Sign up here to get this newsletter delivered to your inbox every Thursday. This week:
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife Name different heat waves? ‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife
(Jeremy Price) An emerging form of research is yielding fascinating insights into the effects of human noise pollution on the natural world. One example is a project by then-University of Manitoba PhD student Patricia Rosa, who distributed speaker systems across a large patch of rolling prairie outside the town of Brooks, Alta. hotbed of the oil and gas industry. From 2013 to 2015, the speakers blasted a range of sounds produced by a working oil well — from the constant hum of a submersible pump socket to the short, sharp bursts of tapping pipes. The speakers ran around the clock for months at a time to create an industrial soundscape that overlaps the breeding season of several species of endangered grassland songbirds. Published last October, Rosa’s work found that noise pollution from the oil and gas industry, especially loud drilling sounds, reduced the abundance and reproductive success of many bird species (such as the savannah sparrow, above). Now professor of biology at the University of St. The effects of noise can be difficult to separate from a range of other disturbances in nature because noise “penetrates habitats”, said Graeme Shannon, a lecturer in animal behavior at Bangor University in Wales. “There is no limit to noise, as such. It doesn’t end where the road ends,” he said. “It’s a very pernicious form of pollution.” Landscape sound experiments, such as Rosa’s, attempt to clarify the role of noise over large areas of land. Early research on noise pollution focused on human health, Shannon said, and found links between noise exposure and health effects ranging from cardiovascular disease to sleep deprivation to cognitive function. Sometime in the early 2000s, he said, the scope changed to include wildlife. The studies that followed were small and focused on one species at a time—or one behavior. However, recent work zooms in to capture the bigger picture. “We needed more controlled experiments that looked at the effects of chronic noise exposure across the landscape,” he said. Large experiments allow researchers to capture the “full complexity of the system,” said Boise State University biology professor Jesse Barber. In his her own research, Barber’s grand sound experiments include an “imaginary road” built through the woods of Idaho. The installation replicated freeway noise by playing recorded traffic sounds through a series of speakers mounted on towering Douglas fir trees. “We were building a highway — headphones,” Barber said. Even without the traffic stop or tarmac, many migratory bird species were trying to put on weight or were forced to avoid the area altogether. The negative effects on birds don’t stop there, said Clinton Francis, a professor of ecology at California State University. “[Sound] it affects their overall reproductive success, it affects stress hormone profiles, it changes patterns of predator pressure, it changes patterns of seed dispersal and pollination by hummingbirds,” he said. With so many well-documented harms, Francis and others have recently approached the issue in reverse—how does exposure to natural sound benefit human health? In a study Held in the redwood forests of Muir Woods National Monument north of San Francisco, hikers said they enjoyed the park more when signage reminded other visitors to keep their sound to a minimum — and allow the natural soundscape to ring out more clearly. This ability to limit human sound without the need for costly or technical intervention, Shannon said, is something of a silver bullet when it comes to noise pollution. “The great thing about noise,” he said, “is you can turn it off.” — Benjamin Andrews
Reader comments
James Foley: “I just read the article on floating solar installations and their lack of use in Canada. When reading about the land use that solar energy takes up, I am constantly amazed at the most obvious location to put solar installations. Across the country there are large tracts of clear land that run through cities designed for the sole purpose of transporting electricity. Waterways are everywhere, with a large 100m zone of clear space directly below them. Area brushed regularly to keep vegetation down. One would think that lining these spaces with solar panels is not strange at all. Obviously this is not the case as there are no panels on them. The space is there, the infrastructure is there. One just has to put two and two together.”
Back issues of What on Earth? it’s right here.
CBC News recently launched a dedicated climate page, which you can find here here. Also, check out our radio show and podcast. Swamp creatures, city dwellers. They’re polar opposites, but on this week’s show, they find common ground as both are key players in finding solutions to fix a warming planet. What the heck now airs on Sundays at 11am. ET, at 11:30 a.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador. Subscribe to your favorite podcast app or listen on demand at CBC Listen.
