Forewarned is forearmed! The environment is constantly changing, including as a result of human activity. Even small changes in the ecosystem can cause huge disasters and tragedies - now and in the future. In order to respond effectively to hazards, we need to understand what we are dealing with.

Let's take a look at the 15 most important environmental issues facing our planet.

1. Pollution
It will take millions of years to clean up polluted air, water, and soil. The main pollutants are industry and motor vehicles. The air is polluted by industrial facilities that emit various gases and toxins into the atmosphere, as well as by the use of natural fuels. Water and soil are polluted by oil spills, acid rain, nitrates, plastics, municipal wastewater, and industrial waste.

2. Global warming
Human activity emits greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, which lead to the greenhouse effect (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbon compounds, perfluorocarbon compounds, sulfur hexafluoride). As a result, the temperature of the oceans and the Earth's surface is rising, the polar caps are melting, sea levels are rising, and abnormal precipitation, such as unexpected floods, excessive snow, or desertification, is occurring.

3. Overpopulation
Explosive population growth in the least developed countries is causing a strain on resources, lack of water, fuel, and food. Intensive agriculture through the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides and insecticides also adds to the environmental damage.

4. Degradation of natural resources
Consumption of fossil fuels leads to greenhouse gas emissions, which are the cause of global warming and climate change. Today, the transition to renewable energy sources such as solar energy, wind, biogas and geothermal energy is becoming increasingly popular and cost-effective.

5. Waste management
Excessive consumption of resources and the creation of plastics (artificially created materials based on synthetic or natural polymers) are creating a global waste management crisis. Developed countries dump their waste into the oceans or send it to less developed countries. Nuclear waste management also poses a huge threat to human health.

6. Climate change
Global warming has various harmful consequences: melting polar ice, the emergence of new diseases, more frequent floods, changes in the seasons and the weather scenario in general.

7. Loss of biodiversity
Human activity leads to the extinction of entire species, the disappearance of their habitats, and the loss of biodiversity. Ecosystems that have evolved over millions of years are threatened when a species disappears and the balance is upset.

8. Destruction of forests
Currently, forests cover 30% of the world's land area, but this area is shrinking every year. Trees are natural carbon dioxide sinks, produce fresh oxygen, and help regulate temperature and precipitation. Deforestation means the destruction of green cover to make land suitable for residential, industrial or commercial use.

9. Ocean acidification
Along with global warming, this process is an anthropogenic phenomenon, namely the result of excessive levels of CO2, 25% of which is produced by humans. Ocean acidification has been increasing over the past 250 years, but by 2100 it could increase by 150%. The main harmful effect is on living organisms with calcium carbonate shells. Oxidation impairs their ability to form shells. Since these organisms are the basis of food chains, the effects may be felt by marine animals and humans in the future.

10. Depletion of the ozone layer
The ozone layer is the planet's invisible shield against solar radiation, which harms plants and animals and causes an increase in skin cancer in humans. The decrease in the ozone layer concentration is due to the destruction of ozone molecules in reactions with various substances of anthropogenic and natural origin (chlorine and bromide). When these toxic gases enter the atmosphere, they create a hole in the ozone layer - a localized decline in ozone concentration in the stratosphere by 10-40%. The largest hole is located over the Antarctic.

11. Acid rain
These are all types of meteorological precipitation (rain, snow, rain with snow, fog, hail), the acidity of which is higher than normal (pH ˃ 5.6). Since the end of the twentieth century, acid rain has been falling in Europe, North America, Asia, and Latin America. They are caused by sulfur and nitrogen compounds from the burning of fossil fuels, volcanic eruptions, and plant decay. Acidic precipitation damages buildings, cultural monuments, forests, crops, and deteriorates soil and aquatic ecosystems.

12. Water pollution
Clean drinking water is becoming an increasingly valuable resource that people are fighting for. This is a political and economic issue that needs to be addressed by governments. In addition, industrial development continues to pollute rivers and oceans with toxic substances that pose a threat to the health of the world's population.

13. Urbanization
Uncontrolled urban sprawl means the migration of people from densely populated areas to sparsely populated areas, which leads to the spread of cities to more and more rural land. Urban sprawl leads to an inevitable change in the natural environment, displacement of flora and fauna, land degradation, increased traffic with increased harmful emissions into the atmosphere and health problems.

14. Public health issues
Existing environmental problems pose a great risk to the health of living organisms. Dirty water poses the greatest threat to the quality of life and health of the population. Runoff into rivers contains toxins, chemicals, and pathogenic bacteria. High temperatures contribute to the spread of infectious diseases.

15. Genetic engineering
Molecular biology allows to change the molecular interaction of basic biological molecules in and outside the cell, creating new variants of living systems that did not arise in the course of natural evolution. Genetic modification of food can cause serious environmental problems in the wild. For example, transgenic plants, due to their toxicity or allergenicity, will pose a direct threat to humans, pets, and wildlife.

As you can see, humanity is facing a lot of problems. Scientists cannot fully understand the causes of some of them and their connection with anthropogenic activities. However, the need for immediate changes in the everyday life of earthlings is becoming urgent. If people continue to move forward in such a way that is harmful to the future, there will be no future. The solution to global environmental problems begins with ourselves, our families and communities, with changes in consciousness to keep our environment comfortable, safe and diverse.