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1-Page Summary of The World Without Us
Overview
We only have one planet, and we need to be careful with it. We are doing a lot of damage to the environment, which is taking time to recover. If we want our children and grandchildren to live happily in the future, we must cut back on our wasteful habits.
In this lesson you will learn what would happen if every human disappeared. You will discover which of our legacies would last the longest, and whether cities or technology is more important to civilization.
What will the future look like? Will it be a world with new species that we have created or one in which nature has changed on its own?
And what about our most destructive creations? Would nature be able to recover if there are no humans to pollute the earth and cause damage? And how long will it take the planet to recover from the damage already done? One hundred years, one thousand, or even a billion years might not be enough.
Here are the main points that will help you understand these answers.
Big Idea #1: Plastic doesn’t break down so it will continue to affect nature.
Nature has been recycling everything for as long as we can remember. However, humanity invented a substance that nature cannot recycle: plastic.
Plastic does not biodegrade, which means that it will last forever. It is the most impervious substance to nature because it doesn’t break down over time.
However, if humans were to disappear what would happen to all the plastic we’ve created?
Rain and the oceans have the power to erode rocks. Over time, plastic pieces will become smaller as they’re bashed by forces of nature. However, these tiny pieces won’t biodegrade.
Scientists have found that even the smallest pieces of plastic are durable. In one experiment, scientists fed worms small bits of plastic and they didn’t cause any harm to the creatures.
Plastic is a material that will continue to get smaller over time. This trend will continue until it becomes so small that even marine animals like zooplankton will ingest them.
Plastic is dissolving into smaller and smaller pieces. These tiny particles will spread to places that humans don’t live, like the Arctic Ocean and Antarctica.
Plastic is a man-made substance that has been around for less than 60 years. It’s used in nearly every industry, and there are thousands of factories across the world that solely produce plastic products. As these bags will never decompose, they will be around forever. And since we do not know if this material has any long term effects on the ecosystem, it may have adverse consequences for our planet.
Big Idea #2:
There are many toxic materials that mankind has released into the environment. They will still be there even after mankind is gone.
The Earth is being harmed by people every day. Each time we take a resource or pollute the air, it has long-lasting effects that will be felt for generations to come.
Humans have been using heavy metals for a very long time.
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Once mined, these substances remain in the ecosystem for thousands of years.
Heavy metals stay in the atmosphere and are not absorbed by plants. They remain airborne, where they can be released again after a plant dies.
Even after humanity stops polluting the air with zinc and copper, they will still be around.
How Long Will This Pollution Last?
The lifespan of heavy metals varies. Zinc, for example, lasts 3,700 years, while chromium can last up to 70,000 years.
In addition to the pollutants already released, nature will be affected by substances that humans have created but not yet released.
A great example of these pollutants is chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs. In 1930 humans began using CFCs in refrigeration, but it wasn’t until 1985 that scientists found they were dangerous to the ozone layer and contribute greatly to climate change.
