MAN AND ENVORONMENTAL DEGRADATION
By D Nyambu
Ever since Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, man has been mandated to subdue the earth and have dominion over the fish of the sea, birds of the air and over every living thing that moves on the earth. He was also told to eat from every herb bearing seed on the face of the earth, and every tree which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed. In other words, mankind was given authority over the earth to take care of it and to replenish it.
Over 6000 years later, we see that mankind has not done a very good job in some areas of this mandate. Okay, he has done well in re-stocking human kind, we are now over 7billion people on the face of the earth, but on the part of controlling the earth he has somewhat failed despite huge technological advancements. This is not to say that all is lost…we as mankind can still salvage what is left of the earth in an attempt to recoup what has been lost.
The earth consists of land, water masses and air. This is basically what we call the environment. The environment could be said to consist of the surroundings in which we live in, which includes the air, water and land. The environment provides us with food, shelter, raw materials for industries, water, air and soils. It is our life support system. Despite this God given importance of planet earth to mankind, man has failed to care for the environment. He has continuously contributed massively to its destruction and deterioration.
The environment is vital for the growth and sustainability of not only mankind but also for animals, plants, fish and marine life and other organisms.
How has man failed?
Man has contributed to environmental degradation in that he has carelessly destroyed forests by clearing land for shelter and for food production, he has multiplied the human race without careful consideration of risks associated with high human population, he has expanded the monetary development leading to globalization and has undertaken mining and introduced industrial growth which has contributed to not only the extinction of certain endangered species but also to increase in carbon emission in the air and a depletion of the ozone layer which is vital for existence of life on earth.
According to Conserve Energy Future, these activities affect human health thus resulting to loss of life from respiratory diseases such as asthma and pneumonia. It also brings about imbalance in the ecosystem due to lack of restoration of nutrients in water and soil. This results to further air pollution and lack of essential minerals that fight diseases in humans. Some economies rely on wildlife to attract tourism. Such economies lose revenue due to loss of endangered species.
Is there hope?
We have seen how important the environment is for growth and sustainability of living things. Can man do anything to reverse the trend?
According to UNEP report C17, some measures can be taken to curb the situation such as improve on food security, creating public awareness of the effects of deforestation as well as support farmers develop eco-agriculture systems that are ecosystem friendly.
Others suggest educating masses on sound environmental practices using the media, training workshops and open air meetings. This will sensitize members of the public to better care for their environment and may result in developing a re-use / recycle mindset instead of a throw away one.
For all this to work, though, strategies have to be formulated and policies designed in partnership with concerned private companies, non-governmental organizations as well as Government Ministries’ involvement.
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