1 . The green movement is catching on in many pockets of the world. This is especially true in the construction industry. Today's buzz words, which include global warming and zero emissions（排放）, are causing everyday people to look for ways to reduce their carbon footprint. Purchasing an environmentally-friendly home is a good investment for those who care about their own health and the well-being of our planet. Based on this trend, entire districts, known as eco-communities, are being designed with the concept of green in mind. One of these communities is Dockside Green in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Its goal is to become the world's first zero-emission neighborhood.

Dockside Green is a mostly self-sufficient community along the harbor front of Victoria, the capital city of British Columbia. The community is home to around 2,500 people and it includes a variety of environmental features, some of which can't be found anywhere else.

The planners and builders of Dockside Green have the environment in mind with every choice they make. They ensure proper ventilation （通风） and guarantee residents clean air indoors. Building materials, such as paints and wood, are natural and green.

Energy efficiency is attached great importance to in eco-communities like Dockside Green. Not only do energy-efficient appliances reduce the environmental impact of heating, cooking and lighting, they also save residents money. Dockside Green claims that home owners use 55% less energy than the average Canadian.

Eco-communities also take the future into account by recycling waste and reducing carbon emissions. At Dockside Green, waste water is treated and reused on-site for flushing toilets, and a gas plant changes waste wood into a renewable form of gas for hot water systems, stoves and gas heaters. The community also reduces carbon emissions by using local suppliers for all their transport and maintenance（维修） needs, and residents are encouraged to join the community's car share program.

2 . Off the coast of Formentera, an island, lives seagrass that stretches 15 km. The seagrass, covering several kilometers, is made up of a single organism. The grasses are also long-lived, for tens or hundreds of thousands of years. Along with two other kinds of coastal ecosystem—mangrove swamps and tidal marshes—seagrass fields are particularly good at taking carbon dioxide from the air.

This role was highlighted in a report published on March 2nd by UNESCO, on “blue carbon” —the carbon stored by Earth’s oceanic and coastal ecosystems. In total around 3,300 million tons of carbon dioxide (about three-quarters of the world’s emissions in 2019) are locked away in the planet’s blue-carbon sinks. Research by Carlos Duarte, the report’s author and an ecologist, has shown that one hectare of seagrass can suck as much carbon dioxide each year as 15 hectares of rainforest.

One reason that blue-carbon ecosystems make such effective sinks is that underwater forests are thicker than the land-based woods. They can also trap floating pieces and organic matter, which settles on the sea floor and can double the amount of carbon stored away. They possess another advantage, too. Climate change is leading to more wildfires around the world. As forests burn, their carbon stocks are sent back into the atmosphere. Unlike forests on land, blue-carbon ecosystems do not burn.

Blue-carbon ecosystems may not be fired, but they remain affected by other sorts of disasters. In May 2020 cyclone Amphan destroyed 1,200 square kilometers of mangrove forests. A marine heatwave in Australian waters in 2010 and 2011 damaged around one third of the world’s largest seagrass field in Shark Bay. Mangrove forests can weaken or control waves and provide natural barriers to storm surges. Protecting and expanding them, then, appears to be a must.

4 . Nobody wants to snack on plastic bags or soda rings, but according to a recent study from the University of Neweastle, we could be consuming roughly a credit card's worth of plastic every week.

Microplastic, which are less than a quarter-inch size and come in various shapes, have polluted the natural world and infiltrated(渗入)our bodies. The first clue to microplastic exposure in humans came around 2013, when scientists discovered plastic particles in seafood prepared for consumption. But in 2019, when the University of Newcastle study was published, the scientific community understood that the problem was considerably broader. Microplastics shed off clothes and tires and have been found in beer, honey, table salt and other food items. We breathe in plastic staying in the air and drink plastic floating in our drinks. It's no stretch to conclude that our exposure is significant. What we don't know is what this means for us.

The amount of evidence collected on this subject is growing rapidly, according to Scott Coffin, a toxicologist(毒理学家). Studies done on mice and rats have found that plastic in their bodies can severely damage cells and cause stress.

Because microplastics are too small to clean up, the only solution is to stop plastic waste at the source. And doing so would take a thorough adjustment, given that plastics are deeply embedded in our economy and lifestyle. Stopping using them would fundamentally affect countless industries, including textiles(纺织业), transportation and manufacturing.

"I think we need to have more studies coming out that are directly related to human health before we see a lot more concern from the general public," Scott said. "It takes a lot to convince people that something that is really convenient for them to use is something they should sacrifice."

The question of microplastics and human health needs more attention—from the scientific community ,the general public, the government and funding groups. The issue isn't being ignored, but it's not being prioritized either.

6 . The convenience plastic offers has led to a throw-away culture that reveals the material’s dark side. Many of its products, such as plastic bags and food wrappers, have a service life of mere minutes to hours.     1    

Plastic has been the biggest threat to ocean life for decades. Sunlight, wind and wave action break down plastic waste to a certain extent, but it only succeeds in reducing it to smaller pieces.

    2    They spread throughout the water and have been found in every corner of the globe, affecting nearly 700 species, including endangered ones.

    3    They range from birds to fish and to other marine animals. Most of the deaths to them are caused by starvation. Small pieces of plastic have been found in more than 100 marine species, including fish, shrimp, and some seashells. In many cases, these tiny bits pass through their stomachs.     4    Stomachs so packed with plastic reduce the urge to eat, making them die eventually.

Tests have also confirmed cell damage and trouble with animals’ reproductive systems caused by plastic-eating. Some species, such as oysters, produce fewer eggs if they wrongly take too much plastic.

Fortunately, solutions are being found. Many scientists agree the top priority is to prevent plastic waste from entering rivers and seas.     5    Better product design also should be taken into account, as well as the reduction in producing unnecessary single-use plastic products.

7 . Understanding the link between a clean environment and human life is not a new concept. In fact, it was noticed as early as ancient Rome. Today we see how green living has infiluenced our everyday lives. There is a growing community of people who embrace a zero waste lifestyle and make changes to the way they live to reduce their carbon footprint.

Living a zero waste lifestyle means doing one’s best to achieve the aim of not sending anything to a landfill. People who adopt this lifestyle ultimately cut down on their waste by reducing what they need and want. They reuse what they own, sending few things to be recycled.

Many people who adopt the zero waste lifestyle claim to be frustrated by the many harmful chemical substances found in beauty and cleaning products. They also find the uses of disposable items and excessive packaging. For example, how many times have we had to peel away layers of plastic wrap and cardboard before finally taking out the item which we had bought? Instead of buying pre-packed food and goods, those who identify with the zero waste philosophy tend to shop in stores that allow them to make purchases and bring their own cloth bags and glass jars to store their purchases.

Many people may have the misconception that it is easier to live a zero waste lifestyle in the West. Nevertheless, Malaysian environmental journalist, Ms. Aurora Tin, has proven that a zero waste lifestyle is possible even in the Asian context. Instead of going to the supermarket to buy pre-packaged foods, Ms. Tin now visits the wet market and brings her own bags for vegetables. She has even stopped using store-bought toothpaste and makes her own toothpaste from coconut oil and baking soda. This lifestyle may be too big a change for the average person, but we could follow her suit to make gradual changes to our own lives.