Conserving the last eden
The Galapagos Islands contain many endemic species, such as the Galapagos Penguin, lava gull, flightless cormorants, and blue-footed booby. As such, the islands were made a national park in 1959, and declared a world natural heritage site in 1979. More recently, laws such as the “Special Law of Galapagos” have been put into place to conserve Galapagos biodiversity. However, invasive species, growing permanent and tourist populations, and pollution threaten many Galapagos species. Solid waste, oil spills, and illegal overfishing are among the most threatening human impacts on marine life. Also impacting wildlife is decades-old DDT, used by American soldiers during the second world war at the Galapagos base; DDT takes an extremely long time to degrade, and accumulates in organisms (especially those in higher trophic levels), disrupting their biological processes. Education is key if the Galapagos are to be conserved for future generations.