The Earth Hearing

by Daniel Plonix

  The director continued, “I regret to say that at present they are killing the last remnants of spectacular, large wildlife species at a brisk pace. Of the elephant family, only two genera have remained. One of which, the African elephant, had a population of about twenty-six million members just over two human-lifetimes ago. It is now down to a few hundred thousand members. Recently, within a two-year period, the Earth people butchered one-hundred thousands of them.” Her mouth twisted with evident frustration. “Wild terrestrial mammals now represent only something like 4 percent of terrestrial mammalian biomass, the balance, around 96 percent, is livestock and humans.”

  The commissioners exchanged glances.

  “What of the ecosystems at large?” one of them asked.

  “By some measure, three-quarter of the Earth’s surface is currently degraded, and each year a combined land area about half the size of the United States is joining it. From what we can tell, in the last twenty years, Earth has lost over one million square miles of wilderness area.

  “Beyond the tundra and taiga, the last grand stronghold of the planetary ecosystem is the nearly six million square kilometers of the Amazon rainforest. It provides habitat for the largest concentration of species of any land ecosystem. Your Graces, the Amazon is home to one out of every five remaining mammal, bird, and tree species in the world. And it is being decimated, piece by piece.

  “There are thousands of timber mills scattered about Amazonia, busily priming the choicest trees for conversion into parquet, furniture, and coffins—taking out of the forest about twenty-five million cubic meters of trees each year. And on average, for every tree being hauled away, over forty are killed or damaged.

  “By far the largest expansion of the road networks into the wilderness is by loggers, poachers, and miners. Nothing else comes even close. Along with the roads come the ranchers, the land speculators, and the agribusinesses. In short, deforestation. By the turn of the last century, over three hundred thousand square miles of the Amazon forest had already been cleared. More has been cut down since.

  “Projected decreased rainfall translates to water-stressed trees and fungal diseases. Projected temperature rise translates to mass mortality of insects, which play a primary role in decomposition, nutrient cycling, and pollination. Along with other factors and coupled with outright fragmentation and deforestation by people, it is likely that within one lifetime, the existing tropical rainforests will be replaced by a mosaic of ranches, crop fields, and patches of open-canopy forests. With no moisture in the soil, there will be far less rain. Thus, the micro-climate that gave rise to those forests will also fade. The last vestige of ecologically-rich biomes will be gone from Earth for eons to come, leaving behind ghosts of what was and ashes, which shortly thereafter would be scattered by the winds.”

  For a minute, the only sound in the large clearing was the snapping of the elongated sheets.

  The director concluded, “The final solution of the biodiversity question is near. The extinction rate is hundreds of times higher than rates typical throughout the planet’s history. Over the past fifty years, Terraneans have wrecked ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable period in their recorded history. Ten thousand to ten million species now become extinct each decade. If to put it bluntly, the fate of biological diversity for the next ten million years may be determined here and now.” She fell silent.

  Some of the commissioners conferred with each other in low voices.

  “What is the status of the marine biomes?” inquired the presiding chair.

  The head of the Nature Survey Group inclined her head for a mom­ent. “As the commission knows, progressively higher rates of water acidification will likely affect the ability of corals to form skeletons and of snails to keep their shells from dissolving. The calcium-based skin of sharks is not impervious, either.

  “The present offers no reprieve, though. By the turn of the twenty-first century, three-quarters of ocean stocks were overfished, depleted, or exploited up to their maximum sustainable yields. By our calculations, had we brought together their collective annual sea harvest into a giant conical mound, its diameter would be about one thousand meters wide at its base, and it would tower to something akin to a three hundred story building. This goes on year after year, decade after decade. What they do is drag huge nets armed with steel plates and heavy rollers across the seabed. To catch a few ‘target’ fish species of commercial value, they plow the entire bottom. And the unwanted fish are summarily dumped back into the water, lifeless.

  “The area of seafloor scraped clean by trawling extends over many hundreds of thousands of square kilometers. In the aftermath, marine regions have been transformed to barren, flattened expanses. This is on top of large scale sand and gravel mining of the seafloor, which degrades seaweeds, corals, and seagrass meadows.

  “We have surveyed the oceans, and the remaining marine wilderness areas are down to 10 or 15 percent of the oceans and seas of this planet. In the waters around southern Africa, it is less than 1 percent.”

  She took a few moments to consult some of her notes on the lectern.

  “Then there is the stuff they discharge into the seas,” she went on. “We estimate that thousands of microscopic pieces of plastic are littering every square mile of ocean. Harmful effects from the ingestion of plastics include lowered steroid hormone levels, delayed ovulation, reduced food intake, and reproductive failures. We detected small plastic particles in the guts of marine animals residing in the deepest ocean trenches. We found small plastic particles in brains of fish.

  “What they colorfully term the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is just for starters. Under current trajectory, by 2050 there will be more plastics than fish at sea, pound for pound.” She paused, letting her words linger in the air for several moments.

