The Sixth Extinction

We humans have been an extraordinarily successful species during our short time on Earth. 

One way to understand how long we have been around is to do the following: extend your arm out straight and consider its length down to your fingertips as the 4.5 billion years of our planet’s existence. Take a fingernail file and shave off a small amount from the nail of your longest finger. Those filings are how long humans have been in existence. 

Earth has experienced five mass extinctions caused by sea level rise, changes in ocean chemistry, massive volcanic eruptions, meteorite impacts, and climate change. In each of these extinctions, 80 to 90% of life on Earth was eliminated. The dominant species going into a mass extinction has never been the dominant species coming out of it. 

Many biologists and ecologists agree that we are in the midst of a sixth mass extinction driven by our species unsustainable use of land, water, and energy. In 1800 there were approximately 1 billion people. Today there are over 8 billion and by the end of the century there will be over 10 billion. We all need food, clothing, and shelter and in order to get them we must use the planet’s resources which are not infinite. The question is are we using them wisely and what is the impact on life as we do so. 

To survive as well as we have, never mind supporting another 2 billion of us, we need a stable climate, predictable and moderate precipitation, healthy forests, productive farmlands, and rich fisheries. We are in grave danger of losing the battle to keep these needs at the required levels. Temperature rise across the planet year over year is undeniable and is causing massive forest fires, drought, soil erosion, more frequent and intense storms, and disruption to ocean chemistry. It’s doing harm. 

Sadly, it gets worse. We need to exist in harmony with other species since we are all interconnected. There are so many examples of how a single species supports the health of people by contributing to clean air, clean water, healthy soils, and thriving fish stock. Plankton and bees come immediately to mind as essential to food production. But of course, there is the vitally important role played by bacteria, fungi, plants, mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and a host invertebrates. Currently, scientists who monitor extinction rates estimate that at a minimum the extinction rate of fellow species is 1,000 times higher than natural extinction rates—the rate of species extinctions that would occur if we humans were not around. To be entirely selfish about this, biodiversity loss hurts people. 

There are actions we can take to slow this mass extinction and improve our chances of survival. So, what has the Trump administration done to help? He called climate change a hoax removing the USA from the Paris Agreement; he has dismantled federal regulations aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and curbing the use of fossil fuels; he has advocated for opening new drilling areas and easing environmental restrictions on oil companies; he has opposed wind and solar energy saying they are undependable and costly; he granted two-years of relief from environmental rules on coal-fired power plants; he is attempting to block state-level climate policies, viewing them as detrimental to American energy production and economic competitiveness. All of this in 100 days.

In the face of a government that simply doesn’t believe there is a climate problem or seemingly could care less about the mass extinction of other species, we need to tell our politicians why we think this is important. Here are a few simple things we all can do to act locally: cut plastic use, beware of pesticides in your yard, don’t waste food or water, plant indigenous shrubs and flowers that birds, bees and butterflies need. Oh yes and vote as if life depends on it. Earth will survive. We are the ones at risk.

Bill Franz is a concerned and active steward and a community builder dedicated to working with senior citizens helping them to stay comfortably in the homes and the community they love. He may be reached at franzwt@gmail.com

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This educational column first appeared in The Daily News of Newburyport on April 16, 2025.