Environment: Teach green values to kids

The Education Ministry should introduce a separate subject on environmental protection in primary schools.

GLOBAL warming plus environmental degradation spell trouble for all life on earth. These pressing environmental issues are difficult to overcome, especially since environmental awareness is superficial and environmental knowledge is limited among the public.

Environmental education is not being addressed. For example, global warning is related to human activities. With the massive developments in China and India, the two nations with the highest populations, nobody can deny that carbon emissions are on the increase.The increase in carbon dioxide in our atmosphere has led to a greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect will result in global warming. An increase of the atmospheric temperature by 1°C or 2°C will melt the ice in the Antarctic and Arctic regions. The increase in sea levels will drown most of the great cities in the world. Perhaps, Bangladesh and the Maldives will be gone. George Town and Johor Baru could also be under water.
The increase in invasive species is reportedly taking place at a tremendous rate due to global warming. Insects, especially mosquitoes, are moving northward and mosquito-borne diseases like malaria are more pronounced in some poor nations. Weedy species are also on the increase, for example, a grassy species, Poa annua, found in Cameron Highlands, was recently recorded in Antarctica. The unique evolutionary characteristics of this species, which can adapt to various ranges of temperatures, has brought about a successful species in the world. Certain insect and grass species can take advantage of such harsh and extreme conditions. This phenomenon is also known as biological pollution. The newly-introduced species can colonise an area quickly. Within a year, their population creates a big problem for native species. Another example is the warming of our coastal waters. This can lead to an algal bloom, which has vast implications on the fishing industry. In view of all this, our children should be exposed to environmental education as early as possible. Nature camps and expeditions should be organised to make them realise the importance of safeguarding ecosystems. Those people armed with ecological and taxonomical knowledge should be involved. Unfortunately, most of our students are weak in taxonomical knowledge. For example, some students cannot even differentiate between an eagle and a crow, a rice plant and a lallang. How can we protect our biodiversity if we don’t know pests and endemic species? We should emphasise this aspect more, because our country is rich in biodiversity. Local communities can protect the habitats of wildlife in their areas. Every school should establish or at least have herbariums and collections of living species from their areas. Finally, newspapers can also highlight environmental events.

Do your part

I AM an 11-year-old boy. I have heard about global warming. I have heard my parents talking about it. I have also watched TV programmes about this subject. I was first confused about it but I surfed the Internet and got a better understanding of it.Global warming is beginning to get bad and could be worse if the trend continues. It is a serious concern because we are seeing all the bad effects of this phenomenon. A lot of natural disasters are happening because of it. The melting of ice caps is because of this. This will in turn cause sea levels to rise and many coastal cities could be flooded. And because of global warming, climates are also changing. Many countries and continents are facing drought. This will also cause bush fires. And when these fires occur, the earth will get even warmer.Global warming is making many countries work hard to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.Children, too, can help reduce the effects of global warming.

• Cut down on the use of plastic bags.

• Look for friends in school to car pool and use public transport wherever we can.

•Advise our parents not to burn rubbish.

• Plant trees.

I urge the Education Ministry to introduce a separate subject on environmental protection in primary schools. It is important for us to have an understanding of our environment and how we should protect it.