  She continued, “At the same time, massive amounts of chemical fertilizers, human sewage, and dung from hog and chicken farms stream into the oceans. Joining this barrage are carcasses of livestock that die en route at sea.

  “The torrent of millions of tons of organic matter has been fueling an explosive growth of microalgae—augmenting this naturally occurring phenomenon. Blooms of algae turn the Baltic Sea into a reeking, brown colored slush with dead fish floating about. On the southern coast of Maui, the high tides leave foul-smelling piles of green-brown algae. On Florida’s Gulf Coast, harmful algae blooms have become more pronounced and longer-lasting. And in recent years, Stinging Limu seaweed has burst forth each spring from spores on the seafloor and has formed large floating mats of dark, wool-like strands. During the algal decay, the bacteria that decompose them deplete the oxygen in deep waters. This has resulted in the formation of vast oxygen-starved regions: dead zones.

  “The existing ocean ecosystems are waning. Species that have been kept at bay by fish and sea mammals are becoming more dominant. Slimy jellyfish are poised to take the place of fish. From the coral reefs in the Red Sea to the sea mounds off the coasts of Chile—some of the most complex webs of marine life are unraveling while base life forms are proliferating. Human activities here may end up transmuting the ocean into a microbial soup teeming with gelatinous, poisonous blobs and a seabed littered with empty aluminum cans.”

  The head of the Nature Survey Group bowed to the members of the commission.

  “We thank you for your testimony,” said the presiding chair.

  Attendants rushed in, and in short order, the pedestals were moved about to form a circle. The seven figures quietly conversed with each other while the hundreds of people in attendance and many hundreds of million of distant television and online viewers awaited.

  Finally, the presiding chair motioned, and the attendants rushed in again. He waited until all seven of them faced the audience. He cleared his throat. “The motion to fast-track the hearing is hereby granted.”

  Animated murmurs greeted the announcement.

>   He continued, “The hearing will commence in three days. Testimony will last for four weeks, proceeded by one week of deliberation on our end followed immediately by a decision.”

  The presiding chair now addressed the vast, unseen Terranean viewers. “Naturally, you are wondering what is our purpose in coming to Earth—and what are the possible ramifications of this hearing.

  “Our concern is with the welfare of this planet. We will determine whether, going forward, you people can usher an ecologically viable course or whether you will grind down the planetary ecosystem.” He folded his arms in his voluminous robe. “If it is the latter, we will provide…rigorous measures to turn things around. All things being equal, we much rather leave you people to your own devices.” He fell silent for a moment.

  “We will welcome a delegation that may make its case on your behalf,” he said. “You have three weeks to assemble one. The decision to make the hearing public was done in order to give your population a chance to mount a credible defense.”

  A brief smile flitted across his face. “We understand you have assortments of public officials and leaders. This is nice,” he added kindly. “But they are of no relevance. We address you, all of you, directly.” He inclined his head for a moment and rapped his ceremonial hammer.

  The elevated platform came down, and the presiding chair rose to his feet. The other six commissioners followed suit and the audience bowed. Shortly after that, the seven robed people filed out, following the master of ceremonies.

  An administrator in white-and-silver livery stepped up to the rostrum, addressing the vast unseen audience of viewers. “The opening session we’ve just held is the only one to take place on your planet. The remainder of the hearing will be conducted off-world, in our permanent facility. We will broadcast it for you to see. Some of you, however, are given the opportunity to attend it.

  “Ahead of time, we had generated a listing of thousands of people—some chosen in random some not. A day or so ago, the individuals on that list received a somewhat cryptic letter. I trust its content is now clear.

  “Interested to be an observer and have something to tell your grandchildren? If so, press your thumb onto the black circle at the bottom of the letter you received, and you will be teleported. Or at least the first one hundred invitees would. No harm will befall you at the hearing. Rest assured all your needs will be taken care of for the duration.

  “The teleportation will be active only for the next ten minutes. We apologize for the suddenness, but we want to minimize any undue outside pressure on those invited to attend.”

  He bowed and the session came to an end.

  Chapter 31

  Undisclosed Location, Off-World, the Commission Building

  “Let’s start at the beginning of your mission to Earth,” opened one of the commissioners. “When did you begin monitoring the planet?”

  Aratta, Puddeck, and Hagar were seated in a small domed hall, paneled in light-colored wood and bathed in soft light. Before them, members of the commission perched on elevated cushions, arrayed in half a circle.

  It was three days after the opening session, and the hearing proper had just gotten underway.

  A fast track essentially meant it was to be a marathon of sessions and testimonies. For that reason, in the four weeks to follow, multiple hearings were to be held concurrently on various topics in the few adjoining chambers. Some were to be attended by all the commissioners, others were split sessions. Some were to be done in smaller, more intimate rooms, others admitted many audience members.

  “Your Graces,” Aratta said, “we first checked on this planet in 1251.”

  “What prompted that?” inquired the presiding chair.

