THE WORLD’S BIGGEST ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES

Today there is too much carbon in the air. The burning of fossil fuels, deforestation for agriculture and industrial activities have raised CO2 concentrations to unprecedented levels at record speeds. The climate disruption that is resulting is claiming untold lives and devastating the planet. It is also impacting human health. The World Health Organization estimated that one in nine deaths in 2012 were as a result of diseases caused by carcinogens and other poisons in polluted air.

The obvious solution is to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy, repopulate the forests to balance carbon emissions, reduce emissions from agriculture and change industrial processes. Clean energy is readily available but we need to act as a global community to harvest it. We can use 100% renewable energy right now. We are simply not applying clean energy solutions such solar panels, wind turbines, energy storage and distribution systems fast enough to prevent the impending climate disruption.

Wild forests are being destroyed, often to make way for cattle ranching as well as soybean or palm oil plantations and other agriculture. Half the world’s forests have disappeared. Remaining forests are being logged or burned. Natural forests keep carbon out of the atmosphere and oceans and act as essential biodiversity reserves.

We need to conserve the forests we have left and replant native trees. However, much of the areas where devastation occurs are in developing economies where there is widespread bribery in allocating land use.

We have hunted wild animals to extinction for meat, fur, ivory or "medicinal" products. At sea, huge industrial fishing boats clean out entire fish populations and destroyed natural habitats are contributing to the rapid extinction of so many species, all from the actions of one single species – man. Each of these species has an important role to play in balancing the natural ecosystem. It is well documented for instance that the extinction of bees, given their role in pollination, will have a devastating effect on the natural world. We need to prevent further loss of biodiversity, protect and restore habitats and conserve wildlife.

The Earth’s soil is being damaged through over grazing, monoculture planting, erosion, soil compaction, overexposure to pollutants and land-use conversion. Food security depends on keeping agricultural land healthy and we need to start implementing no-till agriculture, crop rotation, water-retention through terrace-building and other soil saving techniques.

The human population continues a rapid growth. At the beginning of the 20th century the world had 1.6 billion people. Today it’s closing in on 8 billion, with estimates of 10 billion by 2050. This is putting enormous pressure on essential natural resources like water. We need to control birth rates through education and reduce poverty to cause a drop in birth rates.