There is no denying that we are affecting our ability to survive on this planet. I was horrified to read that according to a CBC report 60% of the Earth’s biodiversity has been destroyed in the last 50 years. And according to the World Wildlife Fund Earth has lost half of its wildlife in the past 40 years. It’s insane to think only 1/5 of the Earth’s forests remain in tact. What are we doing to the planet that sustains our lives?
Nothing is truly disposable. Extracting oil from the depths of the Earth wastes billions of litres of waters and creates tailings that contaminate water and cannot be fully reclaimed. Yet, daily I see people throw one time use cups, lids, plates, straws, knives, forks, spoons out without thought as to where they go.
How can we preserve life on this planet for future generations if people are unwilling to admit or think about impact they are having on this planet? Each one of has an ecological footprint. We can advocate for reducing the amount of packaging used to sell consumer products and work toward not buying one time use materials.
Next time you go shopping, read labels to see where the products you buy come from. Purchasing foods out of season takes petroleum products to ship them here. Foods that are not organic are sprayed with harmful petroleum based chemicals that are by-products of extracting oil. We all must think about where consumables come from, how they were made and where they go after being used.
Do what you can on a daily basis to lessen your ecological footprint. Denial only works for so long, hopefully sooner than later we will act together to protect our ability to survive on this planet.
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Thank you Taryn Anderson for the usage of this photograph in Northern Manitoba
