Texas Drought May Have Killed 500 Million Trees
Forests are among the most long-established habitats on the planet, forming their delicately balanced ecosystems over centuries -- and a new study in light of Texas's ongoing drought proves how quickly they can be decimated. According to the Texas Forest Service, as many as 500 million trees in the state -- roughly 10 percent of the forests there -- have been killed within the last year alone as a result of 2011's bizarre lack of rainfall. To make matters worse, the massive die-off may just be the first in a long line as climatologists predict more severe drought to come as climate change worsens over the next century.
Forestry officials recently surveyed trees throughout 63 million acres of drought-riddled Texas and say what they found that months of record heat and stiflingly arid conditioned have left anywhere between 100 million to as many as half-a-billion trees dead. Texas Forestry Service directory Tom Boggus calls the findings "very shocking", adding that they've witnessed "a significant change in the landscape."
According to the American-Statesmen, the loss of plant-life in Texas due to the drought may be worse yet. The study did not factor in the millions of trees that perished due to drought-related wildfires, which, in 2011, were particularly damaging.
The survey is based on the collective reports of local forestry professionals who were asked to measure the drought's toll in their areas.
They were asked to focus only on trees that had died from the 2011 drought and exclude "background mortality" from earlier droughts or drought-aided diseases, such as oak wilt.
Only trees of 5 inches or more in diameter, the point at which saplings become trees, were counted.
While it may be too soon to tell what role climate change has had on this tree-killing drought, it already has surpassed previous records; experts say that the dry-spell is the worst to hit Texas since rainfall data was first collected in 1895. Climatologists have already warned of a lack of rainfall associated with the global warming phenomena, but perhaps never before has the scale of a damage that results been measured so close to home.
In light of the Forest Service's survey, and the economic hit suffered by Texas's lumber industry from the undeniably abnormal drought, state officials may have no other choice but to address climate change as a reality.
http://www.treehugger.com/climate-change/texas-drought-may-have-killed-500-million-trees.html
Showing posts with label trees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label trees. Show all posts
Friday, December 23, 2011
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
How 'bioluminescent' trees that glow like fireflies could one day replace our streetlights
By Niall Firth
Scientists are developing ways of making trees glow so they can be used as natural streetlights without the need for electricity.
A team of researchers are experimenting with genes to allow the trait that causes fireflies to glow -bioluminescence - to be implanted into a variety of different organisms.
As well as replacing traditional streetlights, bioluminescent plants would be useful for people who are not hooked up to the electricity grid.
And if more lights were ever required, they could simply be grown.
The scientists at Cambridge University used genes from fireflies and a special form of glowing sea bacteria to create ‘BioBricks’ – genetic building blocks that can be inserted into a genome.
After inserting the modified genes into a sample of e-coli bacteria they were able to produce a range of colours – and created a living light that was bright enough to read by.
The scientists created the glowing effect by creating a substance known as oxyluciferin which is naturally in a high-energy state at first. However it quickly settles into a more stable, lower-energy state, and when it does so it emits a single photon of light.
Geneticist Theo Sanderson, one of the members of the team, told New Scientist: ‘We didn't end up making bioluminescent trees, which was the inspiration for the project.
‘But we decided to make a set of parts that would allow future researchers to use bioluminescence more effectively.’
The research was presented at the annual International Genetically Engineered Machines competition (iGEM), held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The technology could even be used to make glowing signs that do not need to be wired up
The team say that there is huge commercial potential in replacing the street with natural bioluminescent systems.
The idea is also extremely environmentally friendly as no electricity would be required and the process which produces the photons of light is extremely energy-efficient.
The scientists have also considered the possibility that the fuel to fire the chemical reaction in the trees could come from human waste or food waste.
And if the plant species used was a form of algae then energy could be harnessed from sunlight.
The team say on their website: ‘We might imagine a system where a bioreactor in the roof of a house - supplied with leftover foodstuffs - could pipe glowing algae through the rooms of the house during the night and across the roof during the day.’
In separate research, Taiwanese scientists have found that inserting gold nanoparticles into the leaves of trees helped the chlorophyll to glow red.
Under ultraviolet light the nanoparticles glowed with blue light, causing the surrounding chlorophyll to glow red.
Scientists are developing ways of making trees glow so they can be used as natural streetlights without the need for electricity.
A team of researchers are experimenting with genes to allow the trait that causes fireflies to glow -bioluminescence - to be implanted into a variety of different organisms.
As well as replacing traditional streetlights, bioluminescent plants would be useful for people who are not hooked up to the electricity grid.
And if more lights were ever required, they could simply be grown.
The scientists at Cambridge University used genes from fireflies and a special form of glowing sea bacteria to create ‘BioBricks’ – genetic building blocks that can be inserted into a genome.
After inserting the modified genes into a sample of e-coli bacteria they were able to produce a range of colours – and created a living light that was bright enough to read by.
The scientists created the glowing effect by creating a substance known as oxyluciferin which is naturally in a high-energy state at first. However it quickly settles into a more stable, lower-energy state, and when it does so it emits a single photon of light.
Geneticist Theo Sanderson, one of the members of the team, told New Scientist: ‘We didn't end up making bioluminescent trees, which was the inspiration for the project.
