The Earth Organism

I’ve already introduced the term ‘Gaia Hypothesis’ in a previous post and I think it is about time we explore a little further into this all important concept.

An easy way to get a better understanding of the concept is to compare the earth as a whole to the functioning of the human body. The human body is composed of several organs and tissues each of which has a specific function. Some organs perform more vital functions as compared to others. For example, one could easily say that the heart is more important than a hand for life.

None the less, every organ is also dependent on other organs and tissues for its functioning. No organ is capable of independent existence. If one organ starts to fail, it reflects on the functioning of other organs.

There are several processes going on in the body – regulation of temperature, processing and cycling of nutrients, respiration etc and these are the processes that keep ‘life’ going in the organism.

The body is capable of dealing with insults to a certain extent without causing any alterations in the condition of the body. The body always tries to maintain the optimum conditions within the body and this process is called ‘homeostasis’.

But sometimes, the body is exposed to such a degree of insults that the compensatory mechanisms give way and disease strikes. Let us consider the example of the chronic disease ‘hypertension’. Since a very young age the body a person is exposed to physical, chemical and mental stresses. Initially, the body compensates for these by trying to excrete the excess salts, the blood vessels dilate to keep the pressure under control. At this stage his ‘compensatory mechanisms’ work overtime to keep things working normally in the body. But due to continued intake of improper diet, chemical exposure and stresses of life, the blood vessels, the kidneys and the heart give way one by one and the persons suffers from overt hypertension and is labeled a patient. At such a time the person needs medication to keep things normal. Medicines however can only do so much. If one doesnot take care of his health, he would have to pay a lot for it, eventually with premature death.

Similarly, the earth is made up of organs which are the abiotic components like the oceans, mountains, the air, ice, land etc and also biotic components which include all the plant, animal and microbe species on the planet. The abiotic components affect the life forms and the plants and animals have affected the abiotic components through important events like formation of oxygen in the atmosphere and in the carbon cycle. There are several important processes on the planet which include regulation of planetary temperature, water cycle and carbon cycle.

Each of the components contributes to these vital processes and help in maintaining the homeostasis of the planet. The conditions on earth are of course affected by several celestial events but there are many mechanisms on the planet which help maintain the conditions of temperature on the planet. In fact, the temperature on the planet has varied very little since many million years. The temperature has intimate connections with the amount of greenhouse gases in the air, ocean currents, ice covered area etc.

Since the beginning of civilization ten thousand years ago, man has started to have an effect on the environment. This initially was negligible because the number of people was very small and also the needs of each person were very little as compared to today. With time, there has been a continued rise in the amount of insult man has rendered on the environment. Gaian mechanisms have borne the brunt of damage to natural processes for a long time now. Although several people have been skeptical as to how much human activity can alter things on a global scale, it is more or less now an accepted fact that there have been severe alterations of certain processes like the carbon cycle. This is due to the combined effect of burning fossil fuels, increased population, deforestation, increased material needs, melting of polar ice, cattle farming, release of trapped GHGs etc. According to several respected authorities in the field, this process may have already been altered beyond control and the consequences will reveal themselves over the next few decades. Many effects are already being seen with weather unpredictability, species loss, melting polar and glacieral ice, crop failures etc. A detailed explanation of the carbon cycle and its implications will be made available in my next post.

Could it really be that we’ve caused damage beyond the regulatory capabilities of the earth as a whole? Through the books I’ve been reading over the last year and also the discussions I’ve had with eminent scientists, my doubts have been cleared. Gaian mechanisms  have indeed been overwhelmed. Apparently we’re in a stage where all activity will prove to be ’damage limitation’ rather than cure. Anyhow, damage limitation in itself is invaluable and I feel that one should not give up. Each one should hence work towards sustainable lifestyle.