Transcript Document

O’ahu:
A Disappearing
A Oahu:
Disappearing
Beautiful
Destination
Destination
By: Amanda Peña
By: Amanda Peña
• Located between the two Hawaiian islands of Kauai and Maui
• Land area covers 596.7 square miles
• Third largest island in Hawaii
Images retrieved from https://www.tripadvisor.com/ on 11-23-14
• Even though it’s not the largest island in Hawaii, it is the most populated
with 953,199 people living there. It is often referred to as “the gathering
place” because of its large population.
• The island is sandwiched between two
mountain ranges which resulted from
two volcanoes: Wai’anae and Kahalu’u.
When these shield volcanoes erupted
millions of years ago, their halves slid
underneath the ocean. The halves that
were left form the east and west walls
of O’ahu.
Kahalu’u
Mountains
Wai’anae
Mountains
• O’ahu has mountain ranges, sandy beaches, lush rainforest, and volcanoes
Image retrieved from http://3d-pictures.picphotos.net/world-raised-relief-maps/1/ on 11-23-14
Yellow-billed Cardinal
Hawaiian Monk Seal
Green Sea Turtle
Apapane Bird
Fiery Skipper
Indian Mongoose
Bamboo Orchid
Pacific Golden Plover
Images retrieved from http://wildlifeofhawaii.com/ on 11-22-14
Shampoo Ginger
• Pearl Harbor: This national historical landmark features five historic sites
memorializing December 7, 1941. This is when there was a surprise military strike
conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack led to the United States' entry into World War II.
Pearl Harbor being attacked in 1941
Pearl Harbor Tourist Site Today
Pearl Harbor War Image retrieved from http://edu225gcu.wikispaces.com/Pearl+Harbor+WebQuest/ on 11-23-14
Pearl Harbor Image retrieved from http://http://www.hawaiilife.com/articles/2014/11/historic-pearl-harbor-attractions// on 11-23-14
• Waikiki Beach: This area was a retreat for Hawaiian royalty in the 1800s who enjoyed
surfing there on early forms of surfboards. Waikiki Beach hosts many events every
year, including surf competitions, outdoor performances, hula dancing and outrigger
canoe races.
Image retrieved from http://http://www.best-of-oahu.com/waikiki-beach.html/ on 11-23-14
• Diamond Head Crater: This crater got its English name when British seafarers
thought that the calcite crystals embedded in the crater were diamonds.
Image retrieved from http://rebloggy.com/post/photography-landscape-scenery-hawaii-oahu-diamond-head/19576441626/ on 11-23-14
• President Obama lived in Honolulu, O’ahu
most of his childhood.
• Many O’ahu sugar and pineapple plantation workers
came from places like China, Japan, Korea,
Portugal, Puerto Rico, Russia, and the
Philippines. This makes O’ahu a place that has
a huge mix of different nationalities and cultures.
• O’ahu has been featured in many movies and
television shows such as Jurassic Park, Blue
Crush, and the Hunger Games.
Obama Image retrieved from http://www.allhawaiinews.com/2013_11_01_archive.html on 11-23-14
Hunger Games Image retrieved from http://collider.com/jennifer-lawrence-hunger-games-silver-linings-playbook-interview/ on 11-23-14
• News Clip
• Studies have shown that approximately 2% of
Hawaii’s shoreline is eroding. Nearly ¼ of the
Hawaiian Islands’ beaches have significantly
eroded over the past 50 years. O’ahu is one of
the top three Hawaiian Islands most effected,
with 24% of its beaches being narrowed or lost.
• Researchers from the University of Hawaii and the Department of Land and Natural
Resources have concluded that rising sea-levels are the primary factor for this
increased beach erosion. The Hawaiian Islands have reported a sea-level rise of about
6 to 8 inches per century.
• Scientists have predicted that Hawaii’s sea-level is likely to rise 10 inches by 2050 and
2 feet by 2100.
Image retrieved from http://treehugger.com/ on 11-23-14
• Global warming causing rising sea-levels
• Sea walls
• Significant increases in golf course
development
• Violent storms
• What is global warming? It is also called
the greenhouse effect and is the gradual
increase in the overall temperature of
the earth's atmosphere. Scientists say that
it is caused by increased levels of carbon
dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other
pollutants.
• A pattern of global warming has been
happening causing temperatures to rise over
the decades
• Global warming has caused two things to happen that have contributed to the
increases in the sea level over the last several thousand years:
 thermal expansion: when ocean water expands as it warms
 the melting of huge deposits of land ice like glaciers and ice sheets.
