necessary for humanity to have a quality and joyful future.

THE MOST IMPORTANT CHALLENGE
Coping with the five global crises presented on the previous pages will not be easy, but past experience proves that problems of such a large scale can be solved if humanity is ready for it. Solutions will require the same things that have worked successfully in past global crises: individual initiative, cooperation within and between countries, modern technology and new infrastructure. Individual initiative has always been enough, and human resources still represent a great strength. Successful cooperation, both global and at the national level, led to the end of World War II and the subsequent economic recovery; his achievements include banning the use of nuclear weapons, dramatically increasing global food production through the Green Revolution, preventing food crises through UN initiatives, dramatically reducing the use of persistent harmful chemicals like DDT, fighting stratospheric ozone depletion ("ozone holes"), and reducing global the spread of infectious diseases such as malaria and poliomyelitis.

The technological advancements of the past and the construction of new infrastructure are remarkable and commensurate in scale with what is needed to solve today's problems. For example, in just seven years, responding to the needs of the Second World War, the United States built its air fleet, increasing the number of aircraft from 3,100 to 300,000, and since the early 1950s, in less than 50 years, it has built 75,639 km of highway between states: these roads can almost double the Earth. During about the same time, 60% of the largest rivers in the world were dammed. In 30 years, the world has moved from typewriters and postage stamps to laptops and the Internet, which today unites a third of the world's population. At the same time, we have moved from 310 million ordinary phones to 6 billion mobile phones, which now connect almost 3.2 billion people via satellites.

In the context of the successes of the past, the current problems of climate change, extinction, loss of ecosystems, pollution, growth of the world's population and increase in consumption are not so great and can be completely solved in 30-50 years. We have scientific, technological and entrepreneurial potential; the necessary initiatives and agreements are beginning to emerge both locally and internationally, nationally and nationally. Moreover, today's global connectedness is unprecedented, enabling most people to learn about and help solve global problems.

There are three key lessons to be learned from the examples above. The first is that global problems must first be recognized, and then we must begin to solve them. The second is that their solution is possible through mutually beneficial interaction between local communities, where solutions are developed and applied, and the highest levels of government, which determine priorities, backing them with clear incentives. The third and very important lesson is that big problems cannot be solved in a couple of weeks. Given the natural duration of climate change, infrastructure construction, changing social norms and slowing population growth, actions taken today will begin to bear fruit in a few decades. If we switch to carbon-neutral energy systems by 2035, the climate will not stabilize until 2100, and it will still be a different climate from today. But if we postpone our actions until 2035, climate change will not only worsen, but efforts to mitigate and adapt to them will cost much more, and the climate will stabilize after 2100. When that happens, the average climate will be far more destructive to society than if we had started earlier. The same cost of delay applies to other problems; delaying their resolution will lead to irreparable loss of species, ecosystems, human health and prosperity. To tackle the global crises in question, it is imperative to start today.

CLIMATE CHANGE
Today, people are changing the Earth's climate by emitting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, formed by burning coal, oil (and its products - gasoline, diesel fuel, etc.), as well as natural gas. The general trend, which continues to this day, is associated with the rise in mean planetary temperature over the past century and especially over the past 60 years. The rise in global average temperature causes local changes in temperature, the amount and timing of precipitation, the length and nature of the seasons, the frequency of storms, floods, droughts and wildfires. Sea levels are rising and this is a big problem for coastal areas. Such effects directly affect the well-being of people, as they destroy their homes and property, harm their health, and also have an indirect effect on the increase in the likelihood of social conflict. Recent examples include Hurricane Sandy flooding on the east coast of the United States, record fires and droughts in the western United States and Australia, heat waves and droughts in Europe, and floods in Pakistan. All this happened in 2012 and 2013.

Reasons for concern
Even the most optimistic scenarios for greenhouse gas emissions suggest that by 2070, and possibly sooner, the Earth will be hotter than at any other time in human history. If current emissions continue, by the time today's children grow up and have grandchildren (2100), the average global temperature will rise by 2.4 to 6.4 ° C, an average of 4 ° C. The last time the average global temperature increased by 4 ° C was 14 million years ago. The last time it was on average 6.4оС higher 38 million years ago.

