2 0 1 0 NE W J E R S E Y

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT

SUSTAINABILITY ESSAY
Compiled and edited by: N.J. Smith-Sebasto, Ph.D.
School of Environmental and Life Sciences
Foundedin1855,KeanUniversityhasgrowntobecomeoneofNewJerseys
largestinstitutionsofhigherlearning.In1958,KeanmovedfromNewark
to Union and currently occupies over 150 acres in Union and Hillside
Townships.KeanwasgranteduniversitystatusonSeptember26,1997.While
maintaining its signifcant role in the training oI teachers, Kean has become
a comprehensive institution offering 48 undergraduate and 28 graduate
degree programs serving some 15,000 students. Kean is a metropolitan,
comprehensive, interactive, teaching university. A campus dedicated to
the pursuit of excellence in higher education, Kean University supports a
studentcenteredlearningenvironmentthatnurturesthedevelopmentofthe
whole student Ior rewarding careers, liIelong learning and Iulflling lives
inaglobalsociety.Itmaintainsacommitmenttoexcellenceandequityin
enrollment,instructionandadministration.
Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................... i
First Place, Alexander Davis, Elmwood Park Memorial High School ..............1
Second Place, Agnesa Redere, Kittatinny Regional High School ....................8
Third Place, Angela Hoover, Kittatinny Regional High School .....................15
Fourth Place, Michael Fogg, Kittatinny Regional High School ......................22
Honorable Mention, Dhara Shah, Matawan Regional High School ...............30
Honorable Mention, Evan Jackson, Ramapo High School .............................40
Kean University High School Student Sustainability Essay Contest
I believe that children are our future.
Teach them well and let them lead the way.
I believe that children are our future.
Teach them well and let them lead the way.
Lyrics from The Greatest Love of All
Written by Linda Creed & Michael Masser
Performed by George Benson (1977) and Whitney Houston (1986)
Accordingtoover1,700scientistswhosignedtheWorldScientistsWarning
to Humanity in 1992, 'Human activities infict harsh and oIten irreversible
damageontheenvironmentandoncriticalresources.Agreatchangeinour
stewardshipoftheEarthandthelifeonitisrequired.TheJohnsHopkins
UniversitySchoolofPublicHealthwarnedin2000thatInthepastdecadein
everyenvironmentalsector,conditionshaveeitherfailedtoimprove,orthey
areworsening.In2005,nearly1,400scientistsfrom95countrieswrotein
theMillenniumEcosystemAssessment,Overthepast50years,humanshave
changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than in any comparable
periodoftimeinhumanhistory.
In an effort to respond to these warnings, Kean University created the
SchoolofEnvironmentalandLifeSciences(SELS)in2009.Itrepresentsthe
universitysexpandingcommitmenttotransforminglivesbyprovidingworld
classeducation.ThemissionoftheSELSistoprovidestudentswithanextraordinaryeducationalexperience
necessarytounderstandandconfrontcontemporaryissuesbestexaminedandaddressedbyenvironmentaland
liIe sciences. The fagship degree in the SELS is a B.S. in Sustainability Science, the only degree oI its kind in
NewJerseyand,accordingtotheAssociationfortheAdvancementofSustainabilityinHigherEducation,one
ofonlyadozencomparableprogramsinthenation.
The inaugural high school student essay contest was created in order to stimulate New Jersey high school
student interest in sustainability in general and in the SELS and B.S. degree in Sustainability Science at Kean
Universityinparticular.Imodeledthiscontestonaninternationalenvironmentalessaycontestofferedthrough
Francis Marion University in the mid 1990s, for which I served as a judge. For this contest, students were
invited to electronically submit an essay oI no less than 3,000 and no more than 6,000 words that identifed
whattheyperceivedtobethemostpressingsustainabilityissuesin1)NewJersey,2)theUnitedStates,and
3) the world in a manner that will infuence public opinion; to articulate how these issues will impact society`s
understanding oI and attitudes toward sustainability; and to oIIer solutions or actions to address said issues that
can be implemented within the next decade. Advance registrations for the competition were received from
48students.Theactualnumberofessayssubmittedwas16.Judgesusedacomprehensivescoringrubric
toevaluateeachsubmission.Essayswerejudgedonoriginalityofthought,demonstrationofunderstanding
ofprinciplesandconceptsofsustainability,grammar,syntax,andspellingaswellasconformancetorequired
formatting.
Inanefforttopreservetheintegrityofthoseessaysthatwerejudgedtobethebest,Ivekeptmyeditingtoa
minimum.Misspelling,errorsofpunctuation,etc.weretheonlychangesImade.Asaresult,someessaysmay
still contain minor compositional defciencies, such as incomplete citations. In no instance, have I altered the
studentsideasorthoughts.
Inadditiontobeingpublishedinthismonograph,Dr.JeffreyToney,DeanoftheCollegeofNatural,Applied
and Health Sciences, the academic home oI the SELS, oIIered prize awards oI: $1,000 Ior frst place, $500 Ior
second place, $250 for third place, and $125 for fourth place. This monograph contains the top four award
winningessaysaswellastwohonorablementionessays.Theseawardswerepresentedataceremonyonthe
Kean University campus on 22April 2009, the 40th celebration of Earth Day. Any student who chooses to
enroll in the B.S. in Sustainability Science program at Kean will have her/his award doubled.
Nicholas J. Smith-Sebasto, Ph.D.
Executive Director, SELS
2010 New Jersey High School Student Sustainability Essay Contest at Kean University
Introduction


