Scottish scientists have discovered a catastrophic loss of life in our oceans

[superpatriotman]

An Edinburgh-based research team fears plankton, the tiny organisms that sustain life in our seas, has all but been wiped out after spending two years collecting water samples from the Atlantic.

The landmark research blames chemical pollution from plastics, farm fertilisers and pharmaceuticals in the water. Previously, it was thought the amount of plankton had halved since the 1940s, but the evidence gathered by the Scots suggest 90% has now vanished.

The scientists warn there are only a few years left before the consequences become catastrophically clear when fish, whales and dolphins become extinct, with grave implications for the planet. In the report, the researchers from the Global Oceanic Environmental Survey Foundation (Goes) state: “An environmental catastrophe is unfolding. We believe humanity could adapt to global warming and extreme weather changes. It is our view that humanity will not survive the extinction of most marine plants and animals.”

The Goes report concludes: “If we destroy plankton, the planet will become more humid, accelerate climate change, and with no clouds it will also become arid and wind velocities will be extreme.

more at link

https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/humanity-will-not-survive-extinction-of-most-marine-plants-and-animals/?fbclid=IwAR0kid7zbH-urODZNGLfw8sYLEZ0pcT0RiRbrLwyZpfA14IVBmCiC-GchTw

Normally I read these articles and leave with some small sense of hope. This ones punches in the gut a little harder than most.

[Elessar Zappa]

1. Humans fuck up everything.

I hope we change before it’s too late.

[Lochloosa]

2. It's too late

[mahina]

3. It is if we give up

[NewHendoLib]

5. Give up what? We are incapable of doing what needs to be done.

It is ALL about money and greed

[mahina]

48. Yes it's been about money and greed on the part of some

Indifference, prpagandization, lack of adequate information, lack of mobilization, no clear path forward, lack of organization adequate to the moment. However it is not yet too late and I say this as a student of the problem for many decades. It’s not too late if we change. I humbly propose you start listening to the podcast called the energy gang, sponsored by Google. Hope cannot die because we’re too freaking lazy to do the work. Not you personally of course.

[NewHendoLib]

4. yes we do - and it is too late. We are too narcissistic as a species - and learn nothing from the

past.

[7wo7rees]

53. Yep, tragically very sad.

Look up Dahr Jamail. I'm pretty certain you might even know him.

I've known him since he left for the Iraq war theater..
And then he moved on to Katrina and then the big oil disaster in Gulf..

(I met Dahr at Vets For Peace National meeting in Dallas, summer of 2005. Actually dined with him at 1st evening dinner, he was so very young then! But weren't we all.....).

Then he struck out for 2 years and wrote his final....
"The End of Ice......"

Yep, we are sadly, unfortunately, too late.
It is already baked in.

Ms7wo7rees

Much love to you two!

[walkingman]

7. Greed, Envy, and Religion will all contribute to our demise. And there ain't

a fucking thing we can do about it.

I'm glad I drink.

[intrepidity]

16. I wonder if Religion isn't fully culpable

Absent the fairy tale that trivializes the destruction of this planet, I wonder if just greed and envy could have caused as much destruction. I doubt it.

Cheers.

[FoxNewsSucks]

23. I think you're right.

[NJCher]

28. I say/think this about five times a day

I'm glad I drink.

igidhk

"I'm glad I don't have kids."

[roamer65]

6. 8 BILLION IS TOO MANY.

It’s blaringly obvious now.

Humanity will probably survive, but it will be mere fraction of the 8 billion.

[Triloon]

8. "Humanity will probably survive"

As if that counts for anything at all.

[roamer65]

10. It won't be pretty.

That’s for sure.

[Mr. Evil]

19. Where will they get their goods and services?

Most of the survivors will be the ultra wealthy that can afford it. But, most, if not all, don't even know how a toilet plunger works, much less plumbing or anything else they consider mundane or 'beneath' them.

As for food... Soylent Green, anyone?

[roamer65]

24. It's people!!!!

Seriously, you pose a good question.

I have a feeling it would be like 1750 for the remainders. DIY or go without.

[SergeStorms]

44. "World Made by Hand".

Very good book by James Howard Kuntsler. We were buddies in College. It describes just what the title implies. Humans destroy the environment, the fossil fuel economy is over, no trucks, no planes, no cargo ships, no industry, everything we use will be grown by hand and made by hand.

