CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING

Preservation of the earth’s precious natural resources through recycling has become the habit of many countries. Recycling our waste of natural resources accomplishes two things: first, it reduces the amount of natural resources and second, it cuts down on the amount of landfill needed. Recycling already started in New York in 1897, but people did not become aware of it until the first Earth Day was held in 1970. The reason is the quick dismissing supply of the earth’s natural resources and space for landfills was running out. Many countries have had recycling programs, which are even more aggressive recycling campaign in the mid 1970s than the USA. Nevertheless, the fact that recycling programs have not solved the problems is still problematic because of some reasons. For instance, some fast food restaurants in South Korea use disposable program and recyclable containers made of aluminium. The problem is the recycled materials drive down the prices so that it reduces the benefit or income of the company or country.
Conservation and recycling is an environmental issue that entitles environment responsibility in us all. The problem of global warming calls our attention to look for solution on how to save our earth as a place of living. It is a matter of fact that climate change has influenced every aspect of our lives. Nowadays, almost everyone is talking about environment and how important our earth is, but many people do not know how to take care of the earth in a proper way. There are many websites, crafts, and books that talk about environmental issues. It helps us to know that conservation and recycling is one way of taking care of our planet. It is important not only for us now, but also for the next generation because they are the ones that will be living in it in the future.
This knowledge and understanding should motivate us to reduce, reuse and recycle because there are a lot of benefits that can come from recycling. For examples, we can collect, reuse or sell cans, papers, aluminium foil, pie pans, lawn furniture, styrofoam, plastic bags, separate the garbage and many others. Simple changes that a person can make in everyday living can make a most definite impact on our world by reducing waste and making sure that anything that can be recycled or reused gets to the proper place. Even adopting one or two of these easy to do ideas will make a difference and will cause a person to become more environmentally aware.
In addition, to be responsible to our environment is not only simply taking out the garbage, but it’s something more. A report of a website, Canada Earth Day from a brochure for Earth Day 2007[1] proves some practical suggestions about being environmentally responsible such as: reduce home energy use and save money; choose locally grown and organically produced food; donate our time and money to an environmental charity or initiative of your choice; choose public transit or the most fuel-efficient vehicle possible and commit to driving less–get healthy with active transportation such as walking or biking; plant native species of trees; shrubs and plants to reduce our lawn cover and enhance the carbon absorbing capacity of the Earth; consider the environment when making purchases; try eating meat-free once a week; consider the environment when making work-related decisions; replace toxic chemical cleaners and pesticides with natural non-toxic alternatives; and subscribe to renewable energy utilities, which promote the use of wind, solar and small scale hydro-electricity generation.
In summary, a recycling program is one good step in taking care of our use of natural resources. It is one of the ways to reduce our habit of consuming natural resources and just use something that we really need. The rising of global warming with the climate change reminds us that we have to consider the natural world around us and the toll human being’s reliance and dependence on Earth’s resources has taken. We should work on recycling materials with less environmental impact and higher economic efficiency by finely prioritizing reuse and recycling processes. ***

[1] NN, Earth Day Canada, http://www.ronancorr.com/web_projects/print_materials/assets/pdfs/order_form.pdf, Accessed on February 2, 2010, at 8.00 p.m.