New Issues mean New Issues

Listening to the news about how people and our actions are harming the environment more and more each day maybe not be as bad as we think.

An article, titled Easter Island, described to us how a community of people started living together on an island off the coast of Chile. Settlements were formed across the island and became focused on rituals and ceremonial activities, rather than learning how to feed and live off the land. Instead of realizing the earth would not continuously produce for them, they used what was there and foolishly became wrapped up in their monuments. According to the article, they would cut down numerous amounts of trees that helped transport these monuments without planting more. They started out in small numbers but soon grew, adding to the depleting resources available. Were these settlers truly neglecting their land? It was clearly stated that an archeologist researched and conclude that these selfish settlers grew a community to the most advanced community known in this region and then destroyed it with careless mistakes.

In the assigned reading, Ecosystems and Human Well-Being, the focus was on how much we are using our natural resources, like wood, food and fiber, and not realizing how much each little thing we do is hurting us in the long run. It seemed to me that this article states we think we need this much when really we only need this much; and that as we grow as a population our resources are dimensioning at scary rates. We use much paper, too much food, and too much waste, but are we not doing anything about it or replenishing these resources- probably not as much as we should.

I don’t think these issues are new. I think things like this have been going on for thousands and thousands of years, but I don’t think we should leave it alone. I think, as beings on this planet it is our job to take care of it.

As stated in the article, EPA policy based ‘junk science’, the EPA are not following their own rules and going off what someone said about the greenhouse gas emissions. About how they are hurting the environment when in fact the EPA didn’t do the tests and research they are, by their own rules, are supposed to do.

These issues I think are new. Since when is it ok to skate over the truth about environmental issues? But could we be also be doing to our land, our world what Easter Island did to theirs? Are we being feed information that is a little on the extreme side? Maybe we are, but maybe for the sake of people noticing and actually wanting to do something about it.  This, however, doesn’t make it right.