Kenyan 'devil's cactus' is spreading out of control-- but tech is fighting back (November Blog Post)
December 9, 2019
Aiden Sherman
Kenya is currently dealing with an invasive species of cactus known as 'Devil Cactus'. Elephants consume the cactus, but the plant's flesh damages the elephant's digestive system, as well as facilitating further spread of the cactus. The plant has proven difficult to extricate, because if any flower or fruit is left behind, it can regrow in that location. It is now becoming an economic problem for the country, with cactus taking over land used for grazing livestock and agriculture. Despite the problems created by this invasive species, it is being harvested for use in bio fuel. Currently it is being used as gas for cooking, but environmentalists warn about giving the plant value as it will motivate local people to keep it around. The other strategy being used to keep the cactus at bay is releasing insects which will eat it and reduce the spread.
Obviously, I think that this turn of events is a huge problem for Kenya, but it can prove useful in the future on a global scale. Now we have a chance to observe how widely accessible, environmentally friendly fuel will effect a society. This will be useful information to have as we make the switch to a more energy-efficient and environmentally conscious way of living. Any mistakes made can be corrected and any successes observed can be emulated on a larger scale. Regardless of the global impact, it seems like a sound strategy to use such a common resource for economic gain in addition to wiping it out of the country.
Article:
https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/09/africa/kenya-devil-cactus-intl/index.html#
Aiden Sherman
Kenya is currently dealing with an invasive species of cactus known as 'Devil Cactus'. Elephants consume the cactus, but the plant's flesh damages the elephant's digestive system, as well as facilitating further spread of the cactus. The plant has proven difficult to extricate, because if any flower or fruit is left behind, it can regrow in that location. It is now becoming an economic problem for the country, with cactus taking over land used for grazing livestock and agriculture. Despite the problems created by this invasive species, it is being harvested for use in bio fuel. Currently it is being used as gas for cooking, but environmentalists warn about giving the plant value as it will motivate local people to keep it around. The other strategy being used to keep the cactus at bay is releasing insects which will eat it and reduce the spread.
Obviously, I think that this turn of events is a huge problem for Kenya, but it can prove useful in the future on a global scale. Now we have a chance to observe how widely accessible, environmentally friendly fuel will effect a society. This will be useful information to have as we make the switch to a more energy-efficient and environmentally conscious way of living. Any mistakes made can be corrected and any successes observed can be emulated on a larger scale. Regardless of the global impact, it seems like a sound strategy to use such a common resource for economic gain in addition to wiping it out of the country.
Article:
https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/09/africa/kenya-devil-cactus-intl/index.html#
The "Devil Cactus" highly original name..
ReplyDeleteI think the strategies being used to combat this invasive species are very innovative and promote a safer and healthier environment for the native species.
ReplyDeleteI believe the two methods being used to stop the invasive species will keep it away for now, but in all they are going to need a longer lasting one to wipe it out indefinitely. Do you know of any other methods in the works that could do this?
ReplyDeletevery interesting! its cool to see how tech who is traditionally seen bad for the enviroment is actualy helping it.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very bad thing but also a good thing. The bad is that it harms the animals that eat this plant but the plant is being used as a bio fuel for gas. In my opinion if the plant becomes controlled to certain areas that don't harm the grazing and where animals can't get to it this plant could produce many befits for Kenya.
ReplyDeleteIt would be most beneficial to both Kenya and the world if we could find a way to harvest the species and move it somewhere where it would not harm the environment or any country. But the bio-fuel would be very helpful. Also it's affect not effect.
ReplyDelete