Download A Sustainable Future There are eight planets in our solar system

A Sustainable Future
There are eight planets in our solar system - nine if you still cannot grasp Pluto’s
planet status being debunked. However, no matter if it is eight or nine, out of these planets
there is only one suitable for humans to inhabit: Earth. Mercury, with its dramatically shifting
temperatures may be admirable for adapted extra-terrestrial beings - and who knows? Mars
may possibly be tolerable for mankind one day. But as of now, the only home we have is
Earth - and we need to protect our home and the naturally occurring phenomena that make it
livable. To do so, environmental sustainability is an imperative issue for Canada today - and
always.
A crucial factor in Earth’s habitability is the normality of the Greenhouse Effect which regulates and maintains the temperature of Earth at about 14º celsius to sustain life.
This process keeps us organisms living - but ironically, it may be the factor that also leads to
our non-existence. Humans have assisted in the excess creation of Greenhouse gases: carbon
dioxide, methane, ozone and nitrous oxides most notably. This leads to the ideology of the
“Enhanced Greenhouse Effect.”
Canada, sadly, is one of the world’s leading contributors to the production of
greenhouse gases. In CO​2​ emissions, Canada ranks approximately 9th globally (Union for
Concerned … 1.) What does this information translate to? Canada is also adding to the
overheating of our Earth, leading to climate change and global warming. These issues are
prominent in our nation, despite those who believe they are nothing but “hoaxes.” This
perspective is difficult to comprehend when you consider our negatively-evolving
environment which holds proof of the credibility of global warming and climate change.
Look at our Canadian Glaciers for example. A CBC article investigated into their
lifespan due to global warming: “glaciers are melting rapidly around the world, including in
Canada, and human-caused climate change is now considered to be the main driver” (Kuang
1.) Kuang, in her article, predicts that glaciers in the Canadian Rockies will be completely
diminished, or reduced by 90% by 2100. Along with the receding glaciers, ice in northern
Canada is melting at a faster rate as well. Us humans may not believe that this is a detriment
to us; but for polar bears - it is far more than a detriment.
Out of 19 polar bear subpopulations in the world, 13 reside in Canada (Unger 1).
They can be found in the Northern parts of Canada, predominantly in the community of
Churchill, Manitoba, where they live on the ice covering the Arctic Ocean. No explanation is
needed to clarify why polar bears are going extinct due to climate change, and their possible
extinction can have serious consequences on marine ecosystems. The bears sit on the throne
of the arctic marine food chain - removing such an indicator species would undeniably
threaten the overall health of the system. (Species: … 1)
Although our country, along with others involved in the UN, are attempting to reverse
the results of global warming and climate change through the Kyoto Protocol and their most
recent conference at Marrakesh, environmental sustainability does not end with climate
change - and as for potential organism extinctions, climate change is not the sole perpetrator although it is with polar bears.
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Bees; not the two-bodied, hell-sent demons that we consider wasps, but furry, relevant
honey bees. Bee populations are rapidly decreasing - something you probably are happy to
hear if you have ever been stung by one. But bees are more important to us than you think.
To live on Earth, yes we may need a stably maintained temperature but we also need food which is where bees become pertinent. They are responsible for pollinating approximately
one-sixth of flowering plant species and over 400 different agricultural plant types worldwide
(Tucker 1). The food loss with the extinction of bees would not only be honey - but rather
popular items such as broccoli, asparagus, cantaloupes, cucumbers, cherries, apples,
watermelon and many, many more! These fruits and veggies are not primarily grown in
Canada, but they are huge imports and would cease to exist without bees. Albert Einstein,
notably the greatest modern scientist, believed that humanity would also cease to exist
without bees: “Mankind will not survive the honeybee’s disappearance for more than five
years.” (Hagopian 1). It is clear that the survival of mankind also depends on the survival of
the bees.
Although the bees are not perishing from human-induced global warming, they are
suffering from the faults of humanity. Drastic weather (this can be however blamed on
climate change) and colony collapse disorder (CCD) caused the pitfall of some bee colonies,
but pesticides in recent years are mostly to blame. One specific type of insecticide, called
neonicotinoids, causes acute and chronic poisoning of the ​entire bee colony rather than just
one bee (Hagopian 1). There was speculation that these neonics were noxious to bees for
decades. The United States Environmental Protection Agency did not, however, disclose the
confirmation that they were in fact harmful until the damage was already done and the bee
population had begun to dwindle (Philpott 1). This means that the possibility of bees dying
out is something our generation may experience - evidently making it a crucial issue in
Canada.
Environmental sustainability: ​allows for the needs of man to be met without
jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their needs (Gillaspy 1). As a young
Canadian, this is conceivably the most urgent matter we face in our nation now - and
undoubtedly in the future. As individuals, we can do our own part to protect the environment
through reducing our carbon footprint by recycling, carpooling and doing everything else
preached upon us. But at this rate, we need rapid change - change that can only come from
the hands of the government and large corporations. To bring awareness and promote change
is one thing, but to bring about change is something entirely different that needs to happen
NOW in order to keep our environmental sustainable. Global warming, dying species and
lack of food can, and ​will, contribute to the downfall of our environmental - and by doing so,
will cause the downfall of us as human beings.
Citations
“Each Country’s Share of CO2 Emissions.” ​Union of Concerned Scientists. Web. 27 January
2017
Chung, Emily. “How Western Canada glaciers will melt away.” ​CBC News: Science and
Technology. CBC Radio Canada. 07 April 2015. Web. 27 January 2017.
Unger, Zac. “The truth about polar bears.” ​Canadian Geographic. Royal Canadian
Geographical Society. 1 December 2012. Web. 27 January 2017
“Species: Polar Bear.” ​WWF. World Wildlife Fund. Web. 27 January 2017
Tucker, Jessica. “Why Bees are Important to Our Planet.” ​One Green Planet. 17 June 2014.
Web. 28 January 2017.
Hagopian, Joachim. “Death and Extinction of the Bees.” ​Global Research. 04 January 2017.
Web. 28 January 2017.
Philpott, Tim. “The EPA Finally Admitted that the World’s Most Popular Pesticide Kills
Bees - 20 Years Too Late.” ​Mother Jones. Foundation for National Progress. 07 January
2016. Web. 28 January 2017.
Gillaspy, Rebecca. “Environmental Sustainability: Definition and Application.” ​Study.com.
Web. 28 January 2017.