Global Warming and Marine Life: Are We Running Out of Time? by Miriah Burns AP Language and Composition Mr. Ian Taylor March 28, 2012 Final Draft Miriah Burns 1 During the long and dark Arctic winters, the mother polar bear gave birth to her cubs. She was waiting patiently for them to grow so they could go out and hunt with her. The get their food from the ice packs, which is a cap of ice that covers the Earth’s northern pole. Polar bear’s food swims along the cracks and edges of the ice pack. Since she had been waiting months on her cubs to grow to size, she is now thinner and weak because of starvation. So she leaves her den with the baby cubs following her. She has to swim out the ice pack to get her food. Even though polar bears are good swimmers she can’t swim far because she is weak and haven’t eaten in months. She dives in to go hunt, as well as the babies, but due to the raise in temperature there is less ice in the oceans and she and her babies have to swim far. Her babies are unable to make it, they drown just as she was about to drown. She finally got a hold to a seal and luckily there is a piece of ice close by for her and her dinner to go. She gets on the ice with food, but she has no more cubs. It’s just her. Polar bears give birth every two to three years so she waits patiently, if she doesn’t die due to drowning or starvation. Sadly to say, stories like these are happening every moment of every day. The oceans and marine life are being negatively impacted by the warming of the atmosphere, global warming. The global warming negatively impacts marine life and the oceans by raising the overall temperatures in the poles, changing the complete dynamics of the food web, and destroying the ice habitat. Raymond Smith wrote in his academic journal article, “Marine Ecosystems Sensitivity to Climate Change” that “More than half of the Arctic region is comprised of ocean. Many Arctic life forms rely on productivity from the sea, which is highly climate-dependent” (2). Animals need ice and the cold weather. They are used to the amount of ice and snow that have already been in the poles. They expect to be able to have hunting grounds, shelter, and weather condition Miriah Burns 2 that they need. Climate variations have profound influences on marine animals. Global warming is making marine life habitat unstable. The rise in temperature is really affecting the oceans. The poles stay cold because as snow and ice remains white, most of solar energy reaches them then is reflecting back into space which let the poles remain so cold. As the season are changing, snow and ice tend to form later in the autumn and melt earlier in the spring due to the increase in air temperature. The darker land and water surface, which absorbs more sun energy, are longer uncovered by snow and ice. The warmer surfaces results in causes faster melting which accelerates the warming trends. This is changing how and where the polar marine species lives. On Jim Lobe website article, Global Warming threatens marine life, it states, “Global climate change is an additional stress on already stressed species and ecosystems, and may be the 'straw that breaks the camel's back' for many types of marine life," according to the 47-page report" (1). He later explains in his article that, compiled by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Marine Conservation Biology Institute (MCBI)- warned that whole species could be wiped out by warm waters" (1). Global warming is negatively impacting the oceans and marine life. Evidence is shown to explain how entire marine species could be wiped out in matter of less than a century. The rapid and intense rise in temperature, both atmospheric and in the water is the negative impact of global warming. To start off with, global warming negatively impacts polar marine life and the oceans due to the rapid increase in temperature. Keith C Pilkey and Orrin H. Pilkey discusses in their book, Global Climate Change, how global warming alters the average temperature of both the water and atmosphere. “But since the mid-1940s, the average year round temperature on the peninsula has gone up to 3 to 4 degrees F, and in the early winter it is startling 7 to 9 degrees” (76). Antarctic is experiencing a heat wave. The average temperature Miriah Burns 3 has been increasing in all seasons in the Antarctic and the winter temperature is being impacted as well. The increase in average temperature in all seasons due to global warming could really harm marine life. Maine Life is use to the cool weather of the Antarctic global warming is forcing them to adapt to something that they aren’t use to. The high temperatures is has been occurring for the last 60 years and other information shows that it won’t stop anytime soon .In the newsletter, “Meltdown: The Arctic and Global Warming”, the author focuses on how hard it is for marine life to adapt to the change in temperature. “Ocean species will also have to adapt to warmer temperatures; air temperatures over extensive land areas in the Arctic have increased by up to five degrees Celsius during the 20th century” (2). Marine species have to learn to adapt to temperature 5 degrees more than what they are used too. In the midst of trying to adapt to the temperature marine species could face the endangered list and not be able to survive because they won’t be able to adapt fast enough. Or in trying to adapting the marine species habitat could change so much that it causes a decline in their population. Not