Small Choices, Large Impacts

5th July

By: Haris Ahmad

"Go green, there is no Planet B yet"

The Environment of our Planet is a dominant factor in the sustainability of life on Planet Earth. However, it is a desolate truth that we humans are collectively destroying planet Earth and its capability to sustain life. We are tempting climate change, whilst knowing the destruction it'll bring to this fragile Planet and its short-term and long-term consequences.

Deforestation is at its peak and tons of greenhouse gases are being emitted. Moreover, water, air, and land pollution is rising at ever-increasing rates. Every year, approximately 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are cut down, which is an immensely huge, and disappointing number. Consequently, not only the oxygen supply is reduced but, entire ecosystems are affected due to the fact that these trees were once habitats to countless organisms. 

The Amazon forest, also known as 'The Lungs of Planet Earth', is being cut down at an extremely fast rate. If the trees in the Amazon forest are cut down at the current rate, by 2100 the whole forest will be a barren land with no trees to be seen anywhere.

Souce: Wikipedia

These factors are piling up to cause Global Warming, which is a red alert for us humans. Due to the rise in temperatures, entire Glaciers are melting and falling apart, leading to a drastic increase in sea levels, leading to floods which can kill and displace millions of people. Nevertheless, the lives of millions of people are at the brink edge of existence due to the threat of Climate Change.

“We are the last generation that can prevent irreparable damage to our planet,” General Assembly President María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés (Ecuador) warned the gathering in her opening remarks, stressing that 11 years are all that remain to avert catastrophe. (Source - United Nations) 

This statement is a grave warning for us, and it does not mean that there is no hope. When there is a will there is a way. If all of us take action right now, we may save the planet Earth before it's too late. We have to stress on decreasing industrial pollution. We, as inhabitants of Planet Earth, regardless of our county, race, or religion, have to unite in pressurizing against these industries and their owners who run Multi-National companies, earning billions whilst destroying our Planet. We have to stop the dumping of waste into rivers and lakes in order to save marine life. 

The use of renewable materials such as Biofuels should be increased instead of fossil fuels not only because these fossil fuels are limited and will end soon, but also because the burning of fossil fuels damages the environment to a great extent. 

Deforestation much is reduced and afforestation should be increased. Many countries are taking steps in planting more and more trees and projects such as the ‘billion tree tsunamis’ initiated by the Government of Pakistan should be started and encouraged because these are the steps that really matter. There should be strict rules for preventing deforestation on a large scale. The public doesn't need to wait for the government to do something; it is our solemn duty to protect this planet from destruction because we are also a part of it. We should take small steps such as planting as many trees as we can. If you are too busy to plant trees then just plant one tree on your birthday. If every human plants one tree on his/her birthday, we will be able to plant billions of trees each year which will compensate the ones which are cut down. Currently, this is the only planet we can inhabit, so we should save it from destruction because climate change will not only destroy Earth but it will also wipe all the organisms that exist within.