Hi everyone! My name is Lisa Zaretskaya. I would like to draw your attention to my 8^th report related to SOIL POLLUTION IN TAIWAN.

The 4^th meeting of our ecological club (and our ecological marathon) in this new semester was devoted to SOIL POLLUTION IN TAIWAN. It was held on December 5 and was dedicated to World Soil Day. It is a day held to demonstrate and promote environmental awareness and calls for the protection of our planet. The student Mira Lee made a report on this problem. Se told us that Taiwan used to aggressively seek for economic development, but in the meantime ignoring environmental protection. It resulted in ubiquitous incidents of contaminated soil and groundwater. Social and environmental costs were sacrificed for partial economic development, and the government strived to solve the problems of remediation with public funds. General citizens also had to suffer from natural disasters. To deal with this severe condition and to also react to a growing environmental awareness of the public, new initiatives had to be taken.

Mira Lee also told us that in 2017 acid rain falls in Hsinchu City on 85 days out of every 100 days of rain (according to the Environmental Protection Agency). And when the weather gets cold, the issue of air pollution heats up.

I believe that even through our small actions we can contribute to a big goal, to reduce soil pollution. Reduce, reuse and recycle can help us, our community by improving our health and the health of our soils.

Thank you for your attention. Our marathon will be continued…