#Biomass

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[acti-veg]

“60 per cent of the mass of all mammals are domesticated animals - cattle, swine, sheep, horses, cats and dogs. For birds, it is even more stark. Sixty per cent of birds on Earth are from a single species - domesticated chickens. Taken as a whole, the mass of human produced material is, as of 2020, about equal to the mass of living material on earth.

If we were to sample the planet today in the same way that we sample the fossil record, we would look at the distribution of bones, and conclude that something very strange was going on so that so much of the vertebrate biomass was made up of so few species. We would be talking in terms of catastrophic environmental damage, of mass extinction.

Indeed, the biomass of wildlife has declined at a horrifying rate. The world into which Emilio Marcos was born in 1978 was home to 2.5 times as many wild vertebrates as the one in 2018. In a geological snap of the fingers, we have lost more than half of the living individual vertebrates on the planet.”

-Thomas Halliday, Otherlands

[mapsontheweb]

Forest biomass of North America

Hectares (ha) of Aboveground Forest Biomass Across North America. This comprehensive map combines four independently developed maps of biomass for Canada, Alaska, the conterminous United States, and Mexico (Beaudoin et al., 2014; Blackard et al., 2008; Wilson et al., 2013; MREDD+ Alliance 2013). A common legend, map projection, and spatial resolution of 250 m were applied to the individual maps with no attempt to harmonize the methods used for each of the original map products. Biomass of nonforest areas is masked by including only landcover and land-use categories 1-6 from the North American Land Change Monitoring System (NALCMS 2018). Base years of the original maps are Canada, 2001; Alaska, 2004; conterminous United States, 2000-2009; and Mexico, 2007. [Figure source: Kevin McCullough, U.S. Forest Service. North American Biomass and Disturbance Mapping Working Group, 2014.]

[andmaybegayer]

I'm still amazed by how big the blind spot seemingly everyone important involved in energy policy has on biomass. It's sold as a green technology despite pretty much always being worse than literally burning coal from an emissions perspective. Pure aesthetics. I just read that the EU imports palm oil to make biodiesel! Death! You can eat that!

[probablyasocialecologist]

“The bottom line is you got a lot of emissions coming from wood harvest, and we don’t pay attention to that,” said Tim Searchinger, senior fellow and technical director for agriculture, forestry, and ecosystems at the World Resources Institute and a co-author of the paper.  The emissions associated with timber harvests mainly come from burning logs and pellets for fuel and from rotting branches, leaves, and roots left in the forest or tossed in landfills, where they decompose and release carbon into the air. 

[...]

Searchinger argues that researchers and policymakers haven’t accurately estimated the climate cost of wood use in part because they’ve counted carbon-capturing forest growth as an “offset” — as if new trees compensated for the missing ones — even when that growth would happen naturally. When trees are in the ground, especially when they’re young and growing fast, they absorb carbon. Many of the forests in the Northern Hemisphere were cleared in past centuries and are now regrowing and accumulating carbon on their own, whether or not they’ve been logged recently. Even for older forests that aren’t regrowing as quickly, “you’d be better off” leaving them unharvested, said Houghton, noting that we’ve got a “long way to go” before our use of wood is efficient enough — say, by not burning so much of it — that the emissions from logging could be fully offset by forest regrowth.   Still, Searchinger said there’s a silver lining to the study. His team’s findings don’t mean that more carbon dioxide is getting into the atmosphere than scientists had thought, just that some of those emissions are coming from an activity that hadn’t been accounted for. 

[supplyside]

Drax is a large coal-fired power station in North Yorkshire, England, capable of co-firing biomass and petcoke.

[utilitymonstergirl]

I like the idea that the setting of Biomass has such a loose grasp of Earth culture that restaurant/cuisine styles are shit like "Indo-European" and "Afro-Eurasian"

[nomansskye]

"This is fine..."

[solarpunkbusiness]

Husky Energy and Technologies: Transforming coffee husk into biomass

In 2021, mechanical engineers Hoheyat Berhanu and Yohannes Wasihun established Husky Energies & Technologies, driven by the challenges coffee farmers faced in disposing of coffee husks.

The duo developed machines that can transform coffee husks into biofuels—specifically pellets and briquettes—offering an eco-friendly alternative to traditional fuels.

Notably, the production and usage of Husky’s biofuels reduce smoke emissions by an impressive 90%, combating household air pollution, a major health hazard in developing countries.

With an eye on the burgeoning biofuel sector, Husky is expanding its production capacity, aiming to produce 1.6 tons of biofuel daily at a competitive price, thereby offering an affordable alternative to charcoal for households, hotels and restaurants.

source

[jcmarchi]

From Tweets to Calls: How AI is Transforming the Acoustic Study of Migratory Birds

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/from-tweets-to-calls-how-ai-is-transforming-the-acoustic-study-of-migratory-birds/

From Tweets to Calls: How AI is Transforming the Acoustic Study of Migratory Birds

Every year, billions of birds travel across continents and oceans. These journeys are not only fantastic to watch, but they are also essential for keeping nature in balance. Birds pollinate flowers, spread seeds, and help control pests, playing a big part in keeping our environment healthy. However, their survival is threatened by problems like losing their habitats, climate change, and expanding cities. Understanding how they travel and live has never been more critical.

Scientists used traditional methods to study bird migration in the past, but these were often slow and limited in how much they could tell us. Now, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing everything. By listening to bird calls and songs, AI tools are helping researchers understand where birds go, how many there are, and what they need to survive. This new technology is bringing powerful ways to protect and study the birds.

