Environment, What does Littering Do to the Environment? Articles

What does Littering Do to the Environment? Here Are Facts to Open Your Eyes

What does littering do to the environment? Have you ever imagined that the little things you do can have a great impact on the future? Every piece of plastic waste or cigarette butts scattered around may cause severe damage to nature.

The problem is, most people don't even realize they have done something wrong.

Thus, they also do not imagine what does littering do to the environment.

Over the past few decades, at least 8 tons of plastic wastes pollute the environment every year. It does not include other thrash, such as leftover food, cans, and other decomposed objects.

What is littering?

Before discussing what does littering do to the environment, let’s have some background knowledge about it. Littering is throwing garbage out of place. While related institutions generally have provided a location for placing waste, people who carry out literal throw it carelessly on the ground, river, or ocean.

It is common in everyday life, whether intentionally or not, and you might as well do it. Most people do it intentionally because of laziness, lack of knowledge about the environment, indecisive government policies, or someone else who has already disposed of the garbage in a location.

Another big problem is those who throw out the trash by accident. 19.9% of pollution on land comes from accidentally-scattered garbage from trucks or garbage carts. In addition, in research conducted by Keep America Beautiful, 76% of the waste on the streets comes from motorized vehicle users or pedestrians. It has serious consequences but cannot be fully controlled.

The types of litter are varied. However, based on a study conducted by Keep America Beautiful, the most waste is cigarette butts, food wrappers, plastic bottles, plastic bags, straws, cans, disposable cups, and others. It is a small thing, but most people never think about what does littering do to the environment.

What does littering do to the environment?

Littering is probably a small thing that you often overlook. But imagine if one million people throw a straw carelessly every day, how much garbage will accumulate and pollute the environment. What are the effects, and why do we need to minimize them? Here are the reviews: 1. Polluting the sea The fact is you don't have to go all the way to the beach to do damage. All rivers will eventually end up in the sea that whatever you throw in them will cause havoc in the oceans. You can even make water pollution and harm others just by staying at home.

For example, when you throw plastic or pads in the toilet, the garbage will flow and pollute the surrounding river. Until, finally, the waste will also end up in the sea and disturb the biota there.

Something like plastics, cigarette butts, or silicone materials can be eaten by living things there. It can make them sick, poisoned, and die. In addition, sharp objects such as glass can injure fish and other animals.

2. Polluting the soil Most people don’t consider what does littering do to the environment well. On the ground where you stand, it is certainly not hard to find scattered garbage. Many

people throw things that they no longer need and create an unpleasant scene. In addition, scattered thrash can also cause soil pollution. The chemicals in it can leach into the soil and cause problems for the living things that live in it.

3. Contaminate groundwater Most people do not realize that the garbage they throw on the ground can cause massive pollution. Chemicals or harmful substances present in the litter potentially pollute the soil and also seep deep into it.

The most terrible impact is the contamination of groundwater. As of now, there are still many people and other living things that depend on their water needs from well water. If groundwater is dirty, this can interfere with health and even cause poisoning.

4. Make the environment uncomfortable No one likes to live among garbage because apart from causing odors, it can also be detrimental to health. But the fact is that there are still many people who live in slums because of the large amount of garbage that fills the land, thus affecting settlements.

5. Potentially deadly to living things Small things you do like littering can have a huge impact on the living things around you. The waste you produce may contain chemicals or harmful substances that can kill micro-organisms or living things in the soil or water. It will disturb the balance of the environment.

6. Become a medium for the spread of disease Apart from being a potential medium for the spread of chemicals and hazardous substances, waste is fertile ground for various bacteria and germs. The greater number means the greater the possibility of transmission to living things in the vicinity.

The disease can move to animals, then poison humans either directly or indirectly.

Humans can be affected or fall ill after consuming contaminated animal meat.

7. Can be eaten again by humans Recent research has revealed that some fish caught in the sea have plastic in their bodies. It shows that the current pollution is already at an alarming level. Microplastics spread in oceans and rivers, become the food of fish and other aquatic animals.

Several bird species also experience the same thing. Worse, we as humans also eat their flesh. We can also eat meat that has been contaminated by these microplastics so that it can cause various kinds of health problems.

8. Spending a lot of money As we discussed above, the current environmental pollution is already at a level that is quite worrying. The solution is not easy and costs a lot of money. Cleaning a river or sea from pollution and save the aquatic biota cost thousands to millions of dollars.

In addition to spending quite a large amount of money, the process is also quite hard and takes a long time. It will be more difficult if not everyone has the awareness to save the environment. If we don't follow up on this, the impact will affect our children in the future.

Preventing what does littering do to the environment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNOrf_SXo48 We have discussed that waste management due to littering is not easy. Even if we make various efforts, if people are not aware of the importance of disposing of waste in its place, our efforts will still be in vain.

Therefore we need to take other alternative actions to prevent the accumulation of waste on the earth. Not only is it to save the environment now, but it is also important for our future children later. Here are some alternative preventive measures to take: 1. Minimize the use of plastic, for example, by bringing your straw, using paper bags instead of plastic bags, and avoiding using single-use containers.

2. Get used to throwing garbage in the place provided.

3. Implement environmental policies that apply in the area where you live.

4. Give education about the environment from an early age. In this case, it is necessary to provide children with environmental knowledge from an early age.

After reading the reviews above, surely now you know what does littering do to the environment. The little things you do can have an impact on human life.

Therefore you need to start a good habit of not littering from now on. Don't forget to teach this good habit to our children too!

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