Environmental sustainability simply means improving the quality of human life and living standards while coexisting with ecosystems on Earth. With the currently disruptive relationship between human society and nature, it is important to try to stop this war and create a balance. The two main sources that threaten this balance are the human population and governments or corporations. Individuals may seem unimportant or small compared to the large problems we have at hand, but small constant steps are more impactful than nothing at all. There are many ways we as people may impact the environment in a good way. One of them is reducing the usage of plastic. One plastic bottle takes around 450 years to decompose.
Additionally, polyethylene (PET) is a type of plastic commonly used to create plastic beverage containers. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, to create 1 ounce of PET (28 grams), 1 ounce of carbon dioxide is emitted. Every year, around 481.6 billion plastic bottles are used, and only 9% are recycled. Instead of using plastic bottles, try to use a reusable bottle. Another way we can help the environment is by using reusable energy. Solar, wind power, or geothermal energy are all infinite sources. By using solar power, for example, we can reduce carbon emissions by 80%. With carbon dioxide being the leading contributor to global warming, reducing its emissions is a need in this day and age. Governments can also aid this struggle by introducing new laws that protect keystone species.
Keystone species are the pillars of ecosystems, they play important roles and have massive effects on the environment. An example of a keystone species would be
sharks. Sharks are important predators in seas and feed on almost all species of fish, particularly the sick and weak fish. By doing this, sharks eliminate the weak, keeping the population under control and only letting the strong fish reproduce to create a healthier population. If keystone species were to completely go extinct, no other organism would be able to fill their part, thus impacting the whole species in many bad ways. Corporations can also play their part by reducing their reliance on natural resources. Trying to incorporate recycled materials into their business and by reducing the number of paper wasted. These are all different ways to reduce the harm done to the environment. Overall, whether you are an individual or a large corporation, you can take small steps to help nature coexist with society peacefully.
