The increase in the production of consumer goods results in damage to the natural environment.
What are the causes of this?
What can be done to solve this problem?
Today we live in an era of continuously increasing consumer demand. This rate of consumption is increasing at an alarming rate. The increase of consumer goods has brought about a myriad of negative impacts on the natural environment. Nowadays, as more consumer goods are manufactured, more damage has been inflicted to the environment. I will outline several reasons for this and put forward some measures to this issue.
To begin with, there is no denying that overpopulation is the root of the problem. With over 7 billion people around the world, the demands for basic necessities like food, clothes and shelters have been on the non-stop rise. As a result, rainforests have been cleared, especially in developing countries, for industrial, residential and productive land. Factories, which emit harmful gases to the air and toxic wastes to water source, have been opened in every parts of the world to produce various kinds of food, drinks, clothes, etc. This has put unprecedented strains on our finely balanced ecosystem and posing a threat to the living habitats of all creatures.
In order to solve the problem, both government and individuals should take actions immediately. Firstly, government should put forward a stricter regulation to control the overpopulation issue. Secondly, individuals should adopt a more eco-friendly consumption habits. For example, people should buy biodegradable packaged products, support organic food or avoid overusing plastic bags. Another feasible action is that all industrial and domestic wastes like paper or glass should be sorted out and recycled. By taking all these actions, our living environment would become better and greener.