1

FIRST PLACE
ALEXANDER DAVIS
11
TH
GRADE
ELMWOOD PARK MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL

*************

In our society a new state of thinking has occurred. We have become obsessed with having more, regardless of the
consequences. We have become hedonistic, only thinking of the present and having no care for the future. This new instinctual,
or maybe id-like, mindset pervades our culture, from the highest level to the lowest. It threatens the current generation, the future
generation, and all the achievements of past generations. This threat is that of a lack of sustainability in any part of our culture,
be it economic, social, or environmental.
Just as the id in Freudian psychology, we are in the grips of a false state of timelessness, unable to understand the
effects that our actions can and will have. One such example is the state of New Jersey. If New Jersey were its own country,
then it would be the 32
nd
highest producer of global warming emission. The effects of global warming, such as sea levels rising,
will hit New Jersey with incredible force. We will lose our major beaches, because cities and nine percent of this State's land will
be flooded, and yet due to this culture of crass consumerism we have barely lifted a hand to stop it. To prevent these effects we
must wake up. We must grow from this stage of infantilism, alighting to form a super-ego.
New Jerseys problems do not just end there; a slightly more sinister problem is the destruction of the environment.
Throughout the years, New Jersey has tried to protect some of its natural beauty from destruction. Unfortunately, these efforts
have been opposed by certain businesses. These groups wish to take over the land and use it for other purposes, including but
not limited to: mining, manufacturing, and power plants. This may not sound like a true problem, but it leads to a dangerous
cycle. The effects could be devastating. The majority of the areas are woodland/forests, which absorb greenhouse gases limiting


2
the effects of global warming. If these areas are removed then their effects of lessening global warming will cease. If whatever is
constructed there produces greenhouse gases, then that will increase the effects of global warming, which will lead to the
numerous problems mentioned above.
A third problem also exists: air pollution. New Jersey has one of the highest amounts of air pollution in the country. This
problem affects both people, causing numerous diseases and making living uncomfortable; and businesses, where 530,000
workers are unable to come to work due to the effects of air pollution. Air pollution shows few signs of stopping, and if it
increases it will only cause more workers to be unable to work. This may cause a vicious cycle that will damage businesses in
New Jersey, increasing poverty, and decreasing revenue to the state. That may increase New Jerseys reliance of both fossil
fuels and systems that cause pollution, damaging the state even further.
The United States, suffers from this problem. The United States has the world's largest national economy, but
unfortunately the base of this economy is unstable. The base that holds up the United States economy is starting to show some
cracks. This base is energy. The truly sad fact about this is that all of these cracks could be fixed through making the pillars
sustainable. This just increases the sadness though, for all of these problems have simple methods of fixing, yet due to laziness
and short-sightedness it seems unlikely for their repair to occur.
Energy consumption is the main fissure in this country's economic base. The United States economy consumes the
largest amount of total energy in the world, 100 quadrillion BTUs. This is at least double that of the United States' energy
consumption in the 1950. While some argue that this is not a bad thing, the economy is growing, so it is only natural for the
energy consumption to go up, but those people would not know the whole truth. The inconvenient truth is that this country is not
producing much of its own energy; the difference is primarily coming from foreign countries. This means that if any of those
countries faced its own economic catastrophe or stop selling its goods, the United States economy would be brought down. This
problem also leads into another issue: 86% of the United States' energy comes from fossil fuels. This means that not only is the
economy under the control (or at least greatly under the influence of) foreign groups, but that the economy is a) based on a
substance that will eventually disappear and b) a substance that causes mass environmental damage.
The threats that fossil fuels pose to sustainability are numerous and varied. The first and greatest problem of fossil
fuels is that they are in not at all sustainable. The result of this is that: The substance that makes up the majority of the energy
used in our economy is not sustainable. The reason for this is simple; all fossil fuels are the results of biological material placed
under extreme conditions for millions of years. Due to that fact, to produce any amount of this material would take longer than the
human species has been in existence. Of the three major fossil fuels, current estimates suggest that there will only be 43 more


