Species Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Species - Essay Example The US alone estimate that invasive species cost its economy approximately $138 billion per year (Pimentel, Lach, Zuniga & Morrison, 1999). The introduction of this non-native species has proved to have dire consequences to the environments and ecosystems. One invasive species that has had severe costs to host nations is Bufflegrass. As an invasive species it has now become naturalized in the Americas, Australia, Hawaii and Mexico to name a few. Bufflegrass thrives in low rainfall a condition which makes it the perfect species to introduce to arid countries and was first introduced in the US and Mexico to improve forage for cattle, Arizona and the Sonaran desert were the ideal ecosystems for the grass to grow. Bufflegrass is drought resistant so thrived in its native countries including Africa. The grass will withstand heavy grazing and so was introduced for this purpose so the conversion of forest, homogenous grassland and savanna to pasture for grazing created the ideal environment for this hardy grass to grow. However the problem lies in that this invasive grass has spread from cultivated areas to natural ecosystems at an alarming rate as it will grow in all soil types and including sandy and stony soils. Bufflegrass grows densely and so crowds out native plants of similar size and due to its ability to resist drought will remain dense even in dry years. It attacks native plants by its ability to win competition for natural resources such as water, space and soil nutrients so prevents homogenous plants from maturing and germinating and secondly it is highly flammable but resistant to fire, once a grass fire has occurred it is not unusual that only the Bufflegrass grows back. The Sonaran Desert evolved without fire as an ecological factor and most of its plants cannot tolerate it. The Bufflegrass populations in Saguaro National Park have quadrupled in size between 2002 and 2006 despite the outbreaks of several vastly spread fires (Bean & Betancourt, 2006). The economic factor is that with the increased risk of fires utility infrastructures are threatened, property may decrease in value as areas become known for fire hazards, insurance rates rise not to mention the cost to governments in having to find means of managing the invasive grass. There is also the cost of life involved, in November 2005 a man was burned to death in a Bufflegrass fire in Arizona Bibliography Bean, Travis M. & Betancourt Julio L. (2006) Bufflegrass in theS onoran Desert: Can we prevent the unhinging of a unique American ecosystem The Plant Press THE ARIZONA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY VOLUME 30, NUMBER 1 (Retrieved on 18th November 2008) http://aznps.org/PDFs/PlantPress/PP30.1.pdf Pimentel, D, Lach, L, Zuniga R, & Morrison, D. (1999) Environmental and Economic Costs associated with Non-Indigenous Species in the United States College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca

E-waste Dumping - A Challenging Legal and Ethical Choice in Global Essay

E-waste Dumping - A Challenging Legal and Ethical Choice in Global Business - Essay Example This fast growing waste stream is accelerating because the global market for PCs is far from saturation and the average lifespan of a PC is decreasing rapidly - for instance for CPUs from 4-6 years in 1997 to 2 years in 2005 (Culver, 2005). PCs comprise only a fraction of all e-waste. It is estimated that in 2006 approximately 180 million mobile phones will be retired. Similar quantities of electronic waste are expected for all kinds of portable electronic devices such as PDAs, MP3 players, computer games and peripherals (O'Connell, 2002). A lot of this waste (approximately two thirds) ends up in Asian countries, mainly China and India. There this waste is dismantled by bare hands, by low paid workers. This is a very serious environmental and health hazard for those nations. This paper shall consider the ethical and legal aspect of e-waste dumping in different countries, mainly China. Unfortunately, largely for economic reasons, the developed world has used primarily one method of dealing with this crisis-exporting their e-waste to less developed countries that are unable or unwilling to protect their citizens from the resulting harm to the ecology or public health. The minute quantities of reusable minerals contained within these electronic products have value only in places with paltry wages and where health codes for their extraction are nonexistent or not enforced. As a result, studies estimate that 50% to 80% of all e-waste amassed for "recycling" are shipped abroad to countries such as China, India, and Pakistan. Researchers found that approximately 13 million computer systems were channeled to recyclers in the United States during 2002, suggesting that up to 10 million of these units moved offshore to parts of Asia. In response to the growing concern over how China will manage its increasing piles of waste electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste), central government departments have drafted a number of interrelated legislations. A national pilot program has also been initiated by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) to determine the most suitable model for a Chinese e-waste management system. Growing interest in the e-waste recycling business from the private sector is another indicator of the significant changes in store for China's largely unregulated and environmentally unsound e-waste processing industry. The rationale behind these legislative and market developments is clear, driven by factors such as the environmental and health impacts of e-waste recycling and disposal, and the incentive of complying with international environmental standards. Discussion America discards thousands of tons of e-waste annually. Most of this e-waste consists of computers and electronic items. Computers and electronic equipment contains toxins. The toxins in computers aren't harmful while the computer is intact. The problems start only after the computer is discarded and breaks apart, leeching its ingredients into the environment. In China, e-waste is becoming an important waste stream, both in terms of quantity and toxicity. E-waste refers to discarded appliances, such as televisions and refrigerators, as well as a variety of associated waste products, such as electrical wiring, printed wiring boards (PWBs),