If current levels of greenhouse gas emissions persist, negative impacts on humanity that will manifest themselves by 2100, if not sooner, include the following:
... Longer and more intense heat waves. By the end of the 21st century, in most regions, the hottest day in 20 years will occur with a frequency of once every 1-2 years. Such effects have already been observed: in 2013, temperatures in Australia rose so much that two additional colors had to be introduced into weather maps to show new peaks in heat. Some models indicate that current warming trajectories, extending into 2100, will cause some areas where humans live today to become too hot to live.
... More frequent and destructive hurricanes. By the end of the 21st century, in many regions, the daily precipitation amount, the maximum in 20 years, will appear with a frequency of 5-15 years. The speed of winds in cyclones will increase. Cities are more likely to experience destruction similar to those caused by Hurricane Sandy.
... Severe destruction of coastal cities as sea levels rise. The degree of sea level rise will depend on the rate at which glaciers are melting. By 2100, the low projection indicates a rise of 0.18 - 0.59 meters; less optimistic scenarios speak of a rise of 0.8 - 4 meters. Rising sea levels even to low levels will flood large parts of major cities around the world and force millions of people to relocate. Today, about 100 million people live less than 1 meter above sea level.
... Water scarcity in populated parts of the world. At risk are cities and agricultural lands that rely on seasonal snow accumulation and slow spring thaw, arid regions that distribute water from large rivers, and areas dependent on melting glaciers.
... Decreased yield. New climate models will change crop distribution in a number of areas. Certain regions may experience a general decline: for example, grain production may decline in areas with the highest population density and / or the highest number of undernourished people - mainly in Africa and India. Key grain-growing areas - California, for example, which supplies the US market with half of its fruits, nuts and vegetables - will face uneven crop impacts that will require farmers to adapt quickly and change their crops.
... Economic losses, social unrest and political unrest. Destruction of coastal areas, flooding of ports, water shortages, adverse weather conditions, changes in crop areas, the creation of new shipping lanes and the competition for new available Arctic resources will complicate national and international relations and will cost billions of dollars. For example, the New York Times reports that in the first months of 2013, US taxpayers paid $ 7 billion to subsidize farmers for crops killed by an incredible drought, a figure that could rise to $ 16 billion.
... The spread of infectious diseases. As temperatures rise, expensive and debilitating mosquito-borne diseases, such as malaria, will spread rapidly in developed and developing countries. An example is the spread of West Nile virus in the United States, which began in 1999, and the bluetongue virus, a costly livestock disease carried by mosquitoes, has been moving northward to central and northern Europe for the past decade. In addition to human suffering, the cost of diseases caused by climate change could reach $ 2-4 billion by 2030.
... The spread of agricultural pests that cause serious environmental and economic losses. Over the past two decades, millions of acres of forest in western North America have died due to pine beetles, whose populations have increased dramatically as a result of rising winter temperatures. Previously, the winter cold did not allow them to survive in such numbers. The beetle reduces timber production and sales, and also reduces property values \u200b\u200bin developed areas.
... Significant harm to unique ecosystems. Warming and acidifying ocean waters will erode much of the world's oceans' coral reefs, which serve as “marine rainforests,” as this is where the greatest ocean biodiversity is found. Forests will face drought and begin to die in both dry and wet regions. This will especially affect tropical and subtropical forests, places of the greatest biological diversity of the land.
... Extinction of species. Today, at least 20 - 40% of identified species, which is at least 12,000 - 24,000 species, will find themselves in a zone of increased danger of extinction if the global temperature rises by 1.5 - 2.5 ° C. It is estimated that current emissions will lead to a 4 ° C increase in global temperatures by 2100, and more species will be at risk. The situation with the extinction of populations is much worse; higher levels of extinction are expected here, and this is the main unit of biodiversity associated with ecosystem services.

Solutions
Avoiding the worst effects of human-induced climate change requires rapid and drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. To stabilize atmospheric CO2 concentrations at 450 ppm by 2050 - which would give a 50% chance of keeping the global temperature rise at 2oC - emissions must be reduced by 5.1% over the next 38 years. This level has never been reached in the past sixty years, indicating the extent and urgency of such a task.

