The Most Pressing Environmental Problems - Essay Example

The Most Pressing Environmental ProblemsThere are several environmental issues affecting the universe, but climate change, increasing population, ocean acidification, deforestation, and inadequate water supply seem to be the pressing problems. It is inevitable that man cannot live without water. Although there is a lot of freshwater available for the world’s population, a fifth of this population lives in areas affected by physical water scarcity. Lack of quality water poses problems to land animals and marine life.

It is unfortunate that waste from industries and runoffs from cities findtheir way to our sources of water. For the last several years, ocean acidity has increased by about 30%. In the next century, scientists expect the acidity to increase by 150%. The acidification is a threat to sea creatures and can result in the extinction of some species (Harris 2012). Population increase is perhaps the most disturbing environmental issue. In the last 70 years, the world’s population has tripled placing stress on all other aspects of the environment.

Forests occupy more than 30 percent of land and play a significant role in cleansing carbon emissions. They are also home to wildlife and protect us from flooding and sandstorms. For the last century, deforestation has been on the rise, and its effects are profound. Cutting trees threatens wildlife and contributes to the greenhouse gas emissions. The last stress is climate change that arises from the adverse use of natural resources by man (Harris 2012). Business should help solve the problems by promoting environmental friendly production methods.

They can, for example, minimize water usage to avail it for human consumption. Businesses in the industry sector can treat wastesreleasedinto the oceans to prevent water pollution. To curb climate change, manufacturing companies can reduce their carbon dioxide emissions. In other words, putting regulations and the use of best practices in business operationscan provide effective solutions to the environmental problems. ReferenceHarris, F. (2012). Global environmental issues. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.