Jim has traveled the world trying to wake people up, to no avail. The die is cast. We will reap the whirlwind.

[Traildogbob]

30. Those billionaires will

Be slaughtered and robbed of anything the marauders want. Billionaires have never faced what will come after what they have. No laws, no lawyers and no stacked courts to get their way. They have no idea how to cook Pintos and rice and would die before eating bugs and roots. Try to golf, it will be a shooting galley. Could be fun to watch the assholes be brought down to reality. Should have a little joy during the last few years. Let the basterds like trumps and Murdocks eat their dollars.

[Mr. Evil]

37. Except for those locked in their bunkers.

But, then again, Covid proved that a great many humans couldn't even manage to stay in their homes for 2 weeks, much less try to do it for actual years. My feeling is they would probably end up stir crazy and murder their families and whomever else may be with them. Last person standing would eventually try to open the door to the outside world and then would either take one to the head or simply die from the toxicity they would encounter.

However it may turn out, a fitting end to the basturds that put everyone in that situation. All for a few more dollars.

[Traildogbob]

38. Got that right.

[Elessar Zappa]

11. We could survive with 8 billion if

every nation made drastic changes to their fossil fuel consumption. Unfortunately, it looks like most of the planet (mostly the US and China) are content to do nothing.

[roamer65]

14. Possibly, but I'm not confident of it.

[Another Jackalope]

42. "a mere fraction"

More true than most people realize.

The period of our presence on the planet is entirely dependant on the impact we have on the rest of the biosphere. The higher the impact, the shorter the survival period.

Remember I=PAT? Conceptually, the Impact of our species on the world is the product of our Population multiplied by our average individual impact (AT).

A reasonable proxy for our individual impact is the average individual energy consumption (energy makes all human activity possible). Individual average energy (actually power) consumption is about 2.25 kW. (18 terawatts total energy production divided among 8 billion people.

The permanent presence of Homo sapiens can only be assured at a much lower aggregate power consumption. How much lower is a matter of debate, but my guess is that the threshold for human permanence is on the order of 18 gigawatts (one one-thousandth of our current consumption). At a personal average consumption of 1.5 kilowatts, that allows for a maximum of about 12 million people.

We won't get there, so we will be going extinct sooner or later.

IMHO

See http://www.paulchefurka.ca/Sustainability.html for the thought process of arriving at this conclusion.

[RussBLib]

9. of course they have

Humans are ravenous creatures. We find a good thing and overdo it and overuse it until "oops" results in something bad, or horrible.

Getting every country in the world to cooperate on something is practically impossible, as we have seen.

Where is that "Good News" forum? Does it exist? Yet?

[intrepidity]

12. Glad to see this wording

The scientists warn there are only a few years left before the consequences become catastrophically clear when fish, whales and dolphins become extinct

rather than the usual "there are only a few years left to change course."

This makes clear that there is no recovery, despite pleas in the remaining text to change course--mainly to stop flushing wet wipes and cooking oil.

Sorry, too little, much too late.

"Goodbye, and thanks for all the fish."

:sigh:

[70sEraVet]

22. Very appropriate quote, intrepidity.

[cilla4progress]

31. Prescient

This is why I have a pervading sense of sadness, anxiety, and depression.

I just try to love and do minimal harm. I really would prefer not to buy anything new ever again.

[Mysterian]

13. Humans are not sufficiently intelligent

to protect the only known biosphere in the universe.

Our technology and our massive population are a plague upon this planet.

[roamer65]

15. "I have met the horsemen of the Apocalypse, and it is us."

Can’t remember where I heard it, but it is so true.

[Thtwudbeme]

17. I am not finding any other peer reviewed studies of this

I would think that a finding this important would have other agencies collaborating.

[Native]

40. I went to the Foundation's website, and this is not what they are saying.

Not to discount the urgency of the situation or to imply that doing something now is not of the utmost importantance, but on their home page it says this:

Plankton in our oceans are the true lungs of the planet, and 90% of them will be gone due to pollution by 2045.


https://www.goesfoundation.com/

[joshcryer]

49. The 90% by 2045 figure is based on a 1% decline...

...every year, which was based on a correlative study of old datasets where sailors would measure the cloudiness of the sea water (they weren't measuring for plankton). It was debunked not too long after it was published: https://www.nature.com/articles/nature09952

https://www.nature.com/articles/nature09950

The 1% decline would be catastrophic and absolutely impossible to reconcile, and it would have immediate and measurable effects on the atmospheric composition as each year passed. It would be completely noticed if 0.5% of all of our oxygen supply and CO2 uptake was respectively reduced and increased.