However, it is possible to reduce emissions to the required values \u200b\u200bin the next 50 years. This requires coordinated innovation and deployment of new transport and energy systems, which is feasible even with existing technology. This will require a rapid increase in zero-carbon energy production (solar, wind, hydropower, geothermal, hydrogen fuel cells, nuclear power, microbial biofuels) to replace fossil fuel production. In the decades of transition, when fossil fuels are still widely used, increased energy efficiency (better gas mileage for cars and trucks, more energy efficient buildings) is needed, as well as a gradual shift from coal-fired power plants to low-emission fuels (natural gas). The transition period for fossil fuels in major emission sources such as cement and steel mills will require the introduction of carbon capture and storage technologies. A fast enough transition to zero-carbon energy production will require appropriate legislation and government policies to stimulate the right type of innovation and adjust the economy to produce such energy.

some of the effects of climate change are already visible (rising sea levels, increasing frequency of abnormal weather conditions). There is a need to develop and implement plans to adapt to unavoidable climate change in urban and rural areas. Maintaining the productivity of agricultural areas will require changes in the planting of crops, as well as the provision of seed stocks with plants adapted to the new climate. The ultimate cost of climate mitigation and adaptation grows the faster the longer the necessary actions are delayed.

EXTINCTION
Biological extinction cannot be reversed, and therefore it is a particularly destructive type of global change. Even the most conservative analysis indicates that human-induced extinction of species is now occurring 3 to 80 times faster than the rate of extinction before humans began to spread on Earth. There are also higher marks. If the current level of extinction of species and their populations does not slow down, then in less than three centuries the world will lose 75% of vertebrates (mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish), as well as many other species of animals and plants. Since an asteroid crashed into Earth 65 million years ago, destroying dinosaurs and other species, the planet has not seen an extinction on such a scale. Only five times in 540 million years, since complex life forms appeared on Earth, mass extinctions have occurred on the planet on the scale that is observed now; those mass extinctions killed 75-96% of the species then living.

Today, according to current scientific evidence, at least 23,000 species are threatened by extinction, including 22% of mammals, 14% of birds, 29% of known reptiles, 43% of amphibians, 29% of known fish species, 26% of known invertebrates, and 23% of plants. Populations - groups of interacting individuals, the building blocks of species - die even faster. The extinction of local populations reflects the extent and extent of modern biological extinction. For example, since 1970, about 30% of all vertebrate populations have become extinct, and most species are experiencing a loss of communication between populations due to the fragmentation of their territory due to human settlement. Healthy species are composed of many interconnected populations; the rapid loss of populations and connections between them are the first signals of species extinction.

Reasons for concern
Plants, animals, fungi and microbes are working parts of the Earth's life support systems. Their loss means direct economic losses, a decrease in the effectiveness of nature in serving our purposes ("ecosystem service", see below), and has a high emotional and moral cost.

Economic losses. At least 40% of the global economy and 80% of the needs of the poor are linked to biological resources. In the United States, commercial fishing, which often uses species that are now extinct in most populations, provides an estimated one million jobs and 32 billion in annual income. In Kenya, income from ecotourism and observation of endangered species - elephants, lions, cheetahs - accounts for 14% of the total domestic product, and in Tanzania - 13%. In the Galapagos Islands, ecotourism accounted for 68% of the 78% increase in SVPs from 1999 to 2005. The local U.S. economy also relies on revenues from resource-based ecotourism: for example, in 2010, visitors to Yellowstone National Park, which attracts a significant number of tourists with the opportunity to see wolves and grizzly bears, paid $ 334 million and contributed to the creation of 4,800 jobs in the area. ... In 2009, visitors to Yosemite National Park helped create 4,597 jobs, generated $ 408 million in sales revenue, $ 130 million in labor income, and paid $ 226 million in value-added services.
... Loss of the basic provision of many communities. Around the world, rural and indigenous communities rely on over 25,000 species for their nutrition, medicine and homes.
... Loss of ecosystem services. Extinction irreversibly reduces biodiversity, which in turn affects society through the loss of ecosystem services. Ecosystem services are properties of ecological systems that serve people. ES that support human life include: mitigating the weather, regulating the water cycle, stabilizing water supply, filtering drinking water, protecting agricultural land and replenishing nutrients, eliminating waste, pollination of wild and cultivated plants, meat of wild animals (including seafood), sustainable fishing, pharmaceuticals, pathogen control, assistance in reducing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. In contrast to similar direct and measurable benefits of high biodiversity, its decline generally reduces the productivity of ecosystems and their stability, subjecting them to rapid changes that negatively affect humanity. For example, the loss of biodiversity in tropical forests due to deforestation often alters local or regional climates, leading to more frequent floods and droughts and reduced productivity of local agricultural systems. Deforestation of rainforests can cause new diseases in humans as humans are more likely to encounter animals that carry diseases.
... Intangible value. Continued extinction at the current rate will significantly degrade the quality of life of hundreds of millions of people who see emotional and aesthetic value in the presence of traditional species in their natural environment. In such a context, animals are priceless, their value is infinite and unconditional. Here you can recall Rembrandt or the unique paintings of other artists that awaken human feelings, and whose loss will make humanity much poorer.

