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Planetary capacity

Earth Is Close To Passing Seven Of Nine Planetary Boundaries

Scientists have found that Earth may soon pass another planetary boundary, meaning it could be operating outside of the safe limits for seven of the nine defined planetary boundaries. The Planetary Health Check report, prepared by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), is a new assessment that determines the state of the planetary boundaries. For its first edition, the report found that Earth is near the boundary for ocean acidification. “Our updated diagnosis shows that vital organs of the Earth system are weakening, leading to a loss of resilience and rising risks of crossing tipping points,” said Levke Caesar, scientist at PIK and a lead author of the report.

The Pandemic As Part Of A Much Broader Crisis Of Civilisation

Covid-19 was first identified in November 2019 in the city of Wuhan. It is an infectious disease caused by a virus which is highly likely to have ‘jumped’ from a horseshoe bat to a human. This is widely known and yet it is striking how little is said about the actual implications. What are the impacts for us when humans can contract deadly diseases from animals? Is this normal? Or is it an isolated incident? Sadly, such cases of viruses being transmitted to humans from vertebrates are certainly no exception. 60% of infectious diseases that affect humans originate from vertebrates. These are known as ‘zoonotic’ viruses, and their numbers rise even further when we look at the origins of emerging infectious diseases: 75% of new pathogens that make humans sick originate in wildlife.