Welcome to YouChoose, a blog about individual climate action.
The UN 2023 water conference was held last month in NY. Water scarcity may very well become the most important side effect of climate change and deforestation. The link between deforestation and drought has been illustrated in a recent Nature article : Smith, C., Baker, J.C.A. & Spracklen, D.V.: Tropical deforestation causes large reductions in observed precipitation, Nature 615, 270–275 (2023). You can read the article HERE.
Part of the UN conference outcome was the announcement of the largest river and wetland restoration initiative in history, proposed by the governments of Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ecuador, Gabon, Mexico and Zambia. If you want to know more about the freshwater challenge and the importance of freshwater read about it on the WWF web page.
How about the US? Do you know that about half of the original wetland of the US has been destroyed and about 30% of the endangered species in this country live in wetland areas? The loss or degradation of wetlands puts entire ecosystems at risk. Read HERE, from the Xerces Society, on the importance of wetlands for biodiversity. One big threat to wetlands comes from pesticide use for agriculture and gardening. As homeowners we need to stop using chemicals in our lawns and gardens, especially herbicides and systemic pesticides. In our quest for the perfect lawn we introduce in the environment and in the water toxic chemicals that are deadly for pollinators and aquatic life.
Check out here from the Xerces society a list of deadly products easily available on the shelves of home improvement stores. Lawn fertilizers are just as bad. These products are marketed with catchy names such as “Green Light”, “Shrub Protect”, “Weed ‘n feed” but underneath the friendly and flowery packages are extremely toxic chemical that destroy the ecosystem. Please spread the word with your neighbors and encourage them to stop using chemical products in the backyard!
Keep the pressure on! Do your part to end deforestation by boycotting products that are the main drivers of destruction: cattle and livestock industry (which also drives conversion of forests to soy plantations), palm oil, timber from old growth forests and endangered trees.
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You Choose 