by Captain Paul Shepard

Earth Day has come and gone. One day of the year devoted to environmental concern—better than nothing?

Since 1968, the environmental movement has roller-coastered in popularity. In 1972, escalating human populations seemed the priority, but by 1992, that concern didn’t even make the agenda. When we warned of climate change twenty years ago, no one cared. Now, ecology’s in vogue again thanks to global warming. Big organizations are tapping the public for donations!

These organizations are too political to offer practical solutions. The solution is simple: live in accordance with the three basic laws of ecology.

First is the Law of Diversity. The strength of an eco-system lies in diversity of species within it. Weaken diversity and the entire system will ultimately collapse.

Second is the Law of Interdependence. All of the species within an eco-system are interdependent. We need one another.

The third law of Ecology is the Law of Finite Resources. The limit to carrying capacity implies limits to growth. Human populations now exceed ecological carrying capacity. This diminishes both resources and diversity of species. The diminution of diversity in turn causes serious problems with interdependence.

Einstein wrote, “If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have only four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.” That illustrates the Law of Interdependence. Forget global warming, folks. The disappearance of the honeybee could end our existence far sooner than we think.

The honey bee is disappearing. Why? We don’t know--perhaps genetically modified crops, or pesticides, or cell phones interfering with bees’ navigation. Around the world bees are disappearing in a crisis called Colony Collapse Disorder.

We keep our place on this planet by a mere toehold. Yet we cut down the forests. We pollute the soil, air and water, although running out of fresh drinking water. We’ve plundered the oceans of life: 90% of all fish have been removed from their eco-systems, over 65,000 miles of long lines sit in the Pacific Ocean alone, while tens of thousands of fishing vessels scour the seas in a rapacious quest to scoop up anything that swims or crawls. The largest marine predator on the planet right now is the cow, for ocean fish are rendered into fish meal for domestic livestock. This is eco-insanity.

Consider the humble honey bee. The little black-and-yellow insect flitting busily from flower to flower is all that stands between us and our demise as a species. We had better see to its survival.