Download “We the People” Tristan Cooper “We abuse land because we regard

 “We the People”
Tristan Cooper
“We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land
as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.” These are
the words of one the greatest nature writers, Aldo Leopold. This quote describes precisely the
major environmental crisis that we see in our future. Many people today have little respect for
the environment that surrounds us, and are therefore causing irreversible damage to non-human
nature. In ten years I believe that every aspect of nature will have been affected by human
interference in some form. I also believe that almost all of this human interference will have
negative impacts on the natural order of the environment. Some of the major issues humanity
will be facing are global climate change, clean water availability, and the elimination of
hardwood trees.
Since the beginning of the industrial revolution there has been an exponential increase of
CO2 gases released into the atmosphere. These gases cause an amplification of the greenhouse
effect, which seems to have a direct correlation with an alarming increase in the temperature of
the earth. This in turn, seems to be having massive impacts on the environment. The warming of
the globe’s climate affects almost every aspect of the environment. Several of the major
problems are the rise in sea levels, the migration or extinction of various species, and an increase
in natural disasters such as hurricanes and tsunamis. Because of the climate change, the ice caps
are melting at an alarming rate which is causing a rise of sea levels. This is not only affecting
animals living in the ocean, but could eventually result in the flooding of the land surrounding
“We the People” ‐‐ An essay submitted for Earth Day 2010
Copyright 2010 Tristan Cooper the oceans. The climate change is also dramatically affecting species of plants and animals, of
which many are being forced to migrate north to find cooler climates. Examples of this can be
seen in Arkansas with the common armadillo and the Sugar Maple tree. Studies have shown that
armadillos are moving further and further north to keep pace with the cool spring climate. The
Sugar Maple tree was once one of the primary hardwood trees in Arkansas. Now however, they
are quickly dying out due to an increase in temperature in the local climate. Species that are not
capable of migrating will eventually become extinct. Hurricanes are caused by differing water
temperatures on the surface of the world’s oceans. This means that an increase in the temperature
of the oceans will cause an increase in the earth’s natural calamities. Evidence shows that the
number of category four and five storms has doubled in the last ten years. There is too much data
and debate involving the theories surrounding global warming to fully discuss the situation in the
context of this paper. However, the climate changes attributed to the concept of global warming
are valid and will be continuing to force themselves onto the planet and its inhabitants for many
years to come.
Another major environmental crisis that is not well known is the availability of clean
water. Jacques Cousteau wrote "We forget that the water cycle and the life cycle are one." Another
way to say this is that water is the basis for all life on Earth. It is alarming to consider the idea
that human interaction with nature is causing the world’s water supply to be quickly used up
and contaminated. One of the major uses of water is in food production, it is estimated that
every calorie of food requires one liter of water to produce. This means that for a western diet
“We the People” ‐‐ An essay submitted for Earth Day 2010
Copyright 2010 Tristan Cooper one person uses an average of 2,800 liters of water per day for food production alone. This
does not take into account all the water that people consume and contaminate in their own
homes. It is expected that in the next twenty-five years there will not be enough water to
support the population of the planet. This irresponsible consumption of water is having huge
impacts on nonhuman forms of live as well. Dams and water reservoirs are built solely for the
purpose of collecting water to use for irrigation on large fields of crops. The building of dams
is very detrimental to the surrounding environment and its inhabitants. Dams result in the
formation of lakes which cause a loss of dry land that is inhabited by millions of species. It is
estimated that 400,000 km2 of terrain have been flooded and destroyed due to the production
of dams. Also, this negatively affects water-dwelling animals. For example, dams prevent the
annual migration of several species of fish including salmon and trout. Another negative effect
of unnatural damming is the prevention of the flow of sedimentation. This barrier can
eventually result in canyons that are formed when rivers dig deep in the earth because they are
no longer replaced by natural sedimentation. This unnatural erosion caused by damming
results in further destruction of natural habitats and compromises the normal order of the
immediate ecosystem.