3
years of oil left, 61 more years of natural gas, and 148 more years of coal. Note that this is only if the amount used remains
stable, but the amount used is increasing which means that it is possible for these time periods to be much shorter. What does
this say about sustainability? It says that in a matter of a few decades the United States will run out of one of our most important
energy resources, with no backup plan.
As startling as the lack of sustainability of fossil fuels is, that is only the first problem of fossil fuels. This second
problem is global warming, which is a direct threat to all sustainability. Global warming, or more properly climate change, is a
change in the average temperature of the planet along with changes in weather patterns. One might wonder why this is a
problem, and the simple explanation is that the base of this country's society is weather patterns. A large number of major
agricultural centers exist near places with certain climate conditions. These conditions will change due to climate change so the
locations of agriculture centers may become worthless, or at least will be subpar. This does not even begin to describe the
damage that it will cause to the rest of the environment. Due to a greater amount of energy in the atmosphere, more volatile
storms will form, which will be a major threat to coastal cities, which will hurt trade.
Coming from the problems of fossil fuels, but not purely part of them, is how far behind the United States is in
renewable resources compared to the rest of the world. Renewable energy accounts for only 11% of the energy produced in this
country, which is a remarkably low number when compared to European countries. The problem is the lack of a back-up system
when the United States hits the peak oil stage. While other countries have an infrastructure that can adapt quickly to peak oil, the
United States cannot adapt to it. In fact, for those that think that 11% is high, the amount of electricity produced by renewable
resources is decreasing. Yes, in a time where this country needs greater energy efficiency this country is decreasing its energy
efficiency.
The preceding problem pale in comparison to the third: outsourcing to countries that are themselves producing
greenhouse gasses. The United States has a quite interesting conundrum: It uses up a great deal of energy, but it does not
produce much for export. Now, this is not merely a repetition of the myth that importing is bad, but is a factor in how the United
States lifestyle is unsustainable. The United States imports a great deal of material, which allows it citizenry to buy fairly cheap
products, but this system is not sustainable. The countries that the United States imports from have citizens with a fairly low
standard of living, which means that they tend to work for little pay. But, due to the United States continually trading with these
countries their standard of living will go up. This is, in and of itself, not bad. The problem appears when one realizes the impact
that this will have on the economy. Their increased standard of living will result in goods costing more, which will decrease
economic growth. A decrease in economic growth may lead to an economic crash, depending on market conditions at the time.


