Microplastics in Water — a Wake-up Call for All of Us

Today researchers announced that they have found tiny pieces of plastic in water samples from around the world. These pieces are called microplastics and are so small that they are invisible to the naked eye and are very difficult to remove from the water. When in the water, they are swallowed by fish and other animals and then enter the food chain.

Even more concerning is the fact that the plastic has also been found in drinking water across the world. This means that we are drinking plastic every day. Scientists do not know what level of harm this will cause us in the future.

Microplastics come from a number of different sources, in particular from washing and drying synthetic (non-natural) clothing and from cosmetics and cleaning products, such as toothpaste and face washes. Microplastics are even found in the air outside and at our homes.

Almost every country across the world agrees that we cannot continue using so much plastic in our lives. We need to find a solution to remove microplastics from our oceans. We also need to introduce new taxes and other means to encourage companies to choose environment-friendly ingredients and recyclable packaging for their products.

We need to take personal responsibility, too. We all have the freedom to choose how we spend our money and what kids of business and products we support. Let’s work together to protect our environment, both now and for the future.

Remember: Reduce — Reuse — Recycle. (244 words)

Does Recycling Work For Plastic?

Dealing with plastic waste is always a tough problem. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), half of the world’s plastic waste ends up in a landfill, 19% burned, and another 22% escapes waste management systems and goes into uncontrolled dumpsites.

So environmentalists suggest plastic waste should be recycled properly, which proves an effective way to handle other waste like paper, cardboard, metal and glass. However, a new study by Greenpeace, and reporting in the Boston Globe, suggests that recycling plastic is a “myth” and raises a major question about the future: does recycling work? Unfortunately, the short answer is “not really.”

There’s been a lot of debate over what really happens to recycled plastic. But scientists say that recycling plastic waste has mostly failed because it’s very difficult to collect and nearly impossible to sort. Because plastic is often made from harmful materials, it can be harmful to the environment to reprocess.

Much of the solution falls on big companies to change the way they do business. The way forward seems to be mostly to cut down on companies’ reliance on plastic packaging, and to move toward reusable packaging and packaging-free alternatives. Above all, companies need to phase out all single-use plastics. For the consumer, living more plastic-free is the only real solution available. Avoiding drinks in plastic containers, using a travel mug or reusable water bottle, bringing your own reusable bag, buying in bulk and cutting back on pre-packaged foods are all a good start.

But in the end, corporate America needs a deeper commitment to the plastic waste problem. “Companies must take action now to get rid of single-use plastics and packaging and not rely on false solutions such as recycling,” says Greenpeace.

Are Oceans Silent?

Most sea creatures, from whales and dolphins to fish, sharks and shrimps, respond to sound, and many can produce it. They use it to hunt and to hide, find mates and food, send messages and give warnings, establish territories, warn off competitors, confuse their targets, deceive enemies, and sense changes in water and conditions. Marine animals click bones, grind teeth and belch gases (磨牙打嗝); use special organs to make various noises. Far from the ‘silent deep’, the oceans are so noisy.

Into this age-long confused noise, in the blink of an evolutionary eye, has entered a new thunder: the trembling sound of mighty engines as 46,220 large ships passed the world’s shipping courses. Scientists say that background noise in the ocean has increased roughly by 15 decibels (分贝) in the past 50 years. It may not sound like much in overall terms, but it is enough, according to many marine biologists, to mask the normal sounds of ocean life going about its business. At its most intense, some even say noise causes whales to become disoriented, dolphins to suffer from ‘the bends’, fish to go deaf, leave their breeding grounds or fail to form groups—enough to disorganize the basic biology of two thirds of the planet.

“Undersea noise pollution is like the death of a thousand cuts”, says Sylvia Earie, chief scientist of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “Each sound in itself may not be a matter of critical concern, but taken all together, the noise from shipping, earthquake-related surveys, and military activity is creating a totally different environment than existed even 50 years ago. That high level of noise is bound to have a hard, sweeping impact on life in the sea.

91. The Problem of Packaging

A large source of rubbish is packaging material. It often makes up more than 30 percent of the total. To understand why this is true, think of the packaging commonly used for a simple product, such as toothpaste. The packaging includes not only the tube for the toothpaste, but also the box for the tube. This box is put into a plastic wrapper. Then, the boxes are transported in a cardboard container.

Most packaging material ends up in a landfill after it is thrown away. Though necessary, landfills take up valuable space, often stink, and can leak harmful substances into the soil. Landfills not included, the production of packaging material itself is a major source of air and water pollution.

People are now trying to solve the problems caused by packaging materials. In 1991, Germany took the lead by requiring companies to recycle the packaging used for their goods. To do this, the companies set up recycling bins in every neighborhood. Consumers now separate their rubbish into three categories—metal, plastic and paper cartons. They then put it into the appropriate bin. The rubbish sorted, it is transported to recycling company for processing.