The conclusion is so huge that you don't even have to study the plankton life, all you have to do is measure the atmosphere. Such an effect is not occurring.

Mind you I need a disclaimer, I do think catastrophic climate change is in our future, ut this ain't it. Yet.

[Native]

52. Thanks for this. I didn't bother to check what was on their website after

seeing the article had already misrepresented the data. Figured the data could probably be suspect as well.

[PufPuf23]

18. The extinctions and loss of biodiversity because of humanity are ultimately more defining

than climate change.

Much is microscopic and not that readily evident.

[dalton99a]

20. So, in 20 years:

[superpatriotman]

21. Less than 200 years of industry to destroy a planet

That's gotta be a galactic record.

[FoxNewsSucks]

25. The planet will survive.

We will join the dinosaurs.

[jeffreyi]

26. Indeed.

Humans are mere organisms, doing what organisms do. Reproducing and consuming until collapse, or involuntary restriction of some kind. It's the way we are made, and we aren't apparently evolved enough to behave difterently. Unfortunately other life forms suffer, and inconceivable beauty is lost. So effing depressing.

[Dysfunctional]

27. No, eventually enough people will die.

Then the few million people left will find places they can still be hunter/gatherers.

[Brenda]

54. Yeah, like the Eloi and Morlocks

That's one possibility. However the brutal climate shifts will not leave any place on Earth liveable for humans, even prey humans to live leisurely. Competition for resources with other animals will leave a techno savvy but hands-on deficient populace extinct within a generation.

[Ohioboy]

29. We never learned after we polluted the oceans with mercury

Who hasn't heard of mercury in the oceans? We've known about it for many many years.

A quote from the article "How Does Toxic Mercury Get Into Fish?":

"The biggest single source is the burning of fossil fuels, especially coal, which releases 160 tons of mercury a year into the air in the United States alone. From there, rainfall washes the mercury into the ocean.
We also discharge mercury-laden industrial effluents directly into rivers or the ocean."

https://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/feature/how-does-toxic-mercury-get-into-fish/#:~:text=The%20biggest%20single%20source%20is,into%20rivers%20or%20the%20ocean.

[SunSeeker]

36. Yup, and it bioaccumulates up the food chain. Don't eat fish that eat other fish!

Swordfish, for example, should be banned from sale.

[cilla4progress]

32. I am afraid to go look at my lavender

for bees.

The drop off has been mind-blowingly fast.

We've chemicalized our environment to the degree nothing can survive!!

[housecat]

33. Can we farm plankton? Clone it? Ban pollutants? (good luck with that.)

Too many people just don't care. Like killing all the buffalo and the indigenous people who respected the earth. We're seriously fucked. But I still have a glimmer of optimism, because there are enough brilliant scientists and people who would rather build than consume and destroy. Of course if we were given a second chance the politics would ruin it all again.The McConnels in every country would pull the football

[ramapo]

34. Blissful ignorance has its advantages

Few people have a clue. This is pretty scary. The future looks increasingly grim

[SunSeeker]

35. Humanity had a Garden of Eden, and shit all over it. nt

[JCMach1]

39. I have dived all over the world for over 40 years and the bloom

Of jellyfish has been signalling ocean acidification and probably pollution for over 20+ years. You find the same results in the most remote parts of the planet.

[Oneironaut]

43. Meh...

I believe that this generation or the next one is probably the last generation of civilization. We're either going to bomb ourselves out of existence or poison ourselves out of existence.

We can't help ourselves. Nothing is going to change, no matter how much we talk about Global Warming.

[TeamProg]

46. I always figured we'd become sterile due to toxins so we could no longer reproduce, then die off.

I actually would've preferred that to what's coming.

[Kaleva]

47. It's human nature

People don't like change.

[TeamProg]

45. Ughh.. Huh... well.. I'm not that fond of algae.. don't suppose fish & sea mammals are either.

So, okay, we haven't voted for politicians who would push against Big Oil hard enough.

Most of us are doomed.

Drone pollinators maybe?

After I'm gone I won't have to floss anymore.

