Cumulative effects can have a big impact on our environment, but what are they? Learn how the effects of seemingly unrelated activities can add up, and why they are important.
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Consider this plastic bottle, a single ocean wave, or this small drip of oil from a vehicle.
Individually, these aren’t usually a big deal. But they can add up, over and over and over.
They contribute to what we call cumulative effects, and they can negatively affect ecosystems, communities, health and economies.
In the same way that a path becomes worn when people use it over and over, cumulative effects add more and more stress to ecosystems, even if that’s over years or decades.
Some of these stressors are natural, and some are caused by human activity and development.
Let’s look at water quality as an example.
Effluent from a variety of industrial sites and activities.
The clearing of land, contributing to erosion and silty water from extreme rainfall.
Pesticides, fertilizers and organic waste, and sediment coming from farms, golf courses, and gardens.
Pollutants from urban runoff, like oil and gas, that might have spilled or dripped on the road.
All these things can add up and interact with each other, cumulatively, to lower the quality of our water and compromise the habitats of species that rely on that water, like fish and birds.
The same kinds of things can happen to air quality through vehicle and industrial exhaust, chimneys, fertilizers and forest fires.
And wildlife habitat can be stressed by forestry, urban encroachment, pipeline construction, transmission lines, new roads, and more.
Sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly, but very surely, these stressors take their toll. They can result in loss of habitat for wildlife, affect wetlands for waterfowl, increase air pollution and possibly affect human health.
Over time, all these stressors put sustained pressure on ecosystems and the health of species that inhabit them, including us.
By monitoring, studying, mitigating, and collaborating with others, we are working to understand and manage cumulative effects.
And you can be part of the solution too. So next time you think one plastic bottle, or a drip of oil, isn’t a big deal, think about the impact of this happening 1,000 times, 1,000,000 times. It all adds up.
Every action counts. The choices we all make matter!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kTq-hnrMHI
Progress is happening all over the world. I couldn’t fit the entire world into my studio though, so built a model. See how I did that with a Nebula subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/simonclark
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REFERENCES
It turns out the reference list was longer than the maximum length of a video description allowed by YouTube, so they are listed here: https://www.simonoxfphys.com/blog/2025/2/28/references-for-how-much-progress-have-we-made-on-climate-change
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More about me https://www.simonoxfphys.com/
My second channel – https://www.youtube.com/simonclarkerrata
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Music by Epidemic Sound: http://nebula.tv/epidemic
Some stock footage courtesy of Getty.
Edited by Luke Negus.
Research assistance by Leonard Neamtu.
Have we actually made progress against climate change? Have emissions decreased? How much warming will we see by 2100?
Huge thanks to my supporters on Patreon:
Dave Teare, Norm Zemke, Eric A Gentzler, Glen Monks, Gary Stark, dryfrog, Marcus Bosshard, Peter Reid, bitreign33 .
Bastian Pranzas, Jeffry ., Marius Kießling, Jon Arlov, Artem Plotnikov, Paul H and Linda L, Andy Hartley.