only global effect the rise in temperature in the atmosphere but it always affects the temperature of the water, by increasing it. In finding an article titled, Global warming threatens marine life, written by Jim Lobe an American journalist, explains how the burning of fossil fuels results in the change in temperature in the poles. "Surface water temperature had risen by about one degree Celsius over the past century and were expected to increase by up to another three degrees in the next 100 years if emission-caused mainly by the burning of fossil fuels like oil and gas- continued at current rates" (1). Global warming, the increase in the world average temperature, will warm the waters. The water is expected to raise over 3 more degrees Celsius over the next 100 years. The burning of fossil fuels causes the increase in CO2 emission, which increases the world's average temperature, which warms the water. Marine life isn’t used to Miriah Burns 4 warm waters. They are used to cold temperature. It is expected that marine life wouldn’t adapt to the increase in temperature fast enough and they will faced problems. In studies shown by Orrin Plikey and Keith Plikey in their book, Global Climate Change, “Overall the average temperature had risen by 1.7 degrees C (3.1 degrees F), a number that is typical of the rapidly warming high latitudes" (15).The temperature and tropical zones are warming, slowly, but nonetheless they are warming up. The world's average temperature is warming up slowly and eventually overtime it would do great damage. Due to the great influence of burning fossil fuels, global warming is causing the waters to become way warmer than what they supposed to be. Consequently, due to the rise of temperature in the water it started to affect the physical nature of the water. Julie M Roessig, in her academic journal Effects of global climate change on marine life and estuarine fishes and fisheries, elaborates on how the rise in temperature changes the water the physical state. “An increase of a few degrees in atmospheric temperature will not only raise the temperature of the oceans, but also cause major hydrologic changes affecting the physical and chemical properties of water” (252). Also proven in academic journal written by Raymond Smith in Marine Ecosystem Sensitivity to Climate Change shows, “Rising air temperatures affect the physical nature of our oceans. As air temperatures rise, water becomes less dense and separates from a nutrient-filled cold layer below” (392). The raise in temperature changes the chemical balance and physical properties of the water. Global warming is changing the physical nature of the oceans, by making the water less dense and separating the nutrients in the water. Global warming is changing the ocean's chemical balance and physical properties. This is ocean acidification and warming of the water. The ocean warming up and losses its chemical balance will disrupt all the of many organisms that live in the sea. Changing the physical nature of the water is very dangerous because the water is home to many marine Miriah Burns 5 species. They are all being affected by it. Global warming is impacting marine life very simple yet complex food web. In many ways, global warming is replacing marine species in their normal habitat to other habitats. Jessica Aldred wrote an article in the Guardian titled "Global warming changing balance of marine life in polar seas” that expresses that in details how the change in temperature of both water and atmosphere could change the food web in the poles. “This is an example of a general trend we are observing where water is warming further north and making this region more suitable for southerly species," Gradinger said.” (1). species in the north are more suitable for animals in the south. Global warming is being changing the way animals live. The change in habitat is changing the ecosystem. In the same article it states, “The team also found that smaller species are replacing larger ones in some Arctic waters, a shift has profound implications further up the food chain” (2). Smaller species in the Arctic waters is replacing the larger species which affects the food chain. Global warming is changing the food chain. Negatively, the Arctic is becoming less diverse and the animals need to start finding better ways to survive because the food that they are used to accustom to is being changed due to the change in temperature and habitat. Consequently affecting the smaller polar marine life, the microscopic phytoplankton are affected by the rise of temperature which can influence the whole marine food web since they are at the bottom. “Rising marine temperature, according to the report, influence all kinds of oceans conditions, including sea levels, critical to the survival of microscopic phytoplankton, the base of the food web; and the circulation of the deep ocean between the poles and the tropics” (2). So the impact that global warming on marine life isn’t singular, but it produces a lot of problems. Marine life is at the verge of extinction because the rise in temperature is increasing too fast and Miriah Burns 6 the animals aren’t adapting to it fast enough because the survival of many sea life species is at a very critical point. The new report, "Turning up the Heat: How Global Warming Threatens Life in the Sea"-compiled by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Marine Conservation Biology Institute (MCBI)-warned that whole species could be wiped out by