While environmental month is full of advice on how to care for the environment, not many take the time to explain the purpose of it all. Humans will have a major effect on the planet’s future health.
People often overlook the ways they negatively impact the Earth; one of them being palm oil. Palm oil is an ingredient used in many products such as soaps, beauty products, ice cream, and instant noodles. The issue with palm oil is how it is grown. Manufacturers clear out the natural vegetation in places such as Indonesia so they can plant the oil palm trees. The habitation loss leads to a toppled ecosystem which causes the native wildlife to suffer.
To prevent these adverse effects, Zach Miller, a science teacher at PV, recommended looking at the ingredients of products before buying them. “If you don’t want deforestation, as a consumer, [refusing to buy products with palm oil] is one of the main ways we can effect change,” Miller said. Boycotting specific goods sends a message to companies about their actions.
While the loss of indigenous organisms disheartens some people, others care more about issues that will impact their daily life. Miller went on to explain a cyclical process that will lead to many complications for mankind in the coming years. The genesis of this detrimental cycle are concepts that many people are familiar with: non-renewable energy and greenhouse gases.
Miller urged people to consider where their energy comes from. Each appliance and outlet in a house is powered by something; a vast majority is supplied by fossil fuels. Every car contributes to the excessive use of dwindling energy sources–even electric cars must be charged by energy from some source.
These fossil fuels emit carbon, a particle that combines with the oxygen in the air to create carbon dioxide (CO2). CO2 is just one of the gases that is considered a greenhouse gas; other gases include methane, nitrous oxide, and, surprisingly enough, water vapor. “Water vapor is a greenhouse gas which most people aren’t aware of,” Miller said. Each of these gases add to the atmosphere which traps heat close to Earth.
As the global temperature increases, the ice caps melt and ocean levels rise. This poses an issue for major cities built along the coasts as more of the shoreline is taken up by the sea. “New Orleans was built below sea level–someone tell me why that was a good idea?” Miller joked.
Cities like Miami have already spent money to artificially elevate infrastructure in anticipation of the flooding that will occur in the coming years. This is only the beginning of the measures countries will have to take to combat this self-sustaining cycle. As global temperature increase, more ice caps are melted, the methane trapped in the ice is released, and the greenhouse effect increases the temperature even more.
Senior Caroline Christophersen explained how she strives to make a difference in light of these environmental issues. “My impact is my responsibility, however small it seems next to politicians and big businesses,” Christophersen said. If more people are aware of and understand the impact they have on the environment, then more positive change will occur.
