A
key environmental issue that prevents the world from having an “Island
Civilization” is habitat destruction.
Humans, all over the world, are destroying natural habitats for their own
well-being. Natural habitats are being
ruined to support farming, mining, logging, and urban sprawl. The number one cause for habitat destruction
is the expansion of agriculture. Habitat destruction is ranked as the number
one cause of the extinction of species worldwide.
Habitat destruction has escalated over the past 30 years due to
the growth of the sugar industry and the urban sprawl along Florida's east
coast. The government provides subsidies
that eliminate any foreign competition. Furthermore,
the subsidies ensure a minimum selling price for sugar. The industry is so closely linked to lawmakers
that they are also permitted cheap water prices since they require such large
amounts.
The Everglades was a “river of grass” that flowed 60 miles
wide. The tip of the Everglades is marked
at present day Orlando and it extends down into the Florida Keys. Lake Okeechobee and rainwater fund the
Everglades. Until the 1990s Florida’s Everglades
was an expansive, natural habitat for many species. The land was bustling with alligators, crocodiles,
wading birds, tropical fish, and many other forms of wildlife and plants before
people started developing the territory.
The new railroad system brought many new people to area which was cause
for expansion. However, this expansion
infringed into the Everglades ecosystem.
After a few decades, half of the ecosystem was nonexistent due to the
recent developments. The southwestern
corner was on life support through manmade canals. The canals assisted draining the Everglades
since the natural drainage system had been destroyed.
If we lived in the ideal “Island Civilization” there would be no
need for laws and manmade canals to attempt to protect these natural
areas. Humans can try to protect natural
wildlife as they want but it never works.
In an “Island Civilization” all of the humans would leave the natural
zones in peace. The peace would then
allow the Everglades to return to its former glory with a width of 60 miles.
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