Since 2009, the Cambridge Conservation Initiative has coordinated a Annual Report Which aims to predict the threats, changes and technologies that will be most important in the following year in terms of biodiversity conservation. This year, the fifteenth report was prepared by 31 scientists, technicians and legislators Those who studied 96 points, chose the 15 points that they considered the most important.
A list of things to follow in the coming months
It was the document published In the journal “Trends in Evolution and Ecology” and includes related issues Renewable energyto retreat Groups of invertebrates And changes in Marine ecosystemsand identified these elements as the most important elements in 2024:
– New sourceshydrogen For energy production, including electrolysis of seawater.
– Sustainable production of ammonia Fertilizers I irritable Using tiny droplets of water, graphite and nitrogen.
– Food production For people and animals with nutrients similar to those found in fish but with autotrophic bacteria.
– Indoor urban agriculture using artificial photosynthesis without the need for light.
– Excessive use of rock dust to remineralize and deposit large amounts of carbon Endangered ecosystems From pollution with heavy metals.
Earthworm populations will continue setbackEspecially in agricultural and forest areas, perhaps due to pesticides.
– Soil acoustic echocan help monitor their environment and invertebrate populations.
– Forest fires will change Climate patterns Aerosol release.
– the DNA printers They will be more advanced.
– New methods of evaluation will emerge Poisoning of the chemical before its effects appear.
The “sustainable” skyscraper city planned by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will affect… Migratory birds.
– Sea urchins will continue to die off en masse around the world, possibly due to A Pathogensendangering tropical ecosystems.
– Methods Carbon dioxide removal Oceans such as fertilization, macroalgae and rock injection.
The increase in temperatures in the mesopelagic sea region will cause changes in… Biological carbon bomb.
Melting ice in Antarctica will change currents Ocean depthsreducing abyssal circulation by 40% by 2050.
The impact of human activity and the hope of new technologies
According to the study's authors, all of this still shows overlap Human impacts In biodiversity and technological capabilities Alleviate it, which got bigger and bigger. However, sometimes they appear New problems As a direct result of efforts to alleviate legacy problems.
Among the problems identified, there are also some problems that have been identified Common topics, such as threats to marine ecosystems. In this sense, the authors point out how important legislative initiatives at sea are when dealing with these risks. But at the same time, they also point out that these efforts will not help solve the climate-related problems that have been identified.
Finally, they also highlight The importance of innovation In creating and improving new sources of energy as well as carbon capture.
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