4
This crash would most likely be an unfriendly environment for renewable resources.
The over reliance of importing has a second problem. If the standards of living do not improve, then to keep costs low
the countries will resort to using even more fossil fuels. Today this is seen, but the problem may become even greater if not
properly handled. If this increased use of fossil fuels occurs in other countries then it will a) decrease the amount available to the
United States, b) increase the rate of climate change and c) cause a potential rapid price increase. Depending on when each
country reaches peak oil, if a trading partner reaches it before the United States then this can cause a massive increase in
prices, which may further be aggravated by this country reaching peak oil, which could cause widespread economic collapse.
These problems of sustainability are not just specific to one country, but are global. Regardless of that, the United
States provides a microcosm of the problems facing the world. The world too is addicted to fossil fuels, but seems in part too
blind to realize that a society based on the substance is unsustainable.
As noted in the section on why the United States' addiction to fossil fuels is unhealthy it is because fossil fuels are unsustainable.
There is only a limited amount of them in existence and there will never be any more, but the majority of countries continue to
use them. To be fair, a good number of countries are taking steps to use more renewable resources, but a roughly equal number
of other countries with the goal of industrializing are not. This once again poses a problem, because a number of the countries
that are not using more renewable resources are producing for the countries that are. When fossil fuels run out massive price
increases will occur in countries that have already made the leap from fossil fuels to renewable fuels.
Now, one might look at the running out of fossil fuels and think that it does not sound like much of a problem, but those
people will not be looking at the long term consequences of these events. The above predicts that countries will still be using
fossil fuels, for there is little incentive for them to change their means of producing energy. Despite the progress made by other
nations; climate change will go along right on schedule. The effects of climate change will be far reaching; some of the more
dangerous ones include the following: acidification of the oceans, melting of mountain glaciers, and changes in rainfall patterns.
The acidification of the ocean is probably something that we as a society should be most concerned about, for it will
show that we have reached a point of no return. The ocean is only able to absorb so much carbon dioxide, and it will eventually
reach a point where it can absorb no more. At this point the oceans will have become fairly acidic, which will cause a great deal
of damage to most sea life and will in turn cause damage to any country which relies on fish as a main source of food. Due to
this massive food shortage, many countries will most likely war over this limited resource. Millions of people will most likely die
from this food shortage, and it may be remembered as one of the greatest famines in history. From all these deaths and food
shortages international tension will most likely rise and wars will become more prevalent. Regardless of the societal impact, there


5
are other effects; because the oceans can no longer absorb more carbon dioxide, there will be no buffer for continued production
of greenhouse gases, therefore the effects will be felt much more fully. An even more sinister possibility remains. This increased
acidity may release other gases stored in the ocean, such as methane, which will kill millions. All of these horrific effects from just
one slight effect of global warming could occur with incredible ease.
Melting of mountain glaciers is a major problem caused by climate change. Many towns, cities, even countries rely on
mountain glaciers for water, without them massive droughts will occur. This will cause the death of millions, and will horribly
destabilize areas. From this destabilization it seems likely that war will occur, which will increase the instability of the world. Even
if war does not occur, numerous other problems will result. From the mass number of deaths it will most likely be difficult for the
countries in question to continue to export, and if they fail to do so it will affect any country relying on trade with that one. Those
countries will in turn affect other countries, leading to a chain of effects that will severely damage the economics of many
importing nations. This too will increase global tension and could easily lead to a multiple wars. If this occurs with the acidification
of the oceans the problem will only increase and the chance of war occurring becomes a near certainty. The wars will cause
even more problems, for it will create a highly self-centered manner of thinking that will destroy any attempt to work on the
underlying problem.
The changing of the patterns of rainfall may not sound impressive to some individuals' ears, but the effects could be
devastating. We live in a country where there is a great water system, yet even we have to worry about droughts. For the whole
of human civilization, humans have formed groups near rivers and areas of normal rainfall. Changes in the distribution of rain
would negatively impact many developing nations, which as stated above would increase global tension and damage trade. This
threat is probably the most insidious of all, for changes in rainfall will also affect animal movements, which may cause a greater
conflict between humans and animals, which may further destabilize the environment.
Any of the above situations humans may be able to survive individually, but all three at the same time would be
disastrous. Each would damage the economy, would damage international relationships, and would damage the overall stability
of the world. All of the preceding events would increase one central problem, and that is selfishness. These three events would
require human beings to work together, to act as one united group, as one united nation on this island called Earth.
Unfortunately, this will never happen due to selfishness. This selfish attitude, which has its roots in the most primitive part of the
brain, will continue to resist working together.
The tragedy of commons states that when multiple individuals act rationally they will deplete a shared resource. In this situation,
Earth is that shared resource. Multitudes of rational, intelligent individuals are thinking only of themselves, acting purely out of