The main causes of extinction
The main causes of human-induced extinction are:
... Destruction of the natural environment due to the transformation of ecosystems. Unsustainable forestry and land conversion to the agricultural sector, the proliferation of suburbs and roads - all this is causing the destruction of natural habitats and its fragmentation. Deforestation and clearing of rainforests for agricultural purposes will permanently destroy the habitat of a huge number of species. Areas like these are some of the most important reservoirs of terrestrial biodiversity, inhabited by thousands of unique plant and animal species, where functional groups of animals (ecological niches) can be found. In the oceans, destruction and fragmentation of the environment is caused by pollution, trawl fishing, shipping, and noise pollution (sonar, etc.).
... Environmental pollution. Man-made pollution contributes greatly to the extinction of species through the destruction of their habitat (for example, mine dumps, oil spills, and rainfall farming), direct toxic effects of pollutants and less noticeable effects on the immune and reproductive systems of animals.
... Climate change. Extinction occurs when species cannot move fast enough to find a suitable climate zone, when the climate becomes unstable in their habitats, when climatic changes are such that they exceed their physiological or evolutionary resistance, or when critical relationships between species are destroyed (dependence of some species from others). On land, models predict that by 2100, 12 to 39 percent of the planet will experience climate change that no species today has experienced before, and conversely, the climate in which most species live today will disappear by 10 to 48% of the Earth. surface. These changes will be most noticeable in areas with the greatest biodiversity today. Oceans acidification, a by-product of climate change that disrupts the growth and development of marine organisms, is one of the most important problems, as it prevents marine animals with shells - for example, oysters and shellfish - from building them, and causes the collapse of physical reef infrastructure, from which most marine species depend on. (If the current rate of poaching continues, in 20-30 years there will be no wild elephants left on Earth. In 2011, approximately 25,000 elephants were killed, and the world population is 420-650,000 African elephants, plus 50,000 Asian. Short-term gain leads to the creation of criminal and terrorist groups Ecotourism revenues are long-term and make a large direct contribution to the local economy).
... Intense commercial exploitation of wild species. Some important species - elephants, rhinoceroses and tigers - are hunted and are on the verge of extinction due to the popularity of their tusks, horns and other body parts from which rare items and medicines are made. For example, the current demand for ivory, mainly in Asian markets, has raised the price so high that poaching has become a profitable business and a source of income for international criminal groups and terrorist organizations. Other species are heavily used in food markets - a problem with numerous ocean fish such as bluefin tuna and Atlantic cod. The need for them exceeds the capabilities of such species: there are seven times more people on the planet than sea salmon. The dramatic and rapid deforestation of rainforests is justified by ongoing economic benefits. In all these cases, one-off income (affecting a relatively small number of people) is extremely small compared to the loss of natural capital, which provides important benefits in the long term, both locally and globally.

Solutions
As species loss increases due to global pressures, and species and ecosystems do not depend on national and political boundaries, addressing the species extinction crisis requires coordinated local action, national laws and international agreements, and ensuring their strict implementation. Such a multidimensional approach is needed to prevent illegal movement of wild animals and products, enhance species protection in reserves, and develop effective policies to ensure balanced fishing. Plans are needed for individual species, public land and marine protected areas that include adaptation to climate change. Risk assessment needs to be accelerated for each species, especially invertebrates and fish.

In addition, it is necessary to address the key causes of climate change and inappropriate transformation of ecosystems. An important part of the solution will be the economic valuation of natural capital and ecosystem services so that global, regional and local economies benefit from investments in natural capital in the long term, rather than irreparably depleting finite resources for short-term economic goals. Real-life examples already exist in China, where 120 million farmers are paid to not only plant crops and deforestation, but also stabilize steep slopes, control floods and maintain local biodiversity. In Costa Rica, a national payment system for ecosystem services has helped change the rate of deforestation, once the highest in the world and now one of the lowest. In New York City, maintaining natural landscapes for water filtration is more economical than building filtration facilities.

TRANSFORMATION OF ECOSYSTEMS
As more people grow, we are transforming vast tracts of the earth's surface, transforming subhuman "natural" areas into completely different landscapes of land and sea. Some transformations are necessary to meet basic human needs, others are irreversible and unforeseen.

