I Believe In Saving the Earth Because…

The earth is the only home we get. Without a healthy planet, there is no humanity. Saving the earth and keeping the environment clean and healthy is something I think about often. I have always been passionate about the environment and the health of our planet as a whole. It is important for me to spread the word about the importance of doing little things each day to ensure our planet stays healthy. 

The current state of the environment is nowhere near ‘healthy’. Every day there is constant pollution into the atmosphere causing carbon dioxide levels to rise worldwide. These rising CO2 levels are causing ocean acidification, which is rising the temperature of the ocean. These rising temperatures in the ocean are leading to coral bleaching. This causes coral to die and they are no longer able to provide nutrients for the reefs, which can cause marine life to die. The worst part is all the pollution is a result of our human actions. There are things we can do each day to ensure our environment stays healthy, instead of emitting toxins into our planet causing more pollution. 

Here are 3 ways you can contribute to saving the earth: 

1. Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle

Although this is the most promoted and popular way to contribute to healthy earth, it is also considered the most important. We can reduce by cutting plastic out of our lives. We can use paper bags instead of plastic, stop buying plastic bottles, and bring our own reusable bags when shopping. Bottles and bags can be reused, instead of being thrown away and ending up in landfills. My grandma has been washing and reusing Ziploc bags her whole life. Although I think it is odd for her to reuse these bags, I have realized over the years that she is making a smart choice to reuse what she has to help make a difference in saving the earth. It is crucial we recycle what we can. Here is a list of the objects we can recycle…make sure to recycle these in the blue recycling bins in your dorms if you are on campus!

• Paper 
• Wrapping paper 
• Mail and envelopes 
• Magazines
• Boxes (cereal, food, packages, etc.)
• Takeout and frozen food containers 
• Juice and milk cartons
• Beverage cups and drink boxes (remove lids and straws first) 
• Paper bags 

2. Conserve water 

The Global Water Crisis is a critical issue that impacts millions of people across the globe. We must be aware of this crisis and value the importance of conserving water. We can conserve our water by fixing any leaky faucets, toilets, appliances, etc. We can also turn off the water while brushing our teeth, use less water when doing laundry and take showers instead of baths and consider taking short showers when doing so. These little impacts of conserving water each day can make a large, healthy impact on our environment. 

3. Stay educated, and educate others 

Staying educated about the health and state of our environment has been and always will be an important topic to me. I encourage all of you to be educated about the environment too! When we know about the current issues going on in the environment, we can take action to help solve the problem. The little things each day can go a long way. The more people that are educated about the environment, the more people there will be to contribute to saving the environment. 

This Earth Day lets remember the importance of keeping our earth healthy! There are so many ways in which we can all make a difference to save the planet and it is important we all contribute. A little effort goes a long ways. 

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