Estimates indicate “it would take between 75 and 93 years for the carbon emissions saved through use of biofuel to compensate for the carbon lost through forest conversion, depending on how the forest was cleared.”

“If the original habitat was peatland, carbon balance would take more than 600 years.”

“Conversely, planting oil palms on degraded grassland would lead to a net removal of carbon within 10 years.”

“Tropical forests also store around 46% of the world’s living terrestrial carbon, and 25% of total net global carbon emissions may stem from deforestation.”

“In 2006, 85% of the global palm-oil crop was produced in Indonesia (43%) and Malaysia (42%)”

“According to latest estimates, between the years 2000 and 2005, the net forest loss was 7.3 million hectares per year or 20,000 hectares per day.”

“Since l998, over 100 million hectares of primary forests have been converted into industrial tree plantations.”

“In l997 it was estimated that oil palm plantations occupy 6.5 million hectares and produced 17.5 million tonnes of palm oil and 2.1 million tonnes of palm kernel oil.”

“By 2005, palm oil production reached 30 million tonnes and the area covered had already comprised 12 million hectares.”

“Indonesia is experiencing the biggest rate of increase in terms of forests converted into oil palm plantations. In a period of 30 years (1967-1997) oil palm plantations have increased 20 times with 12 percent average annual increases in crude palm oil (CPO) production.”

“From 106,000 hectares in 1960 this has increased to 6 million hectares in Indonesia although there were around 18 million hectares of forests cleared purportedly for oil palm in 2006.”

“In 2002 palm oil produced more than US$2.1 billion in export revenue for Indonesia and $3.8 billion for Malaysia.”

References:
Conservation Biology, Biofuel Plantations on Forested Lands: Double Jeopardy for Biodiversity and Climate, 2009
United Nations: Oil Palm and Other Commercial Tree Plantations, Monocropping: Impacts on Indigenous peoples’ Land Tenure and Resource Management Systems and Livelihoods. 2007

The global index (Living Planet Index) shows that vertebrate species populations declined by nearly 30% during the period 1970 to 2005.

Humanity’s Ecological Footprint- Human demand on the biosphere more than doubled during the period 1961 to 2005.

 Global Living Planet Index shows an average trend of -28% from 1970 to 2005 in 4,642 populations of 1,686 species.

Temperate Living Planet Index shows a +6% average trend between 1970 and 2005 in 3,309 opulations of 1,235 species.

Tropical Living Planet Index shows a -51% overall trend from 1970 to 2005 in 1,333 populations of 585 species.

Terrestrial Living Planet Index shows an average -33% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 2,007 populations of 887 terrestrial species.

Marine Living Planet Index shows an average -14 % trend over 35 years in 1,175 populations of 341 marine species.

Freshwater Living Planet Index shows an average -35% trend from 1970 to 2005 in 1,463 populations of 458 species.

Tropical Forest Living Planet shows an average -62% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 503 populations of 186 species.

Dryland Living Planet Index shows an average -44% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 476 populations of 149 species.

Grassland Living Planet Index shows an average -36% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 703 populations of 309 species.

Nearctic Living Planet Index shows no overall change in 1,117 populations of 588 Nearctic species.

Neotropical Living Planet Index shows an average -76% trend over 34 years in 202 populations of 144 Neotropical species.

Palearctic Living Planet Index shows an overall +30% trend over 35 years in 1,167 populations of 363 Palearctic species.

Afrotropical Living Planet Index shows an average -19% trend over 35 years in 552 populations of 201 Afrotropical species.

Indo-Pacific Living Planet Index includes the Indomalayan, Australasian and Oceanic realms, and shows an average -35% trend over 35 years in 441 populations of 155 species.

Bird Living Planet Index shows an average -20% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 2,185 populations of 895 species.

Mammal Living Planet Index shows an average -19% trend from 1970 to 2005 in 1,161 populations of 355 species.

Data: The Living Planet Report 2008, Published in October 2008 by WWF–World Wide Fund For Nature (formerly World Wildlife Fund), Gland, Switzerland.

The valley is a long, narrow basin 282 feet (86 m) below sea level

It is home to more than 1,000 kinds of plants

Some plants residing on the valley floor have roots that go down 10 times the height of a person

Death Valley is home to 51 species of native mammals, 307 species of birds, 36 species of reptiles, 3 species of amphibians, and 5 species and 1 subspecies of native fishes.

