08 4. The human role in maintaining ecological balance
Humans are a major factor in environmental change, whether positive or negative. The book lists four roles:
- Conserving natural resources. Use resources carefully and sustainably, avoiding pollution and depletion: treat sewage and industrial waste, reuse and recycle water, create nature reserves and marine protected areas, protect wetlands and reefs.
- Environmental awareness and education. People should learn and understand the impact of their actions and share that knowledge through awareness campaigns, workshops, school curricula and the media.
- Sustainable development. Development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It involves developing and applying clean and sustainable technologies in agriculture (drip irrigation, organic fertilisers), industry (waste treatment, recycling) and urban sectors (wastewater treatment plants, green buildings).
- Adopting environmentally friendly practices in daily life. Small steps such as reducing water and energy consumption, sorting waste (reduce, reuse, recycle), avoiding plastic bags and bottles, not dumping oil or garbage in drains or rivers, and using public transport or bicycles.
Other practical measures (consistent with the book's "water resources management" issue): fishing quotas and closed seasons; sewage and industrial effluent treatment before discharge; buffer strips of vegetation around lakes; regulating pesticide use; restocking and protecting breeding areas; monitoring water quality (pH, dissolved oxygen, nitrates, phosphates, heavy metals); and laws with penalties for polluters.