Environmental concerns for the new year

The New Year has started, and it is the usual practice for many persons to make resolutions at the beginning of each year. I guess by now you have made some resolutions as to how you are going to improve your personal life for the year 2008. Many persons would be focusing on health issues by paying more attention to the food they eat or to exercising more frequently; others might be resolving to desist from bad habit such as smoking and excessive eating, among others.{{more}} Resolutions are often associated with self improvement, and it is hoped that you would be firm with your conviction throughout the year. I want to urge you to pay some attention to the environment as you put into effect your personal resolutions. It is very important for us to make a desperate effort to preserve the world for future generations.

Global warming

Published scientific reports have informed us of a global warming. The visible effects are the melting ice caps in the Artic, the rising of the sea levels, higher local temperatures, among others. Many of the older folks would tell you that the days and nights are hotter than they used to be some years ago.

Green house effect

Scientists claim that with the use of fossil fuel, such as oil and coal, we are releasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which is causing a green house effect. In this way, they are comparing what is happening in the earth’s atmosphere to what happens in a green house. A green house is a structure used in cold countries to grow plants during the winter. While letting in light, the glass panels of the greenhouse trap the heat from the sun and prevent it from escaping, thus providing warmth for the plants. Scientists are saying that certain green house gases in the atmosphere, such as nitrate oxide, methane and carbon dioxide, behave in a similar manner to the glass in a green house. Sunlight penetrates a blanket of these gases in the atmosphere. The energy is absorbed by the land and water and some of it is passed back into the atmosphere. The gases prevent all the heat energy from escaping. Their absence could cause a colder earth, but too much could mean that the earth’s atmosphere would be too warm and life for human, animals and plants could be endangered.

Are we contributing to this global warming? We need to examine some of our practices to discover whether we are in some way contributing to this global problem. The numerous small fires and the black smoke emission from vehicles are part of the problem. We can no longer go about our business unconcerned about the earth’s atmosphere.

The Environment

We want to make sure that the water we drink is clean. But do we have the same concerns for the air we breathe? Polluted air like water is dangerous to our health. If we do not pay attention to some of our bad practices with a view to improvement, our quality of life could be severely reduced. The issue of waste disposal is of tremendous importance and we need to continue a national focus. This is your chance to make your input towards preserving our world for posterity.