Environmental Sustainability
Running head: ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
1
Environmental Sustainability Kim Saia Baton Rouge Community College ENVS 201 Professor Deadra Mackie May 8, 2013
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY Environmental Sustainability Sustainability creates and maintains the conditions needed to support us now and in future generations by working to ensure we continue to have the water, materials, and resources to protect us and the environment ("What is sustainability?," n.d., para. 1). Environmental sustainability should be a priority in every individual’s life, not only for us but also for future generations. Individuals must look for ways to sustain the environment because there are a limited number of resources available on earth to go around, so we should educate ourselves on the resources that are not renewable or that take a long time to renew, and look for ways to decrease or eliminate our usage of those resources. There are many every day ways individuals can take part like recycling, proper disposal of chemicals, avoid creating trash, composting leftovers, and saving water like taking shorter showers and by turning the water off while
2
brushing teeth. These sound simple, but if enough people started employing them environmental sustainability might become a more achievable goal. Our government has a whole agency devoted to this very thing called the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA basically has seven priorities. They are taking action on climate change and improving air quality by looking for common sense solutions to deal with things like green house gas emissions from things like power plants, they support the president in enacting clean energy and climate legislation, and by initiatives like the Clean Air Act and ENERGY STAR ("Taking Action on Climate Change," n.d., para. 1). The Clean Air Act requires the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate air pollutants with the goal of protecting public health. It is touted as
1
Environmental Sustainability Kim Saia Baton Rouge Community College ENVS 201 Professor Deadra Mackie May 8, 2013
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY Environmental Sustainability Sustainability creates and maintains the conditions needed to support us now and in future generations by working to ensure we continue to have the water, materials, and resources to protect us and the environment ("What is sustainability?," n.d., para. 1). Environmental sustainability should be a priority in every individual’s life, not only for us but also for future generations. Individuals must look for ways to sustain the environment because there are a limited number of resources available on earth to go around, so we should educate ourselves on the resources that are not renewable or that take a long time to renew, and look for ways to decrease or eliminate our usage of those resources. There are many every day ways individuals can take part like recycling, proper disposal of chemicals, avoid creating trash, composting leftovers, and saving water like taking shorter showers and by turning the water off while
2
brushing teeth. These sound simple, but if enough people started employing them environmental sustainability might become a more achievable goal. Our government has a whole agency devoted to this very thing called the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA basically has seven priorities. They are taking action on climate change and improving air quality by looking for common sense solutions to deal with things like green house gas emissions from things like power plants, they support the president in enacting clean energy and climate legislation, and by initiatives like the Clean Air Act and ENERGY STAR ("Taking Action on Climate Change," n.d., para. 1). The Clean Air Act requires the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate air pollutants with the goal of protecting public health. It is touted as