Javan rhino 'now extinct in Vietnam'

            The Javan Rhino is now extinct in Vietnam according to a conservation group. Genetic analysis of rhino droppings from the last two years have all been from one rhino. This last known rhino was recently found in Vietnam killed with its horn removed by poachers. The desire for rhino horns has greatly increased in the last decade which led to a dramatic decrease in population of many species of rhino. There were originally three species of rhino found in Java. Out of the three, the Javan Rhino is now the last surviving species of rhino in the area. The other two have become extinct do to poaching. They are currently listed as critically endangered because there are fewer than fifty individuals left in the species. The majority of these rhinos are in the Ujung Kulon National Park on Java. However, there habitat is being degraded by an invasive species of palm trees. The survival of this species is now dependant on the control of this invasive palm tree.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15430787

Climate change 'grave threat' to security and health

            According to an expert conference in London, climate change is most likely going to cause many problems to arise. These conflicts are expected to affect poor countries in the tropics much more because they are important areas to trades with. Large countries such as the US and China are dependent on many resources from these areas also. The cost of fuel and energy will go up greatly. Without fuel, food shortages will begin to happen and lead to mass migration and civil wars over resources. In the article, it even says that large companies such as Starbucks are worried that climate change will ruin their business. Starbucks said last week that climate change could threaten the world’s coffee supply in 20-30 years. These conflicts will be brought up in the annual UN climate conference in about 6 weeks.

            Climate change may also cause many health problems. Mostly in developing countries, hunger and malnutrition would probably increase. This would also cause an increase in infectious diseases in these areas. Reducing carbon emissions would bring about many health benefits however. For example, in would greatly improve air quality. It would also decrease the amounts of preventable deaths.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15342682

Antarctic lake mission targets life and climate signs

            British scientists plan to drill through 3 km of ice to take samples from Lake Ellsworth which is in the Antarctic Circle. They will use a hot water drill to reach the lake which has been isolated for about 125,000 years. One goal of this project is to find unknown life in the lake and discover new species. Even if no life is found, it will still provide information about the conditions in which life can not exist. Another goal is to find clues of how future climate conditions may impact the ice sheet. This is important because this ice sheet has enough ice to raise global sea levels by at least 10 feet. Scientists can determine how much the ice has melted in the past during certain climate conditions to predict the effects on it in the future. Lastly, the final goal is to design a mission to use to find life on other planets with similar conditions. On Jupiter's moon Europa, there is a thick layer of ice which is believed to be on top of a liquid ocean.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15245594

Arctic ozone loss at record level

            The ozone layer in the Arctic has hit a record loss. Scientists say that at 20km above the surface, 80% of the ozone has been lost. The cause of this is the unusually long cold weather conditions. The Arctic was cold from December to April which has never happened before. When it is cold the chemicals that eat away at the ozone tend to be most active. These chemicals are from the use of CFC’s. Although they have been banned since 1987, they have remained in the atmosphere for decades and are degrading very slowly. Scientists say that it is unknown why the weather was cold for so long and that it will take a lot of research to figure out. The decrease in ozone could increase the risk of skin cancer because of the increased UVB rays reaching Earth’s surface. I believe that this is another effect of climate change. People are continuously contributing to climate change and possibly making it colder. This may be causing the increase ozone depletion.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15105747