Top 10 Environmental Issues

Environment is a resource, which is being consumed at an exponential rate. Unfortunately, this resource cannot be quickly and easily replenished. This has led to a lot of environmental concerns and issues which need to be dealt with on a war footing. The global scenario today is fraught with drought, famines, floods and natural calamities. The frequency of such occurrences is increasing in a dramatic fashion. Here we take a look at what are the top 10 environmental issues the world is facing today. Most of them are interlinked and might have the same cause. They are listed separately as the strategies that need to be undertaken to combat them might be different.

Climate Change

This is one of the most talked about environmental issues in the world. Given legitimacy by Al Gore and his documentary "The Inconvenient Truth", climate change around the world remains a cause of major concern. It has wreaked havoc on some ecosystems around the world.  The Inuits are one of the main races to be affected by the climate change phenomena. Their first hand reports complain of rising temperatures in summers, winters not being cold enough and the freezing land mass that cause home getting smaller every year. Climate change has bought upon severe droughts in some regions. This affects their cultivation, both in pattern and quantity. The entire world is affected by it, which are far reaching in nature. Its effects are not just deadly for human beings but also for other species inhabiting this planet.

Waste Management

Closely linked with the rapidly growing population across the world and the rate of consumption, waste, and its management has become a major issue around the world. Waste is created in many forms, which can be broadly categorized in two forms. Some waste is bio-degradable and some not so. Just the quantum of waste that is created everyday on our planet is proving to be a major source of concern. The problem takes root in our lifestyle, which is fast moving and callous in thought and action. We need to shift our focus to reuse instead of the throwing out option. This problem manifests itself more clearly around most urban regions of the world. Quick fix solutions of landfill sites and recycling centers are not proving enough to combat it. In fact, overflowing