Kristopher Sicari, Mercure, j51t, David Stone, Daniel Cooney, Richard Swain, Hernando de Sá Silva, Zr0w3n, Duffman, Claudia Kapp, Cy ‘kkm’ K’Nelson, Martin, Nick Humphries, Baerbel Winkler, OldGreyWolf, Hannarrrr, Steamrollerman , Andy Parr, Guy Markey, Nicholas Hamdorf, Katharina Hartmuth, Mark Phillips, KJ Xiao, Tschäff Reisberg, Faficzek, Tobias Ahsbahs, James Gaskell, Denis Kovachev, Victor Gordan, Tanner , Dominik Rihak, Nico Casal, Mark Harper, Ryan, Inten, Tyler Schwartz, John, James Haigh, Bailey Cook, Sergio Diaz, Christopher Mullin, I dropped out of my PhD & I might forgive Simon., Joseph , Nicklas Kulp, Thomas Newman, Anže Cesar, Josef Probst, Kevin B, Phineas, Ishaan Shah, Circuitrinos, Mark Richardson, Brian Moss, Knut Nesheim, AYS , Forever Bulking, Crisan Talpes, Pawel Piwek, Ted CLAY, Mike, Seb Stott, Diederik Jekel, Jan-Willem Goedmakers, Samat Galimov, Ashley Hauck, Nico Kempe, Thibault , GGH, FireFerretDann, Ciotka Cierpienia, Sam, szigyi, Marcin Wrochna, Tom Painter, Phil Saici, Ashley Steel, Simone, Tomás Garnier Artiñano, Steffan , Adam Gillard, Christopher Hall, Miguel Cabrera Brufau, Sylvus , Florian Thie, James Gurney, Eddy Torres, Clemens, Andy Giesen, Jacob Speelman, Robin Anne McDuff, Jean-Marc Giffin, Cifer, Felix Winkler, Christian Weckner, Thomas Charbonnel, Sekhalis, Mark Moore, Philipp Legner, Zoey O’Neill, Justin Warren, Heijde, Trevor Berninger, streetlights, Gabriele Siino, David Mccann, Leonard Neamtu, James Leadbetter, Rapssack, Dan Sherman, Adrian Sand, Morten Engsvang, Haris Karimjee, Alex, Cody VanZandt, Igor Francetic, Sean Richards, Michael B., Thusto , Lach, Dan Hanvey, Andrea De Mezzo, Real Engineering.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1jOqyjcO4g
The worst arrival in Britain since the British. Try Brilliant for free for 30 days at https://www.brilliant.org/simonclark
Last month one of the most evil organisations expanded its operations into the UK, seeking to get a foothold in Europe. It’s time we talked about them, who’s paying them, and why they matter.
Sign up to the DeSmog newsletter: https://www.desmog.com/newsletter/
Thanks to @NandovMovies and @NotJustBikes for lending me their voices!
You can support the channel by becoming a patron at http://www.patreon.com/simonoxfphys
REFERENCES
1. https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/global-temperature/
2. https://keelingcurve.ucsd.edu/
3. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7757245/
4. https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/
5. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jan/12/exxon-climate-change-global-warming-research
6. Merchants of Doubt – https://geni.us/merchantsofdoubt
7. http://conservativetransparency.org/
8. https://www.desmog.com/george-c-marshall-institute/
9. https://www.desmog.com/
10. https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/02/donors-trust-donor-capital-fund-dark-money-koch-bradley-devos/
11. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/01/15/tories-net-zero-2050-pledge-without-plan-kemi-badenoch/
12. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10584-013-1018-7
13. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0315012
14. https://www.desmog.com/heartland-institute/
15. https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2213815120
16. https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms8537
17. https://www.fire.ca.gov/
18. https://researchonline.lshtm.ac.uk/id/eprint/4671605/1/Lelieveld-etal-2023-Air-pollution-deaths-attributable-to-fossil-fuels.pdf
19. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/15/farage-and-truss-attend-uk-launch-of-us-climate-denial-group-heartland
20. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/01/15/tories-net-zero-2050-pledge-without-plan-kemi-badenoch
21. https://www.desmog.com/2025/01/22/usa-climate-denial-group-heartland-institute-using-far-right-to-attack-eu-green-policies/
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More about me https://www.simonoxfphys.com/
My second channel – https://www.youtube.com/simonclarkerrata
Bluesky – https://bsky.app/profile/simonoxfphys.com
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/simonoxfphys
Twitch – https://www.twitch.tv/drsimonclark
———- II ———-
Music by Epidemic Sound: http://nebula.tv/epidemic
Some stock footage courtesy of Getty.
Edited by Luke Negus.
Who are the Heartland institute? Why are people skeptical of climate change? Who are the Koch brothers? Who finances the climate denier movement? In this video essay on the expansion of the Heartland Institute into the UK we look at these questions and much more.