‘But we decided to make a set of parts that would allow future researchers to use bioluminescence more effectively.’
The research was presented at the annual International Genetically Engineered Machines competition (iGEM), held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The technology could even be used to make glowing signs that do not need to be wired up
The team say that there is huge commercial potential in replacing the street with natural bioluminescent systems.
The idea is also extremely environmentally friendly as no electricity would be required and the process which produces the photons of light is extremely energy-efficient.
The scientists have also considered the possibility that the fuel to fire the chemical reaction in the trees could come from human waste or food waste.
And if the plant species used was a form of algae then energy could be harnessed from sunlight.
The team say on their website: ‘We might imagine a system where a bioreactor in the roof of a house - supplied with leftover foodstuffs - could pipe glowing algae through the rooms of the house during the night and across the roof during the day.’
In separate research, Taiwanese scientists have found that inserting gold nanoparticles into the leaves of trees helped the chlorophyll to glow red.
Under ultraviolet light the nanoparticles glowed with blue light, causing the surrounding chlorophyll to glow red.
How 'bioluminescent' trees that glow like fireflies could one day replace our streetlights
By Niall Firth
Scientists are developing ways of making trees glow so they can be used as natural streetlights without the need for electricity.
A team of researchers are experimenting with genes to allow the trait that causes fireflies to glow -bioluminescence - to be implanted into a variety of different organisms.
As well as replacing traditional streetlights, bioluminescent plants would be useful for people who are not hooked up to the electricity grid.
And if more lights were ever required, they could simply be grown.
The scientists at Cambridge University used genes from fireflies and a special form of glowing sea bacteria to create ‘BioBricks’ – genetic building blocks that can be inserted into a genome.
After inserting the modified genes into a sample of e-coli bacteria they were able to produce a range of colours – and created a living light that was bright enough to read by.
The scientists created the glowing effect by creating a substance known as oxyluciferin which is naturally in a high-energy state at first. However it quickly settles into a more stable, lower-energy state, and when it does so it emits a single photon of light.
Geneticist Theo Sanderson, one of the members of the team, told New Scientist: ‘We didn't end up making bioluminescent trees, which was the inspiration for the project.
‘But we decided to make a set of parts that would allow future researchers to use bioluminescence more effectively.’
The research was presented at the annual International Genetically Engineered Machines competition (iGEM), held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The technology could even be used to make glowing signs that do not need to be wired up
The team say that there is huge commercial potential in replacing the street with natural bioluminescent systems.
The idea is also extremely environmentally friendly as no electricity would be required and the process which produces the photons of light is extremely energy-efficient.
The scientists have also considered the possibility that the fuel to fire the chemical reaction in the trees could come from human waste or food waste.
And if the plant species used was a form of algae then energy could be harnessed from sunlight.
The team say on their website: ‘We might imagine a system where a bioreactor in the roof of a house - supplied with leftover foodstuffs - could pipe glowing algae through the rooms of the house during the night and across the roof during the day.’
In separate research, Taiwanese scientists have found that inserting gold nanoparticles into the leaves of trees helped the chlorophyll to glow red.
Under ultraviolet light the nanoparticles glowed with blue light, causing the surrounding chlorophyll to glow red.
Scientists are developing ways of making trees glow so they can be used as natural streetlights without the need for electricity.
A team of researchers are experimenting with genes to allow the trait that causes fireflies to glow -bioluminescence - to be implanted into a variety of different organisms.
As well as replacing traditional streetlights, bioluminescent plants would be useful for people who are not hooked up to the electricity grid.
And if more lights were ever required, they could simply be grown.
The scientists at Cambridge University used genes from fireflies and a special form of glowing sea bacteria to create ‘BioBricks’ – genetic building blocks that can be inserted into a genome.
After inserting the modified genes into a sample of e-coli bacteria they were able to produce a range of colours – and created a living light that was bright enough to read by.
The scientists created the glowing effect by creating a substance known as oxyluciferin which is naturally in a high-energy state at first. However it quickly settles into a more stable, lower-energy state, and when it does so it emits a single photon of light.
Geneticist Theo Sanderson, one of the members of the team, told New Scientist: ‘We didn't end up making bioluminescent trees, which was the inspiration for the project.
‘But we decided to make a set of parts that would allow future researchers to use bioluminescence more effectively.’
The research was presented at the annual International Genetically Engineered Machines competition (iGEM), held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The technology could even be used to make glowing signs that do not need to be wired up
The team say that there is huge commercial potential in replacing the street with natural bioluminescent systems.
The idea is also extremely environmentally friendly as no electricity would be required and the process which produces the photons of light is extremely energy-efficient.
The scientists have also considered the possibility that the fuel to fire the chemical reaction in the trees could come from human waste or food waste.
And if the plant species used was a form of algae then energy could be harnessed from sunlight.
The team say on their website: ‘We might imagine a system where a bioreactor in the roof of a house - supplied with leftover foodstuffs - could pipe glowing algae through the rooms of the house during the night and across the roof during the day.’
In separate research, Taiwanese scientists have found that inserting gold nanoparticles into the leaves of trees helped the chlorophyll to glow red.
Under ultraviolet light the nanoparticles glowed with blue light, causing the surrounding chlorophyll to glow red.
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