There?s not a lot we can do about the rising population in other parts of the world. But seeing as you and I already exist we should try to minimise our impact on the planet – or reduce our ?ecological footprint?.

 

(1)- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

 

Ah – here they are again the famous ?3Rs?. You?ve probably heard of these already. They are very important and we all need to follow them if we want to help protect the environment for the future. Here?s a quick reminder for you:

 

Reduce: Reducing the amount of waste and pollution we create is the first, very important (and difficult!) step. It means things like using less electricity (turning lights off, turning the TV off standby and so on), buying less ?stuff? in the first place (do you really need the latest computer game, mobile phone upgrade, football shirt??) walking or cycling rather than going by car.

 

Reuse: Reusing packaging wherever possible (jars, plastic bottles), mending things that break rather than buying new, giving things to charity or selling them on rather than throwing them out, buying second hand rather than new.

 

Recycle: When we do have to throw things out, recycling them wherever possible reduces the need for new raw materials.

 

(2)- Change our eating habits-

Eat food that has been produced locally – reduce your ?food miles?. The further your food has travelled, the bigger its eco footprint is likely to be as it has required more energy to get it to your local supermarket.

 

 Eat less meat. Cows and sheep reared for food need large amounts of land to live on. The grass requires fertilizers (applied using energy-hungry machinery) and the animals need extra food in the winter (from crops grown in other fields). The land they and their food is produced on could be used to grow even more essential food for humans such as potatoes or wheat.

 

Alarming Fact! The average American eats more than 120kg of meat each year. The average Indian eats just 6kg.

(3)- Limit the number of children in families?

 

This is a good topic for discussion! Should families around the world only be allowed by law to have one or two babies rather than 3 or 4? Would this be fair? It would certainly slow down the increase in population.

 

But imagine if people only had one baby and the parents and grandparents all lived a long time –

there wouldn?t be enough younger people growing up to be nurses, doctors, bus drivers, shop keepers and politicians to help them when they are older!

 

China?s one-child policy: In 1979 China brought in a law which said that couples living in the cities were only allowed to have one child. Whilst the population is now 250 million less than it would have been had the policy not been introduced, it has been very controversial and caused many problems.

 

Perhaps it is better (and easier) to reduce our consumption than it is to reduce the number of people.

 

Consider this: If a woman in rural Ethiopia (a poor African country) has 10 children and they all survive (unlikely), if they each went on to have 10 children of their own, the entire family of 100 would produce less carbon dioxide during their lives than you or I on our own!

 

 

 

 

(4)- Provide energy from renewable sources- 

The manufacture, transportation and use of both luxury and essential items require the use of lots of energy. Using non-renewable forms of energy causes air pollution and uses up oil faster than it is formed. If most or all of our energy came from renewable sources instead - such as hydrogen or wind power – then impact on the planet would be much reduced.

 

(5)- Improve technology for food production – GM food

Ideally we need to provide more food from the farmland that exists already. This way habitats don?t get destroyed and more hungry mouths can be fed.

 

Some crops have already been bred to provide more food in the same spaces. These crops are called Genetically Modified (GM) crops and they have been artificially, genetically altered. For example, some are more resistant to disease and drought and some have been altered to produce more grain per stalk.

 

Not everyone agrees with GM crops. Some people are worried about the knock-on effect of introducing manipulated plants to natural ecosystems. Several countries already grow GM crops but it has yet to be seen if they will help to reduce world hunger.

 

Conclusion- Rapid world population growth and increased consumption is causing problems. The challenge is to achieve 'Sustainable development' where everyone can have a decent standard of living without damaging the planet.

Hmmm?. Not an easy problem to solve!