warm waters" (1). Global warming could possibly lead to the extinction of much sea life. There comes many negative ascertains with global warming. Global warming messes with the whole food chain. Marine life is not going to have a healthy and sustainable life if global warming won’t calm down. By disturbing the bottom of the food chain, global warming is affecting the rest of the food chain because it’s a chain reaction. If the top will not be able to get their food and the nutrient that they need from the bottom because the bottom is at a shortage or loss, then the top will suffer greatly. Of course, global warming is expected to affect the food chain due to lack of sea ice, just as microscopic plankton are affected so is algae. Jessica Aldred in her periodical article, "Global warming changing balance of marine life in polar seas", heavily explains how global warming is changing the way animals living in the poles. “By 2050 the arctic oceans may be ice free, we will lose these animals and that will have implications further up the food chain" (2). In less than 4 decades, it is expected that Arctic Ocean will be ice free and marine life would effect by it. Global warming is negatively being affected the poles because studies shows that we is losing animals that depend on ice to survive. The raise in temperature causes problems for animals at the bottom of the food chain which will soon affect the top of the food chain. She goes on to further explain how the change in environment impacts the bottom of the food chain. She states, "A change in temperature of just a few degrees will see the loss of sea ice cover and with it the sea ice algae, small animals and crustaceans which depend on it” (2). The loss of sea ice is massive and could change even if the temperatures changes in just a few degrees. Small animals Miriah Burns 7 are being affected by it because they depend on sea ice. The ocean is experiencing a major change due to the decline in sea ice algae and smaller animals. Algae are a producer (which is something that makes food for other animals through photosynthesis). Algae are too many consumers in the oceans because they are at the bottom of the food chain, which affect many marine species. Fewer algae is a major problem because there is less food for the plenty of animals in the ocean. Global warming causes the harming and killing of the algae. Global warming causes a horrible loss of habitat for marine species. The loss-shortened ice season causes a major loss in sea ice and glaciers. Oscar Schofield wonderfully wrote, “How Do Polar Marine Ecosystems Respond to Rapid Climate Change” about how global warming is affecting marine species in WAP Antarctic Peninsula. Eighty seven percent of the WAP glaciers are in retreat, the ice season has shortened by nearly 90 days, and perennial sea ice is no longer a feature of this environment” (25). The West Antarctic Peninsula environment only has 87% of old glaciers ice season shortened and sea ice is no longer expected to be seen. This quote point out three problems in WAP due to the warming of the atmosphere. Global warming is negatively impacting the ice. It’s beyond crazy how sea ice is no longer expected to be part of the environment. This negatively impacts marine life as well and not just the environment. Oscar Schofield in his academic journal article, "How Do Polar Marine Ecosystems Respond to Rapid Climate Change?” goes on further to say that the disappearance of ice/glaciers is negatively impacted the poles overall. “Ocean warming has been implicated as a major drive for this DE glaciation.” (25). The uncovering of glaciated land because melting of the glaciers is believed to be cause by global warming. New land is starting to be noticed because of the melting of glaciers. The warm ocean is causing the glaciers to melt. This negatively impacts the environment because WAP isn’t used to land, the environment and wildlife want and NEED ice Miriah Burns 8 and glaciers. As a result of the shortened ice season and global warming, glaciers don’t return in full bloom and starts to effect the polar bears. Taken from the book, Global Climate Change, written by Keith C. Pilkey and Orrin H. Pilkey, they go in depth about how global warming affects glaciers and sea ice. “However, the return of the glacier in full bloom may well have been delayed by warming of the atmosphere due to greenhouse gases" (69).Glaciers may not return in full bloom because the warming of the atmosphere. "The bears spend most of their lives on the ice and depend on it for capturing ringed seals as the seals surface at breathing holes. Five of nineteen polar bears subspecies are said to be in the decline" (80).Glaciers are supposed to go through this melting and refreezing seasons, but now since global warming is warming our atmosphere too quickly and several the cycle is being disturb. Glaciers aren’t refreezing as quickly as they are melting. Which ultimately affects polar bears because their habitat isn’t being restores and it’s consistently declining. The global warming indirectly is harming our species of polar bears because it is destroying their habitats and hunting grounds. In the same article Oscar wrote, “Declines in the polar species have been related to decreasing sea ice cover and its possible effects on prey availably” (32). Due to the decrease in the sea ice, marine species will greatly suffer. Without their habitat it’s hard for them to survive that’s why the number of polar species have been at a