The programme worked well at first. However, the amount of rubbish has begun to increase again. One reason for this is that many consumers no longer reduce waste because they think the problem is solved. It seems that to properly deal with the problem of rubbish, everyone must remain alert and do their part.

Many of us might not give a second thought to dropping a small piece of litter. After all, if it is so small, it cannot possibly be that harmful, can it? In today's world, the answer is certainly “Yes it can!” With the growing use of plastic bags and the rising number of smokers, there is more litter being produced than ever before.

Although cigarette butts are small, they are bad for the environment. Worldwide, about 4.3 trillion cigarette butts are littered every year. As well as spoiling the beauty of the environment, they contain poisonous chemicals. These find their way into the water supply where they affect water quality and endanger plants and animals. Cigarette butts can take up to 25 years to break down, and the poisonous chemicals add up to a large amount with so many littered. So, if people want to smoke, they should cope with the butts properly in a rubbish bin.

Plastic bags are another common form of litter that is dangerous to the environment. They are easily blown by wind and float in water, so they can travel long distances. They find their way to rivers, parks, beaches, and oceans, killing many birds, mammals, fish, and sea animals each year worldwide. They can last for hundreds of years in the environment. We should not let plastic bags become litter. We should use fewer plastic bags, and reuse and recycle what we have already used. One way to reduce the use of plastic bags is to charge for them. Shops used to give plastic bags for free. But in some countries, including China, customers are now charged for each bag. Some shops also have a “bag-for-life” scheme. They sell stronger bags that can be reused, and they replace them for free if the bags ever break.

Waste is a big problem for the environment, so we need to do something. Not littering at all or cleaning up “small waste” saves money spent on getting rid of litter properly. However, it would be better not to smoke or use plastic bags at all.

Pollution is the price we pay for an overpopulated, over industrialized planet. When you come to think about it, there are only four ways you can deal with rubbish: dump it, burn it, turn it into something you can use again, attempt to produce less of it. We keep trying all four methods, but the quantity of rubbish we produce worldwide threatens to overwhelm us. Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. There is an even more hidden kind of pollution that particularly affects urban areas and invades our daily lives,and that is noise.

A recent survey of the effects of noise revealed a large number of sources of noise that we really dislike: Lawn mowers whining on a summer's day, late-night parties in apartment blocks, noisy neighbors, vehicles of all kinds, especially large container trucks thundering through quiet village, planes and helicopters flying overhead, large radios carried round in public places and played at maximum volume. To our surprise, dogs' barking incessantly in the night rated the highest form of noise pollution on a scale ranging from one to seven.

New technology has also made its own contribution to noise. A lot of people object to mobile phones, especially when they are used in public places like restaurants or on public transport. Loud conversations on mobile phones invade our thoughts or interrupt the pleasure of meeting friends for a quiet chat.

The noise pollution survey revealed an amusing old fashioned source of noise. It turned out to be snoring (打鼾)! Men were found to be the worst offenders. It was revealed that 20% of men in their mid-thirties snore. This figure rises to a staggering 60% of men in their sixties. Against these figures, it was found that only 5% of women snore regularly,                           while the rest are constantly woken or kept awake by their trumpeting partners.

Whatever the source of noise, one thing is certain: silence, it seems, has become a golden memory.

Does Kilimanjaro Still Have Its Beauty?

Kilimanjaro is a watershed (分水岭)between Tanzania and Kenya. It is a volcano and a snowy mountain. Surrounded by mountain forests, Kilimanjaro is home to numerous mammals, some of which are endangered. Kilimanjaro was established as a national park in 1968 and was added to the World Heritage List in 1981. In the Tanzanians’ mind, Kilimanjaro is not just a bright mountain, and it is also an interesting mountain. Kilimanjaro is a world-famous tourist resort with the world's explorers and mountain enthusiasts gathering there.

Every year about 40,000 people attempt to climb Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. They bring with them lots of waste. The crowds might damage the beauty of the place. The glaciers are disappearing, changing the face of Kilimanjaro. Hearing these stories, I’m wondering about the place-other destinations are described as purer natural experiences.

However, I soon discover that much has changed since the days of disturbing reports of camps among tons of rubbish. I find a clean mountain, with toilets at camps and along the paths. The environmental challenges are significant but the efforts made by the Tanzania National Park Authority seem to be paying off.

The best of a Kilimanjaro experience, in my opinion, isn’t reaching the top. Mountains are regarded as spiritual places by many cultures. This view is especially evident on Kilimanjaro as climbers go through five ecosystems in the space of a few kilometers. At the base is a rainforest. It ends suddenly at 3, 000 meters, giving way to lands of low growing plants. Further up, the weather changes—low clouds envelope the mountainsides covered with thick grass. I count twelve shades of green from where I stand. Above 4, 000 meters is the highland desert: gravel (砾石)，stones and rocks. Finally, you climb into an arctic-like zone with permanent snow and the glaciers that may soon disappear.

Does Kilimanjaro deserve its reputation as a crowded mountain with lines of tourists ruining the atmosphere of peace? I found the opposite to be true.