In 2012, more than 41% of ice-free land (36% of the total land surface) was devoted to farms, pastoralism, logging, cities, suburbs, roads and other human activities. This means that there is just under 2 acres of converted land for every person. Agricultural land transfer is responsible for most of the landscape changes; crops cover almost 12%, pastures - 26% of the ice-free land (respectively 10% and 22% of the total land area of \u200b\u200bthe planet). Urban lands occupy another 3%. A wide road network breaks up the natural environment, covering almost 50% of the earth's surface; dams change the course of more than 60% of the largest rivers in the world and a large number of small ones; deforestation is continuing at a rate of 30,000 sq. m. km. a year for the last 6 years. The annual loss is equivalent to the annual deforestation of Belgium or Massachusetts or Hawaii.

It is more difficult to estimate the percentage of ocean transformation, and yet it is clear that the main changes along most of the world's coasts are caused by pollution, trawl fishing, shipping and noise. Bottom trawl alone annually destroys an area of \u200b\u200bthe seabed equivalent to two areas of the continental United States. Human debris, especially plastic waste, is abundant in ocean waters and is found even far from shore.

Impact traces can also be found outside of human-transformed ecosystems. Today, almost every terrestrial ecosystem in the world includes at least a few species that have ended up there through human activity; sometimes this leads to destructive effects on ecosystem services. Invasive species number in the hundreds in most major seaports and in the thousands on most continents. 83% of the entire land surface is subject to human impact, determined by at least one of the following factors: the density of the human population is greater than 1 person per sq. km .; agricultural activity; areas of residential or industrial construction; being 15 km from the road or coast; night bright light that can be detected by satellite. Every place on earth is affected by at least one such factor contributing to climate change - even the most remote areas of land and oceans.

Reasons for concern
In the area of \u200b\u200becosystem transformation, there are two conflicting reasons for concern:
... The need to minimize human activity to prevent the extinction of other species and the degradation of critical ecosystem services. Ecological "critical nodes", where the entire ecosystem changes suddenly and unexpectedly, becoming less biologically diverse and in many cases less productive, are triggered by changing the threshold percentages of their areas. Many studies show that when 50-90% of areas of a landscape are affected, the rest of the intact areas also undergo rapid and irreversible changes. Consequently, the overall ecological transformation of more than half of the terrestrial ecosystems through the direct influence of humans can trigger unpredictable and irreversible degradation of even those ecosystems that are not directly used by humans. Changes like this are already being seen: nitrogen deposition in distant Arctic lakes, declining populations of once common species in some wildlife reserves, millions of acres of forest killed by pests, and invasive species like the striped mussel.
... The need to feed, provide shelter and provide high enough living standards for the 7 billion people who now inhabit the planet, plus 2.5 billion that may appear on it in the next three decades, means that the need for land use will only grow. Almost 70% of arable land not yet used for agriculture is found in tropical grasslands and forests, which include the world's most important biodiversity areas, least affected by humans. Less fertile land will require even more acres per person than it is today due to lower productivity per acre.

Solutions
Since food production is a major driver of natural ecosystem changes, the key challenge will be the ability to feed more people without significantly expanding existing agricultural and fishing grounds. Natural capital valuation (as discussed in the part on species extinction) is a promising approach that can lead to significant biodiversity and yield gains, as seen in the integration of coffee plantations into the natural landscape in Costa Rica. Slowing down and permanently ending the seizure of uncultivated land for agricultural purposes (especially tropical rainforests and savannas) will require the creation of certain laws and incentives for conservation. Recent research indicates that even without expanding agricultural areas, it is possible to increase food production in sustainable and environmentally friendly ways: 1) improving yields on less productive land; 2) more efficient use of water, energy and fertilizers needed to increase yields; 3) reducing the amount of meat in the diet, and 4) reducing food waste through improved infrastructure and distribution patterns, as well as more efficient consumption patterns, since almost 30% of the food that is produced today is thrown away or spoiled. It is necessary to adapt the yield to climate change in order to increase it. The solution to the problem of the oceans lies in good fish management, sustainable aquaculture, focusing on species that require fewer proteins than they produce, and reduced pollution, especially on coasts.

It is necessary to stop using land for suburban development by developing construction plans that involve higher building densities and more efficient infrastructure in existing built-up areas, rather than creating completely new residential complexes on the untouched surrounding land.

Climate change affects all areas of the planet - both those that are little affected by humans and those that are actively used for agriculture, where cities and suburbs are located. The higher the temperature, the stronger the effects will be. Halting the transformation of the global ecosystem is necessary in order to keep climate change to a minimum.

