The Sixth Extinction: Chapter 7

In this chapter, Kolbert visits One Tree Island, just south of Australia, the island features the Great Barrier Reef. The phenomenon was discovered by Captain James Cook in 1770 at the time they didn’t understand the complexity of what they had just discovered. Humans began to uncover the mystery of reefs after Charles Darwin visited one in Tahiti and studied it. He discovered that it was a complex structure that had been submerged in water. This led to the conclusion that the reefs are composed of various factors that include animals, plants, and minerals. Interestingly, over time reefs are meant to expand, but due to many issues caused by carbon dioxide, reefs are dying off. This is happening to such an extent that it’s predicted that even the Great Barrier Reef will soon die off. The danger of carbon dioxide wasn’t always clear, in reality, scientists realized in the 1980s after the Biosphere Project. The project was a structure designed to be a self-sustaining ecosystem, throughout the project, there was a concern that many of the people inhabiting the structure became sick due to the excessive amount of carbon dioxide. The understanding of the danger that carbon dioxide yields led to scientists testing their original hypothesis that coral reefs could sustain any environmental changes, at the end they realized that carbon is one of coral reefs biggest threats. At this time the reefs face various threats including carbon dioxide, fishing, and pollution. These factors are limiting the reefs from growth which Kolbert witnesses during the reproduction season of the reef when eggs are being wiped out due to the acidity of the water. 

This chapter goes to show the strong impact humanity has had on the planet as it has even hurt ecosystem far from their reach. As Kolbert explains, “Prior to the industrial revolution, all of the world’s major reefs could be found in water at an aragonite saturation state between four and five.” This means that as humanity has developed into a more advanced species, it has been destroying the habitat of others. The question remaining is if there’s a way to develop humanity without harming any ecosystems.