Saving the Earth

 

While saving the Earth does not seem like something close to the heart for many,  I advocate doing it because it is the right thing to do.

Even if we feel that global warming is a conspiracy theory, the thought of endless garbage being dumped into the sea and landfills just does not feel right.  Very soon the consequences will come back to bite us, or our descendants.  Example: eating fish that have been contaminated with plastic wastes, or encroaching into some animals' natural habitat because we need more land (and resulting in more viruses jumping onto human being).

The obvious things that are happening on this planet:

• Rising temperatures in many parts of the world;

• Rising sea levels, partly as a result of rising temperatures and melting ice sheets.  Some cities are already going below sea level, like Jakarta, Manila, Venice;

• More viruses appearing and mutating.

Some things that are not so obvious:

• Forests being cleared for commercial purposes, resulting in less oxygen being produced, and less carbon dioxide being absorbed;

• Polluted rivers and sea, resulting in us eating unclean seafood;

• High emission of Methane gas from rearing of billions of cows, resulting in pollution and global warming;

• Depleting and wasting of resources from over extraction;

• Wasting of resources from over production (food/products wastage).

Simple things we can do as individuals:

• Reduce/avoid the use of single-use plastics like supermarket carriers, disposable mineral water bottles and utensils;

• Play a part in the local recycling effort.  The least we can do is not dump food waste into these recycling bins. We can collect plastic/metal/glass bottles/cans, and aluminum from medication packs, and drop them into the bins on a weekly basis. (Rinse the bottles/cans where necessary, as food waste will complicate the recycling process.);

• Buy local produce as much as we can, as long distance transporting requires fuel and other resources. Demand affects supply. We do what we can;

• Not wasting food, as resources are used in recycling food wastes too;

• Eat less beef, and for that matter, less red meat (for health);

• Use public transport or get an electric car, to reduce reliance on petrol.

Singapore's current targets:

• Reduce food wastes;

• Reduce packaging wastes;

• Reduce e-wastes (discarded electrical and electronic items) 

At my previous house, I had a young neighbour who came to me one day, and offered me a can of soft drink.  The next day when I saw his mum, I spoke about it.  She gleamed and said proudly :"Oh, his school is driving a recycling project.  So we purchased two cartons of soft drinks, for him to bring the empty cans to school."  

OMG.  Obviously the school was not clear in its communication on the intent of the project.