6
self-interest. This is not necessarily a bad thing; most people act in a similar manner, and acting in this manner has been
beneficial in the past. This may be the worst part; the people who act this way have come to the conclusion, through experience,
that this way is good. They are out of their element. The sad truth is that this selfish manner of thinking will be the downfall of not
just these people, but also the world. In our three previous situations above, the resources that ever person needs have been
dramatically decreased, and so the leaders of the separate countries will try to gain more of these resources. They will most
likely try diplomacy first, but that will fail, for the carrying capacity of the Earth has been decreased. After the diplomacy has
failed, many of these nations will most likely go to war, which will decrease the resources even more quickly. Some nations may
win and some may lose, but another problem will most likely occur: a ceasing of manufacturing and/or exportation. Due to the
wars involved, most manufacturing will most likely turn to war related goods, which will decrease the number of other goods in
the market. This in and of itself may cause more wars. The wars may also cause many countries to set up an embargo, which
will cause many other countries to suffer. Even if the there is no embargo, most countries will most likely stop producing
exportable goods. This will result in even more international term-oil and may result in other wars. As one can see, even from just
a few of the negative effects of climate change the impact it will have on the human civilization will be horrific.
Where do all these problems come from? The answer to that is quite simple; it is a lack of sustainability. We live in a
culture that wants easy solutions, but in this case there are no easy solutions. We want everything now, but do not wish to have
to pay for it. We do not care about balance for we just want to increase the amount that we have, and the consequences be
damned. We wanted all the benefits from the Pied Piper, but refused to pay, and now we may be forced to suffer the
consequences. The effects of our demand for more are just now starting to be felt, and the only way to stop the negative results
from affecting us is to change both our style of living and our attitudes. We must find a way to live a sustainable life, rather than
an excessive life. When our goals were once to grow greater and bigger than ever before we must form a new goal, which must
be to strive for a state of equilibrium, or at least a state where we do not grow so large that we crash. In this case we should look
to nature, and observe how animals act, they boom and then they bust. Whenever animals in nature have their natural predators
removed they begin to rapidly increase in number. The rapid increase in number causes them to use up all their food sources,
resulting in mass starvation. Humans have no predator, and are rapidly growing; therefore we are vulnerable to this fate and
must avoid it. We must work together to reach a state where we will never boom, but also never bust.
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8

SECOND PLACE
AGNESE REDERE
12
TH
GRADE
KITTATINNY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

*************
High school science classes teach students that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Even long after
graduation, few forget Newtons Third Law of Motion. Yet people still wonder why their water is contaminated after they spread
extra fertilizer on their lawn under the assumption that, if I put down more fertilizer, more grass will grow. This shows that there
is absolutely nothing wrong with Newtons Laws; the problem lies in the way Newtons Laws are taught. David W. Orr, in his
book Earth in Mind, commented that we have fragmented the world into bits and pieces called disciplines and subdisciplines,
hermetically sealed from other such disciplines (Orr, 1994). Orrs reference to the distinct subjects taught by school teachers
having no relation to one another is part of the reason why people cannot connect with the things they learn in school and why
our society is not yet sustainable. Making the populations of Earth sustainable will take time and will start with reforming
educational systems.
The problem posed by education lies in the way that school is separated from real life. Students memorize formulas
and vocabulary words to pass a test in school. However, right after the exam is completed, the information is forgotten from
short-term memory and is seldom used ever again. What students do keep in their minds is all the latest trends and gossip.
This shows that students minds are perfectly capable of storing and analyzing vast amounts of information. Then, why do they
not use this capacity to store, question, and use the immeasurable quantity of information presented by school? Educators
simply do not interest students in their subject and do not relate its significance to other issues. Orr continued:
By what is included or excluded, students are taught that they are part of or apart from the natural world. To