Yearly precipitation consistently averaged about 1.6 inches of rain for the first 65 years of record keeping.

The last 30 years has seen an increase, averaging 2.5 inches of rain a year. The 95-year average is now just under two inches a year.

There have been some years of no recorded rainfall at all.

The highest mountain in Death Valley National Park is 11,049 foot Telescope Peak. The vertical drop from the peak to the Badwater Basin is twice the depth of Grand Canyon.

134° F is the hottest recorded temperature (July 10, 1913)

The greatest number of consecutive days with a maximum temperature of 100° F or above was 154 days in the summer of 2001.

The summer of 1996 had 40 days over 120° F, and 105 days over 110° F.

The summer of 1917 had 43 consecutive days with a high temperature of 120° F or above.

The highest ground temperature recorded was 201° F at Furnace Creek on July 15, 1972. The maximum air temperature for that day was 128° F.

Ground temperature on the valley floor is about 40% higher than the surrounding air temperature.

Higher elevations are cooler than the low valley. Temperatures drop 3° to 5° F with every thousand vertical feet.

Data: National Park Service

At least 81 bird species inhabit U.S. marine waters, spending their lives at sea and  returning to islands and coasts to nest.

At least 39% of bird species in U.S. marine waters are believed to be declining, but data are lacking for many species.

Of 81 ocean bird species, almost half are of conservation concern.

4 that are federally listed as endangered or threatened.

37% of ocean bird species have stable population trends.

12% of the 81 ocean bird species have  increasing populations.

12% of ocean birds do not have enough data available to determine population trends.

Longline fisheries worldwide injure and drown as many as 60 bird species.

Reference: North American Bird Conservation Initiative, U.S. Committee, 2009. The State of the Birds, United States of America, 2009. U.S. Department of Interior: Washington, DC.

If you include ice, the proportion rises to more than four-fifths

Humans and most animals are ~62% water

Soft-bodied aquatic organisms like jellyfish are more than 98% water

Freezing point is 0°C and the boiling point is 100°C

The density of water is 1 kg per liter

A pinhead-sized drop of water contains 1 billion billion molecules

Seawater has about 10.8 parts per thousand (ppt) of sodium and 19.35 ppt of chloride

Freezing point of saltwater at 35ppt is -1.9°C

Of all water on Earth, approximately 3% is fresh

Almost four-fifths of freshwater is contained in the polar regions as glaciers

One-fifth of freshwater lies under the surface as groundwater

0.3% of freshwater is in liquid form on the surface (rivers, lakes, streams, wetlands, etc.)

Natural freshwater contains 25 dissolved minerals (i.e. silica, calcium, potassium, magnesium, iron)

The average mass of floating ice in the Arctic is 16-23 feet thick

The ice covering the Antarctica landmass is more than 2.8 miles thick in some places

Water is most dense at 4°C

Water represents 0.2% of Earth’s weight

9,500 cubic miles of water evaporates from the oceans and falls on land per year

48 and 55 – The percent of grassland birds that are of conservation concern and percent showing significant declines.

2 – Percent of the tallgrass prairie that still remains in North America

4 – Number of grassland bird populations that are federally endangered

8 - Number of sparrow species out of 12 that are listed as of conservation concern

38-77 – Percent of Eastern and Western meadowlarks, Bobolinks, Shorteared Owls, and Northern Bobwhites that have declined since 1968

6 – Number of species that breed in the Great Plains of the United States and Canada and that winter in Mexico’s Chihuahuan grasslands that are showing steep declines of 68–91%

Data: State of the Birds 2009

Photo by South Dakota Tourism

375 billion – Estimated annual amount in goods and services coral reef ecosystems provide worldwide

500 million – Number of people worldwide that depend on coral reefs for food, income, and resources

50% – Amount of federally managed commercial fish species that need coral reefs for at least part of their life cycle

67% – Percent of reef fish species overfished in U.S. waters of the south Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean

90-96% – Percent of nearshore coral species killed by white band disease in the 1990s

>2,000 – Number of coral species listed under CITES

United States – The world’s largest importer of ornamental coral reef resources

$360 million – Estimated amount of money generated by coral reefs for recreation per year in Hawaii

33% – Percent of all marine fish species that call coral reefs home

6 million – The metric tons of seafood harvested annually from coral reef fisheries

0.2% – The amount of ocean area covered by tropical coral reefs

Data: U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy. An Ocean Blueprint for the 21st Century. Final Report. 2004

It is said that more than 140 million Americans live in coastal areas (EPA 2009) and more than 50% of the U.S. population live within 100 miles estuaries and coastal communities (EPA 2006).

