The world has advanced in ways that would shock our ancestors back to death if they were to wake up today. While I agree that these advancements makes daily living easier, we must acknowledge that a lot of the means for these developments are depleting our environment.There has never been a time when we should worry about our environment like we should today. I started hearing about global warming when I was much younger, but even the source, my secondary school teacher, made it sound like a problem for the western world and not ours. Fast forward years later, and this is still the case with us today. We hear about the scary projections on CNN of what could become of our world if we don’t do anything about it quickly, and we change channels like we’re not part of the world being talked about. I’m not advocating that we reject technology, but I believe that a balance should be established to allow our environment replenish. We mustn’t wait till we get as bad as China where ‘fresh air’ is now an expensive commodity.Here are a few but significant things you could do to help keep our environment healthy.
1. Plant Trees:
Landlords want many flats, so that they’ll have many tenants, so that they’ll have a fat bank account. So they build to take up every inch of their tiny piece of land. The result is a building so tight that neighbors are able to share handshakes between windows. Great and smart idea. But imagine every landowner built that way and we no longer had trees and grass. How choking would our environment be! As a landowner, when you’re building, why not make space for a few trees and flowers. And if you already have trees, please don’t cut them down. Trees are not an obstruction, so don’t treat them like one. A tree can provide you shade, fruits, fresh air, add beauty to your environment, and even more importantly help to replenish our environment. Let’s plant more trees, the future would be grateful.
2. Sanitize:
It cannot be overemphasized that we should keep our environment clean. And I don’t mean sweeping your bedroom. I’m talking about your backyard, outside your fence, the street, etc. Don’t wait till it’s sanitation Saturday to play pretend, and even then, some of us do not even as much as get out of bed let alone pick up a broom. Why not clean out that gutter filled with black disgusting water, pack away the waste that spilled when the garbage truck made its rounds, sanitize your environment.
3. Dispose Properly:
A friend once asked, “what am I supposed to do if I have to dispose of a biscuit wrap but there’s no trash can around?” Here’s what I told her, “hold it until you find one.” It might seem inconveniencing but it’s a little price you could pay to save our dying environment. Don’t litter. Don’t throw stuff out of moving vehicles, your bedroom window, your balcony, etc. Even worse, don’t empty your trash by the street corner. Please get a trash can and pay the waste company to pick up your trash.
4. Recycle:
Recycling is not a thing for only the western world, it’s for us too. In fact, in my opinion, it’s more important in our parts, what with the amount of ‘pure water’ sachets we use daily. There’re recycling companies in Nigeria now and some of them are even willing to pick up the plastics from your home if you contact them.Please recycle as much of your waste as you can.
5. Stop the Pollution:
I wish to join the million voices of Nigerians to plead with our government to fix our power sector so that we can cut down on the use of generators. The fumes from these plants are killing our environment fast. Also, to the big organisations with plant sites, please make provisions to dispose of your waste properly. Don’t dump them in streams and forest lands, they’re harmful to our society in the long run. Finally, to every other person out there, please help our environment, you’ll be saving our future if you do.Happy World Environment Day!