  “It was just routine,” responded Aratta. “We drop by and check on myriad planets. Next, we visited Earth in 1543 and kept a watch ever since.”

  “What transpired in the intervening years?”

  “A most momentous event in their history.”

  The commissioner nodded with understanding. “Contact with the Americas.”

  “Indeed, Your Grace,” said Aratta. “Evidently, initial contact was made around the year 1000 but it had no lasting effect, and the European settlement withered away and was forgotten. However, the Europeans reached the Americas again in 1492. And the world irrevocably transformed. When we came in 1543, commerce networks connected many of the major population hubs of Earth. By then, Europeans were in the process of establishing trading outposts in India, China, Philippines, and Indonesia. It was the birth of the modern era.”

  Hagar said, “Both the Americas and the Eurasia landmasses had tens of millions of people, multiple civilizations, and numerous nations. The meeting of the worlds was an event that can only have occurred once in the history of humanity. It was a chance to discover a world populated by flora, fauna, and cultures, the likes of which people in neither landmass were aware of. I regret to say the encounter could not have been any more disheartening, and in the case of the Americas, any more ill-fated.”

  Puddeck chuckled. “The Spaniards set to explore strange new worlds and seek out new life and new civilizations. But then again, maybe not. They journeyed, arrived, and claimed what they saw for themselves.

  “However, that did little for their fortune or sense of power: they neither discovered a route to China nor found any shiny objects in commercial amounts. Granted, they did have some fun raping local wenches and murdering natives, but beyond some trinkets, gold nuggets, parrots, and a few savages they brought as souvenirs, they had little to justify the considerable expense of the expeditions.

  “In a sense, the turning point were the 1499–1501 expeditions.” Pud­deck pulled out from a pouch a fistful of small rounded items and dumped them on the wood table in front of the commission members. “Off the coast of Venezuela, the locals had been harvesting those for centuries on end.”

  One of the commissioners leaned in and let loose a startled laugh. “Pearls,” she said and looked up. “What did they want with them? Was it for their children?”

  Puddeck looked down at the tiny, lustrous pebbles. “These are shiny objects,” he explained. “And back home, there were many willing to pay a pretty penny for these. Those were meant for grownups. And as the pearls poured into Europe, people used them in earrings and adorned their hats and cloaks with them.

  “From that point, it was game on. It really picked up speed around 1520. The merry band of fortune seekers on the island of Cubagua rolled in dough for about a dozen years. By the time we visited the place in 1543, it was long over. The last few diehards left a few weeks earlier. We found nothing but exhausted oyster beds and the charred remains of buildings from the fire pirates had set a few months prior.

  “Between Cubagua and the neighboring two islands, tens of billions of oysters were extracted during those years. The depletion was that fast. The fortune seekers were heartbroken. But then the good news came: a few hundred miles due west, around the Guajira Peninsula, new oyster beds were identified with the promise of additional shiny objects and a pretty penny. Some remained behind to await oyster recovery that never did come about. However, the majority packed up in a hurry and scurried to the newly discovered deposits. There was work to be done.”

  A commissioner asked, “How in blazes do people harvest tens of billions of oysters in a couple of decades?”

  “It started off low-key, trading with the locals,” recounted Puddeck. “The Europeans gave them linen shirts, bread, and firearms. In exchange, the natives parted with pearls and even loaned out some of their women to sweeten the deals.

  “As more amigos poured into these islands, the novelty of European goods wore off, and the indigenous people started to demand more in return for pearls. Worse yet, the locals showed little interest in spending most of the hours of their days diving to harvest oysters. This irritated the ever-growing number of Spaniard newcomers, who d
id not make the journey to dick around with ten pearls or a hundred. Nice was not getting the job done.

  “In the Bahamas, they captured Lucayan Indians, branded their faces or arms with a letter C, and shipped them in. They were made to dive the whole day, each day. At night, they were chained—enjoying the jolly laughter and shouts of hundreds of drunken Spaniards, as they gambled, quarreled, and forced sex on wenches.

  “Those diving Lucayans the sharks did not kill have gradually come to suffer from hemorrhages and intestinal disorders. The lot died to a man within a few years. From elsewhere, replacement divers were captured, hauled in, and put in place.”

  “The local populations resisted ferociously—killing and burning down buildings,” interjected Aratta, “but in the end, resistance was futile.”

  “More Spaniards poured into the region and fights broke out,” said Puddeck. “Hearing of the riches, merry men from other European nations joined the fray and attacked the settlement.”

  “They must have realized that with this no-holds-barred approach, they will be grasping at air within a short period time,” noted a commissioner. “Why not maintain a sustainable harvesting rate?”

  “Your Graces,” said Aratta, “they had to harvest as quickly as possible. Each day, a person delayed in using up his Indians, someone else seized a chunk of the pearls that could have been his. It was a zero-sum game. The continuous arrival of more fortune hunters intensified the competition and quickened the tempo. To an extent, that has set the tone of things to come in the centuries to follow.”