From the very beginning of our planet's existence, it has been constantly changing. Continents appeared from the continuous ocean, mountains grew, seas formed and disappeared. All this took millions of years. But in recent years, changes on the planet have accelerated dramatically.

Without a doubt, this is due to human actions and scientific and technological progress. The photos taken by NASA scientists clearly show how quickly we are killing our planet.

Petersen Glacier, Alaska

The picture on the left was taken in August 1917. In the photo on the right, the same place, but 88 years later, in August 2005. There is practically no glacier.

McCarthy Glacier, Alaska

This is almost the same picture. Both pictures were taken in summer. Left - July 1909, the photo on the right was taken relatively recently, in August 2004. The glacier retreated by more than 15 kilometers.

Scientists have been constantly observing glaciers since the 1950s. Ice is retreating at an average rate of 1.8 meters per year, but the rate of melting has increased in the past ten years. Researchers at the University of Argentina believe that this is the fastest rate of reduction of glaciers in the last 12 thousand years.

Mount Matterhorn, Italy / Switzerland

Mount Matterhorn is located on the border of Italy and Switzerland. Over the past 45-50 years, it has changed a lot. Previously, it was covered with an impressive snow cap. Now only small islands remain from the snow cover.

The mountain is actively watched by the Italian meteorologist Luca Mercali. He believes that the snow melt at the summit accelerated significantly in the summer of 2003, when there was a heat wave. The snow cover connected the rocks, and now that it is gone, rockfalls have become more frequent on Mattehorn and new cracks appear.

Elephant Butte Reservoir, USA

This reservoir is located along the Rio Grande River in New Mexico. The situation here can be called disastrous. The pictures show how it decreased between 1993 and 2014.

At the moment, reclamation specialists in the United States are developing a plan to conserve the reservoir. Elephant Butte supplies water to the city of El Paso and 35,000 hectares of agricultural land. I must say that every year it gets worse.

Bastrop, TX

Satellite shows how Bastrop County in Texas has changed. This is due to the 2011 drought and fires that engulfed local forests. In total, about 13,111 hectares of forest and almost 20,000 residential buildings were destroyed. It was the largest fire in the history of the state.

Lake Oroville, California

What can happen in three years? The child learned to speak, the puppy became a tough dog, and Lake Oroville in California lost 70% of its volume during this time. It seems unrealistic, but the pictures speak for themselves.

The photograph from a different angle shows the scale of the tragedy. If this continues, then in a couple of years there will be no lake at all. The US Federal Bureau of Reclamation says California's 2014 driest year in a century.

Lake Shasta, California

Once the largest lake in California, Shasta, is now nearly devastated. Where there was water, now a desert scorched by the sun. The white object in the photo is a fragment of the displacer.

Lake Mar Chiquita, Argentina

Argentine Lake Mar Chiquita is called "the little sea", because the water in it is salty. Over the past 13 years, it has become shallower by half due to irrigation and drought. The consequences of the decrease in the lake can already be observed. Every year it becomes more salty, which has a bad effect on its inhabitants. In addition, dust storms have become more frequent in the vicinity of the lake.

Aral Sea, Kazakhstan / Uzbekistan

The Aral Sea has been familiar to us since childhood. Back in Soviet times, the Krokodil magazine published a cartoon in which the cartographer asks his colleagues: "Should I draw the Aral Sea?" In fact, it is a salty lake, like Mar Chiquita. It began to decrease in the second half of the last century. In 1960, its area was 70 thousand square kilometers, in 1989 it was divided into two parts, and by the beginning of our century the area of \u200b\u200bthe two resulting seas was 14 and 20 thousand square kilometers.

The Aral Sea is drying up due to climate change, the construction of canals and the irrigation of agricultural land. At the moment, almost all fish have disappeared in the Aral Sea.

Forests in Rondonia, Brazil

The state of Rondonia is one of the youngest and fastest growing in Brazil. It was built on the site of the impenetrable jungle of the Amazon. The faster the state grew, the more actively the rainforest was cut down. The picture shows the lands of Rondonia in 1975 and 2009.

Scientists are confident that the extreme nature of changes will only increase over the years. Every year, people cut down a forest equal in area to the island of Ceylon. Naturally, this greatly affects the climate of the planet. According to scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), between 1901 and 2010, global ocean level rose by 19 centimeters, and the earth's surface temperature increased by an average of 0.85 degrees Celsius.