ATV Damage to the Environment and Wildlife

Website: http://northstar.sierraclub.org/campaigns/forests/atvs/atvdamage.html

Summary:
ATV causes A great amount of damage to the environment these days. Not only does it impact the environment but also the wildlife living in these areas. Some trails are groomed for ATV use but it doesn’t take long before there are tire ruts formed causing erosion, the soil is torn up and vegetation is lost. As ATV's travel over an area so many times the soil becomes compacted causing the change in soil temperature and making it hard for plants to breathe and let water through.
Another big impact that ATV's have on is the wildlife. The noise pollution that these half a tone vehicles let out are extremely harmful on the wildlife. Caribou is one example of this. The noise from A ATV can cause a lot of stress to a caribou and drive it from its migratory habitat. As this occurs it raises the caribou’s heart rate and causes a lot of stress for this animal. Another example would be the Arctic Hare. The Arctic Hare rests during the spring, summer, and fall seasons because it needs to build up its energy to get through the winter season; if an ATV drives an Arctic Hare from its resting habitat then it is going to use up all of its energy and not be able to protect itself from predators in the winter season.

Opinion:
ATV use should only be allowed in areas where there is very few animals living and where it can do as less amount of damage as possible to the environment, like on a rocky surface. ATV's seem to be becoming more popular every year; it seems that more people are buying the bigger and better ATVs along with bigger and wider tires which cause a lot of damage to soils. If this trend continues then it could mean big trouble in the future for wildlife and vegetations.

Peak Oil

Website/URL:
http://www.grinningplanet.com/2007/01-30/peak-oil-and-environment.htm

Summary:
Some people might think that burning less oil in the future will reduce pollution. There would be less tailpipe emissions from vehicles, fewer jets flying through the sky causing pollution, fewer motorboats and jet skis leaking fuel into bays and rivers, and fewer snowmobiles making a smoky racket. Peak oil may help us in the long run but in the short run it will have a major impact on our environment. Petroleum is the major ingredient for plastics, pesticides, and chemicals which we misuse or overuse. Doing so does cause big issues for the environment. If there were not so much plastics, pesticides and chemicals then it would be better for our environment.
Opinion:
This article is very important and I think that everyone should know just how harmful peak oil or petroleum is to our environment. Yes in the long run peak oil may help the environment but it is not said to be 100% that it well. In near terms it is said that it will have a devastating impact on our environment. I have learned in my environmental Science 3205 classes and textbook the different types of emissions and how they are harmful to the environment, the carbon monoxides, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides that are released into the environment. This all affects the ozone that we are trying to repair which causes Global Warming. Who really knows if Peak Oil will help the environment in the long run? It’s almost not worth taking the chance if it will hurt the environment in the near term.

Human use exhausts Earth

Website/URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2062729.stm

Summary:
The article is about how humans are using up all the resources on earth. Scientists said that in 1961 humans were using 70% of the capacity of the global biosphere. By 1999, that had risen to 120%.. They say humanity's footprint on the planet has increased by half in under 40 years. The information in this article is explaining how humans are using more resources than past years. The breathing spaces are declining so the population must be increasing majorly over the years and will continue to increase. People’s ecological footprint is increasing more and more every year. This must be took under control
Opinion:
I think that we as humans need to take control of our own responsibilities and not take things for Granit. All of our resources are being used up quickly. We need to have a sustainable development so that we will have resources for future generations to come. If we do not care for our resources and stop using them up when we don’t absolutely need them, especially the non-renewable resources, it may not affect us on earth today but it will have a major impact on our children and grandchildren. If this trend continues then one day there will be few resources on earth