HOW LONG CAN YOU HOLD YOUR BREATH?

speech by Ralph Pritchard based on info from Ten Billion Acres http://10ba.org/?gclid=CI22tta86ZACFQSOFQoddl0UWQ

In just 300 years there has been a 25% reduction in the amount of oxygen in our atmosphere, for a total reduction of 33% since Christopher Columbus discovered America some 500 years ago. The amount of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) has quadrupled. Yes, emissions from burning fossil fuel accounts for a portion of it, but a very small one at that.
There are 100 billion reasons for this reduction…deforestation! In the mere span of 500 years we have cut down over 54% of the world’s oxygen-producing, carbon dioxide-consuming miracles. Over 10 billion acres worth!
Right now as I speak, the atmosphere is storing heat, and CO2, losing oxygen and ozone and humanity is suffering - less oxygen leads to more disease, and eventual extinction. Do you need to wonder why cancer rates are up, emphysema in non-smokers, asthma? Did we recently set records for high temperatures in January?
Since almost everyone on the planet learned in school that trees and plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen through photosynthesis, why is it so difficult to believe that deforestation on a global scale would have such impact? I am not here to discuss the psychology of economics, greed, or even ignorance. I am only here to share the facts as they have been researched and to encourage each and everyone of you to take “some” action. If we don’t, scientists predict that within 100 years we will lose up to 90% of the world’s population of oxygen breathing mammals and guess what, that means our children and grandchildren.
Let’s take a trip back to 1492 when Columbus sailed the blue (not green) ocean and landed in what was first believed to be America. At that time nearly 18.5 Billion Acres of Forests covered Planet Earth, yet, the total human population of Earth was only about a half billion. Today, there are in excess of six billion human beings: but there are far fewer trees, 100 billion more or less. Only 8.5 Billion Acres of Forests remain in the world today scrubbing and cleaning the carbon dioxide and producing oxygen. By the way, did I tell you that the amount of Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere has quadrupled in the last 500 years and also as I speak, is rising at an unprecedented rate. Is it any wonder that our atmosphere has changed?
A question to get you thinking if I may…if we started planting right now, how long would it take to replenish the 33% reduction of oxygen in the atmosphere?
Let’s go back again to 1492: At that time, 66% of all the oxygen in our atmosphere came from trees and 33% from algae, now it is reverse. At that time, the planet could process 100% more Carbon Dioxide (CO2) per year then it can now. Ecologically our atmosphere has regressed to where the planet was some 1 million years ago when the oceans were green with algae and only a handful of trees and mammals were alive.
A disruption of the balance of trees and plants versus algae, has caused, among other things, a high nitrogen overload content to fall in rainstorms, leading to so-called "Acid Rains" that damage plants and human activity.
At the each earth’s poles, the Sun's heat is being deflected off the upper atmosphere by higher concentrations of CO2. This causes lower temperatures right at the Poles which draws the over-heated 85% balance of the ocean to the Poles to cool them. When the northern currents chill, it leads to a not quite as severe, yet no less dangerous "The Day After Tomorrow" (2004 - Roland Emmerich) like effect: increasing snow amounts in the northern areas during Winter, pockets of extreme snow, and increased atmospheric turbulence towards the middle regions in the Spring and Summer, and a worsened Hurricane / Typhoon Season and warmer middle states weather, depleted water in drought prone areas and so forth. This has the bad side effect of creating worse periods of collateral storm systems, raising higher summer temperatures, causing much more coastal flooding damages and more beach erosion.
As a result, far more rain occurs in some areas, causing land flooding and river overflow flooding, while barometric effects cause wind change, shifts to the Jet Stream, and other major air flows. That change has potentially catastrophic impact on current Farming zones, the earth's food producing centers. Increased arid dryness and drought drastically and unexpectedly in various parts of the world, could lead to "dustbowl" syndrome in areas ordinarily the source of the world's foods. When Solar Flare cycles peak and heat the middle of our atmosphere towards the equator, deadly more violent storms such as Hurricane Katrina and beyond will happen.
With human population on the rise, Humanity is on a near term collision path with the decline in the number of Trees. Even the renewing of existing trees in the spring is not happening at the levels it used to anymore due to nutrient pollution such as the release of sewage effluent and run-off from lawn fertilizers into natural waters (rivers or coasts) and acid rain all leading to eventual human extinction if left unchecked.
The threat to Human Survival will hit home far, far sooner than mere global warming, over population or pollution of the environment, however it will steadily worsen the climate changes. The lack of Trees (and plants) to "scrub" CO2 from the Atmosphere is also creating a "greenhouse gas canopy" (G2C) in the upper atmosphere, causing heat to be retained by the atmosphere, leading to climate change in a variety of ways which has been so eloquently elaborated on by Al Gore in his movie, An Inconvenient Truth. Adding to the complex problem specifically is the clearing of rainforests, over 20% of these crucial rainforest areas are now gone. These dense zones of Trees and Plants are in constant danger from the spread of civilization and industry. When I say dense, I am talking about thousands of trees and plants per acre compared to perhaps hundreds in our forests.
So how much oxygen is left? The atmosphere contains about 1.3 x 10(to the power of 14) tons today vs. 2.0 x 10(to the power of 14) 500 years ago. You also have to realize that in the atmosphere strong ionizing cosmic radiation causes the production of ozone and atomic oxygen within the stratosphere. The ozone layer protects the biosphere effectively from short-wave UV-radiation. All of the remaining oxygen in the atmosphere means absolutely nothing if we can’t get it into our lungs in the proper ratio.
If we do nothing to increase the number of forests and trees within 50 years, by then it will be too late to do anything about. It will be like a runaway train with no brakes, since tree growth and fundamental reforestation in nature without our help could take hundreds of years. Once oxygen drops below the critical level, humanity will simply start dying off until the ratio of trees to humans (T2H2A) to Algae balances off. We have to equalize the ratios (called: the Perfect Climate) to achieve proper ratios, which would also have the secondary effect of reducing the impact of Industrial Carbon / CO2 to a manageable one.
If the citizens of this planet could aggressively rally to reforest the lost 10 billion acres iin the next 50 years, the earth's atmosphere would be vastly improved, with 33% higher oxygen and reduction in CO2 and CO by 85%. Simultaneously, the Oceans would also improve, with reduction in CO2 and acidity that is greatly imperiling Ocean Coral Reefs, plant life and sea creatures of all kind. Such would more than quintuple the success rate of Ocean based fish reproduction, creating larger volumes of edible fish than existed at the time of Christopher Columbus, a boon for solving the Human Hunger problems.
This can only be done using a "planting factor" of about 100 to 294 trees to an acre…and we need to plant trees in an area the size of Africa. To give you a better idea of what I am talking about, check out how many country’s land masses would fit into Africa.
Saving the world starts…saving humanity…starts right in this very room:
1. Get the word out. Tell everyone you know

2. Form a coalition. It will take the concerted effort of all humans. People, business, science and government need to ally to solve this.

3. Effect Change. Start with your own yard, join planting groups, contact the Forestry Department, write Ottawa.

4. Monitor and Guide. Join an association that monitors this and stay involved to do your part.

5. Adjust and Compensate for Errors Made. Understand that there are a vast array of problems and priorities. Don’t become a vigilanty. Use gentle persuasion.
So…Let me ask you another question…would you mind if I reduced the amount of oxygen in this room in order to save money and even to perhaps to give it to some new members of my growing family? Hmmm, I didn’t think that would go over so well.