Everyone seems to want to find ways in which they can help the environment. One of the most popular trends is the quest to recycle everything so that we will not deplete our natural resources and eventually wind up with nothing. Recycling simply means to take old material and use it to make new material. In today’s world, a lot of cities and towns are forming some type of recycling programs to provide opportunities for people to protect the environment.
Recycling has some important advantages, but besides these advantages, it also has some downside points. One of the advantages of recycling is that it does help us to keep garbage out of our disposals and incinerators. There are 41 states that have official goals ranging from recycling 25% of all their garbage to Rhode Island’s goal of recycling 70% of their total waste. This method poses environmental hazards that are non-beneficial to any community.
Another advantage is that new products can be made out of old products. This method mostly cuts down on water and air pollution, which is very beneficial to both the environment and the community. Recycling uses less energy and less cost than making products out of raw material that has never been used before. By using this process, the production cost is decreased and it results in a decrease in the final cost of the product.
Recycling also has a downside. Recycling can be a very costly project for some communities to afford. A lot of materials are too expensive for a town to recycle and it is hard for that community to recover the costs quickly. The initial investment of recycling costs a lot, In addition to the regular garbage pick up the town provides, new trucks, employees and other expenses will have to be provided for the recycling cycle. This is an added expense to the town’s budget. If that town doesn’t have enough income coming in, then recycling wouldn’t be successful there.
The earth overwhelmingly populated with both ignorant and lazy people. We are killing off vital animal populations every day. We have caused the extinction or endangerment of numerous species for absolutely no reason other than selfishness. An example is the poaching of elephants. We are killing these animals only for our own wealth. We take their ivory and leave them behind to die. As a result, they are on the verge of extinction. Also, pollution caused by humans and their inventions causes a major dilemma. Automobile exhaust fumes and factory pollutants are only a couple of the impurities causing damaging effects to the ozone layer and atmosphere. We depend on the ozone to defend us from harmful UV rays.
Finally, we have a major impact on the degeneration of natural resources. Millions of gallons of oil, coal, and other valuable resources are wasted each day. These are just a few of the human disruptions to nature available to our knowledge. We are conscious of many more, and there are probably others that we are not aware of. If we do not start taking them seriously soon it will be too late, if it is not already. We need to reevaluate our priorities and plan for the future existence of this world. A group labeled the Earth-Firsters often attempt to accomplish this task through drastic and sometimes dangerous methods. In Australia, Earth-First protesters buried themselves up to their necks in the sand in the middle of logging roads to stop lumbering operations; in the American Southwest, Earth Firsters handcuffed themselves to trees and bulldozers to prevent logging; and in California, they dressed in dolphin and mermaid costumes to picket the stockholders meeting of a tuna-fishing company.
We need to set standards and ideas that can realistically be accomplished. It is not possible to change the world in one day. Instead of killing ninety percent of the population, we might control the number of offspring allowed to each individual. This approach would more likely be sustained. In order to conserve the earth, we should section off small portions all over the globe, as opposed to completely zoning off one giant segment. This would provide a habitat suitable for wildlife in any conditions.
Obviously, some people are more viable than others when it comes to preserving the environment. The president of a logging business is achieving much more harm than the average worker. Businesses need more regulations. Most businesses act upon deals that are only going to profit themselves. As a result, many products on the market today are harmful to the environment. Finally, politicians have to get into the picture. We need honest leaders who are aware of what is going on and who truly want to help the people.
Obviously, it is past time for the world to change in its habits. The world, as a whole, needs to come together and form a lawful, yet realistic plan. By doing this we will know what we are aiming for and society will understand the damaging effects we are having on our planet.