Solutions to Reduce Pollution in The Environment

What environment do you live or participate in? Often when people are answering this question, they think big such as the Earth as a whole.  However, one person’s environment is much smaller because no one has been everywhere on the planet.  An Environment can be described as circumstances, objects, or conditions by which one is surrounded.  Following this definition, the inside of your house, school, or even your backyard can be considered an environment.  We all produce waste, whether big or small.  It may not look that you create much pollution, but over time it adds up.  Think of it as collecting coins over time; The amount does not start with very much, but it could save a good amount of money given a year.  Since the average person lives to be at least eighty, imagine how much waste one person can make in their lifetime.  Everyone can take action to create less waste.

I am a freshman in a four-year college and am currently living in the dorms on campus.  I also have a roommate that I must share the dorm room.  The two of us together create a decent amount of waste in our environment.  Both of us like to consume microwave popcorn daily.  We use electricity to microwave the bag.  When we eat the popcorn, it put crumbs on the floor, which results in us using more electricity to vacuum the mess.  Once we finish, we throw the bag in the trash.  Another significant issue is water bottles; many college students buy water bottles because water is not easy to access on campus.  Naturally, when you finish drinking the water, the bottle gets thrown away.  Just one package of water bottles has a good amount of plastic. There is not much recycling on campus, so most of those bottles go in the trash. We all know how plastic can hurt the environment, big and small.   There is also fast food and other snacks we eat we must consider.  We also take showers many days of the week. The longer we are taking a shower, the more water usage we create. That is how we calculate the waste we produce by looking at all the different things we do and the cost of doing them.  Everything activity we do, whether positive or negative, has a cause and effect.  We can all look at our daily lives and see how we are making waste and pollution.

There are many solutions I can use to create less pollution in my environment.  To start, I can slow down my consumption of popcorn and snacks.  I should not eat popcorn every day but on days when many football games are on television.  It will result in less trash and time spent cleaning up the mess, which allows for fewer electricity expenses for my dorm building.  I could also apply this concept to my water usage by spending less time in the shower every day.  I should also eat more of my meals on campus rather than eating fast food.  It not only helps the environment but also saves me money.  The water bottles are the most significant issue but can reduce very quickly.  I could purchase a big reusable water bottle and fill it up on the few water fountains on campus between class periods.  If I consume more water during class, I will be less likely to be thirsty during the rest of the day when I have fewer ways to access water.  The amount of plastic used and thrown away would be reduced significantly. Plus, it is a smart move financially because you are not purchasing as many bottles from the store.  Individual methods to produce less waste are simple, and anyone can do them.

Not only can you help your environment but also the bigger ones around you.  Everyone together creates pollution that can affect us all.  It can be as simple as trash we litter or the items and services we waste.  Even a tiny cigarette can start a wildfire.   Of course, that is the extreme case.   However, that doesn’t mean we can’t help ourselves by doing positive things to help our environment.  When you see trash near you, go pick it up even if there is no recycling nearby. Garbage should be in the trash rather than on the ground.  Try to make the items you use last longer.  Give items such as T-shirts, cardboard boxes, and old furniture new life.  Children love to play with big cardboard boxes. Then when they get bored of it make arts and crafts with the package.   Old T-shirts can be turned into rags for your use.  Maybe try to use less paper if you are in school.  When writing notes for a class, fill up the page as much as you can.  Ride a bike or scooter if your destination is close enough.  Plus, that gives you great exercise as well.  If you want to get, ambitious go volunteer, to help clean public grounds around your community.  There are several scenarios in our daily lives we can think of to slow down pollution.  Overall, you do not have to limit yourself to just one or your immediate environment.

As you can see, we all can have positive and negative effects on the environment, big or small. Everything you do creates a cause and effect. There is always something you can do to have a positive impact on your domain.  Ways to better ourselves and our environment does not always need to be enormous or grand. Start small, and as you progress, increase the number of positive things you do.  I encourage you to develop a habit of limiting the waste you produce. If you choose to do so, encourage others to follow in your footsteps.  I plan to convince others by challenging them to see how many ways they cut their waste or how many items they figure out a way to reuse. I might even add a prize to the challenge because I enjoy turning inconvenient subjects into games or challenges.  If nothing else, be considerate of the environment and other people around you.  Together we can work on our small environments to affect the vast climate we all share.