There are many different environmental issues that people and governments are forced to deal with. These issues can pertain to the health of the air, bodies of water, the land, and endangered species of animals. The common thread among all of these issues is that they are caused by the activity of human beings. Most of these serious environment problems can also be lessened or eliminated if the correct steps are taken to combat these problems.
One major environmental issue pertains to water pollution. In fact, this is one of the most common environmental problems in the world. Water pollution occurs when some kind of pollutant makes its way into a body of water such as a river, stream, ocean, lake, or pond. The source of this pollution can vary greatly. For example, fertilizers that are spread on crops can drain into underground streams and contaminate drinking water sources. Another example is the leaking of oil from oil tankers and oil rigs into the ocean. Whatever the case, cleaning pollution from a body of water can be a long and arduous process.
A second major environmental issue is the threatening of endangered species of animals. These animals may have once maintained plentiful numbers in the wild. However, they may have since been driven into ever smaller numbers by human beings encroaching in on their natural habitats or hunting them to near extinction. With serious effort, certain species can be brought back out of endangerment. This has, for example, been the case with the American Bison, which is no longer endangered. However, in certain parts of the world, this may not be the case. For example, in South American rainforests, whole sections of forest are often cut down to make room for farming with complete disregard for the very rare animal life that may live there.
Lastly, a third major environmental issue is global warming. Global warming refers to the fact that the Earth over its history has become increasingly hotter. Some believe this warming of the atmosphere is cyclical in nature. Others, however, tie it to human activity. They argue that certain “greenhouse gases” have been released into the atmosphere by human beings. These gases then trap heat in the atmosphere, creating a warming effect. It has been suggested by many scientists that action must be taken to reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses that are released into the atmosphere to stop and reverse this process.