decline. Global warming has caused it to be a loss of sea ice which effects how the prey attaches their prey. Not only are polar bears effected by global warming and the uncovering of glaciate land, but other marine wildlife species are starting to suffer from it. As studied in Plilkey book, Global Climate Changes, this major loss of ice and glaciers is causing a rough time for marine life. "Overall the Arctic has warmed in recent decades, even though temperatures dropped Miriah Burns 9 dramatically in the early 1960s after having risen during the 1930s and 1940s" (15). Arctic weather has got warming in recent decades. The temperature has got worse before they have gotten better. Global warming overall is warming the arctic which isn’t a good thing because it is suppose to stay cold in the arctic. In the same book, it states, "Loss of Arctic Ocean sea ice is causing problems for ivory gulls, the Pacific walrus, seals, the narwhal whale, and polar bears, each for different reasons" (80). Marine life is being negatively being affected by the loss of Arctic ice. Global Warming caused the loss of Arctic ice. Without the Arctic ice many marine life, that once depended on that ice for habitat or for other reasons are greatly being impacted by it. Global warming is negatively changing the lives of marine life by destroying their habitats Unlike the many causes of global warming, some studies show that global warming is just a natural process that the world goes through consistently. First off, global warming isn’t negatively impacting the poles because the Earth has a history of warming and cooling itself up. Micheal Oppenhiemer explores the possibility that global warming isn’t occurring in his film, "Global Warming's Effects on Plants and Animal Life”. “The earth has a history of warming and cooling dramatically in just decades or even years as environmental factors amplify each other” (20). Earth has gone through this cycle of warming and cooling. The trend of global warming has seen before. The Earth continues to cool and warms itself. So we shouldn’t really worry about the consequences of it because the Earth several times before but it cooled back up. The Ocean Conversancy in their article, “Meltdown: The Arctic and Global Warming,” explores all views on how global warming affects the Arctic. The atmosphere temperature in the Arctic has stayed the same overall. "They bulk of the continent has only warmed a degree or so in the same time" (76). Even though the Antarctic is warming faster than the rest of the world, the overall continent is still the same. To see the damage that could be done in the Antarctic may take a long time Miriah Burns 10 because even though the warming is happening, but the overall continent temperature is still fairly the same. Only parts of the continent are changing at faster rates than others. Change will slowly come to the poles because the rate of warming is going slow. But on the contrary, even though the Earth’s atmosphere has of history of warming and cooling, we haven’t seen this level of warming thus far. In the newsletter, How Do Polar Marine Ecosystems Respond to Rapid Climate Change, written by, Oscar Schofield, he elaborately explains how the climate is continues increasing and show no sign of slowing down. "Mid-winter surface atmosphere have increased by 6 degrees C (more than five times the global average) in the past 50 years" (20). Winters in the west Antarctic is negatively impacting the WAP (West Antarctic Peninsula) are warmer 6 degrees C more than 50 years ago. The warming atmosphere is negatively impacting the WAP because the temperature increase is dangerous for Antarctic. The poles will survive because global warming doesn’t show any signs of reversing any time soon, and even if it does, the damage done already is too great to be reverse. Generally inconsistence and the history of the Earth are warming and cooling would be enough, but the water goes through the same process as the Earth does. In the book, Global Climate Change, written by, Keith C. Pilkey and Orrin H. Pilkey, brilliantly wrote about how the water is impacting about global warming. "Perhaps the water regularly warms and cool and the ice regularly thins and thickens as atmospheric pressures and water currents oscillate” (19). The water is just going through a cycle that it normally goes through with warming and cooling. Global warming has nothing to do with the normal cycle of warming and cooling. Nature has its own course and we can’t blame it on global warming. While that may be true, it is proven that the poles are getting way warmer than they ever have. Plikey’s also states, "Unlike its shrinking Artic counterpart, Antarctic winter floating sea ice has actually increased in area by 10% since Miriah Burns 11 1980, a fact sometimes cited as an indication that the Earth is not warming but rather cooling" (78). Antarctic sea ice is shrinking but increasing by at least 10% so it is to believe that the earth is cooling. Global warming isn’t occurring because the poles are showing signs of cooling. Global warming doesn’t negatively impact the poles because we are seeing the opposite of warming. Stated in the same book, “Petit reports that while the Antarctic is still one of the coldest places in the world, it is warming more rapidly than the rest of the planet” (76). Antarctic is warming more quickly than other parts of our world, but yet it’s still the coldest. How could this be happening? Antarctic is warming too fast and