9
teach economics, for example, without reference to the laws of thermodynamics or ecology is to teach a
fundamentally important ecological lesson: that physics and ecology have nothing to do with the economy. It
just happens to be dead wrong.
Relating ecology to economy is an important principle in achieving sustainability and only sets the stage for reaching
equilibrium between society and nature. Once students take interest in the effects of economy on ecology, they take interest in
how it affects their community. From interest rises devotion, and devotion to a community leads to devotion to a state, country,
and finally to the world itself. The goal of education is not mastery of subject matter but mastery of ones person (Orr, 1994, p.
xx). This means that the values instilled by education are of far more importance than the subject matter being learned. If the
world is to be sustainable, children must be raised to value nature equally or more than their MP3 players and video games. A
shift from technological to ecological literacy must occur to encourage people to make choices not only on the basis of their
desires (Hawken, 1994). When people learn to make choices based on the effects those choices will have on their community,
state, and county, they will positively affect the planet.
For example, the state of New Jersey is facing the issue of urbanization. A first impression may be that concentrating
a large population out of rural areas and out of wildlife habitat may be a good thing. However, an influx of people to urban
centers from rural areas can be just as destructive to the environment as building new homes in wilderness areas. The stress
placed on an urban center by an increase in population includes the need for more housing as the population of a city grows. As
more housing is erected, more roads are paved to create transportation to and from the housing. All of this causes the
destruction of natural habitat. Such destruction carries with it many risks including disruption of natural cycles and processes.
For example, paved areas create microclimates that are hotter than surrounding areas. Pavement removes soil bacteria that fix
nitrogen for plants that scrub carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Furthermore, pavement is impermeable and it is this
impermeability that disrupts the natural functions of the water cycle. Instead of collecting and seeping into the ground to
eventually reach an aquifer and replenish the drinking supply, water run-off occurs and collects innumerable chemicals such as
road salts and oil from cars (How does urbanization change a watershed. This contaminated water then enters nearby surface
water such as a river and upsets the rivers ecosystem. As pollutants travel downstream, damage to fisheries occurs and when
the run-off enters the ocean, it can damage marine ecosystems.
Urbanization causes the displacement of species from their natural habitat and crams them into an area of diminished
size where competition for space, food, water, and shelter takes place. Animals such as black bears are forced to include within
their home range housing developments. The result on the first day is a black bear rummaging through the garbage left outside.


10
The next day, the bear does not leave when there are humans present nearby on the porch. On the third day of this scenario,
the bear enters the house, knocking down the screen door while in search of another easy meal. Once wildlife no longer has a
natural fear of humans, it is more likely to cause damage to property and even human life. This fictional bear would most likely
end up shot and killed because of developing aggression and fearlessness towards humans. All too often, scenarios similar to
this play out in real life.
Solutions for New Jerseys issue of urbanization can include various restrictions and incentives by the state
government but the most effective and well-received remedy will be educating the residents of the state. New Jersey residents
should not be bombarded with advertisements for cheap burgers and new cellular phones every time the television is turned on.
Burgers and cell phones are not the driving forces of life on this planet, yet they receive more attention than Earths natural
processes. Politicians and other concerned persons should sponsor advertisements detailing the effects of urbanization on the
plight of endangered species and their habitats in New Jersey as to attract attention to such matters. For example, New Jerseys
declining bat population will be accompanied by an increase in invasive and nuisance insects such as mosquitoes which carry
diseases including the West Nile Virus as well as parasites. An increase of invasive and nuisance insects will cause thousands
of dollars worth in damage to crops, livestock, wildlife, and peoples health. Public awareness of issues influences lawmakers
and if the public is concerned with issues regarding the urbanization of New Jersey, lawmakers will be encouraged to put into
effect various methods to solve the problem. Urbanization is only a threat to New Jersey residents if no action is taken to
manage the issue.
After considering the issue of urbanization, the topic of agricultural sustainability in the United States needs
consideration. How can daily food production meet the needs of the more than 300 million residents of the United States without
causing irreparable damage to the environment? People need to be more in sync with the sources of their food. Apart from the
farmer, few people know the story of the seed of corn being sown into the ground where thousands of seeds of corn have grown
before it in the Midwests Corn Belt. Growing a bushel of corn requires 1.5 pounds of nitrogen fertilizer (Hollis, 2008). In addition
to fertilizer, pesticides are applied to protect the crop and nearly 3,000 gallons of water are used to grow that single bushel of
corn (Bennett, 2007). This bushel may be converted into almost anything ranging from animal feed to building materials. Excess
nitrates in fertilizer cause ground and surface water pollution and adversely affect aquatic ecosystems and can also render
drinking water unsafe.
Synthetic pesticides threaten not only the lives of pests, but also the livelihood of beneficial species. It is a well-known
fact that the national symbol, the bald eagle, was driven to the brink of extinction during the years of 1947 to 1972 because the