A third major environmental crisis that will be present itself in ten years time is the
elimination of the hardwood tree populations. Hardwood trees are commonly logged and utilized
as a commodity in new homes and other buildings. The hardwood trees are then replaced with
softwood trees such pines which grow much faster than the traditional hardwoods. This proves
“We the People” ‐‐ An essay submitted for Earth Day 2010
Copyright 2010 Tristan Cooper problematic because as it has been proven that the elimination of any one thing from an
ecosystem affects every specie present in the ecosystem. The motives for planting pine trees are
focused on the rapid monetary gain, and the effects on the environment are therefore often
overlooked. However, the elimination of hardwood trees will have serious negative effects on
local ecosystems. Not only will the extinction of hardwood trees eventually become imminent,
but hundreds of species of animals depending on these trees for shelter and food will be
threatened and challenged to find new sources. The destruction of these hardwood habitats would
also cause the extinction of the dependent species. This problem is especially prevalent in places
such as the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas because there are lots of hardwood trees that are
currently being irresponsibly logged and replaced with pines solely for profit.
All three of these crises will be become more and more relevant in the next decade.
However, there are things that can be done by society to help slow this destructive process of
destroying nature. Edward Abbey, a radical environmentalist, stated that “Our modern industrial
economy takes a mountain covered with trees, lakes, running streams and transforms it into a
mountain of junk, garbage, slime pits, and debris.” In this quote Abbey points out that all the
environmental problems are due to inappropriate human use of the land. This is indeed the case,
and therefore it is mankind’s responsibility to begin solving some of the problems it has created.
To improve the global climate change situation, people need to start reducing their use of
greenhouse gas producing materials by consuming less and using more efficient methods of
energy. The irresponsible consumption of goods is one of the primary causes of global warming.
“We the People” ‐‐ An essay submitted for Earth Day 2010
Copyright 2010 Tristan Cooper The production of common household products results in CO2 emissions. Because people have
become so wasteful, much of the precious ozone layer surrounding the earth has been destroyed
in vain. If people would recycle items or keep them longer it would greatly reduce the amount of
emissions released. Another major contributor to emissions is motorized vehicles. This is a
problem that can be easily fixed by the use of fuel efficient vehicles or the practice of carpooling
with one another. Consuming less will not only help with global climate change but it will help
with the freshwater dilemma as well, if people consumed less and produced more of their own
foods the amount of water wasted would be considerably lower. People could also practice
limited water consumption in their own homes by using non-electrical washing machines and
dishwashers, and other, similar products that use large quantities of water. The solution to the
hardwood tree crisis would be to slow the process of logging, and to start replanting hardwood
trees to replace the ones that have been cut down. Logging companies need to stop looking at the
quickest way to make money and realize that if they don’t slow down the entire industry will
soon become extinct.
The solution to all three of these crises would be to bring awareness to the problems and
convince people to begin seeing the environment as one of the most important elements of their
lives. People need to begin looking into the future and realizing the consequences that their
actions are having on the environment and the future residents, both human and non-human, of
the planet. A Native American proverb summarizes this by saying “We do not inherit the earth
“We the People” ‐‐ An essay submitted for Earth Day 2010
Copyright 2010 Tristan Cooper from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” This proverb points out that the damage
that we do to the planet will always be present for future generations to deal with.
The issues that face our environment today are concerning to a number of people
including myself. I have always had strong beliefs in regards to the protection and restoration of
our fragile planet, but until recently I had not realized the urgency to take a stand and become
more involved. My family taught me to be mindful of the environment and respect its influence
on all living things, but I wasn’t fully aware of the damaging impact of humans. With ample
amounts of knowledge and resources at our fingertips, it baffles me as to why more people aren’t
making efforts to slow the process of environmental desecration. My strong respect of nature and
my awareness of the problems facing our environment have led me to pursue a career as an
environmental biologist. In the next decade I expect the issues currently facing our environment
to come to light. By 2020, society will be forced to recognize that our over consumption of
resources and our failure to replenish those resources will ultimately lead to the destruction of
our planet. I feel it is my moral obligation to do as Aldo Leopold says and “use the land with
love and respect.” I hope to instill these values with those who surround me.
The preamble was written to create a uniform set of guidelines governing the appropriate
actions of our society; it is now time to modify our expectations and establish modern guidelines
pertaining to the environmental crises at hand. “We the people” of our global community in
order to form a more enduring environment, establish a better understanding of the world that
surrounds us and treat it with respect and dignity.
“We the People” ‐‐ An essay submitted for Earth Day 2010
Copyright 2010 Tristan Cooper