There were four articles that were presented by groups of students today. The first group that went was my group. I explained to the class the benefits of ecotourism, including the awareness and protection of endangered species that is developed from the increased economy of an area with ecotourism. Because ecotourism provides jobs and boosts the economy, federal bans can be instilled in order to protect the endangered species that are native and unique to that area. The second group presented an article about invasive species, and how they can harm the biodiversity. An example of an invasive species is the lion fish. The lion fish is native to the endo pacific region,but it is present in the Caribbean region, and it harms the biodiversity of the reefs by disrupting the natural food web of that marine ecosystem. The third group presented an article about an alternative to natural reefs: artificial reefs made of old tires. With proper research, hundreds of tires can be sunk into areas of the ocean with high populations of fish and coral, and the artificial reef provides a strong base for coral and fish populations to thrive. The fourth and final group presented an article about the effects that chronic oil spills have on sea birds. They used the area of Newfoundland because it is the areas where the most chronic oil spills occur. Chronic oil spills release small amounts of oil over long amounts of time. They are more dangerous because they receive less attention and often go overlooked.