The Big Picture: The Heat Wave Naming Debate
As record heat waves sweep across North America and Europe, a new international project is experimenting with naming them to raise public awareness of their severity. The Adrienne Arsht Rockefeller Foundation’s Center for Resilience, a Washington, D.C.-based group that studies climate resilience, is running a pilot program to see if a naming system for heat waves will affect public perception—and actions— in periods of intense heat. “Heat, unlike other natural disasters, is silent and often unseen. Therefore, it is extremely important to raise awareness about what heat can do because it is actually one of the deadliest natural disasters that we’re dealing with,” said Kurt Shickman, director of extreme heat initiatives at the center. The program launched in six cities, including Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee and Kansas City, Mo., as well as Seville, Spain, and Athens, Greece. In July, Seville (pictured below) was the first city in the world to name a heat wave, calling it Zoe, according to Shickman. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a United Nations agency, said it supports the classification of heat waves, but is not sure how scientifically naming them works. The WMO also questioned whether the system could cause public confusion. In Canada, some researchers agree with the WMO and are skeptical of how a naming system will communicate the severity of heat waves. “I’m really, really against it. I think hearing, you know, that heat wave Zoe or Joey is going to come your way — it doesn’t really strike fear into my heart,” said climatologist David Phillips, a long-time researcher with the Environment Canada, who shared his personal view with the CBC. He also pointed out that the reason a naming system was developed for tropical storms was for clear communication. Multiple storms may be occurring in close proximity or have the potential to collide. Heat waves are also difficult to define and measure, Phillips said. “In a tropical storm, one element decides whether it’s going to be a tropical storm or a Category 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 hurricane — it’s the sustained wind. It’s scientific, it’s measured,” Phillips said. But with heat waves, “I think there are so many weather elements that make it up.” — Sarah Willicraft (Jorge Guerrero/AFP via Getty Images)
Hot and bothered: provocative ideas from around the web
A new study suggests that by mid-century, there will be an “extreme heat zone” in the US between Texas and Illinois, where the heat index will reach 51 C (125 F) at least once a year. This week, US President Joe Biden signed a climate bill into law. Given the country’s spending power and influence, it should have a major impact on global climate action. Activists say the US Senate could build on that success for the ratification of the Kigali Agreement, a global pact to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (which are potent greenhouse gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning). Researchers say this move alone could avoid up to half a degree Celsius of global warming by 2050.
‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
(Submitted by Glen Dennison) Every time he takes to the waters in Howe Sound outside West Vancouver, Glen Dennison worries about the health of the prehistoric creatures he finds nearby. “I discovered them — so, you know, right away, they’re my kids,” Dennison said with a laugh in his little boat, referring to the rare glass sponges below. Denison was writing a book about diving in Howe Sound in 1984 when he made a breakthrough discovery of giant glass reef sponges. They look like something from another world, with beige and brown tubes gently entwining like fish darts between them. Although individual glass sponges are not uncommon, scientists believed that their reefs – also known as bioherms – had disappeared 40 million years ago. “When I saw it, I was completely stunned. I didn’t understand what I was seeing,” Dennison said. “It is nature’s own work of art.” These sponges are not only rare, but scientists say they contribute to the health of Howe Sound. “They filter the water, about every 90 days,” Dennison said. “It’s bacteria…
title: “Sound Experiments Document The Devastating Effects Of Noise Pollution On Wildlife Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-10-29” author: “Robert Alarcon”
Sign up here to get this newsletter delivered to your inbox every Thursday. This week:
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife Name different heat waves? ‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife
(Jeremy Price) An emerging form of research is yielding fascinating insights into the effects of human noise pollution on the natural world. One example is a project by then-University of Manitoba PhD student Patricia Rosa, who distributed speaker systems across a large patch of rolling prairie outside the town of Brooks, Alta. hotbed of the oil and gas industry. From 2013 to 2015, the speakers blasted a range of sounds produced by a working oil well — from the constant hum of a submersible pump socket to the short, sharp bursts of tapping pipes. The speakers ran around the clock for months at a time to create an industrial soundscape that overlaps the breeding season of several species of endangered grassland songbirds. Published last October, Rosa’s work found that noise pollution from the oil and gas industry, especially loud drilling sounds, reduced the abundance and reproductive success of many bird species (such as the savannah sparrow, above). Now professor of biology at the University of St. The effects of noise can be difficult to separate from a range of other disturbances in nature because noise “penetrates habitats”, said Graeme Shannon, a lecturer in animal behavior at Bangor University in Wales. “There is no limit to noise, as such. It doesn’t end where the road ends,” he said. “It’s a very pernicious form of pollution.” Landscape sound experiments, such as Rosa’s, attempt to clarify the role of noise over large areas of land. Early research on noise pollution focused on human health, Shannon said, and found links between noise exposure and health effects ranging from cardiovascular disease to sleep deprivation to cognitive function. Sometime in the early 2000s, he said, the scope