Canon Envirothon is coming to Arizona in 2008!

This year's Canon Envirothon is going to be held at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. The 2008 topic is "Recreational Impacts on Natural Resources".  View fact sheet.

Grand Canyon                                                                                                                                 photo:George Couch

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Biodiversity in a Changing World

By: Linda Dee Diamantides

The 2009 focus issue is “Biodiversity in a Changing World.”  This is an issue that certainly merits exploration.  First, let’s define biodiversity.  According to the dictionary, it is the variety and abundance of species, genetic composition, and the natural communities, ecosystems and landscapes in which they occur.

Scientists say that there are anywhere from 15-100 million
species in the world.  This figure takes into account the
diversity of microscopic organisms that have yet to be explored. 

The Benefits
So why is biodiversity so important?  First of all, it benefits us in so many ways.  Biodiversity gives us food, fuel, medicines and countless products!  And if that weren’t enough, there is also what scientists refer to as ‘nature services’ …services that benefit mankind as well.  Consider trees that clean our air; wetlands that act as nature’s clean water filters; the sun that drives the food web; nutrient
cycling (i.e., nitrogen, phosphorus); the water cycle that
purifies fresh water; the oxygen cycle interconnected to
 plants and animals; waste decomposition for soil generation,and more

A loss of biodiversity lessens the capacity of nature cycles to generate ecosystem services.  The ecosystem as a whole becomes less effective and is more vulnerable to extreme conditions (i.e., droughts, floods) 

The Challenges
So what are some of the factors that lessen biodiversity?  Let’s consider the following:               

·         Explosive population growth

·         Insatiable resource consumption

·         Notable climate change

·         Dramatic habitat loss

·         Expanding invasive species

·         Ongoing environmental degradation 

                                                                                                                                                                           Reference: Biodiversity Project

High Country Conference Center and Hotel
Click below to see pictures and location for the site of the 2008 Canon Envirothon banquet and closing ceremony.