Huge thanks to my supporters on Patreon:
Dave Teare, Norm Zemke, Eric A Gentzler, Glen Monks, Gary Stark, dryfrog, Marcus Bosshard, Peter Reid, bitreign33.
Bastian Pranzas, Jeffry., Whitefang, Marius Kießling, Jon Arlov, Artem Plotnikov, Paul H and Linda L, Andy Hartley.
Mercure, j51t, David Stone, Daniel Cooney, Richard Swain, Hernando de Sá Silva, Zr0w3n, Duffman, Claudia Kapp, Cy ‘kkm’ K’Nelson, Martin, Nick Humphries, Baerbel Winkler, OldGreyWolf, Steamrollerman , Andy Parr, Guy Markey, Nicholas Hamdorf, Katharina Hartmuth, Mark Phillips, KJ Xiao, Tschäff Reisberg, Faficzek, Tobias Ahsbahs, James Gaskell, Denis Kovachev, Victor Gordan, Tanner , Dominik Rihak, Nico Casal, Mark Harper, Ryan, Inten, Tyler Schwartz, John, James Haigh, Bailey Cook, Sergio Diaz, Christopher Mullin, I dropped out of my PhD, & I might forgive Simon., Joseph , Nicklas Kulp, Thomas Newman, Anže Cesar, Josef Probst, Kevin B, Phineas, Ishaan Shah, Circuitrinos, Mark Richardson, Brian Moss, Knut Nesheim, AYS , Forever Bulking, Crisan Talpes, Pawel Piwek, Ted CLAY, Mike, Seb Stott, Diederik Jekel, Jan-Willem Goedmakers, Samat Galimov, Ashley Hauck, Nico Kempe, Thibault , GGH, FireFerretDann, Ciotka Cierpienia, Sam, szigyi, Marcin Wrochna, Tom Painter, Phil Saici, Ashley Steel, Simone, Tomás Garnier Artiñano, Steffan , Adam Gillard, Christopher Hall, Miguel Cabrera Brufau, Sylvus , Florian Thie, James Gurney, Eddy Torres, Clemens, Andy Giesen, Jacob Speelman, Robin Anne McDuff, Jean-Marc Giffin, Cifer, Felix Winkler, Christian Weckner, Thomas Charbonnel, Sekhalis, Mark Moore, Philipp Legner, Zoey O’Neill, Justin Warren, Heijde, Trevor Berninger, streetlights, Gabriele Siino, David Mccann, Leonard Neamtu, James Leadbetter, Rapssack, Dan Sherman, Adrian Sand, Morten Engsvang, Haris Karimjee, Alex, Cody VanZandt, Igor Francetic, Sean Richards, Michael B., Thusto , Lachlan Woods, Dan Hanvey, Andrea De Mezzo, Real Engineering.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erkI–VaTfE
The LA fires are a sign of things to come, but not in the way you probably think. Learn new skills in data analysis with Brilliant: https://brilliant.org/simonclark
The LA fires were caused by a complex mix of factors, some of which were global and some of which were local. But the response to the fires in the media, and especially social media, has me extremely concerned about how we will talk about natural disasters intensified by climate change for the foreseeable future.
