MASSIVE PROBLEM
Today, the world is facing one of the most serious problems of humanity and other forms of life, pollution. It is a known fact that pollution is very rampant all over the globe. Just look around and you will see rivers, lakes, beaches that are murky, stinky, and lifeless. Plastic, empty cans, bottles, and other trash have replaced the fishes and other wonderful marine creatures that used to reside under water.
Yet, when scarcity arises and when epidemics occur many point their fingers to others and turn their backs from the responsibility. But in fact there is no one else to blame but the people. Man is the main cause of water pollution.
People pollute the water with chemicals and other hazardous materials. People have no regard to water ñ their source of life. They do not realize that this once abundant resource is rapidly being contaminated due to their negligence and carelessness.
Waste disposal has always been a chronic problem, not only because of the quantity of wastes, but because of its kind and the inadequate provision for a good system and technology to address the problem. There are many sources of water pollution but it is not the source that is really causing the problem but the improper disposal of the pollutants. People resort to careless disposal because it is cheaper, more advantageous, or simply convenient to them.
When you are taking a bath using your favorite shampoo or whenever you wash your laundry using no other than the best detergent in town, it is certain that before buying those products you really never consider asking yourself whether their contents can harm the environment or not. What mattered more was the scent and softness of your hair and the clean comfort of your clothes. Instead of finding an environmental friendly product, you simply chose convenience and your satisfaction of meeting your interests. However, if you will support environmental friendly products and become more conscientious of how you can avoid contributing to water pollution, then the world has gotten rid of one polluter.
In the same way, if chemical factories are only equipped with better facilities that can release treated wastewater, there will be no harm done to the lakes or rivers where they dump their by products. If home owners associations will work to build and provide their subdivisions with sewage treatment facilities, eutrophication can be controlled and dying bodies of water will be spared. But as mentioned, polluters choose the easier way where they can save on operation costs and where they can rid themselves of the hassles of responsibility. Anyway, they are not affected by the effects of their misdeeds.
What is the greenhouse effect?
The greenhouse effect is the ability of our planet’s atmosphere to trap and contain heat. This heat is sourced from the sun and is reflected back towards the atmosphere. Certain gases are responsible for this entrapment and they include carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, fluorinated compounds and water vapor. Other man-made chemicals are also capable of retaining heat within the atmosphere.
In itself, the greenhouse effect is not essentially evil. In fact, it is this very phenomenon that has produced life on earth as we know it. Think of the greenhouse effect as a natural thermal blanketing for our planet, maintaining a surface temperature that is just right to encourage organisms to grow and survive. Without this blanketing, the earth’s climate would be too cold ñ about 59F lower than the average ñ for our planet to be able to sustain life successfully.
How does the greenhouse effect contribute to global warming?
For more than 4 billion years, the greenhouse effect has kept our planet’s temperature at a friendly level. Gases found in the atmosphere act to trap heat and keep our planet insulated, able to sustain itself. Problems only began to arise when scientists noticed that certain practices and human activities contribute to the modification of this process.
When the Industrial Revolution began, we also devised many ways of using fossil fuel for oil, coal and gas. The only way to utilize these fuels was by burning. As industrialization continued to expand, so did the practice of fossil fuel burning, thereby releasing gases into the atmosphere. The only problem was that these gases had nowhere else to go and have continued to build up over the years.
By building up, they cause the atmosphere to become more efficient in trapping heat, causing climates to turn warmer. This unnatural or man-made result is referred to as global warming.
How global warming affects us
We have been experiencing the effects of global warming for the past years and most of these are felt through changes in the climate. However, it’s important to note that climate change is brought about by other factors and not just as an indirect result of the greenhouse effect. Some of these factors include changes in the circulation of the oceans, changes in our planet’s orbit and even changes in the intensity of the sun itself.
Global warming involves increase in the average temperature of the earth’s atmosphere near its surface. While global warming is nothing new to our planet (it has occurred over long periods in the earth’s 4.5-billion-year history alternating with ice ages), it is only now when its drastic changes on a global scale has dire consequences not just for human kind but also to the millions of species that depend upon the earth for sustenance.
A famous example of the effect of global warming is the increase in sea level, brought about by the melting of glaciers. This is a problem not readily seen nor felt in countries or regions that lie on higher ground, but for many areas, this could mean land (and subsistence opportunities) lost to sea. A 0.3-meter increase in sea level for example, can eat up about 15 meters of beach.
Saving earth is everyone’s responsibility. The damages done to the earth resources have to be slowed-down and eventually stop if we want our children and grand-children to enjoy a healthy outdoor life like we can.
The big polluters have been pointed and rules and regulations to diminish the toxic gas emissions have been put into place. Manufacturers are now targeted to ensure they lower their pollution production.
Although this is a small step in the right direction, more needs to be done to slow down and eventually stop the wastes of our natural resources. Such solutions as walking instead of taking the car for small travels are a good and healthy start. Other measures such as not letting the purified water run aimlessly or better isolation of a house to lower the fuel consumption to heat it are all small steps that have the power to make a difference in the long run.
Other measures such as only washing the dishes or the laundry for full loads can on the long run greatly reduce the exploitation of earth’s resources.
Saving the earth can also be done in your own backyard. Hence, when mowing the lawn, it has been proven that by leaving the cut grass, you are saving a lot on fertilizers and you have greatly diminishing the quantity of waist you are producing. The other great benefit from not picking-up the cut grass is the time saving you can enjoy. Cut grass when left in place has the power to give back to the earth powerful and natural nutrients and a good load of natural water.
Saving the earth’s resources by leaving the cut grass in place will actually give you a greener grass from the nutrients your lawn is getting back. It will also reduce or eliminate your needs for polluting pesticides and fertilizers.
After 48 hours of being cut, most of the grass will have returned to earth, this time can be faster in case of rainy weather. It has been calculated that when thrown away, grass clipping residues can account for as much as 24% of the yearly domestic trash production.
Other tricks and tips to get a greener more ecological grass include: Use a mulching land mower, have a sharp blade, cut your grass frequently but not too short. Short grass is said to favor the growth of weeds and has the power to attract more insects.
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