Less than a month ago we were treated to an authoritative interagency report, which Mr. Bush belittled, that reinforced earlier warnings from mainstream scientists that unchecked warming will bring devastating consequences, including rising seas, coastal flooding, disruption of snow-fed water supplies, heat waves and the disappearance of sensitive ecosystems like coral reefs.
Fossil fuel consumption has now joined the traditional drivers of disaster risk such as poverty, inappropriate land use, weak building codes, the disappearance of protective ecosystems and lax governance, as drivers of preventable loss of life, displacement and loss of livelihoods.
An intensive eutrophication period and an absence of periodic dredging after 1950s already led to changes in the surface layer ecosystem: disappearance of the oysters, decline of sea grass beds and the appearance of large amounts of green algae [26].
An important implication is that the degradation of one element of the ecosystem or the disappearance of one species could modify the whole ecosystem and subsequently damage other components (or species) as well.
[8], [9], and [10] found a decrease in the abundance of some species or a complete disappearance of other species on island ecosystems after cyclone events for selected hurricanes (hurricane Hugo in U.S. Virgin Islands, hurricane Gilbert in Jamaica, and hurricane Georges in Puerto Rico).
Failure to properly infer genetic structure can result in the quiet disappearance of important, but hidden, contributors to ecosystem diversity [3] [5].
The disappearance of sensitive species gradually drives the ecosystem to an overall decrease in biodiversity, which in turn favors biotic homogenization (McKinney and Lockwood 1999).
The scientists believe the disappearance of amphibians has broader effects on ecosystems, particularly at the higher elevations where fewer animals can live.
The shrinking of the lake has diminished a fragile ecosystem, with the gradual disappearance of native wildlife including the brine shrimp Artemia and migratory birds like flamingos and pelicans.
Few extinctions have been tied to man-made global warming so far, but the report points out that much slower episodes of climate change over millions of years caused significant ecosystem changes and the disappearance of numerous species.