[keithbvadu2]

50. Agent Smith from The Matrix.

Agent Smith from The Matrix.

[Emrys]

51. Some in the scientific community are not impressed with this report.

A few examples among many:

Link to tweet

Prof Michael E. Mann
@MichaelEMann

This is NOT peer-reviewed science.
In fact, it's nonsense.

See @simondonner:

Link to tweet

The promotion of bad science is unhelpful regardless of what agenda (denial or doomism) may be behind it.

Link to tweet

Simon Donner
@simondonner

Lots of things to worry about in the world... the claim that Atlantic plankton are disappearing definitely isn't one of them. It is wrong, and ridiculous too. See this thread:

Link to tweet

Jack Brudenell
@BrudenellJp

@simondonner hi Simon, would be interested to get your thoughts on this article. It scared the hell out of me. https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/humanity-will-not-survive-extinction-of-most-marine-plants-and-animals/

Link to tweet

Seaver Wang
@wang_seaver

"The plankton are dead!" Doomer reddit keeps dredging up only the most credible research to boost to the top page.
-the article has less text than some postal stamps
-no link to report
-research team's site really raises eyebrows

Just proof of an alarmist headline's sheer power.

Seaver Wang
@wang_seaver

The finding is bogus, full stop. I don't even need to read the report. We've had a thing called the Continuous Plankton Recorder for 60+ years.

In general any sweeping trans-oceanic finding like this is immediate cause for skepticism. The ocean + marine life are heterogenous.

Link to tweet

Seaver Wang
@wang_seaver

A sizeable chunk of my dissertation research was on marine plankton in the western North Atlantic.

We sampled phytoplankton blooms off the New England coast 2015 and 2017 with abundances of hundreds of millions of cells/liter.

Oceans ain't empty guys.

Seaver Wang
@wang_seaver

"The team, led by marine biologist and former Scottish Government adviser Dr Howard Dryden, has compiled and analysed information from 13 vessels and more than 500 data points."

LMAO.

For those unaware, the guy has a history:

Prof. Eliot Jacobson
@EliotJacobson

Google scholar shows that the principal author Howard Dryden does not have a track record of research outside of the GOES foundation. Clearly, ocean acidification is a huge long-term issue with ominous impacts. But the accelerated timeline is not clear.

Link to tweet

Seaver Wang
@wang_seaver

Also "13 vessels and more than 500 data points" for a finding this sweeping in its assertions is enough to make any microbial oceanographer fall off their lab bench laughing.

Link to tweet

Prof. Eliot Jacobson
@EliotJacobson

From the GOES Project paper: "Climate regulating ocean plants and animals are being destroyed by toxic chemicals and plastics, accelerating our path towards ocean pH 7.95 in 25 years which will devastate humanity."

This is absof**kinglutely NOT tl;dr

Prof. Eliot Jacobson
@EliotJacobson

The abstract is here (with a link in the abstract to download the paper):

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3860950

Link to tweet

Prof. Eliot Jacobson
@EliotJacobson

Google scholar shows that the principal author Howard Dryden does not have a track record of research outside of the GOES foundation. Clearly, ocean acidification is a huge long-term issue with ominous impacts. But the accelerated timeline is not clear.

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Howard+Dryden

[Kid Berwyn]

55. What's next, algae?

Even a billionaire in his New Zealand fjord redoubt needs O2.

Heh.

[Nevilledog]

56. This article is suspect

Link to tweet

Tweet text:
George Monbiot
@GeorgeMonbiot
·
Jul 18, 2022
This article is being widely shared, but I don't believe it.
1st Warning Sign: there's no link to the "report" it claims to be citing.
2nd WS: there's no such report on the organisation's website. When you click on the "News" tab it says "Page not found"

sundaypost.com
Our empty oceans: Scots team's research finds Atlantic plankton all but wiped out in catastrophic...
An Edinburgh-based research team fears plankton, the tiny organisms that sustain life in our seas, has all but been wiped out after spending two years collecting water samples from the Atlantic.

George Monbiot
@GeorgeMonbiot
·
Follow
3rd Warning Sign: no scientific journal is mentioned: the "report", if it exists, appears not to be a paper.
4th WS: While the issues it mentions are real and terrifying, the scale and speed of the change it reports seems to be far out of line with actual published science.
2:56 AM · Jul 18, 2022