Difference is Good, Not Bad

Imagine, every year, 50,000 more plant and animal species disappear from the earth forever. Biodiversity can be as simply explained as the different species of plants and animals. A commonly known problem is that many of these differences are disappearing, everyday. While humans are destroying habitats for the benefit of man kind in the present, it may have disastrous effects later in our lives, and this needs to stop while we can do something about it.

As man destroys biodiversity, there are many side effects that come with it. Everyday, nearly 137 species go extinct. This means that the plants can’t recycle air or purify water. Some plants may even be needed to make the vaccine for a currently unknown disease. Some of those animals could give scientists an idea that will improve our lives dramatically. As well, the difference between two species may make one immune to a disease, but went extinct due to human development. For example, if a disease wipes out one animal humans rely on, the animal that is immune to that disease could help us in a similar manner, but it would be gone because of human development. Did you know an ecosystem is a balance between two or more plants and animals? If one species goes extinct, this will affect all the rest of the ecosystem. This can set off a chain reaction that affects others life forms as well. This can affect our ecosystem as well, and can quite possibly change our day to day life style, as well as the cost, types of, and the quality of the types of meat available to us. This is clearly a disastrous problem that must be stopped.
Biodiversity is important to protect, because in a perfectly balanced ecosystem, every plant and animal relies on each other for survival. Some ways of stopping the extinction that is happening, is in what you buy at the grocery store. For example, purchasing organic produce will cut down the amount of inorganic pesticides sprayed on the fields. To help control overfishing, look for fish that is Marine Stewardship Council certified, so a fish that is going down in population doesn’t end up as your lunch. A lot of pollution is produced in growing cattle, so avoiding beef is also a good idea. If biodiversity isn’t protected, it can have a disastrous effect on the planet, and the overall health of human beings.

Camden B.