The terms global warming and climate change have become more frequently used in recent years, especially in relation to the future of humans. However, humans are not the only species affected.
Animals, plants and other wildlife are all suffering from climate change. Rising temperatures and disasters limit habitats and increase the prospect of extinction for many species.
“Scientists predict that if we keep going along our current greenhouse gas emissions trajectory, climate change will cause more than a third of the Earth’s animal and plant species to face extinction by 2050 — and up to 70 percent by the end of the century,” according to biologicaldiversity.org.
Climate change creates habitat loss for many species which forces animals into crowded spaces. Forest fires, for instance, are a common manifestation of climate change that limit animals’ food resources and lessen their chance of survival.
“As the temperatures continue to increase, it impacts forest fires and destabilizes ecosystems for animals,” said Green Alliance co–president Michael Warren ‘24. “There will be a big issue in the food chain.”
Temperatures have been on a constant rise in the more recent part of Earth’s history. In the past 100 years, the global temperature has risen by one degree in Fahrenheit, according to clintonwhitehouse4.archives.gov.
“Hot, humid conditions can lead to massive heat casualties in animals—in livestock as well as wild animals,” according to thebulletin.org. “These events will become more extensive, longer lasting and more damaging as the world warms, potentially threatening economies and ecosystems.”
The temperature change will continue to damage many aspects of the planet. In fact, from a local perspective, Ventura County is warming faster than any other county in the continental United States, according to data compiled by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. The county has warmed 4.75 degrees in Fahrenheit since 1895.
“People will [say]: ‘Climate change doesn’t affect us [because] we’re living in the suburbs,’” said Sienna Sheath ‘24. “I couldn’t even swim in the water when I went to the beach yesterday because it was red with all the [overpopulated] super bloom algae.”
Preserving wildlife is critical to the survival of humans and ultimately to the survival of the planet itself. Although the earth has many means to maintain balance in the carbon cycle, it cannot survive on these outlets alone. Greenhouse gas emissions, a man–made process that causes immense damage to wildlife, renders many of these support systems useless. In order to create a healthy and prosperous planet, a collective effort to limit greenhouse gas emissions and preserve wildlife is required.
“The United Nations estimates that healthy ecosystems could account for 37% of the carbon reductions needed to limit global temperature rise,” according to ifaw.org.
In order to combat the climate crisis and its effect on wildlife, there are resources at WHS such as environmental clubs, one being Green Alliance, that will educate students on the climate crisis and provide ways for students to become involved in creating change.
“If you come together as a group, that’s when you can [make] big–scale changes,” said Warren. “As an individual, you can recycle and talk to other individuals about how [global warming] is such a big issue and a pressing issue that we need to deal with.”