changed to include wildlife. The studies that followed were small and focused on one species at a time—or one behavior. However, recent work zooms in to capture the bigger picture. “We needed more controlled experiments that looked at the effects of chronic noise exposure across the landscape,” he said. Large experiments allow researchers to capture the “full complexity of the system,” said Boise State University biology professor Jesse Barber. In his her own research, Barber’s grand sound experiments include an “imaginary road” built through the woods of Idaho. The installation replicated freeway noise by playing recorded traffic sounds through a series of speakers mounted on towering Douglas fir trees. “We were building a highway — headphones,” Barber said. Even without the traffic stop or tarmac, many migratory bird species were trying to put on weight or were forced to avoid the area altogether. The negative effects on birds don’t stop there, said Clinton Francis, a professor of ecology at California State University. “[Sound] it affects their overall reproductive success, it affects stress hormone profiles, it changes patterns of predator pressure, it changes patterns of seed dispersal and pollination by hummingbirds,” he said. With so many well-documented harms, Francis and others have recently approached the issue in reverse—how does exposure to natural sound benefit human health? In a study Held in the redwood forests of Muir Woods National Monument north of San Francisco, hikers said they enjoyed the park more when signage reminded other visitors to keep their sound to a minimum — and allow the natural soundscape to ring out more clearly. This ability to limit human sound without the need for costly or technical intervention, Shannon said, is something of a silver bullet when it comes to noise pollution. “The great thing about noise,” he said, “is you can turn it off.” — Benjamin Andrews
Reader comments
James Foley: “I just read the article on floating solar installations and their lack of use in Canada. When reading about the land use that solar energy takes up, I am constantly amazed at the most obvious location to put solar installations. Across the country there are large tracts of clear land that run through cities designed for the sole purpose of transporting electricity. Waterways are everywhere, with a large 100m zone of clear space directly below them. Area brushed regularly to keep vegetation down. One would think that lining these spaces with solar panels is not strange at all. Obviously this is not the case as there are no panels on them. The space is there, the infrastructure is there. One just has to put two and two together.”
Back issues of What on Earth? it’s right here.
CBC News recently launched a dedicated climate page, which you can find here here. Also, check out our radio show and podcast. Swamp creatures, city dwellers. They’re polar opposites, but on this week’s show, they find common ground as both are key players in finding solutions to fix a warming planet. What the heck now airs on Sundays at 11am. ET, at 11:30 a.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador. Subscribe to your favorite podcast app or listen on demand at CBC Listen.
The Big Picture: The Heat Wave Naming Debate
As record heat waves sweep across North America and Europe, a new international project is experimenting with naming them to raise public awareness of their severity. The Adrienne Arsht Rockefeller Foundation’s Center for Resilience, a Washington, D.C.-based group that studies climate resilience, is running a pilot program to see if a naming system for heat waves will affect public perception—and actions— in periods of intense heat. “Heat, unlike other natural disasters, is silent and often unseen. Therefore, it is extremely important to raise awareness about what heat can do because it is actually one of the deadliest natural disasters that we’re dealing with,” said Kurt Shickman, director of extreme heat initiatives at the center. The program launched in six cities, including Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee and Kansas City, Mo., as well as Seville, Spain, and Athens, Greece. In July, Seville (pictured below) was the first city in the world to name a heat wave, calling it Zoe, according to Shickman. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a United Nations agency, said it supports the classification of heat waves, but is not sure how scientifically naming them works. The WMO also questioned whether the system could cause public confusion. In Canada, some researchers agree with the WMO and are skeptical of how a naming system will communicate the severity of heat waves. “I’m really, really against it. I think hearing, you know, that heat wave Zoe or Joey is going to come your way — it doesn’t really strike fear into my heart,” said climatologist David Phillips, a long-time researcher with the Environment Canada, who shared his personal view with the CBC. He also pointed out that the reason a naming system was developed for tropical storms was for clear communication. Multiple storms may be occurring in close proximity or have the potential to collide. Heat waves are also difficult to define and measure, Phillips said. “In a tropical storm, one element decides whether it’s going to be a tropical storm or a Category 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 hurricane — it’s the sustained wind. It’s scientific, it’s measured,” Phillips said. But with heat waves, “I think there are so many weather elements that make it up.” — Sarah Willicraft (Jorge Guerrero/AFP via Getty Images)
Hot and bothered: provocative ideas from around the web
A new study suggests that by mid-century, there will be an “extreme heat zone” in the US between Texas and Illinois, where the heat index will reach 51 C (125 F) at least once a year. This week, US President Joe Biden signed a climate bill into law. Given the country’s spending power and influence, it should have a major impact on global climate action. Activists say the US Senate could build on that success for the ratification of the Kigali Agreement, a global pact to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (which are potent greenhouse gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning). Researchers say this move alone could avoid up to half a degree Celsius of global warming by 2050.
‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
(Submitted by Glen Dennison) Every time he takes to the waters in Howe Sound outside West Vancouver, Glen Dennison worries about the health of the prehistoric creatures he finds nearby. “I discovered them — so, you know, right away, they’re my kids,” Dennison said with a laugh in his little boat, referring to the rare glass sponges below. Denison was writing a book about diving in Howe Sound in 1984 when he made a breakthrough discovery of giant glass reef sponges. They look like something from another world, with beige and brown tubes gently entwining like fish darts between them. Although individual glass sponges are not uncommon, scientists believed that their reefs – also known as bioherms – had disappeared 40 million years ago. “When I saw it, I was completely stunned. I didn’t understand what I was seeing,” Dennison said. “It is nature’s own work of art.” These sponges are not only rare, but scientists say they contribute to the health of Howe Sound. “They filter the water, about every 90 days,” Dennison said. “It’s bacteria…
title: “Sound Experiments Document The Devastating Effects Of Noise Pollution On Wildlife Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-10-29” author: “Anne Andrada”
Sign up here to get this newsletter delivered to your inbox every Thursday. This week:
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife Name different heat waves? ‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife
(Jeremy Price) An emerging form of research is yielding fascinating insights into the effects of human noise pollution on the natural world. One example is a project by then-University of Manitoba PhD student Patricia Rosa, who distributed speaker systems across a large patch of rolling prairie outside the town of Brooks, Alta. hotbed of the oil and gas industry. From 2013 to 2015, the speakers blasted a range of sounds produced by a working oil well — from the constant hum of a submersible pump socket to the short, sharp bursts of tapping pipes. The speakers ran around the clock for months at a time to create an industrial soundscape that overlaps the breeding season of several species of endangered grassland songbirds. Published last October, Rosa’s work found that noise pollution from the oil and gas industry, especially loud drilling sounds, reduced the abundance and reproductive success of many bird species (such as the savannah sparrow, above). Now professor of biology at the University of St. The effects of noise can be difficult to separate from a range of other disturbances in nature because noise “penetrates habitats”, said Graeme Shannon, a lecturer in animal behavior at Bangor University in Wales. “There is no limit to noise, as such. It doesn’t end where the road ends,” he said. “It’s a very pernicious form of pollution.” Landscape sound experiments, such as Rosa’s, attempt to clarify the role of noise over large areas of land. Early research on noise pollution focused on human health, Shannon said, and found links between noise exposure and health effects ranging from cardiovascular disease to sleep deprivation to cognitive function. Sometime in the early 2000s, he said, the scope changed to include wildlife. The studies that followed were small and focused on one species at a time—or one behavior. However, recent work zooms in to capture the bigger picture. “We needed more controlled experiments that looked at the effects of chronic noise exposure across the landscape,” he said. Large experiments allow researchers to capture the “full complexity of the system,” said Boise State University biology professor Jesse Barber. In his her own research, Barber’s grand sound experiments include an “imaginary road” built through the woods of Idaho. The installation replicated freeway noise by playing recorded traffic sounds through a series of speakers mounted on towering Douglas fir trees. “We were building a highway — headphones,” Barber said. Even without the traffic stop or tarmac, many migratory bird species were trying to put on weight or were forced to avoid the area altogether. The negative effects on birds don’t stop there, said Clinton Francis, a professor of ecology at California State University. “[Sound] it affects their overall reproductive success, it affects stress hormone profiles, it changes patterns of predator pressure, it changes patterns of seed dispersal and pollination by hummingbirds,” he said. With so many well-documented harms, Francis and others have recently approached the issue in reverse—how does exposure to natural sound benefit human health? In a study Held in the redwood forests of Muir Woods National Monument north of San Francisco, hikers said they enjoyed the park more when signage reminded other visitors to keep their sound to a minimum — and allow the natural soundscape to ring out more clearly. This ability to limit human sound without the need for costly or technical intervention, Shannon said, is something of a silver bullet when it comes to noise pollution. “The great thing about noise,” he said, “is you can turn it off.” — Benjamin Andrews
