The Unnatural Kingdom Response

Conservationists are using a number of methods to restore populations, tow of which are intense monitoring of the wildlife (prey and predator) in the area to protect humans, and another of controlling species allocation of those herd. They are both similar in that they monitor the herds of given population with the intent of increasing the populations of them, but differ in that the first one is a little more Laizzez-flaire by comparison. The second one goes to great lengths to manage the reproduction of the animals in the area, moving pregnant bighorns around and taking genetic samples of the animals present. The second one in my opinion while more extreme seems more likely to have success because of the comprehensive level of the manipulation of the herd. This is vitally important to the herds success as predators are heavily managed, and reproduction is controlled to ensure larger populations (hopefully resolving the issues), though this comes with a much greater resource and monetary cost.

Restored populations of bighorn sheep will have less genetic diversity than they did 200 years ago because they lost huge segments of their genetic diversity to disease and hunting. With their herds so heavily reduced there was little choice for reproduction, thus lowering the diversity (at least genetically) between each Bighorn sheep. However in an attempt to resolve this issue Conversationalist have attempted to increase the genetic diversity artificially by moving pregnant female sheep from one herd to another. This also leads to a new question, should these animals be considered wild? The dictionary defines wild as "(of an animal or plant) living or growing in the natural environment; not domesticated or cultivated" and by this definition of wild I can't say these new populations are "wild". They may live in the wood or isolated areas, but they do so without the true characteristic of a wild species. Everything about their lives is monitored, from their predators to reproduction. If a state existed like this for Humans (manly likely do) that controlled humans in the way these animals are controlled, almost Orwellian by description we would never consider that the natural affair of things. By this Logic we must not extend that title to animals either, though the ethical questions of the whether saving a species like this is right, and if a second rate solution to the fundamental conversationalists problem is better the a true resolution is remain up for debate.   

Link to initial Article http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/13/sunday-review/the-unnatural-kingdom.html?_r=1

Summation of Topic 1:Public Health

The summation of Ideas of Public Health section from the Executive Summary for the Pew Commission Report on Industrialized Farm Animal Production (IFAP) focues on the effects IFAP facilities have on the People working on and around them. The main prevailing idea is that due to the IFAP facilities focusing on higher yields and profits, over environmental and public health aa number of external costs emerged. These costs came in two forms direct effects, and indirect adverse effects. The direct effects caused by these facilities were seen in the people leaving/ working on or around one of there facilities. Workers or neighors of these areas that artile sugges had higher numbers of respiratory problems (due to the pollutant that entered the air from production), sickness caused runoff of nutiresnts/animal waste into local watersourses, and increased levels of sickness among workers and their families(due to low environmental regulations, and high exposure to animals). The artile suggest the indirect adverse effects are Long term  in nature, The artile focues on how over nutrification damages the environment deleciate ecoystem, and how overuse of antibiotics has led to antibiotic resistant bacteria (thats potential risk can’not be understated. The article surmises all these adverse effects together to suggest rightly that a focus on profits has led to enviromentally unsafe conditions, and continued use of this method without changing will only pose futher Health concerns to emerge.

Topic One Sumation of  Enormous Yield, Agriculture in the 20th Century, and Global Impact of the US IFAP Model

