By Eileen Connors
In the early 1900s the population
was a fraction of what it is today.
People harvested their own food,
bartered services with others in the
local area, shopped at general stores
where they bought local items that
came without any packaging. They
didn’t pollute, burn fossil fuels or
use disposable products.
There were only reusable products
and things were thrown out when
they were no longer functional.
There was real horsepower, not fuel
injected horsepower, and airlines or
private jets.
With the industrial revolution,
a small population turned on the
first lights in homes, drove vehicles
and went to work in factories with
automated manufacturing lines.
The numbers were still small, and
earth’s natural process could still
absorb the pollution and greenhouse
gases emitted into the air and
water.
But as manufacturing, technology and
the population expanded, so did our
cars, aviation, electricity use, packaging,
our ability to buy international
goods. Our disposable society was
introduced about 50 years ago, and
it’s our most destructive abuse to the
environment.
With this much larger population
expanding on so many abuses, we
produced today’s environmental problems,
including global warming.
But getting back to a responsible life
is easy. Individuals becoming responsible
in their daily actions is the most
urgent needed action. Individual cooperation
can create the needed positive
results today, but we all need to learn
how and why to be responsible.
Lets stop conveniencing ourselves out
of a livable planet. Learn this and
so much more at Environmental
Educator.org, a highly rated website and app.