The Significance of Migratory Birds and Acoustic Monitoring

Migratory birds are vital to ecosystems worldwide. They act as indicators of environmental health, with changes in their migration patterns often showing more significant natural shifts. For example, North America’s declining numbers of barn swallows point to issues like habitat loss and insect population changes. Similarly, the Arctic Tern’s 40,000-kilometer migration helps scientists understand the health of polar and ocean ecosystems.

Listening to bird calls has become a keyway to studying these migrations. Each bird species has unique sounds, or acoustic fingerprints, that researchers can use to identify them without needing to see them. This is especially useful because most bird migrations happen at night. Scientists can learn about where birds go and how they behave by recording their flight calls.

However, sorting through vast amounts of recorded sounds was slow and difficult with traditional methods. AI has solved this problem by quickly analyzing audio data and identifying bird species with remarkable accuracy. This breakthrough has opened new ways to study migratory birds, making research faster, more detailed, and more effective.

AI-Powered Innovations in Acoustic Research

AI-powered tools like BirdVoxDetect and BirdNET have transformed how researchers study migratory birds through their calls. BirdVoxDetect developed through a collaboration between New York University, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and École Centrale de Nantes, shows how powerful machine learning can be in bird research. This tool uses a neural network to detect and classify nocturnal flight calls with impressive accuracy, even in noisy environments. It can filter out background sounds like car alarms and raindrops while isolating and identifying bird-specific calls. By 2024, BirdVoxDetect had analyzed more than 6,600 hours of audio recordings, identifying hundreds of thousands of bird calls. Its ability to estimate bird biomass is as practical as Doppler radar but with the added advantage of providing species-specific data at a much lower cost.

BirdNET is another significant tool designed for both researchers and bird enthusiasts. It allows users to record and identify bird calls using just their smartphones. During the Global Big Day in 2024, BirdNET helped participants identify over 900 bird species in real-time, demonstrating the scalability and inclusivity of AI in bird research. Powered by neural networks and extensive training datasets, BirdNET has made bird studies accessible to a global community, inspiring new conservation engagement levels.

These tools do more than just identify bird species. They also improve the accuracy of tracking migratory routes. For example, researchers studying Arctic Terns have used AI to find key stopover locations and understand the environmental factors that influence their journeys. This information is essential for conservation efforts because it helps protect critical habitats and ensures resources are used effectively.

How AI is Transforming Conservation Efforts

AI-powered tools are changing the way we protect birds and their habitats. Real-time monitoring systems help cities take steps like turning off building lights at night during migration seasons. These Lights Out programs have worked well in cities like Chicago, where fewer birds now collide with skyscrapers.

Tools like BirdVoxDetect can also adapt to different regions. With only a small amount of training data, they can identify bird species even in areas without traditional monitoring systems. This flexibility has allowed scientists to study birds in the Amazon rainforest and sub-Saharan Africa. By automating data collection and analysis, these tools save time and effort, making it easier to carry out large-scale studies. Open-source platforms like BirdVoxDetect allow researchers to share and improve these technologies worldwide.

Other tools are also significantly advancing how AI is used for bird conservation. Nighthawk, an advanced system built on BirdVox, provides faster results and is more straightforward to use. Researchers studying birds in areas like the Great Lakes have reported improved accuracy with this tool. Merlin, developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, uses AI to assist both scientists and bird watchers identify species. Its mobile app has made bird studies more accessible, inspiring people worldwide to participate in conservation efforts.

New technologies, such as microphone arrays, are further improving bird research. These systems can determine a bird’s location by detecting its altitude and direction of flight. Institutions like the University of Windsor are among the leaders of these innovations, enhancing our ability to monitor bird migrations.

Scientists are also working on foundation models for bioacoustics. These models are designed to study various species and ecosystems, beyond birds to animals like bats and whales. With these tools, researchers aim to deepen our understanding of biodiversity and develop better strategies for its protection.

AI is making bird conservation more efficient and effective. It is helping us gather essential insights to protect migratory species and ensure survival amidst rapid ecological changes.

The Bottom Lin

AI is revolutionizing the study and conservation of migratory birds, providing powerful tools that enhance our understanding of their behaviors and habitats. By automating the analysis of bird calls and migration patterns, technologies like BirdVoxDetect and BirdNET are making it easier for researchers and enthusiasts alike to engage in conservation efforts. These innovations improve the accuracy of tracking migratory routes and facilitate real-time monitoring, enabling cities to implement effective strategies like “Lights Out” programs to reduce bird collisions with buildings.

AI is creating new ways to protect these critical species and their habitats. This ensures that future generations can enjoy the amazing journeys of birds around the world. It also helps build a stronger connection with nature and supports efforts to preserve it.

[samrisoval]

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[nando161mando]

Production of concrete, metal, plastic, bricks and asphalt greater than mass of living matter on planet. The amount of plastic alone is greater in mass than all land animals and marine creatures combined

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/09/human-made-materials-now-outweigh-earths-entire-biomass-study

[the-off-cuts]

Biomass of the earth!!

Source

[biomassenergionsindia]

Biomass Energeons India stands out as a dynamic business platform, showcasing its ingenuity and commitment to elevating the biofuel industry and engaging stakeholders effectively. With a clear mission to revolutionize the energy sector, it acts as a central nexus, facilitating connections between service providers and consumers in the green energy domain, with a strong emphasis on enhancing accessibility and efficiency.

[allisondoesthings]

My first published paper!

Please check out my first published paper contribution! I was involved with the field work portion of this study as part of my master's degree in geography at the University of Utah. It's always exciting to expand my knowledge of geospatial technologies and evolve in the world of environmental science.