11
synthetic pesticide DDT made eggshells fragile. Furthermore, from where does the 3,000 gallons of water needed to produce
one bushel of corn come? The majority of water for irrigation comes from aquifers and surface water and a small amount of
reclaimed wastewater comes from sewage-treatment plants. There are two methods of irrigation: one is the flood process and
the other is spray irrigation (Faqs, 1998). The flood process can wash away essential topsoil and during spray irrigation a
substantial amount of water evaporates before being taken up by plants.
Driving the processes of manufacturing fertilizers and pesticides; pumping water for irrigation; and planting, harvesting,
cleaning, and transporting crops are oil and coal. Today, it is common knowledge that both oil and coal are difficult to extract
from the Earth and their refinement and eventual burning releases countless toxins into the atmosphere. Agriculture in the
United States impacts the land in several ways including destroying natural habitat, eroding precious topsoil, and discharging
countless quantities of contaminants into the environmentall while consuming precious nonrenewable energy sources.
Meat production in the United States is an even more disturbing story. The Second Law of Thermodynamics states
that whenever energy is converted from one form to another, some energy loses its quality (Miller, 2006). For example, raising a
cow requires providing the cow with more calories than its meat will produce. Each year, 35.7 million cows are slaughtered for
the meat industry (Cows). The Ten Percent Rule states that as energy goes up the food chain, only ten percent is passed on to
the next level. For example, if a cow consumes 100 kg of grass, only ten percent of the calories within that grass will be passed
on to the cow, and only ten percent of the cows calories will be passed on to the human who consumes a hamburger. This also
means that acre upon acre of habitat must be converted into feedlots to support the enormous number of cattle to feed the
people of the United States. Cattle are given feed that is derived from other products produced by the agricultural sector. By
considering the Second Law of Thermodynamics, the Ten Percent Rule, and the process of growing plants discussed earlier,
one easily reaches the conclusion that raising cattle requires the energy-intensive and extensive exploitation of resources
perhaps one that is not worth the effort.
Another important part of the agricultural production in the United States to consider is that getting the groceries from
the farm to household is yet another energy-demanding process. In the United States, a meal traveled an average of 1,500
miles to the consumers plate in the year 1980 (Pirog, 2006). As the price of gasoline increases, so does the price of food.
The problem in the United States is not that the production of agriculture is unsustainable. The problem is that
consumers do not know where their food is coming from, how it is produced, and what its constituents are. It is because of this
lack of knowledge (and therefore lack of education) that unsustainable farming practices have succeeded in the United States.
Perhaps this is also because children are taught that Newtons Laws of Motion are fact and that there is no reason to question


12
fact. The way we produce food and fiber is responsible for the loss of 24 billion tons of soil each year, the sharp decline in
biological diversity, and the spread of deserts worldwide (Orr, 1994). The American consumer accepts this trade-off as a
necessary one, but Americans need to question every aspect of food production. By doing so, America will see that factory
farming is not the only way to produce food to feed the more than 300 million Americans. That realization will lead consumers to
invest their money in healthier food grown by local farmers using sustainable means. Consumers will also drive lawmakers to
pass legislation making labeling mandatory in order to educate the consumer on what is actually in the product he or she
purchases. The more informed the consumer, the more likely that he/she will make better choices for her/himself. Moreover, as
the number of enlightened consumers increases, the number of people who are diabetic, over-weight, and obese will decrease.
In addition, fewer factory farms mean a smaller environmental impact.
New Jerseys problem of urbanization and the United States problem of agricultural sustainability can both be solved
through proper education. Concerns about the alarming rate at which the human population is growing throughout the world can
too be solved by appropriate education. Third world countries account for most of the worlds population growth, but have the
least number of formally educated persons (Miller, 2006). In many third world countries, young girls chose prostitution as their
best means of putting bread on the table. These girls are in a position where they have no other choice. Any girl attending high
school in the United States of America would not likely consent to choosing prostitution as a profession. There is a direct
relationship between level of formal education and rate of reproduction. Typically, a high school graduate would seek further
education to ensure her/his ability to provide adequate time and money to raise a family. By first seeking an education and
profession into which to settle, a woman will be substantially older when she bears her first child. Such a delay also lowers the
amount of children born to one mother because the later in life a mother has her first child, the less time she has before
menopause. Simple logic proves this. Most importantly though, a woman who has obtained a degree from a four-year institution
and has settled into a job that allows her to provide for herself allows her to choose a partner who can provide additional funds
toward raising their family. Such a mother will not likely choose someone who might leave her. Empowering women by
providing them with opportunities of receiving an education will therefore slow the reproductive rate of people in poor countries
and stabilize the worlds population. The more ecologically educated the people of the world are, the fewer bumps will be along
the path to sustainability.
Proper education exposes students to diverse attitudes and ideas different cultures have to offer. This not only
produces more open-mindedness and tolerance, but upon the examination of various opinions and histories, one can see the
connections between how what happens in Uganda affects what happens in the United States of America. David W. Orr notes in


