What Is Your Water Footprint - Essay Example

Lecturer: Reflection Part My ecological footprint-quiz result was 4.99 Earths. I wonder if everyone on the planet lives my lifestyles, then we would need approximately 5 earths. This is because after carrying out the online test on my ecological footprint, I realized that I live the kind of life as if am living in five earths. This is because I realized I waste resources in the environment and this is likely to create a serious impact on the future generation. One of the reasons that contributed to this result is because I consume a lot of environmental resources such as energy sources without taking into consideration the need for recycling or saving the environmental resources. Moreover, I waste food, water and other necessary resources; thus posing a risk to the future generation. The choice that I made in my life such as the way I purchase products, recycle and consume other environmental resources is impacting the planet; thus need to take significant action for creating change. I think the result that was given is accurate because I waste a lot of resources for consumption purposes. This crisis will continue to rise unless I change my lifestyle and take significant action towards promoting a sustainable environment. I think my footprint would not be compared to the footprint of an individual living in a less developed part of the globe. This is because higher incomes levels contribute to higher footprint levels. Therefore, the size of the ecological footprint in the wealth and developed nation is much higher than those of individuals living in less developed nations where there is low income levels compared to the developed nations. This result has changed the way I view my living styles; thus a need for making vital decision on consumption choice; thus contributing to sustainable environment. Part 2 I was surprised that I throw much waste that can be recycled for other significant needs. I throw a lot of garbage into the environment and yet there are other wastes that can be sorted and recycled. Recycling is significant because it helps in reducing wastes that can be thrown and impact the environment. I throw much of rubbish and the landfills are now filed up. This is dangerous because it may contribute to outbreak of diseases. Waste thrown into the landfill can pollute the environment and the landfill leakages are dangerous. This is because they can lead to water pollution; thus contributing to water borne related diseases. All the papers and cardboard that I have thrown can be recycled into fresh papers and cards. This is significant because less energy will be used in recycling than producing new papers from trees; thus saving resources and forest from exhaustion. Moreover, the refuse from kitchen such as food craps and organic matter like animal manures or leaves that I have thrown could have been composed in order to produce garden fertilizers. Some of these wastes that I have thrown could have also used in generating methane gas, which is good for heating, cooking and electricity generation. Methane gas is dangerous in case we just leave it to seep out of the landfills into the atmosphere. This is because when it reaches into the atmosphere, it becomes a greenhouse gas, which is deadly than even carbon dioxide. Greenhouse gas also contributes to global warming; thus, there is need to take action in order to save our environment from global warming issues. Therefore, I think the garbage that I have thrown into the environment is similar to the garbage of the average American. I noticed this when I realized that I have produced a lot of waste in a week, which can similar to the average American. Part 3 From the result of the water footprint exercise, I realized that I use 1,197 million gallons of water for my diet, 159 for my energy, 441 for stuff and 184 million gallons of water for home or yard purposes. I realized that I waste a lot of water for diet, energy, stuff and home. This is because I have never been responsible for conserving water; because I use water carelessly. I was shocked when I realized that I use about 13, 03 million gallons of water in a day. I felt so bad for misusing water and yet there are many people who do not have access to clean water. For instance, many people especially women in developing nations walk more than 6 kilometers in search for clean water. I realized that there are many areas in life where I waste a lot of water such as watering the yard twice a day, using much water from the showers and leaving sinks open. I think my water consumption is higher than even the water consumption of the average American. This is because the average family in American uses more than 2000 gallons of water per day in their homes (National Geographic 2013). However, I was shocked that I use more water than even the average American; thus a need for taking significant actions in order to save water. Water is significant in our daily lives because we use it for varied activities such as cooking, drinking, washing and other purposes. However, I need to understand how much water I should use in a day and learn on the way to save water. This is because from the online exercise that I carried out, I noticed the patterns in my water use, which indeed surprised me. Therefore, I made a pledge to exercise change on the way I live; thus the need for significant change in order to conserve water resources. Part 4 Having watched the Food industry, I realized that the production of food has drastically changed and now we are consuming unhealthy food from fast food industries. I now understand that I have been consuming unhealthy food from fast food companies, which have been the cause for many cases for increased diseases among many Americans. My ideal meals have been the fast, cheap and tasty food from food industries. I am now aware about the way these foods are being regulated and the process they undergo before they are brought into the table. In addition, I now understand the way these foods are processed before they are brought into the market for consumption purpose. The process involved starting from the slaughterhouses where chickens grow faster and cows are fed on toxic chemicals, as well as, illegal people brings these products into the market at the cheapest cost is shocking. This made me to change my eating habits and now I felt that I should eat only green and fresh food from the environment. The food processing made me to change the way I eat everyday; thus, I solved to make a healthy eating choices such as consuming fresh fruits, whole grains, low fatty foods and other health foods. I think my eating habits are not similar to the average American because I noticed that the pattern of my eating habits was more than that of the average American. Therefore, this exercise changed my views towards my eating habits and the lifestyles that I live. I realized that the kind of lifestyles that I live is the cause for health deterioration. Thus, I made a choice of consuming health food and avoid poor eating habits especially consuming fast food, which are killing many Americans. Works Cited National Geographic. (2013). “What Is Your Water Footprint?” nationalgeographic.com. Read More