Rain Forest Plants Race to Outrun Global Warming

          New studies show that trees in the Andes Mountains are trying to adapt to the changing climate by reproducing at higher locations on mountains, where the air is cool enough to support their existence.  Unfortunately, they might not be moving fast enough up the hills to adapt to the climate change. The average tree species are shifting at about 8 to 12 feet up a mountain per year. Because of rising temperatures, trees have to shift over 20 feet per year to remain at their desired temperature. Researchers believe that more than 50 percent of current tropical species could die off by 2100 or sooner. 

          However, there are ways these species could be saved. One way is to implement policies to sharply reduce greenhouse gases, especially in the United States and China, where more than 40 percent of greenhouse gases are dispersed. Additionally, countries with rich tropical forests need to protect their forests, instead of mining and drilling for natural resources underneath them.

Source: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/09/130915-climate-change-amazon-rain-forest-science/

Proposal to Protect Antarctic Waters Is Scaled Back

          Last year, the US and New Zealand proposed a plan to create an 875,000 sq mi ocean reserve in the Antarctic waters, but was denied by the Russians and other counties with fishing industries. Countries such as Russia, Ukraine, and Japan, rely on fishing, and do not wish to restrict their fishing boundaries as it directly impacts and lowers their economies. In an effort to compromise, New Zealand last week proposed to reduce the size of the reserve by up to 40% to gain support from fishing nations. However, environmentalists believe that reducing the reserve by up to 40%, the Southern Ocean would not have the adequate protection it needs. This region in the Southern Ocean is known to have a large biodiversity, which encompasses several thousands of species, including whales, seals, penguins, small fish, and other aquatic animals.

          The UN conference in 2010 pledged to protect 10 percent of the world’s oceans by 2020; however, less than 1 percent is protected today. Protecting the world’s oceans is a controversial issue, but hopefully the world can compromise to protect the environment for the future of earth.

Source:                                                         http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/11/world/proposal-to-protect-antarctic-waters-is-scaled-back.html?ref=science&_r=0#h[]