I Can Save the Earth|
by Anita Holmes
Let's discuss three of Earth's main natural resources: air, water, and land. Clean air is important to the health of the planet. Polluted air can make you sick, kill plants, and ruin rivers and lakes. Air pollution can even change the weather by trapping sunlight and its heat close to the ground. What can you do to stop air pollution? Turn out the lights when you don't need them. Keep the temperature in your home a little cooler in the winter and a little warmer in the summer. You can even convince your family to drive the car less often. How does this help? Electricity, heating, air conditioning and car engines are all created or powered by burning fuels like coal or oil. Burning fuels release pollutants that dirty our air.
Water is another of Earth's main resources. All living things on Earth need water
to survive, but clean, unpolluted water is getting harder to find. Many people
waste water or pollute it. How can you save water? Try taking shorter showers or
turning off the water while you brush your teeth. Help to keep our water clean.
Land is the third main resource. It suffers the effects of pollution, too. One of the ways we are using up this precious resource is by dumping trash on it or burying it in the ground. The average American throws away over 20 pounds of trash each week! Much of this trash, like plastic containers or toys, will not go away. The trash will sit in the ground forever. How can you help to solve the trash problem? You can buy high quality goods that will last, that you will not have to throw away. Reuse plastic bags and containers, cans, and foam cups. You can even convince your family to recycle everything possible, like cans and newspapers.
There are so many ways you can make a difference at home or in your community. This book describes many of the ways you do have power to save Earth. Try the I Can Save the Earth Activity to learn more about preserving the environment.
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