• This pattern of sea waters rising has caused beaches, such as the ones on O’ahu, to
erode at a faster rate
Image retrieved from http://www.nasa.gov/ on 11-23-14
• Global warming is caused by natural and human-made conditions. Although we
cannot stop the natural causes, there are some things that we can do to reduce
the effects of global warming:
 Conserve water-cities use large amounts
of energy when distributing and purifying
water, which uses greenhouse gas emissions.
Conserving water reduces the amount of
energy used.
 Plant trees- plants take in carbon dioxide and let out oxygen. Because
carbon dioxide gas causes global warming, planting trees and plants can
slow down this process.
 Reduce fossil fuel use- using energy produces fossil fuels. Making a
conscience effort to use less or alternate energy forms can help decrease
fossil fuels.
Image retrieved from http://squirrelers.com/2012/04/16/10-ways-to-lower-your-water-bill/ on 11-23-14
• Since O’ahu is the most populated island
in Hawaii, a lot of development on its beach
fronts has occurred, such as houses, beach
resorts, stores, hotels and restaurants
• Developers have had to build numerous sea
walls to help protect their beachfront properties
• Seawalls restrict the natural movement and shifting of the shoreline
sand
• This restriction stops the sand from being able to deposited and
withdrawn at a healthy rate, which has actually increased beach
erosion over time
Image retrieved from http://www.tournorfolk.co.uk/happisburgh.html on 11-23-14
• Some solutions to this increasing problem is to build further inland (so
seawalls aren’t needed) and to move existing development more inland
• Many developers have had trouble “buying into” building more inland
because tourists put a high value in being close to the water for easy access to
beach activities and scenic views.
• Also, many developers oppose relocating their structures because of the cost
involved in doing this.
• Lawmakers need to revise their laws to increase the distance builders and
developers are allowed to build from the water.
• New laws could be made to ban sea walls. Beachfront property owners
oppose these potential laws because they wouldn’t have anything at all to
temporarily protect their property.
• Banana and ti plant farmers
are having their farmlands destroyed by
rising golf course development
• Many Japanese golf course developers that
are wanting to make money off of tourism
are having resistance from local farmers
• Farmers lose their developed farmland and even if they are lucky enough to have
developers pay to relocate their farmland, it has lost a lot of its value because the
crops are not as developed/mature as the previous ones and will yield less
product
• Golf resorts displace people and farms, destroy animal habitats, pollute
surrounding water and air with pesticides and fertilizers, and deplete water
supplies
Image retrieved from http://www.watertronics.com/golf-course-pumping-systems/ on 11-23-14
• Violent storms, like tsunamis and hurricanes, move the beach
sand into deeper waters from which it cannot return to the
beach.
• Large winter storms can carry sand offshore by rip currents, and
this sand may be permanently lost if it is deposited at such great
depths that summer waves cannot return it to the beach system.
Images retrieved from http://cosmicconvergence.org/?p=1109 on 11-23-14
• Significant decrease in tourism- many tourists come to
O’ahu to lounge on, walk on, and “play” on its beaches. Erosion
and loss of beaches will have a direct impact on how many
tourists visit this island. These visitors spend around $11.4
billion dollars in Hawaii each year, making tourism the state’s
largest employer. Less tourists would directly effect O’ahu’s
economy.
• Negative effect on the environment- many animals and
plants will lose important habitats. For example, the Hawaiian
monk seal, an endangered species, gives birth and nurses its
babies on these beaches. The green sea turtle, another
threatened species, lays eggs in O’ahu’s beachfront sand.
• Will all of O’ahu erode away over the next million
years?
• Will scientist come up with better solutions to stop
the erosion of beaches in the future?
• Will new additional factors that cause erosion be
discovered over time?
•
Chlorofluorocarbons- Any of various halocarbon compounds consisting of carbon, hydrogen,
chlorine, and fluorine, once used widely as aerosol propellants and refrigerants. Volatile
chlorofluorocarbons are believed to cause depletion of the atmospheric ozone layer.
•
Calcite- A common crystalline form of natural calcium carbonate, CaCO3, that is the basic
constituent of limestone, marble, and chalk.
•
Embedded- To cause to be an integral part of a surrounding whole
•
Outrigger- a vessel fitted with such a float or beam.
•
Memorializing- to present a memorial; petition
•
Lush- Abundant; plentiful
•
Pesticides- insect repellent
•
Fertilizers-Any of a large number of natural and synthetic materials, including manure and
nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium compounds, spread on or worked into soil to increase its
capacity to support plant growth.
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