Richard Branson once said “There is no Planet B. We have to take care of the one we have” but our stewardship of the planet has had mixed results. Starting with the Industrial Revolution, we’ve been able to negatively affect the environment on a scale never seen before. Some of the environmental desecration that has occurred includes
- Destruction of the Amazon rain forests
- Mountaintop removal mining
- Oil spills (Gulf war oil spill, Exxon-Valdez, Deepwater Horizon)
- Toxic waste dumping (Flint, Michigan, Cuyahoga River fire, Love Canal and other Superfund sites)
- Accelerated production of carbon dioxide (CO2)
The debate often centers on the sacredness of the environment versus the liberty to pursue business interests. While a balance between the two is ideal, the current situation is dangerously skewed. This imbalance is no longer just a philosophical or policy debate — it now threatens the continuity of the human species. Human activity is causing global warming, and scientists agree we may reach the “point of no return” by 2042.
The United States needs to make the reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere a top priority and re-establish itself as a leader of such a goal.