TASK 2:
Nowadays we are producing more and more rubbish. Why do you think this is happening?
What can governments do to help reduce the amount of rubbish produced?
Our living environment depends significantly on the activities that we humans do everyday; yet the things humans produce are not totally beneficial to the Mother Earth. The Earth is having to contain more and more rubbish within itself. This essay aims to figure out the reasons behind this phenomenon, and make recommendations for governments to alleviate the quantity of waste.
Causes of bigger amount of rubbish adding into the Earth could be mainly attributed to overpopulation and industrialization. Firstly, in recent decades, the world is witnessing the babybooming in almost all major cities, which total up to more than 7 billion citizens. This is remarkably higher than the number in 1980s. More people being born is equivalent to more resources consumed, including hospital facilities, school constructions, clothes manufacturing, food package and so on… All of these products manufacturing and consumption process would give out a huge amount of rubbish which grows with more or less the same ratio with the growth of population. Secondly, industrialization revolution brings consequences of environment concerns. More factories opened equals more unhealthy airs being emitted to the atmostphere and more waste being dumped after the production line. While industrialization has certainly proved to be an effective conduit to make modern life a better one, it also make things easier to access and therefore many people possess more things than their needs. This redundancy affects peope’s behavior in deciding which item should be thown away. A simple example could be a shopper easily grabbing a plastic bag for free would means he can discard other plastic bags he already had, adding into the visible pile of rubbish thrown into the trash can.
Governments could take more pro-active role in managing the amount of rubbish produced by regulations and education. Firstly, to reduce the effect of over production on environment, governments could consider giving factories a standard upper limit on amounts of waste produced per production line. Only if the factories are able to prove that their process results in lower number than the limit then it can continue to operate. Moreover, government could have legistrations on give-aways like brochures or plastic bags, considering that a small amount of charge would reduce the consumption of these items. In Japan, government even charges a big amount of money when car owners want to dispose the vehicle, encouraging them to repair it instead. Secondly, the country leaders could partner with environment organizations to educate people to reduce, reuse and recycle more materials. One particular example could be holding donation drive where clothes or household appliances still in good condition can be given to others in need instead of being discarded into environment. Recycling techniques can be taught in school and actualized in real life, encouraging students to be agent of change to reduce unnecessary consumptions.
To summarize, overpopulation and industrialization are the main causes of more rubbish being produced. With support from regulators and proper education, citizens would be more aware to recycle the products and save more. Much could be done in the near future to not just reduce the waste but also convert them into sustainable sources of enegery, which in turn make the environment better for everyone.