Discussion of the Week

Save the Polar Bears?

Polar bears are cute, adorable animals; do we really want to see them gone? Polar bears are officially vulnerable.  Polar bear depend on the arctic ice, it is where they hunt, and raise their young. But, the ice is shrinking; we must protect them and their arctic habitat. We must campaign to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the effect of climate change. We can help save these magnificent animals, just by reading this column.

The problem for polar bears is that they are dying, because when the arctic ice goes, the go. Polar bears are downing due to the ice loss, this is because the polar bears are forced to go on marathon swims because the ice is reducing and many of them do not survive the journey. It has been revealed that these open-water swims have an extremely dramatic effect on young cubs. They are forced to go on these swims, in search of food and solid ground. Climate change is pulling the sea ice, out from under the polar bears’ feet, therefore losing their habitat. 

There are many solutions that can be offered to help these beautiful creatures. We must reduce pollution, reduced our carbon footprint, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lastly, reduce global warming. Pollution is the damage to the environment and caused by human activity, this can be changed. Types of pollution are: air pollution, water pollution, soil contamination and lastly, noise pollution. Not only does pollution affect the polar bears, pollution also has an affect on humans as well. Noise pollution causes hearing loss, high blood pressure, stress and sleep disturbance. Acid rain is also an issue. It consists of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, which lowers the pH value of soil. This is soil contamination.

 Global warming is the main reason for the sea ice melting; global warming is caused by pollution. Modifying your transportation can reduce pollution. Cars are the significant source of air pollution, so you can help by switching to a more gas-efficient vehicle. By taking public transportation, you are reducing air pollution. Conserving energy is another way of reducing air pollution. Your home energy consumptions are translated into air pollution. Also, by manufacturing of any unnecessary or disposable goods can often produce air pollution, so by purchasing disposables, you will follow the solid waste mantra – “Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Recycle”- this will reduce air pollution.  
The rising of carbon dioxide is causing climate change. Although CO2 is not the only gas released when fossil fuels burn, other nasty gases are released, such as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and carbon monoxide. Acid rain is caused by air pollution. When fossil fuels are burnt they mostly release CO2. The sulfur dioxide (SO2) is produced from sulfur impurities in the fossil fuels. On the other hand, the nitrogen oxides are created by a reaction between the nitrogen and oxygen, which is found in the air, caused by heat of the burning. (This is able to happen in the internal combustion engines of cars). Dilute sulfuric acid and dilute nitric acid are formed when these gases mix with clouds, then falls as acid rain. Acid rain causes lakes to become acidic. This is a severe effect on the lake’s ecosystem. Many organisms are very sensitive to changes in pH and are unable to survive in more acidic conditions. Loads of plants and animals die. Acid rain also kills trees and damages limestone statues and buildings. Photochemical smog is a type of air pollution, which is caused by sunlight acting on nitrogen oxides. These oxides can combine with oxygen in the air to which will produce ozone. Tiredness, headaches and breathing difficulties can be caused by Ozone. Power stations and internal combustion engines in cars are the main causes of acid rain. CFCs used to be in aerosols, fridges and air-conditioning units. CFCs break down ozone in the upper atmosphere. They allow more harmful UV rays to reach the Earth’s surface. Like I said before, pollution does not only harm the polar bears but us as well. Being exposed to more UV rays can increase the risk of skin cancer.

Thank you for reaching the end of this very lengthy column (apologies). Let me know what your take on this hugely discussed topic, and please do not hesitate to contact me about any issues you may have. Thanks, bye!

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