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75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

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Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#141

Post by dEnigma »

TheAdamAndChe wrote: post #40
aklemm wrote: post #4

Presumably this is similar here in the U.S.? In the 80's and 90's the fronts of our cars would get so encrusted with mashed bugs that it would take real scrubbing to get them off. I haven't had to do that in many years.

Vehicles are also a lot more aerodynamic. 5 years ago I had a Jeep Wrangler, which aerodynamically is like a box on wheels. In the summer, the grill and windshield got so many bugs on it that I worried about visibility problems. Now that I drive a Toyota Corolla, bugs are a nonissue.

Interesting, a user in another part of the thread also mentioned that he still has the bug problem with his Jeep. Seems like it could actually be a question of aerodynamics.

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#142

Post by spodek »

jackmodern wrote: post #116
spodek wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People here argue things like that if whole industries, laws, etc don't change then an individual's actions don't matter. I see it the opposite. Only if I change can I expect or hope anyone else will. My list includes: - Flying less - Driving less - Eating low on the food chain - Avoiding packaged food - Owning and acquiring less stuff ... things like that. My life has never been better. I wish I had started this cha…

to me this implies you don't travel or go out much. so what do you do for fun then?

It's one of the best decisions I've made. I have more adventure, culture, cuisine, and other values I used to get from travel, without the pollution and emissions.

I posted about it here -- https://www.inc.com/joshua-spodek/365-days-without-flying.ht..., although my views have continued to evolve since then -- and on my blog.

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#143

Post by SapphireSun »

earlyriser wrote: post #104
JamesBarney wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would think donating to pro environmental lobbying groups. You be surprised how little large corporations spend on lobbying to influence politicians.

I'm surprised by what you're saying about the small amount destined to lobbying. Do you have numbers about this?

In aggregate, it looks like it's a few billion per year.

https://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#144

Post by harshreality »

musage wrote: post #62
dawnerd wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I could barely mow my lawn last weekend. They just kept attacking me. Didn't even get to trim the edges because I was tired of being stung.

Maybe they're trying to tell you to stop mowing the lawn and start enjoying the meadow?

This might not apply to GP if they're not in an incorporated area, but in cities, the wasps should tell that to city councils, which tend to have established rules regarding height of lawns and weeds and such.

Good luck talking to them about it; you'll be labelled a green wacko one step removed from eco-fanatics who firebomb SUV dealerships. If you don't want or like proper suburban manicured lawns, maybe you shouldn't live around everyone else who does want them, would be their attitude.

Even if you dodge that hurdle by finding stuff that doesn't need mowing or edging, your neighbors are going to think you're crazy if your yard is all monkey grass or vines or cacti.

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#145

Post by DoodleBuggy »

jpm_sd wrote: post #24

This is pretty alarming and suggests that soaking agricultural land in insecticides might be having some far-reaching side effects.

Well, the intention of insecticides is to kill insects. All insects.

It's working, but perhaps a little too well?

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#146

Post by Amygaz »

sitkack wrote: post #124
Jach wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Go into crispr research or other biological engineering fields if you want to do something directly. Figure out how to make less toxic pesticides that are economically substitutable (break-even or only slightly more costly than existing ones) rather than demanding that they're banned entirely, or if you're satisfied those exist already, lobby for their use. I suspect that whatever preventable problems we face we're n…

I am going into crispr to make pesticide immune versions of all the bugs we currently have. Effect change where you can.

Basically, you're going to engineer new insects... I love it! I'm in! Can't wait to see the big chemical companies' faces when they see a poster on new breeds resistant to everything they have on the market or contemplating to put on the market.

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#147

Post by bryan11 »

nickbauman wrote: post #83

I live in Minneapolis. The city fumigates regularly in the summer by aircraft and ground-based methods both, which is why I can go running around the lakes in mid July and get maybe one mosquito bite. I think most US cities are like this. It's a policy that should be scrapped in spite of the risk of West Nile and Lyme Disease.

Every few weeks, many cities in Iowa drive trucks throughout the city fogging the neighborhoods with permethrin based pesticides. A popular choice is called MasterLine Kontrol 4-4.

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#148

Post by naasking »

smt88 wrote: post #85
kafkaesq wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So basically the planet is starting to treat us as a kind of a ... weed, in return.

The planet isn't conscious and can't "treat us" as anything. We are doing this to us. We are changing the environment to support short-term wants/needs at the expense of its human habitability in the future.

> The planet isn't conscious and can't "treat us" as anything.

Well, we don't really know what consciousness really is, so it's hard to say that the Earth isn't conscious. After all, who would have thought a complex network of simple neurons arranged in a particular way would be conscious?

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#149

Post by christophilus »

carbonmachine wrote: post #75

Being an earth dwelling human, this seems pretty bad. Aside from buying ammo or survival rations, what's something proactive that I can do? Is there an organization that is trying to rid the world of pesticides (assuming that's the cause)? If I opt to call my representatives, what am I calling in support of/against? Over the last year, reading the news had made me more passive and worried. I want to dedicate a slice…

I think supporting permaculture is a big step we can all take. Have a look at Ben Falk's YouTube videos for a quick intro, or Sepp Holzer. We need to move towards a form of agriculture which does active good for the planet. It's possible to do.

Edit: Also, a simple step: leave parts of your lawn unmowed for a full year. This gives insects and certain endangered birds much needed habitat in what is otherwise a wasteland of suburbian lawns.

Re: 75% decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

#150

Post by turk184 »

beambot wrote: post #98
carbonmachine wrote: post #75

Being an earth dwelling human, this seems pretty bad. Aside from buying ammo or survival rations, what's something proactive that I can do? Is there an organization that is trying to rid the world of pesticides (assuming that's the cause)? If I opt to call my representatives, what am I calling in support of/against? Over the last year, reading the news had made me more passive and worried. I want to dedicate a slice…

> I want to dedicate a slice of time to doing something to solve the problem Eat less meat (huge environmental impact!), bike more, don't consume as much non-local food, etc.

8+ Billion people and rising. That's all you really need to understand.
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