it’s supposed to be cold and not warm. Global warming (the average increase in world's temperature) is causing even the coldest place to warm up. Polar marine life isn’t suffering from global warming because despite their disappearance of habitat, they still continue to learn how to adapt to new habitats fast. To being with, many marine species such as Adelie penguin won’t suffer from global warming because the learn to adapt quickly to other environments. “Adelies are flourishing at the Southern end of their range in the Ross sea” (81). Adelie move their location to where they can survive. Adelie normal habitat got destroyed by global warming so they move to another location in which they can survive. Global warming doesn’t impact marine life in the pole because they can easily adapt to another location. Besides animals being able to adapt to other environments, animals are being drawn to the poles as well. The Guardian has an article titled, Global warming changing balance of marine life in polar seas written by Jessica Aldred, which expresses both sides to how global warming affects the poles and marine life. “They say an increasing number of these species are extending their range towards the poles as previously cold waters between Norway and the North Pole become warmer and more hospitable” (1). Animals are moving towards the southern poles Miriah Burns 12 because up North the water is getting warm. Global warming isn’t affecting the poles because it’s bringing more species towards the poles. But the variety of species coming could possibly affect the food chain already in the poles. It could affect them positively or negatively. At the same time, polar marine life need a stable environment to survive and with all the moving and inconsistence it can heavily impacts their populations. Also found in the Guardian, “It is similar to the Arctic – animals adapted to cold water environments have to head to the poles to keep to colder climes as northern waters warm," said Dr Julian Gutt of the CAML” (2). Animals have to be forced to move and adapt to another location because their previous/currently habitat isn’t cold enough anymore. Global warming is forcing animals to adapt to another location and in the process of adapting to another location the animals may not survive. Depending on how far they have to travel and what they need to survive they may not survive. In my opinion, there is not any solution to helping polar marine life, but one and that’s by helping their habitat. If we help their environment then we help them not become depleted. The Clean Air Act, originally passed in 1973 and amended in 1990, is a United States federal law designed to protect human health and the environment from the effects of air pollution. Under the Clean Air Act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to regulate emission of pollutants that "endanger public health and welfare." State and local governments also monitor and enforce Clean Air Act regulations, with oversight by the EPA. Manufacturing solar panels and wind turbines and retrofitting homes will get American workers back on their feet and get our economy rolling again. Studies show that investing in clean energy technologies would produce more jobs than similar investments in oil and gas – and these jobs can be created without increasing the federal debt. Investments in clean energy will also help end America's oil addiction and usher in a new, secure energy future. We can also help by lowering our carbon Miriah Burns 13 footprint. If we, as individuals, lower our carbon footprint then us - as a city, as a state, as a nation and as the world- could overall lower our carbon footprint. This would heavily contribute to fewer greenhouses gases, and possibly put the Earth back into its normal ranger of warming and cooling and not exaggerate it. In trying to reduce the amount of emission in the atmosphere and trying to reverse global warming I believe this would help polar marine life more than anything because we need to change the root of the problem before we could fix anything else. Miriah Burns 14 Works Cited Aldred, Jessica. "Global warming changing balance of marine life in polar seas." The Guardian 15 Feb. 2009: n. pag. Print. Carrington, Damian. "Melting Artic ice releasing banned toxins, warn scientists." The Guardian 24 July 2011: n. pag. Print Lobe, Jim. "Global warming threatens marine life." Third World Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Dec.2011. <http://www.twnside.org.sg/title/ marine-cn.htm> "Meltdown: The Arctic and Global Warming." Ocean Conservancy June 2008: n. pag. Print. Oppenhiemer, Micheal, Pro. "Global Warming's Effects On Plants and Animal Life." Global Warming. 10 June 2005. Videojug. Web. Transcript. 14 Feb. 2012. <http://www.videojug.com/interview/ global-warmings-effects-on-plant-and-animallife>. Pilkey, Keith C., and Orrin H. Pilkey. Global Climate Change. Illus. Mary Edna Fraser. Durham: Duke University Press, 2011. Print. Roessig, Julie M, et al. "Effects of global climate change on marine life and estuarine fishes and fisheries." Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries (Nov. 2004): 251-275. SpringerLink. Web. 13 Jan. 2012. <http://www.springerlink.com/content/v25138090n302030/fulltext.pdf>. Schofield, Oscar, et al. "How Do Polar Marine Ecosytems Respond to Rapid Climate Change?" Science: n. pag. Print. Smith, Raymond C, et al. "Marine Ecosystem Sensivitiy to Climate Change." BioScience 49.5 (1999): 393-404. Print.