The Most Serious Threats to the Environment and How to Solve Them

Each year, factories, power plants and incinerators all over the world spew out millions of tons of waste gases into the atmosphere, taking for granted that the Earth can cope with these unnaturally high volumes of pollutants without showing any effects. However, as many scientific studies all over the world have shown, this is not so. What we have now as a result of this blatant disregard of the Earth ecosystems is a crisis on our hands. Studies have shown that the pollution of the atmosphere is a serious threat to the environment. It is- the cause of acid rain which is destroying the Black Forest in Germany as well as the forests in many parts of North America and Canada. It is also the cause of global warming, which is the rise in temperature in all parts of the world. Even the depletion of the ozone layer has to do with the chemicals that we release into the atmosphere.

There are a few alarming signs indicating that all is not well with the environment. Firstly, there is acid rain which is caused by rain falling through sulphur dioxide and carbon dioxide released by factories,cars and incinerators into the atmosphere. Any secondary science student will tell you that when you bubble these gases into water, you produce sulphuric acid and carbonic acid from sulphur dioxide and carbon dioxide respectively. Acid rain has been destroying natural vegetation and forests rapidly. It has also caused some lakes in North America to become too acidic to support aquatic life. How fast has it been destroying forests? The Black Forest in Germany has lost a quarter of its trees just over a period of two years.

Another warning sign is global warming. Scientists attribute this to the 'Greenhouse Effect'. The pollutants released into the atmosphere allow radiant heat from the sun to warm the earth . However, it prevents heat from escaping and so the earth's temperature progressively increases. Scientists predict that if this trend continues, the polar icecaps would melt and this would see sea-levels rising from a few centimetres to, a few metres. Lowlying coastal regions of countries such as Holland would be flooded. Weather patterns would shift as well, turning valuable farming land into dustbowls.

If this picture is not frightening enough, couple it with the depletion of the ozone layer. The ozone layer screens out harmful ultra-violet radiation from the sun. Recently satellite pictures have shown that there is a gaping hole in the ozone layer above the-Antartic. It is caused by chloroflurocarbons or CFCs which are commonly used in aerosol sprays, styrofoam and cooling agents'. These bind chemically with ozone and change it to oxygen. If the hole in the ozone layer enlarges, it would affect our immune system and increase our risk of getting skin cancer and of going blind as ultra-violet radiation damages the eyes..

Knowing the problem and the serious danger pollution poses to the environment, what can we do about it? We could firstly continue to meet as nations of the world to ratify our stand to. do something about the problem. Then we could do some thing about the sources of pollution. Devices to trap or neutralise the harmful gases could be installed in factories. This could be passed as law. Better forms of obtaining energy besides burning fossil fuels should be researched and used. In the case of CFCs, safe and cheap alternatives would be the best solution, seeing how painful and difficult it would be to ban its usage. More research should be done to find a good alternative chemical as soon as possible. To reverse the 'Greenhouse Effect', we could try reafforestation. Only with a concerted effort from governments, industries and the ordinary person will we be able to reverse these frightening trends. If nothing is done soon about the problem of pollution, my generation has nothing to look forward to but a grim future.