Our Revolution of Pollution

Our Revolution of pollution

Today we quite literally are living in stretches and stretches of desert, because alike what Greta Thunberg said, “Our houses are quite literally on fire.” It’s up to you whether you choose to put yours out.

From the shoes you wear to the cocoon duvet covers you gladly conceal yourself within during the midnight slumber, they have detrimental impacts on your livelihood and planet. 800 people die every hour of air pollution, 95% of people breathe toxic polluted air, we have less than 1% of accessible fresh water in the world which is disconcertingly being polluted at a staggering rate. We currently fight over economic, territorial or religious gain. We will now be waging world wide war over water.

Earlier this evening, I went along my daily walk with my dog Amber, as always, usually being a pleasant, lenitive saunter along my canal for 40 to 60 minutes. I would inhale the fresh, crisp air as I enveloped the vibrant, lush greenery around me – it would caressingly wave towards us. The delicate song of young ducks, dancing trees and whistling winds would carry my mind into peaceful paradise. Not this time.

As we took the left route, following the obscenely bright pebbled path, I noticed my body begin to shudder as the busy surroundings became narrower and confined in the freedom of the autumnal blossom. So as Amber further jerked impulsively on wards (as dogs do) my mind meandered along with the illuded, ill body of water beside me. What once was constructed to transport ‘goods’ of coal, railway lines and drainage of toxins from the industrial era – now was saturated by the sickness and disease it once carried. The perdue stench cast me its sickness and disease – like a tattooed prisoner to our world of modern catastrophe. The rainbow slurry. The opaque, brown -speckled reflection. The toxic nectar our bodies drink.

Taken back my muscles fatigued, as I had engaged in the physical exhaustion of a lifetime, my legs became limp like jelly and my arms spasmed, shaken as if I had an epileptic shock and my heart decreased in vigor.

Could one image really have afflicted me to that degree? Is this disgusting poison really being poured into nature’s waterways? How can you really be responsible for this?

As mentioned earlier, anything we do does have an astronomical impact on our planet so it doesn’t just revolve around carbon dioxide or fossil fuels. All factors mentioned in the news or media are massive drivers of pollution, climate change and global warming – however so much so it isn’t even clear as to which one is the leading culprit . In fact fashion is a major polluter in rivers through the illegal deposition of toxic waste. Animal agriculture is responsible for 51% of total greenhouse gas emissions and are only expected to rise to 80% by 2050. In addition, animal agriculture is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than all transport systems combined. The studies, numerous accountabilities and cases go on and on… So ,how much evidence do we need? When will we be satisfied with what we are told, and what we are told we can see? Why do we demand evidence upon evidence and yet when it compiles so much on top of us that we cannot breathe we simply turn away and argue against it? No (Donald Trump especially) this is not fake, this is not a theory – this is the truth. Climate change , a global crisis, is taking place right now wiping out 200 species per day and 30 football pitches of trees every minute – preventing nature from thriving when we need her most. We must act now. Even if we remain in our little bubble, can we ignore what’s happening for the future generations, for our children? Parents say, the love for a child is like no other, and yet attached like an appendage they have the dire need to keep their child safe, protected and to allow him/her to blossom – yet we would condemn them to death in a world of sunken air, a world where they are drowning in each other like broiler chickens as the sea levels rise. How could we condemn our own children to death? We are the first generation to experience the critical impacts of climate change and we are the only ones who can stop it. So please, stop waiting around for more hefty science advancements and research, what’s the point if we argue against it and when we can take the most detrimental step, and change today – now. If we all altered our lifestyles we would have no need for laboratory grown meat, hovering cars, new chemically compounded materials because we don’t have 50 years, we may not even have two, but we have today. One small choice has a ripple effect, it’s one step on a million foot journey, It’s one positive impact, it’s one flower that spreads it’s seeds for billions more. When we change our world, lifestyle you will not lose anything but you will gain so much for others, where as currently we are for millions of poorer people in our world who are neighbours, friends and interlink our lives in so many ways – we, we are sentencing them.

“Livestock is responsible for 65% of all human- related emissions of nitrous oxide – a greenhouse gas with 296 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide, and which stays in the atmosphere for 150 years.”

I do not want to circulate hope or possibility, I am not writing to tell you what to do or to inform you on statistics. You are reading this because you know our urgency, all the facts, all of the events – but turn your face away. If you allow this global countdown to persist life on Earth will find a way, some ecosystems will adapt, but all humans will die out – extinction of your own species. This is your choice where we are each hold a share of individual responsibility in a global community.

The state of our planet is unimaginable and sheer, still it shows we can create unbelievable, mammoth change in a positive direction as well. It unfortunately is unavoidable to purchase single use plastic, harmful toxins and compounds and sometimes even animal products – nevertheless we can make changes:

switches to a green energy supply, become a reducetarian, purchase bamboo toothbrushes, bio-degradable materials, cook more at home, purchase items second hand, go to sustainable suppliers, avoid palm oil, consume more plants, purchase glass or ceramic rather than plastic, use less paper, steel water bottles and straws, walk and cycle more, have a shower instead of a bath, purchase faux leather, invest in organic, use shampoo bars, visit your local health store.

There are so many ways we can start to make a difference (and you know them) so please instead of inspiring hope, let’s inspire action; for you, loved ones, myself, civilization, animals and our planet. Thank you XXX

By JAMIE WATERS

Spread the word

“I don't want your hope, i don't want you to be hopeful. I want you to panic and act as if the house was on fire...”

Greta Thunberg