Reader comments
James Foley: “I just read the article on floating solar installations and their lack of use in Canada. When reading about the land use that solar energy takes up, I am constantly amazed at the most obvious location to put solar installations. Across the country there are large tracts of clear land that run through cities designed for the sole purpose of transporting electricity. Waterways are everywhere, with a large 100m zone of clear space directly below them. Area brushed regularly to keep vegetation down. One would think that lining these spaces with solar panels is not strange at all. Obviously this is not the case as there are no panels on them. The space is there, the infrastructure is there. One just has to put two and two together.”
Back issues of What on Earth? it’s right here.
CBC News recently launched a dedicated climate page, which you can find here here. Also, check out our radio show and podcast. Swamp creatures, city dwellers. They’re polar opposites, but on this week’s show, they find common ground as both are key players in finding solutions to fix a warming planet. What the heck now airs on Sundays at 11am. ET, at 11:30 a.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador. Subscribe to your favorite podcast app or listen on demand at CBC Listen.
The Big Picture: The Heat Wave Naming Debate
As record heat waves sweep across North America and Europe, a new international project is experimenting with naming them to raise public awareness of their severity. The Adrienne Arsht Rockefeller Foundation’s Center for Resilience, a Washington, D.C.-based group that studies climate resilience, is running a pilot program to see if a naming system for heat waves will affect public perception—and actions— in periods of intense heat. “Heat, unlike other natural disasters, is silent and often unseen. Therefore, it is extremely important to raise awareness about what heat can do because it is actually one of the deadliest natural disasters that we’re dealing with,” said Kurt Shickman, director of extreme heat initiatives at the center. The program launched in six cities, including Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee and Kansas City, Mo., as well as Seville, Spain, and Athens, Greece. In July, Seville (pictured below) was the first city in the world to name a heat wave, calling it Zoe, according to Shickman. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a United Nations agency, said it supports the classification of heat waves, but is not sure how scientifically naming them works. The WMO also questioned whether the system could cause public confusion. In Canada, some researchers agree with the WMO and are skeptical of how a naming system will communicate the severity of heat waves. “I’m really, really against it. I think hearing, you know, that heat wave Zoe or Joey is going to come your way — it doesn’t really strike fear into my heart,” said climatologist David Phillips, a long-time researcher with the Environment Canada, who shared his personal view with the CBC. He also pointed out that the reason a naming system was developed for tropical storms was for clear communication. Multiple storms may be occurring in close proximity or have the potential to collide. Heat waves are also difficult to define and measure, Phillips said. “In a tropical storm, one element decides whether it’s going to be a tropical storm or a Category 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 hurricane — it’s the sustained wind. It’s scientific, it’s measured,” Phillips said. But with heat waves, “I think there are so many weather elements that make it up.” — Sarah Willicraft (Jorge Guerrero/AFP via Getty Images)
Hot and bothered: provocative ideas from around the web
A new study suggests that by mid-century, there will be an “extreme heat zone” in the US between Texas and Illinois, where the heat index will reach 51 C (125 F) at least once a year. This week, US President Joe Biden signed a climate bill into law. Given the country’s spending power and influence, it should have a major impact on global climate action. Activists say the US Senate could build on that success for the ratification of the Kigali Agreement, a global pact to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (which are potent greenhouse gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning). Researchers say this move alone could avoid up to half a degree Celsius of global warming by 2050.
‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
(Submitted by Glen Dennison) Every time he takes to the waters in Howe Sound outside West Vancouver, Glen Dennison worries about the health of the prehistoric creatures he finds nearby. “I discovered them — so, you know, right away, they’re my kids,” Dennison said with a laugh in his little boat, referring to the rare glass sponges below. Denison was writing a book about diving in Howe Sound in 1984 when he made a breakthrough discovery of giant glass reef sponges. They look like something from another world, with beige and brown tubes gently entwining like fish darts between them. Although individual glass sponges are not uncommon, scientists believed that their reefs – also known as bioherms – had disappeared 40 million years ago. “When I saw it, I was completely stunned. I didn’t understand what I was seeing,” Dennison said. “It is nature’s own work of art.” These sponges are not only rare, but scientists say they contribute to the health of Howe Sound. “They filter the water, about every 90 days,” Dennison said. “It’s bacteria…
title: “Sound Experiments Document The Devastating Effects Of Noise Pollution On Wildlife Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-16” author: “Inge Miller”
Sign up here to get this newsletter delivered to your inbox every Thursday. This week:
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife Name different heat waves? ‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
Sound experiments document the ‘devastating’ effects of noise pollution on wildlife
(Jeremy Price) An emerging form of research is yielding fascinating insights into the effects of human noise pollution on the natural world. One example is a project by then-University of Manitoba PhD student Patricia Rosa, who distributed speaker systems across a large patch of rolling prairie outside the town of Brooks, Alta. hotbed of the oil and gas industry. From 2013 to 2015, the speakers blasted a range of sounds produced by a working oil well — from the constant hum of a submersible pump socket to the short, sharp bursts of tapping pipes. The speakers ran around the clock for months at a time to create an industrial soundscape that overlaps the breeding season of several species of endangered grassland songbirds. Published last October, Rosa’s work found that noise pollution from the oil and gas industry, especially loud drilling sounds, reduced the abundance and reproductive success of many bird species (such as the savannah sparrow, above). Now professor of biology at the University of St. The effects of noise can be difficult to separate from a range of other disturbances in nature because noise “penetrates habitats”, said Graeme Shannon, a lecturer in animal behavior at Bangor University in Wales. “There is no limit to noise, as such. It doesn’t end where the road ends,” he said. “It’s a very pernicious form of pollution.” Landscape sound experiments, such as Rosa’s, attempt to clarify the role of noise over large areas of land. Early research on noise pollution focused on human health, Shannon said, and found links between noise exposure and health effects ranging from cardiovascular disease to sleep deprivation to cognitive function. Sometime in the early 2000s, he said, the scope changed to include wildlife. The studies that followed were small and focused on one species at a time—or one behavior. However, recent work zooms in to capture the bigger picture. “We needed more controlled experiments that looked at the effects of chronic noise exposure across the landscape,” he said. Large experiments allow researchers to capture the “full complexity of the system,” said Boise State University biology professor Jesse Barber. In his her own research, Barber’s grand sound experiments include an “imaginary road” built through the woods of Idaho. The installation replicated freeway noise by playing recorded traffic sounds through a series of speakers mounted on towering Douglas fir trees. “We were building a highway — headphones,” Barber said. Even without the traffic stop or tarmac, many migratory bird species were trying to put on weight or were forced to avoid the area altogether. The negative effects on birds don’t stop there, said Clinton Francis, a professor of ecology at California State University. “[Sound] it affects their overall reproductive success, it affects stress hormone profiles, it changes patterns of predator pressure, it changes patterns of seed dispersal and pollination by hummingbirds,” he said. With so many well-documented harms, Francis and others have recently approached the issue in reverse—how does exposure to natural sound benefit human health? In a study Held in the redwood forests of Muir Woods National Monument north of San Francisco, hikers said they enjoyed the park more when signage reminded other visitors to keep their sound to a minimum — and allow the natural soundscape to ring out more clearly. This ability to limit human sound without the need for costly or technical intervention, Shannon said, is something of a silver bullet when it comes to noise pollution. “The great thing about noise,” he said, “is you can turn it off.” — Benjamin Andrews
Reader comments
James Foley: “I just read the article on floating solar installations and their lack of use in Canada. When reading about the land use that solar energy takes up, I am constantly amazed at the most obvious location to put solar installations. Across the country there are large tracts of clear land that run through cities designed for the sole purpose of transporting electricity. Waterways are everywhere, with a large 100m zone of clear space directly below them. Area brushed regularly to keep vegetation down. One would think that lining these spaces with solar panels is not strange at all. Obviously this is not the case as there are no panels on them. The space is there, the infrastructure is there. One just has to put two and two together.”
