Researches say way of classifying ecosystems is outdated
Researchers have always classified ecosystems based on what they are like in their pristine condition - no human influence. Now researchers are proposing a new way of classifying biomes -based on the human influence. It seems only 20 percent of the non-ice covered land in the world is still pristine - no human influence. Only 20%? That is really a sad number.
Argentinian cruise ship crash is causing oil spill
When the MS Explorer cruise ship capsized off of Antarctica, all of the passengers survived, which is a good thing. But now Argentinian officials are worried that the oil spilling out of the wreckage will cause an environmental crisis. The spill has formed a 8 km swath of polluted waters, which is now under control, but the concern is that the crack in the ship will widen and allow more oil to spill out.
Brown creek water is more natural
Environmentalists have thought for years that the fact that creek waters are becoming more and more brown is a bad thing - a product of global warming. Now that further research has been done, they are determining that the browner water is due to more organic matter being present in creeks, and that this is a good thing - an indication of the fact that creeks are returning to a more natural pre-acid rain state. Some good environmental news for a change.
Black Sea dealing with oil spill and sulphur leaks
Two ships sank in the Black Sea last week, and are now leaking sulphur. A Russian tanker also sank recently, which caused an oil spill. Ukrainian and Russian officials have their hands full - tens of thousands of birds have already died, along with some fish and dolphins. The storm that caused the wrecks was the worst the Black Sea has seen in a century. Not really anyone’s fault that the ships wrecked, but sad just the same.
Sun bear is now listed as vulnerable
The sun bear, native of Borneo, Sumatra, and Southeast Asia, has been categorized as “vulnerable” by the World Consevation Union. The Union says that the sun bear population has decreased by 30 percent over the last 30 years, and the decline seems to be continuing. The sun bear is the smallest bear species. The species’ vulnerability is attributed to deforestation and poaching.