Alaska, Florida, and Louisiana have the most acreage of estuaries in the United States; with Alaska containing the largest amount (Carter  1997)

 The United States has 102 estuaries (ANEP 2007)

75% of commercial fisheries and 80-90% of recreational fisheries utilize estuaries as essential habitat (EPA, 2007).

Fish caught in estuaries add $4.3 billion a year to the U.S. economy (NOAA 2005c)

Recreational activities and tourism along coastal regions create $8-$12 billion per year in the U.S. (NOAA 2005c)

“Twenty-seven estuarine reserve sites make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS). These sites are located in 20 of the 35 U.S coastal states and protect over 1.3 million acres of coastal land and waters from Alaska to Puerto Rico.” (NOAA 2008)

“In one estuarine system in the Northeast that was studied some years ago it was found that commercial and recreational fishing generate about $240 million per year. In that same estuary, tourism and beach-going generate $1.5 billion per year, and shipping and marinas generate $1.86 billion per year. “( EPA 2009)

San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary:

• The 1,600 square miles of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary provides 40% of California’s drainage,  supplies 4.5 million acres of agricultural lands with water, and quenches the thirst of 2/3 of the state’s  population (SFEP 2002)
• Hosts 493,000 recreational and commercial boats per year
• Provides water for 4.5 million acres of farmland
• Water diversion provides water to 24 million Californians
• Supports sport & commercial fisheries and more than 200 hunting clubs
• Includes 290 coastal recreational spots
•  Commercial transportation and military support: 300 marinas, 6 ports, 21 Naval facilities
• Vital to commercial and utility industry supporting more than 200 facilities
• According to the San Francisco Estuary Project, 50% of birds migrating the Pacific Flyway winter around the estuary, and the region, on average, has 600,000-800,000 waterfowl at any one time

(San Francisco Estuary Project 1999)

71 Hawaiian bird species have become extinct since the arrival of humans.

An additional 10 birds are feared extinct as they have not been observed for over 40 years.

Prior to human inhabitants, Hawaii was home to 113 unique bird species such as flightless geese, ibis, rails, and 59 species of Hawaiian honeycreepers.

43% of 157 sea and land species are not native to the islands, while 69% of the landbirds have been brought over from all parts of the world.

“The Palila, found only on the Big Island, has declined from 6,600 birds in 2003 to 2,200 in 2008.”

“Since 1979, approximately 30,000 Newell’s Shearwaters, a threatened species, have collided with utility lines and structures or have been grounded after becoming confused by bright lights.”

“Nearly all native Hawaiian forest birds are declining, their populations devastated by nonnative disease-carrying mosquitoes, predators, feral cattle and pigs, and loss of habitat.”

Data: FWS, State of the Birds 2009

General stats quoted from the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy’s Final Report: An Ocean Blueprint for the 21st Century:

In 2001, 23 percent of the nation’s estuarine areas were considered impaired for swimming, fishing, or supporting marine species.

In 2003, there were more than 18,000 days of closings and advisories at ocean and Great Lakes beaches, most due to the presence of bacteria associated with fecal contamination.

Across the globe, marine toxins afflict more than 90,000 people annually and are responsible for an  estimated 62 percent of all seafood related illnesses.

Experts estimate that 25 to 30 percent of the world’s major fish stocks are overexploited.

While coastal watershed counties comprise less than 25 percent of the land area in the United States, they are home to more than 52 percent of the total U.S. population.

On average, some 3,600 people a day are moving to coastal counties, suggesting that by 2015 coastal populations will reach a total of 165 million.

Approximately 80 percent of marine debris originates on land, either washed along in runoff, blown by winds, or intentionally dumped from shore, while 20 percent comes from offshore platforms and vessels, including fishing boats.

In 2000, the ocean economy contributed more than $117 billion to American prosperity and supported well over two million jobs.

Currently, about 30 percent of the nation’s oil supplies and 25 percent of its natural gas supplies are produced from offshore areas