Natural Resources essays

Natural Resources essays Yes, the planet will survive, just as it has for millions of years. And the debate over how to save it will also go on. But one thing is certain-we are destroying our natural resources faster than they can be replaced. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that this is a dangerous equation, an equation for disaster. The global population is increasing, and along with it the need for more food sources, cleaner water, and cheaper energy. To a poor man from a third world country who is simply trying to feed his family, the terms conservation or ecology do not mean much. He does not understand, much less care, that the yuppie upper-east-side Manhattanite who has laid out his coke lines in perfect little rows on his table made from mahogany that was harvested in razed rain forests somewhere in Malysia is contributing to the problem, by encouraging industry to pay the poor farmer a few dollars a day for years of irreversible damage to the forest. The poor farmer does not know that the forest floor he burned to plant crops to grow grain to feed cattle that are sold to packing companies to make the hamburger you or I bought yesterday at the fast-food restaurant is never going to be the same again, and is totally unsuitable for farming anyway. The time has come, and I agree with the article, to stop thinking about how to solve the problem on a global level and start thinking in terms of solving the problem at the local level, by encouraging the people who live in the affected areas to develop their own solutions, using the resources they have available to them. This is both more economical and feasible. Another idea might be to "rent" the rainforest, paying the countries involved in its destruction subsidies, much like a giant utility, thus discouraging the razing. I want my children's children, and their children, to see the world as I have seen it, before all the animals are gone and there is no clean water left, and ...