Environmental Concern Issues

Did you ever think that something meant to aid in the advance of humans could be potentially fatal at the same time? What about a disease that was considered â€Å"dead†, resurfacing and killing unsuspecting people? What about the fact that we as human beings are ruining the only place for us to live, the earth? These questions sound outrageous, right? Wrong, these issues are considered environmental problems that we will soon face. These issues are very serious and many people have no idea that they even exist. To have problems and not even know about them is definitely grounds for destruction. We as a people, must look at the problems of antibiotic resistance, increasing diseases, weapons as wastes, and waste disposal and reduction and, if left unaddressed, these issues will become fatal problems in the near future. Many Americans get sick everyday; this usually warrants a trip to the doctor†s office. The doctor will usually examine the patient and prescribe an antibiotic. Antibiotics are being used as a way to solve medical problems. The heavy use of antibiotics is causing a threat to the population. They are so widely used and are beginning to become a contaminant in the environment. When used so frequently, antibiotics are found in the sewers, septic tanks, and even receiving waters. With antibiotics being so abundant in these places, the microbes here are now becoming resistant. With all of the sterilization and sanitation precautions, we would not expect to come in contact with these microbes. Reality is, we do. We come in contact with these microbes and sometimes become sick. Being sick means another trip to the doctor; only this time, the antibiotics that the doctor prescribes won†t work. This is due to the fact that the microbes that caused the sickness are resistant to the drugs, being that they are so abundant in microbe breeding grounds. In order to treat sickness, doctors must evaluate their patients more efficiently and choose other methods of treatment before they prescribe antibiotics. If the amount of antibiotics being released into the environment can be reduced, there won†t be a time when simple infections can†t be treated. Conditions that can†t be treated with antibiotics are called infectious diseases; they are on the rise and kill over 17 million people per year. The importance of this is that most dying are young. Young people are dying from recurring tuberculosis, and the AIDS epidemic. The reasons for these deaths are new strains of the viruses, increased poverty, declining public health measures and increased human contact. To halt the increase of the deaths, we must educate the public. If the symptoms, causes for, and methods of prevention are not taught to the public, they will continue to die unfounded deaths. Education and prevention are the only way that these diseases can be defeated. Weapons are contaminants of the environment also. The disposal of obsolete weapons is a problem being faced due to military tensions diminishing. Explosives, chemical weapons and nuclear weapons are being dumped into landfills and water bodies, causing contamination and posing serious health risks for those who come in contact with them. To prevent this, a way to dispose of these weapons without causing health risks must be developed. Until then, they must be kept out of everyone†s reach to prevent harm. Other contaminants include solid and toxic waste. With the increase of economy, comes the increase of waste. Waste is anything that is not desired by an organism; releasing waste into the environment causes health risks for all organisms. To reduce these risks, government regulation must be initiated. Recycling, reducing and reusing must also be executed. If not as much waste is produced or it can be reused, this problem may be decreased. All in all, to keep what we have and maybe improve it, antibiotics use must be reduced, infectious diseases must be prevented, weapons must be disposed of properly and we must reduce solid and toxic waste. These problems will be facing the population very soon and unless we are equipped with knowledge and know-how in these areas, we will suffer immensely from what can seem to be such simple problems. We must initiate defense mechanisms against these problems so that these â€Å"secret killers† do not kill us off. As the presidential election approaches, American citizens will be hearing many campaign speeches. It has been said that Vice President Albert Gore plans to address the issue of increased climate change in his campaign. With increased climate change, the population must be made aware of this issue; in addressing this potentially dangerous issue, there are some points that should be made to successfully get the point across. To successfully get this information out, the causes, influence, and possible ways to correct this problem must be addressed. The main cause of this issue is human behavior. With humans being a more advanced population, they also increase the production of a major climate-changing factor. This factor is the overproduction of greenhouse gases. Increased population, causes the increased production solid waste that is harmful to the environment. Fossil fuel burning is also a result of human behavior, which contributes to the production of the greenhouse gases. The overproduction of greenhouse gases is the immediate issue that must be addressed to increase knowledge of the increased climate change. The greenhouse gases are gases that are responsible for the heat trapping capability of the atmosphere of the earth. With a higher capability to trap heat, the temperature of the earth is greatly affected. Fluctuation in the temperature is the effect of human behavior and overproduction of the greenhouse gases. With the fluctuation of temperature, come the impacts of overproduction of the greenhouse gases. The impacts must also be addressed to acknowledge this problem. These impacts can be seen in raised sea levels, change in precipitation and change in local climate conditions. The temperature can also alter forests, crop yields and the water supply of the Americans. These alterations will then threaten human health conditions, harm birds and fish and cause imbalances in many other ecosystems. Along with animals being affected, it has been said that deserts may expand into rangelands and some National Parks may be affected. To better control this issue, some solutions must be planned and executed. The first step, must be the education of the population. With the threats of these human behaviors being known, governmental programs will be able to be implemented. These programs must include the encouragement of switching to carbon fuels and education of the causes, impacts and solutions of this problem. The development of reusable energy alternatives, solid waste reduction and recycling, as well as waste prevention are some effective solutions that should be put into play. The management of agricultural systems as well as energy efficiency could aid in the prevention and reduction of greenhouse gases. When these programs and ideas are put into play and discussed as solutions, this problem may be effectively addressed and eventually under control. To discuss the issues of climate change, the causes, influence on society and probable solutions must be addressed. In the upcoming months, the presidential candidates will need to address many issues; to address these issues and get the points across to Americans, effective presentation must be used. To effectively present the issue of climate change and almost any issue, the causes, the effects and the corrections to these problems must be addressed. If humans are able to cause such enormous problems, they must know be educated about them and must try to correct these problems, if humans are to survive as a population.