Scientists 'Second Notice' to Humanity Warns of Environmental Doom

Scientists issued a "second notice" to humanity, warning of environmental doom because mankind is continuing to push the planet's ecosystems to its breaking point and is on the verge of ruining the planet.

The letter, which appeared in the journal Bioscience on Monday, was signed by 15,364 scientists and warned that the planet is near the point of no return environmentally, The Washington Post reported.

The letter was meant to be a follow-up to a 1992 letter, marking its 25^th anniversary, from a group of 1,700 scientists warning of impacts such as stratospheric ozone depletion, air and water pollution, the collapse of fisheries and loss of soil productivity, deforestation, species loss, and global climate change caused by the use of fossil fuels, the Post said.

"We are jeopardizing our future by not reining in our intense but geographically and demographically uneven material consumption and by not perceiving continued rapid population growth as a primary driver behind many ecological and even societal threats," said the new letter, led by Oregon State University ecologist William Ripple.

"By failing to adequately limit population growth, reassess the role of an economy rooted in growth, reduce greenhouse gases, incentivize renewable energy, protect habitat, restore ecosystems, curb pollution, halt defaunation, and constrain invasive alien species, humanity is not taking the urgent steps needed to safeguard our imperiled biosphere," the letter continued.

The letter listed things that can be done to save the planet, including managing reserves for the

world's terrestrial, marine, freshwater, and aerial habitats; maintaining nature's ecosystem services by stopping the conversion of forests, grasslands, and other native habitats; restoring native plant communities at large scales; and reducing food waste through education and better infrastructure.

"Some people might be tempted to dismiss this evidence and think we are just being alarmist," Ripple said, per London's Daily Mail. "Scientists are in the business of analyzing data and looking at the long-term consequences. We are hoping that our paper will ignite a wide-spread public debate about the global environment and climate."