Human’s Hand in Earth’s Changing Climate

Although there has been much discussion lately regarding climate change as if it were a new phenomenon, the fact is that climates are constantly changing; they always have and they always will. Sometimes, climates change dramatically, especially after a major geological event such as a tsunami, earthquake, or volcanic eruption. Many more changes occur, however, in the quiet moments, often unseen by human eyes—yet more often than not, caused by human actions. The earth’s climate and ecosystems change daily, with or without human interaction, but it is changes caused by humans that factor into the more drastic, and unfortunately more damaging, changes. Studying three major aspects of the earth and its climate—biomes, trophic levels or “food webs,” and natural processes such as the water or phosphorous cycle—show the troubling effect humans have on changing climate and the detrimental effects of this interference.

Biomes provide an excellent microcosm to discern larger patterns in the earth’s climate. One of the most interesting biomes to examine for such purposes, due to its relative isolation, is the tundra, specifically the Arctic tundra. The tundra is characterized by long, dark, cold winters, strong, dry winds, a short growing season, lack of trees, and permafrost, a consistent layer of ice beneath the soil. Conditions in the tundra are not hospitable for life, to say the least. Yet certain scrub grasses cling to the shallow, infertile soil. What survives in such conditions is highly adapted, and deeply fragile. Although there is not much diversity in wildlife, there are large numbers of animals such as muskox, caribou, foxes, weasels, and waterfowl, all of whom have adapted to the harsh climate. What survives in such conditions is highly adapted, and deeply fragile. However, due to the isolation of the tundra and lack of human habitation, this biome has historically been left alone, to cycle through population increases and decreases, mild winters, and wild ones. Even if humans don’t set foot on the Arctic tundra, however, their presence can be felt. As Moore states, “Climate is most affected by temperature” (3). Because it is a land of extremes, the Arctic feels the effects of global warming more acutely than other places; in fact, the Arctic is warming at almost twice the rate of the rest of the world (“Oil and Gas in the Arctic”). Arctic sea ice is disappearing, which threatens the survival of polar bears. Also, more humans are coming to the Arctic, in the forms of tourism, which has become more popular in recent years, and in search of “black gold”—oil reserves in the Arctic, some of the world’s largest undeveloped reserves. Not only does placing pipelines threaten marine ecosystems, but the potential for oil leaks or spills could do lasting damage to this fragile ecosystem. The Arctic biome is changing, but not for the better, and not for natural reasons.

Another telling way to examine the relationship between the earth and its people is to examine what resources the earth offers, and how people make use of those resources. Trophic levels, or “food webs,” are basic illustrations of what eats what. People are almost always at the top of food webs—we eat everything. Unfortunately, as the rulers of the food webs, we are not always wise. Most Americans eat meat, which comes with certain demands. Cattle need land to graze on, which means more grassland, fewer forest biomes. Cows also require corn as feed, in fact, so much corn, that the meat of the animal will feed one person, but the grain that was fed to the animal, if fed to people instead, could feed twenty people. Also, that cow has been packed with so many hormones to make it big and fat and healthy very quickly that the cow manure cannot be used as a fertilizer, which it often is; a feedlot cow’s manure, however, contains heavy metals and hormones that would kill plants, and instead goes into a nearby river, where it causes genetic abnormalities among the fish that swim there (Pollan 240). Ecosystems are changing based on the demands of those at the top. Rather than share that position with other carnivores, humans instead have placed themselves at the top of every one.

The impact of humans on natural processes has also been documented. Humans have influenced almost every major natural cycle. For example, the water cycle is relatively simple: water falls from the sky, is absorbed in the ground or falls directly into bodies of water, then evaporates back up into the sky. However, human processes affect the water cycle. As illustrated above, we can contaminate the water that falls on crops and washes away to rivers and streams by impregnating the land with harmful chemicals. We also interrupt the water cycle by making withdrawals from it, to water crops or irrigate land or simply provide drinking water. While water is considered a renewable resource because of the way it travels through the water cycle, water that has had harmful chemicals added to it must undergo an intensive cleaning process. So while water is a renewable resource, clean water is not, necessarily. Similarly, runoff from human processes has influenced the phosphorus and nitrogen cycles. Human input has doubled the rate of nitrogen input into the earth cycle, and rates continue to rise, which has caused a host of problems, ranging from loss of biodiversity to decreased soil quality and over-acidic rivers (Vitousek, et. al.). Natural processes now find themselves struggling to adapt to the changes forced on them by the ever-increasing human population.

While the earth is changing in natural ways, as it always has, the vast majority of changes are being thrust upon it by humans. Humans see the earth as an endless resource of provisions, and only recently have we become concerned with moderating what we take from the earth. However, a chain reaction of changes has already been put into motion. While these changes are largely detrimental to the earth, perhaps the newest generation will recognize this negative direction and work to restore balance.

Works Cited

Moore, Gary S. Living With the Earth. 3rd. ed. Boca Raton: Taylor and Francis Group, 2007. Print.

“Oil and Gas in the Arctic” WWF. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2014. <http://wwf.panda.org/>.

Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma. New York: Penguin Press, 2006. Print.

Vitousek, et. al. “Human Alteration of the Global Nitrogen Cycle: Sources and Consequences.” Ecological Applications 7 (3), 1997, p 737-750, The Ecological Society of America. Web. 8 Mar. 2014. <http: www.precaution.org>.