The project is done by Liakushina Nastya Grade 8A School №

Since ancient times nature has served man, being the source of his life. For thousands of years people lived in harmony with environment and it seemed to them that natural riches were unlimited. But with the development of civilization man's interference in nature began to increase. The poisoning of the world‘s land, air, and water is the fastest-spreading disease of civilization. It produces wars, earthquakes and floods and it is potentially one of history's greatest dangers to human life on earth. If present trends continue for the next several decades, our planet will become uninhabitable.

Water pollution is one of the vital problems. The seas are in danger. They are filled with poison: (industrial and nuclear waste). The Miditerranean Sea is already nearly dead, the North Sea is following, the Aral Sea is on the brink of extinction. If nothing is done about it, one day nothing will be able to live in the seas, rivers and lakes.

Air pollution is another serious problem. More and more factories, cars and power stations add their bad breath to their air. Industrial enterprises emit tons of harmful gases. They are the main reason for the greenhouse effect and acid rains. Acid rains cause great damage to trees, fish and buildings. Poisonous gases destroy the ozone layer and leave “holes” in the atmosphere.

Large cities with thousands of smoky industrial enterprises have appeared all over the world today. The product of their activity pollutes the air we breathe, the water we drink, the land we grow grain and vegetables. Every year world industry pollutes the atmosphere with about 1000 million tons of dust and harmful substances. Many cities suffer from smog.

Ozone is important because it stops ultraviolet radiation from the sun, but now we really destroy it. Ozone layer

An even greater environmental threat is nuclear power stations. We all know how tragic the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster are. As a result of the Chernobyl tragedy the people faced the most horrible ecological disaster.

Radiation is the most dangerous, because it can lead to very tragic consequences, than other kind of pollutions. Radiation

That’s the result…

All over the world the forests are also disappearing. People cut the trees down because they need wood and paper or new places for farms and houses. Forests the size of Belgium are destroyed every year. It`s an international disaster. Even if new trees are planted, it takes many years for them to grow.

I must say that now people kill animals in order to have good clothes. Many species of animals and birds have disappeared. Millions of animals die every year because man has polluted their natural habitats. People don’t understand that animals have the right to live too! I am afraid that when people understand it, it will be too late, they will be unable to change anything!!

The last Dodo died around 1681.

Colorado wolf White tiger Tasmanian wolf Wandering pigeon

We live among litter and waste which we have created by ourselves. Many countries bury and forget about millions of tons of rubbish every year. The Green World reports say that in one year the average European family throws away about 100 kilos of waste.

Many things that we throw away can still be useful. In fact it`s possible to recycle 80% of domestic rubbish. We can recycle most kinds of paper, glass, metal and plastic. Recycling is expensive. But it saves trees, energy and protects the environment from pollution.

People all over the world are worried about what is happening to the environment. They understand that the earth is their home, a big green home. The environment protection should be our universal concern. Some progress has been already made in this direction. As many as 159 countries - members of the UNO have set up environmental protection agencies The international organization Greenpeace is also doing much to preserve the environment. But these are only the first steps that must be carried forward to protect not only for the sake of the present but for the future generations.

People are beginning to realize that environmental problems are not somebody else's. ”If you don’t think about your future, you won’t have it”. They join and support various international organization and green parties. If governments wake up to what is happening- perhaps we'll be able to avoid the disaster that threatens the natural world and all of us with it.

1.Keep yourself informed about environmental problems. 2.Help to clean up your local environment. 3.Try not to waste energy. 4.Don’t waste paper. 5.Walk or cycle whenever possible. 6.Put out food for wild animals in winter. 7.Never drop litter. 8.Before you throw anything away, stop and think. Might someone else have a use for it? 9.Before you buy anything, ask yourself if you really need it.

I hope, that my project will help you, to understand, that it is necessary to love and respect our planet and an environment, as we respect each other!