Saturday, May 10, 2008

12:12 AM

The current hype over environmental issues is unnecessary. Do you agree?

Environmental issues are at the tip of everyone’s tongue nowadays. From young children to scientists all over the world, words like “organic foods”, “chlorofluorocarbon” and “biofuels” are being discussed. Those are words that a mere 30 years ago would not exist in most people’s vocabulary. Yet now, those words are appearing everywhere, not only in newspapers reports, and advertisements and environmental issues rank highly on the list of problems that the United Nations Foundation, a public charity, is trying to solve. I certainly agree that environmental issues are important, but I cannot help but wonder whether all the publicity about them is exaggeration on the media’s part.

An environmental problem that scientists are trying to rectify is that of the depletion of natural resources. This gave rise to the concept of 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. As many natural resources such as fossil fuels and trees are not renewable, scientists warn that if we continue to employ them at the rate we are using now, resources like natural gas will run out by the middle or end of this century. Hence the mad rush to diversify alternative forms of energy such as wind, solar, hydro and nuclear energy. And there’s the current darling of America: biofuels. Yes, biofuels like ethanol, under their predecessors, does not produce poisonous gases like sulfur dioxide, which causes acid rain. However, what is not highlighted is the failures of biofuels. A recent report in TIME magazine has highlighted the fact that the amount of corn needed to run an ethanol- fueled SUV can feed a man for 365 days- or a year! The hype over depletion of natural resources might have led to premature usage of biofuels before it is fully developed and refines, which might lead to even more problems in the society.

In my opinion, being environmentally friendly is no longer a lifestyle choice, instead being a social imperative. We are constantly reminded that the world is dying; we are running out of space to bury rubbish; the Earth is overheating; species are dying out. We are all expected to do our part for the environment. People even shoot you dirty looks when you take a non-biodegradable plastic bag for your groceries. The aggressive green campaign has led to the appearance of the concept of “econ-anxious”. The condition causes people who feel that they are not as environmentally friendly to suffer from panic attacks and loss of appetite. It just goes to show that there are detrimental effects of the overemphasis on environmental issues.

That is not to say that we should just completely not care about the environment. It is an accepted fact that environmental issues are affecting the world, and that we have to find a way to solve them, if not they will worsen and we will be the ones suffering in future. However, there is a limit to it. There should not be exaggerated reports and extensive coverage of environmental issues, causing people to think that the problem is actually more serious and urgent then it really us. This might in fact cause more ill effects than the benefits it was supposed to bring in the first place.

Hence, the current hype over environmental issues is not totally unnecessary. It is essential, but only to a small extent. Without the publicity generated, it is impossible to get all of the people to act. Only with the combined effort of everyone can we save this Earth we call our home.

TIME magazine: It’s inconvenient being green (Nov 21 2007)

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hype

http://rutlandvt.blogspot.com/2007/10/climate-change-hype-or-planetary-crisis.html

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