It is a truth universally acknowledged that the environment has been

seriously damaged, although whether or not we are still in time to do something

about it is yet to be discovered. Denying things like global warming seems

nowadays absurd but, are we really aware of how extreme the situation is?

Most people fail to realise the innumerable ways in which their lives are

affected by harmful environmental issues. Human impact on our planet has

prompted a vast array of pollution types. As for air and water pollution, some

striking phenomena are, for instance, the dumping of almost 80% of the urban

waste of India in the river Ganges, or that one third of air pollution in San

Francisco actually comes from China. Likewise, artificial lighting disrupts the

migratory schedules of birds, thus missing ideal nesting conditions and resulting

in large amounts of avoidable deaths.

But, is there anything we can do to turn things around for good? It is

worth highlighting the contribution of pressure groups like Greenpeace and

WWF, which have raised people’s awareness to such sensitive matters. A

change in tendency is now being noticed, with the increasing adoption of

environment-friendly manners such as recycling. These improvements do not,

however, compensate for the fact that insensible power usage is still to be

contained. Hence, we should grasp the nettle and reach international treaties

like the Paris Agreement of 2016 to set long-term solutions.

In conclusion, while there is reason behind many people’s fear for

mankind’s ongoing existence, there is also one very shiny silver lightning on a

dark cloud. Further changes have to be made in order to ensure that our

descendants live to see a better day.