Could the Earth Shut
Down Anytime Soon?
Often, I do have
this wide imagination about the possibility of a total apocalypse, where all
that makes the world normal and livable suddenly ceases without a prior
warning or notification. Then I wonder what the possible scenario would be
like, obviously and nonetheless chaotic! I imagine a day when nature would
choose to go into a forceful hibernation as a payback for all that humanity is
obviously guilty of according to the law that governs the universe and in a more
down to earth way of saying “the day the nemesis of our actions catches up on
us”.
While this
painted scenario could seem a lot fictional like a plot from a movie to a lot
of people who are less concerned or care so little about the status of our only
home planet, the reality seems more obvious in the fact of what obtains in the
everyday extinction of a part of our ecosystem. The situation has in recent
times gone rather on the worse side of expectation with the current rate of
extinction at 1,000 times higher than natural background rates. Perhaps a
little reflection from elementary biology would help better at explaining the
reality at hand, at least open up on some understanding, the terminology of concern is “Ecosystem”, which
is regarded as a system of life which exists on the interconnections of both
the living and non-living components of our environment. So, in a way, the
survival of both the living and non-living parts of our planet all depends on
each other’s existence and no part is more essential than the other.
At this current
alarming rate, humanity is really pushing harder than ever and it might sound a
lot reasonable to project a possible shutting down scenario of the normal
default status of our planet soon. All indication shows the seemingly
domineering non- repentance side of our humanity and perhaps the non-acceptance
of guilt on the parts we have played so far in wrecking this planet. It has
reached that point when the possibility of losing a part of our ecosystem to a
journey of no return is as clear sighted as normal. While some skeptics would
think it a usual phenomenon in the natural ecological balance, in a way
projecting an argument on the premise of pre-historic records of fossils, am
afraid, a good explanation lies in the fact of the differences in the cause and
time. The rapidity of the changes witnessed around now way surpasses the
earlier era’s version of changes and the most notable factor of inducement has
been largely attributed to human actions.
Both plants and
animals have their respective roles to play in maintaining a balance
ecological-wise, such that if one dies out, the possible survival of the other
is endangered. A possible example is the current reports about the declining
population of bees, if the bees die out, what would happen to the natural means
of seed dispersal and consequently what would that mean to plant diversity
globally? If the polar ice sheets become all thawed, what happens to the
natural breeding and feeding ground of polar bears, penguins, walrus, sea lions
and other dependent life forms and if we lose a lot of these amazing flora and
fauna, what would happen to humanity, our health most especially, our economic
and social side, while in totality our survival and sanity as humanity?
The supposedly apocalypse definitely would not
happen all of a sudden as there is a law of gradualism that governs the
existence and the manifestation of things in the universe, so, for every
manifestation, there must have been a process. The facts all abound that all
could shut down someday if we do not change the pattern of our relative impact
on this planet and little do we know that the processes to the manifestation of
the doomsday is already set in motion, but then, we could still turn back the
hands of time, while we still have the time and when the days of evil are yet
to come.
The part of
humanity is to play the role of custodian to this wonderful world and its
fullness but alas, we assumed the role of danger to the planet and i keep
wondering where we got it all wrong.
“The
lord placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it”
Genesis
2:15
Bamidele F. Oni
Comments
Post a Comment