Music, bees, bananas: 10 common resources on the brink of extinction

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

Whether we like it or not, our planet's resources are dwindling. Humanity is obsessed with minerals, but there are equally important resources that are on the verge of extinction. And without them, our life will become much more difficult.

10. Bananas

There are several hundred varieties of bananas in the world, but more than half of the world's exports are only one - Cavendish. This particular variety of bananas is now under threat of extinction due to an infectious disease that affects plantations in Asia, Africa, and even Latin America.

The fungus tropical race 4 (TR4) is to blame for everything, which has, among other things, an unpleasant feature - it can persist in the soil for decades, which makes it impossible to grow bananas in the same place. If geneticists and breeders do not manage to defeat the infection, then banana lovers will have to switch to less tasty and more expensive varieties.

9. New music

The largest database on the Internet resource Gracenote contains information about 130 million. songs from all over the world. It will take about 1200 years to listen to all of them. At the same time, there is already an opinion that the melodies of the European intonation tradition ended in the 90s, and everything that we hear now is either remixes or reincarnations of old motives.

8. Wine

By 2050, the oldest vineyards in Bordeaux, the Rhone Valley, Tuscany, Chile, Argentina, Southeast Europe and the Napa Valley may become completely unsuitable for growing wine grapes due to global warming.

Due to the increase in temperature, the grapes ripen faster and do not have time to gain the taste necessary for wine. In addition, possible droughts prevent the grapes from ripening properly. Experts predict a 70-75% reduction in wine production in the future, which will lead to a serious increase in wine prices.

7. Helium

Despite the fact that helium is the second most abundant substance in the universe, this gas is relatively scarce on Earth. It is mainly extracted from natural gas, where its content is low, only 7%. Due to its unique properties (low boiling point, high thermal and electrical conductivity), helium is irreplaceable. Experts predict that by 2030 the deficit will amount to approximately 75 million cubic meters.

6. Bees

The most widespread and beneficial species of bees are considered to be European honey bees. This species was domesticated in ancient Egypt. But since the winter of 2006, the population of bees in Europe and America has been rapidly declining. An unidentified phenomenon called colony collapse syndrome kills millions of bees. If the decline in the bee population continues at the same rate, these insects will disappear from the face of the earth by 2035. The disappearance of bees threatens the entire terrestrial ecosystem.

5. Medical isotopes

Modern medicine is unthinkable without the use of radioisotopes for the diagnosis and treatment of various diseases (bone, brain, kidney cancer). Most of all diagnostic research in the world is carried out using the radioactive nuclide technetium-99, obtained in special nuclear reactors.

There are not so many such equipment in the world, so any repair or preventive work can endanger the lives of people. There is also a safer way to obtain technetium-99 - using particle accelerators. But this technology is still rather poorly developed.

4. Caviar

Sturgeon fish have existed on the planet for more than 200 million years, but recently poachers have put them on the brink of extinction. The main world importer of caviar is the United States (over 80% of the total turnover of about $ 100 million per year).

To preserve and restore the sturgeon population, the Russian authorities banned the export of black caviar, and a ban on imports was introduced in the US and the EU. But this has led to skyrocketing prices on the black market - up to $ 10,000 per kilogram. One way or another, 85% (17 out of 27 species) of sturgeon breeds are on the brink of extinction, and rash measures only reduce their chances of survival.

3. Sardines

Another type of fish that may very soon disappear from supermarket shelves is sardines. The fact is that sardines are very sensitive to temperature changes, and the gradual cooling of the Pacific waters, which began in the nineties, is reducing (albeit rather slowly) the population. In the long term, this can lead to their complete disappearance.

2. Antibiotics

Antibiotics do not disappear; they simply become ineffective. Like all living organisms on Earth, microbes are constantly evolving, acquiring immunity to antibiotics. Hundreds of thousands of people die each year from antibiotic-resistant microbes. And pharmaceutical companies, driven by commercial interests, are more willing to invest in more profitable projects, for example, in funds for sore throats.

1. Sand

Just imagine that sandy beaches can almost disappear completely. There may be several reasons for this: rising sea levels, increased storm activity, not to mention massive erosion caused by high building densities along the coastline. You cannot bring sand to the beaches from the deserts, since the desert sand is much more finely dispersed, and it certainly will not stay on the shore for a long time. Therefore, mankind will have to puzzle over how to preserve the sandy beaches.