What do you see when you are walking in the street? Some of us see a clean and peaceful environment while some of us don’t. This happens because of different scattered trash along our way. And because of this, it adds up to the increasing rate of pollution in the Philippines. We all know that pollution comes in different forms which are water, land, air, noise, thermal, light, and radioactive pollution. Whatever is it, we are sure that this is bad not only for the environment but also for people and animals.
Pollution is one of the top and largest problem, the country is facing. As reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), about 35,580 tons of garbage is generated every day in the Philippines where each person produces about 0.5 kg and 0.3 kg of garbage in urban and rural areas. For Metro Manila which is the greatest contributor of wastes, it is estimated that 8,636 tons of garbage which is 0.7 kg per person are generated per day. According to Senate Economic Planning Office (SEPO), only 85% of the wastes are collected and transported to sanitary landfills while the 15% or approximately 9,212.92 wastes are scattered along the way, goes to canals and to the bodies of water. All of these wastes decompose and produces harmful gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane which are both greenhouse gases and contribute to global warming. So it really pollutes the local environment, including the air, water, and the soil.
It also affects human health as different kinds of pollution cause people to have serious health problems such as pulmonary disease, cancer, pneumonia, heart disease, and stroke, birth defects, breathing disorders, skin diseases, cancer and can impact a child’s cognitive development. It also kills organisms in bodies of water so sometimes, people can found dead fish, crabs, birds, dolphins, and other animals on the shore. This problem is really serious that according to World Health Organization (WHO), the Philippines have the third-highest number of deaths due to air pollution.
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With this, all of us must help and do our responsibilities to take care of our environment. Even as a student, we can do many things that will be significant for ourselves and for our nature. Many simple activities can be done such as throwing properly in trash cans by segregating it, buy biodegradable products, reduce the use of pesticides and fertilizers, follow 3R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle), avoid buying products with many packages, do not litter, do tree planting, and always be intelligent.
We should always be aware and be reminded to always be responsible and cooperate. By making a great effort, everyone can contribute to a cleaner and safer environment while health and well being of all can be secured. We should also remember that the choice of having the right decisions is within ourselves so let’s start saving our environment now.
