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Online horticultural advice from expert gardener and environmentalist Don Gordon

Don Gordon is professor emeritus of botany at Minnesota State University. Send questions concerning horticulture or the environment with a stamped self-addressed envelope to him at 52794 Deerwood Trail, North Mankato, MN 56003 or e-mail to osokato@aol.com. Professor Gordon is author of Growing Fruit in the Upper Midwest. (Many thanks to the Mankato Area Environmentalists for the use of their Web space.)

The State of the World 2003

(February 26, 2003)

E. O. Wilson, Pulitzer Prize winner, believes State of the World 2003 is "the most comprehensive... up-to-date, and accessible" publication dealing with the world environment and I couldn't agree more. It is a publication I have chronicled both in the classroom and in this column for the last 20 years.

The annual installments of State of the World are the most widely read environmental publications in the world and are recommended reading for everyone. These publications provide both a barometer of the current state of the environment and a challenge for mobilizing government, business and individuals to construct economies that are healthy for both people and the environment. In 2003, there is some environmental bad news and some good news. Lets look at some examples.

Without stratospheric ozone to protect us from harmful ultraviolet rays, all plant and animal life on this planet would cease. Thus, reducing use of ozone destroying chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) has been an environmental priority. These chemicals, which are linked to increases in skin cancers, cataracts in some wild animal populations and damage to plant growth, are still reason for concern, but their worldwide use has declined significantly. During the 1990s production of CFCs declined 81 percent. This reduction has significantly slowed the growth of the Antarctic ozone hole and in time researchers have hopes that the hole will close.

Years ago miners carried canaries into mine shafts to warn of impending disaster. Today, scientists are once again using birds as a barometer of environmental health. Worldwide there are approximately 9800 bird species and their numbers have been dwindling at an alarming rate. In the past 500 years 128 species have been lost to extinction; 103 of these have been lost since 1800. Loss of bird species is just part of the biggest wave of plant and animal extinction's since the loss of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.

Identifying the reasons for the decline is not difficult. Habitat loss, diseases, manmade distress, the spread of exotic plant and animal species, hunting, illegal trade pesticides, power lines, skyscrapers and temperature change all contribute to bird losses.

The authors of State of the world 2003 believe biodiversity protection must be given priority between both urban and rural development priorities as part of a sustainable use strategy. At least half of the world's biodiversity is in the tropical forests of the less developed world, and if current rates of deforestation continue, most of the tropical forest could be gone in a mere 50 years.

There is good news regarding world population. Growth is finally starting to slow down. The 6.1 billion current population looks like it is finally going to stop doubling. Some demographers estimate that the population could level off at 9 billion by mid-century. The World Bank differs, projecting that global population will stabilize between 9 and 10 billion by the end of the century.

[Correction: The United Nations has revised its forecast for world population at mid-century. It now estimates there will be 480 million fewer people than the 9 billion originally forecasted because of the impact of AIDS. In seven African nations, one out of every five people is now infected with HIV.]

There is also bad news regarding world population. At present, 1.1 billion lack access to clean water and sanitary sewage facilities. In lesser-developed countries 90-95 percent of the sewage and 70 percent of industrial waste is dumped untreated into surface water contaminating it for drinking.

Everyday 160,000 people in the poorest countries of the world migrate from rural areas to urban cities and towns. Without access to jobs, adequate housing, safe water, sewage disposal and education these migrants have little choice but to eke out Darwinian survival in hastily constructed shantytowns or inner-city slums. Life in these kinds of environments can be short. Each day over 5,500 children die from diseases linked to polluted food, air, and water.

Worldwide, there are over 1 billion people who are unable to afford "formal" dwellings and their numbers are only expected to swell. For these refugees and dwindling biodiversity including those canaries, stabilizing population growth can't come soon enough.

Here is a final bit of good news. Organic farming is now the fastest growing sector of the world agricultural economy, and the authors of State of the World believe it has "the potential to rejuvenate rural communities from the Philippines to Sweden."

All articles © Don Gordon 2003. For information about reprints, copies, or use of the material, contact Don Gordon, 52794 Deerwood Trail, North Mankato, MN 56003 or e-mail to osokato@aol.com.