Should we bring back Wooly Mammoths?
Colossal’s reasoning in the article “Scientists Say They Could Bring Back Woolly Mammoths. But Maybe They Shouldn’t” to bring back wooly mammoths is not sufficient to justify the potential risks that come along with the decision. They claim that bringing back wooly mammoths can have a positive impact on climate change. They believe that wooly mammoths can prevent the melting of permafrost. Permafrost contains a great deal of carbon dioxide. When snow covers the permafrost and retains heat energy from the sunlight it absorbs, the permafrost underneath will be at risk of melting and releasing carbon dioxide. Wooly mammoths were said to scrape off the snow on top of permafrost, which prevents it from melting. However, there are many areas that are still not addressed to convince people that the investment will indeed provide the intended return. Questions such as if climate change will be impacted, how much it will be impacted, is the behavior guaranteed, and can this impact last still needs to be answered.
First of all, there is no doubt the amount of carbon dioxide in permafrost will be detrimental to the planet if all is released into the atmosphere. But how much of an effect does wooly mammoths have on preventing melting permafrost? Average global temperatures are rising even without the input of carbon emissions from permafrost. It can be presumed that even if snow above the permafrost is removed, the higher temperatures will still cause permafrost to melt. It is not to say that removing the snow is not useful at all. There should be at least some impact, but it is uncertain if the impact will be significant.
Secondly, the mammoth will be produced by splicing bits of mammoth DNA into an Asian elephant. It is all presumed if the resulting animal will have the same behavior as the ancient wooly mammoths. There is no guarantee as there are at least some differences between the hybrid and the original wooly mammoths. In addition, as mentioned in the article by Joseph Frederickson and Matthew Cobbs, elephants are social animals. They interact with the environment and other animals that live in the same vicinity. Many of the animals that wooly mammoths had interacted with are probably extinct. The environment is likely drastically different when wooly mammoths roamed the earth. Air quality is poorer due to industrialization. Water supply is different and average temperature is also measurably higher than ancient times. All these factors can affect the behavior of wooly mammoths; therefore, increasing the uncertainty of Colossal’s claim. The mammoths are being created in a lab and not a natural environment. It may be easier to manipulate factors in a lab to keep them alive. But it is not certain if they would be able to survive in present day nature as it will be very different from what wooly mammoths are used to. Fifteen million dollars investment is too risky for such an uncertain proposal. It would be unrealistic for them to expect returns in six years. Therefore, it would be best if Colossal used this investment on other endangered animals to preserve biodiversity rather than bringing back wooly mammoths.
Jiawen (Angie) Lin