REFERENCES
1. https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.aal4108
2. https://www.fire.ca.gov/
3. https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms8537
4. https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2111875118
5. https://www.drought.gov/news/study-finds-climate-change-blame-record-breaking-california-wildfires-2023-08-08
6. https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20250109-five-images-that-explain-why-the-la-fires-spread-so-fast
7. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-10-09/what-makes-the-santa-ana-winds-blow
8. https://insideclimatenews.org/news/10012025/misinformation-spreads-like-wildfire-as-los-angeles-burns/
9. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cly74mpy8klo
10. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crmnm2g1z74o
11. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/jan/09/celebrities-lose-homes-destroyed-california-fires-billy-crystal-cary-elwes-eugene-levy
12. https://www.morningbrew.com/stories/2025/01/10/ca-fears-home-insurance-collapse
13. https://www.budget.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/next_to_fall_the_climate-driven_insurance_crisis_is_here__and_getting_worse.pdf
14. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5h1H36rdprs
You can support the channel by becoming a patron at http://www.patreon.com/simonoxfphys
———- II ———-
More about me https://www.simonoxfphys.com/
My second channel – https://www.youtube.com/simonclarkerrata
Threads – https://www.threads.net/@simonoxfphys
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/simonoxfphys
Twitch – https://www.twitch.tv/drsimonclark
———- II ———-
Music by Epidemic Sound: http://nebula.tv/epidemic
Some stock footage courtesy of Getty.
Edited by Luke Negus.
The LA fires continue to burn, but why? Were the fired caused by climate change or incompetent Democratic politicians? Why does the way we talk about climate intensified natural disasters matter? All this and more in this analysis of the LA fires.
Huge thanks to my supporters on Patreon:
Norm Zemke, Eric A Gentzler, Glen Monks, Gary Stark, dryfrog, Marcus Bosshard, Peter Reid, bitreign33 .
Bastian Pranzas, Jeffry ., Whitefang, Marius Kießling, Jon Arlov, Artem Plotnikov, Paul H and Linda L, Andy Hartley.
Daniel Cooney, Richard Swain, Hernando de Sá Silva, Zr0w3n, Duffman, Claudia Kapp, Cy ‘kkm’ K’Nelson, Nick Humphries, Baerbel Winkler, OldGreyWolf, Oscar Hoffmann, Steamrollerman , Andy Parr, Ricky Jones, Guy Markey, Nicholas Hamdorf, Katharina Hartmuth, Mark Phillips, Jor Eero Raico Svederic, KJ Xiao, Matt Beer DFC, Tschäff Reisberg, Tobias Ahsbahs, James Gaskell, Denis Kovachev, Victor Gordan, Tanner , Dominik Rihak, Nico Casal, Mark Harper, Ryan, Inten, Tyler Schwartz, John, James Haigh, Bailey Cook, Sergio Diaz, Christopher Mullin, I’m stuck in a PhD and I blame Simon., Joseph , Nicklas Kulp, Thomas Newman, Anže Cesar, Josef Probst, Kevin B, Phineas, Ishaan Shah, Circuitrinos, Mark Richardson, Brian Moss, Knut Nesheim, AYS , Forever Bulking, Crisan Talpes, Pawel Piwek, Ted CLAY, Mike, Seb Stott, Diederik Jekel, Jan-Willem Goedmakers, Samat Galimov, Ashley Hauck, Nico Kempe, Thibault , GGH, FireFerretDann, Ciotka Cierpienia, Sam, szigyi, Marcin Wrochna, Tom Painter, Phil Saici, Ashley Steel, Simone, Tomás Garnier Artiñano, Steffan , Adam Gillard, Christopher Hall, Miguel Cabrera Brufau, Sylvus , Florian Thie, James Gurney, Eddy Torres, Clemens, Andy Giesen, Jacob Speelman, Robin Anne McDuff, Jean-Marc Giffin, Cifer, Felix Winkler, Christian Weckner, Thomas Charbonnel, Sekhalis, Mark Moore, Philipp Legner, Zoey O’Neill, Justin Warren, Heijde, Trevor Berninger, streetlights, Gabriele Siino, David Mccann, Leonard Neamtu, James Leadbetter, Rapssack, Dan Sherman, Adrian Sand, Morten Engsvang, Haris Karimjee, Alex, Cody VanZandt, Igor Francetic, Sean Richards, Michael B., Thusto , Lachlan Woods, Dan Hanvey, Andrea De Mezzo, Real Engineering.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LyRE8pYJJQ
NYC and Long Island Could Lose 80,000 Homes to Flooding by 2040, Exacerbating Housing Crisis: Report
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