The Putting Meat on the Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America topic one article Initially  discuss what developments led to the IFAP facilities in the United States. the article suggest that what led to IFAP facilities what the increased use of technology in farming to get higher yields starting as early as the  1830 s with the invention of the Reaper plow. This along with the Green Revolution meant that by the 1970s farming was far more efficient, and produced far greater yields than the past years had ever seen. This efficiency and increased yields  coupled with the continual increasing demand caused by population growth led to the development of the IFAP facilities. These facilities meet the increaed demand but at the cost of the enviroment, and at a number of external costs that are no being fully understood. After discussing how they are developed the author turn to the problems with these facilities such as lower  biodiversity (caused by decades of inbreeding and artificial selection), bacterial resistance to antibiotics (caused by decades of exposing bacteria to low levels of antibiotics that leads to resistance), and environmental degradation (caused by low regulations, over nutrification, and high density, dirty farming conditions).  The author suggest that with these adverse effect especially environmental degradation that the you'll both of the last few decades could be reversed. Finally the author closes with explaining that while the IFAP facility model is increasing becoming the model other countires will uses (especially devolping countires which need to feed growing populaces) becuase of its high effieciency, high yield meat production. However the author suggest that while these benifits seem appealing the long terms effects are far worse, and would be better avoided if possiable. One sentence that summerizers this whole summary and the authors conclusion is “While industrial farm animal production has benefits, it brings with it growing concerns for public health, the environment, animal welfare, and impacts on rural communities”.

There are many possiable solutions to the problems produced by Industrial Farm Animal Production if fact  http://www.foodpolitics.com/2013/10/pew-commission-on-industrial-farm-animal-production-update/ suggests these six thing.

“Ban the nontherapeutic use of antimicrobials in food animal production.

Define nontherapeutic use of antimicrobials as any use in food animals in the absence of microbial disease or documented microbial disease exposure.

Implement new systems to deal with farm waste.

Phase out gestation crates, restrictive veal crates, and battery cages.

Enforce the existing environmental and anti-trust laws applicable to food animal production.

Expand animal agriculture research.”

However i belive the most important will be the 1st proposial. I beleive this as a stoping of nontherapeutic use of antimicrobials in food animal production wil help increase the amount of time it will take for us to enter the post-antiobiotic era ( to a time when a number of infectious diseases will be unresponsive to antibiotic treatments).By helping to stave the post antibiotic era off we will help avoid the possiable time by which we can protect oursleves from the emergence of the dieseases/plagues of old which killed millions, and if allowed to would kill millions in a world that had very little defense against it. While this dosen’t solve many of the other problems created by the IFAP facilities it does help stave of the mosy potentially dangerous (to Humans) of effects that have already began emergeing because of these facilities.   

(http://www.foodpolitics.com/2013/10/pew-commission-on-industrial-farm-animal-production-update/)

E.R.O.I and The Tar Sands Questions

1.)We should extract the tar sands first because it has a higher EROI than shale has (5 to 3 in a ratio form). We should also use tar sands on top of the higher EROI because that cheaper/more efficient energy source will help in the long run in switching towards renewable energy sources, chiefly because the more efficient energy source will benefit investors/the overall economy more.  

2.)One similarity between the process used to get oil from tar sands and the process used to get oil from oil shale is that both are initially heated tremendously to break up the materials the oil is attached to, so the oil can be extracted and further refined later. 

3.)One key difference between the process used to get oil from tar sands and the process used to get oil from oil shale is that tar sands oil requires the bitumen (a heavy form of oil) to be further "upgraded" before it can be refined, upgrading that involves "adding methane or hydrogen to the bitumen to create lighter oil" which can more easily be refined.

4.)In terms of EROI, the author believes "off-shore oil drilling may be a smart way to actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the long run" because it could drive away energy intensive business that would produce their products elsewhere, but this would be done less carbon efficient than if done in our economy. Another reason why off-shore drilling could help lower emission is that there is an energy demand that can'not easily be replaced by renewables quickly so fossil fuels will continue to be used regardless of our desire (the market demands it), and if we use less efficient fuel sources (lower EROI) like tar sands than we pay more in refining that material into a fuel source then we would otherwise spend in mining the more efficient off-shore sources.  

5.)One way in which EROI/BFP has affected me on an individual level is by explaining which homework assignments I do first. The best first principle means in most instances I will do the easiest more gratifying homework fist than work on the more labor intensive assignments, ex if I have to choose between writing an Essay, a short paragraph, and doing 3 math question (and i have to do all three) I will do the math first, and work towards the longer assignments last.