FWR Group Sustainability Articles
Major issues faced by the planet
The world is now faced with a variety of environmental problems. So numerous in fact, that it is well beyond the scope of this article to address all of them, or indeed even a significant number of environmental problems. This article will focus on the major environmental issues currently faced by the planet, predominantly caused by human activities. Many of the problems discussed below are a result of rapid population growth now occurring exponentially. To accommodate this trend, the earths’ resources are being increasingly extracted at unsustainable levels. It is important to note that while many of the major environmental problems have a number of causes and effects there are also solutions to minimise their impact on the planet.
Global warming, climate change, ozone depletion, deforestation, desertification, acid rain and water pollution are just some of the main environmental problems affecting the world. The first three problems are now widely considered to be the most significant issues facing humans in the future and all of them are directly related to the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The remaining environmental problems are also causing serious issues for many of the planet’s six billion inhabitants. While each of the problems described above are damaging in their own right it is important not to treat each one in isolation. Many of them share common causes that must be addressed simultaneously to find a solution or at least minimise their impact on the environment.
- Global warming relates to the increase of the planets’ temperature as a result of excessive greenhouse gas production since the Industrial Revolution. These gases trap more of the sun’s heat within our atmosphere causing temperature’s to rise.
- Climate change is a direct result of global warming, as warmer temperatures cause a variety of disturbances to global weather patterns. While our climate has been changing for millennia, the speed in which recent climatic events have occurred has resulted in scientists to conclude that recent climate change is predominantly anthropogenic.
- Ozone depletion is also caused by the release of greenhouse gases, namely CFCs that react with ozone in the upper atmosphere causing the O3 molecules to break apart. This allows more of the sun’s harmful radiation to reach the planet’s surface.
- Deforestation has resulted from the continual clearing of land by humans for a variety of reasons. The need for timber is a principal motivation, however as our population increases more land is required for our expanding towns and cities, as well as land for agriculture and grazing.
- Desertification is occurring in a number of continents today and is attributed to land clearing and climate change. In Africa the Sahara is encroaching on lands that were once used for agricultural purposes. However, unsustainable practises have caused the land to be degraded and unable to support crops or grazing animals.
- Acid rain is caused by the release of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere. They are released from the burning of coal in power stations and petrol in automobiles. Once in the atmosphere a reaction occurs forming acidic compounds that then precipitate back to earth damaging living organisms and man-made creations.
- Water pollution has a number of sources and occurs in both fresh water and the oceans. Much of the pollution that ends up in our water systems is man-made, whether it is from urban centres or rural settlements. Pollution of our waterways is especially damaging to the environment because of the high level of connectedness among the world’s oceans, resulting in pollution being transported all over the world.
Acknowledging the environmental problems faced by the planet is only the first step, it is imperative that their causes are established to allow solutions to be formulated.
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This work by Michael Duggan is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 2.5 Australia License.