Back issues of What on Earth? it’s right here.
CBC News recently launched a dedicated climate page, which you can find here here. Also, check out our radio show and podcast. Swamp creatures, city dwellers. They’re polar opposites, but on this week’s show, they find common ground as both are key players in finding solutions to fix a warming planet. What the heck now airs on Sundays at 11am. ET, at 11:30 a.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador. Subscribe to your favorite podcast app or listen on demand at CBC Listen.
The Big Picture: The Heat Wave Naming Debate
As record heat waves sweep across North America and Europe, a new international project is experimenting with naming them to raise public awareness of their severity. The Adrienne Arsht Rockefeller Foundation’s Center for Resilience, a Washington, D.C.-based group that studies climate resilience, is running a pilot program to see if a naming system for heat waves will affect public perception—and actions— in periods of intense heat. “Heat, unlike other natural disasters, is silent and often unseen. Therefore, it is extremely important to raise awareness about what heat can do because it is actually one of the deadliest natural disasters that we’re dealing with,” said Kurt Shickman, director of extreme heat initiatives at the center. The program launched in six cities, including Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee and Kansas City, Mo., as well as Seville, Spain, and Athens, Greece. In July, Seville (pictured below) was the first city in the world to name a heat wave, calling it Zoe, according to Shickman. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a United Nations agency, said it supports the classification of heat waves, but is not sure how scientifically naming them works. The WMO also questioned whether the system could cause public confusion. In Canada, some researchers agree with the WMO and are skeptical of how a naming system will communicate the severity of heat waves. “I’m really, really against it. I think hearing, you know, that heat wave Zoe or Joey is going to come your way — it doesn’t really strike fear into my heart,” said climatologist David Phillips, a long-time researcher with the Environment Canada, who shared his personal view with the CBC. He also pointed out that the reason a naming system was developed for tropical storms was for clear communication. Multiple storms may be occurring in close proximity or have the potential to collide. Heat waves are also difficult to define and measure, Phillips said. “In a tropical storm, one element decides whether it’s going to be a tropical storm or a Category 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 hurricane — it’s the sustained wind. It’s scientific, it’s measured,” Phillips said. But with heat waves, “I think there are so many weather elements that make it up.” — Sarah Willicraft (Jorge Guerrero/AFP via Getty Images)
Hot and bothered: provocative ideas from around the web
A new study suggests that by mid-century, there will be an “extreme heat zone” in the US between Texas and Illinois, where the heat index will reach 51 C (125 F) at least once a year. This week, US President Joe Biden signed a climate bill into law. Given the country’s spending power and influence, it should have a major impact on global climate action. Activists say the US Senate could build on that success for the ratification of the Kigali Agreement, a global pact to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (which are potent greenhouse gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning). Researchers say this move alone could avoid up to half a degree Celsius of global warming by 2050.
‘Nature’s own work of art’: Conservationists worry about destruction of BC’s rare glass sponges
(Submitted by Glen Dennison) Every time he takes to the waters in Howe Sound outside West Vancouver, Glen Dennison worries about the health of the prehistoric creatures he finds nearby. “I discovered them — so, you know, right away, they’re my kids,” Dennison said with a laugh in his little boat, referring to the rare glass sponges below. Denison was writing a book about diving in Howe Sound in 1984 when he made a breakthrough discovery of giant glass reef sponges. They look like something from another world, with beige and brown tubes gently entwining like fish darts between them. Although individual glass sponges are not uncommon, scientists believed that their reefs – also known as bioherms – had disappeared 40 million years ago. “When I saw it, I was completely stunned. I didn’t understand what I was seeing,” Dennison said. “It is nature’s own work of art.” These sponges are not only rare, but scientists say they contribute to the health of Howe Sound. “They filter the water, about every 90 days,” Dennison said. “It’s bacteria…