13
his book, Earth in Mind, all education is environmental education. Dr. Orr believes that the focus of the educational system of
today is on theories instead of values, concepts rather than human beings, abstraction rather than consciousness, answers
instead of questions, ideology and efficiency rather than conscience. Aldo Leopold (1949) offered thoughts similar to Orrs
statement in his essay entitled Natural Country.
What is our educational system doing to encourage personal amateur scholarship in the natural-history field?
We can perhaps seek an answer to this question by dropping in on a typical class in a typical zoology
department. We find there students memorizing the names of the bumps on the bones of a cat. It is
important, of course, to study bones; otherwise we should never comprehend the evolutionary process by
which animals came into existence. But why memorize the bumps? We are told that this is part of biological
discipline. I ask, though, whether a comprehension of the living animal and how it holds its place in the sun
is not an equally important part. Unfortunately, the living animal is virtually omitted from the present system
of zoological education.
Such problems regarding the approach the modern educational system takes to producing so called well-rounded
students is the reason Rachel Carson (1962) ignited the environmentalist movement in the 1960s by warning:
In some quarters nowadays it is fashionable to dismiss the balance of nature as a state of affairs that
prevailed in an earlier, simpler world a state that has been so thoroughly upset that we might as well forget
it. Some find this a convenient assumption, but as a chart for a course of action it is highly dangerous. The
balance of nature today is not the same as in Pleistocene times, but it is still there: a complex, precise, and
highly integrated system of relationships between living things which cannot be safely ignored any more than
the law of gravity can be defined with impunity by a man perched on the edge of a cliff. The balance of
nature is not a status quo; it is fluid, ever-shifting, in a constant state of adjustment. Man, too, is part of this
balance. Sometimes the balance is in his favor; sometimesand all too often through his own activitiesit
is shifted to his disadvantage.
Humans are a product of nature and the environment. By definition, environment is all of the external factors
influencing the life and activities of people, plants, and animals. This is why we must not bite the hand that feeds us. Homo
sapiens are given their livelihood by the environment, just as every other organism on Earth. Yet we continue to challenge that
which gave us the opportunity to live much like a teenager rebels against his or her mother and father. Nature has not ceased to
forgive us, however unless we reach a compromise with her, we will have no one to blame but ourselves for the fall of the human


14
race. In April 2009, Roger Chao stated: Only when all facets of environmental sustainability (including pollution, overpopulation,
resource depletion, and mass consumption) are taken into consideration can we fully assess the sustainability of a certain action
(Chao, 2009).
Each one of us must learn to look at the big picture and see how respect and devotion to ones community results in
devotion to the world; devotion to the world ultimately results in a united effort to achieve sustainability for generations to come.
Bibliography
Bald eagle facts. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/birds/bald-eagles.asp
Bennett, D. (2007, December 28). It takes a lot of water to grow a corn crop. Southeast Farm Press
Retrieved from http://southeastfarmpress.com/grains/122807-corn-water/
Craddock, M. (2006, October). Conserve wildlife foundation of new jersey's ~ exploitations, October 2006.
Retrieved from http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/explorations/archives/octnov06/bats.html
Carson, Rachel, Bragana, Luis, Pinheiro, Manuel, Poplaski, W., & Selverstone, Harriet. (2006). Silent spring. Houghton Mifflin
Harcourt.
Chao, Roger. (2009, April 3). Effects of increased urbanization. Science, 610, 37.
Cows. (n.d.).
Retrieved from http://www.cowsarecool.com/cows.asp
Faqs. (1998, May 8).
Retrieved from http://www.purdue.edu/envirosoft/groundwater/src/faq.htm#4
Groundwater contaminants. (2008).
Retrieved from http://www.lenntech.com/groundwater/contaminants.htm
Hawken, P. (1994). The Ecology of commerce: a declaration of sustainability . Harper Business.
Hollis, P. (2008, May 27). How much Nitrogen is really needed for corn? Southeast Farm Press
Retrieved from http://southeastfarmpress.com/grains/corn-fertilization-0327/
How does Urbanization change a watershed?. (1999, March).
Retrieved from http://www.njstormwater.org/tier_A/pdf/Urbanization.pdf
Major crops grown in the united states. (2009, September 10).
Retrieved from http://www.epa.gov/oecaagct/ag101/cropmajor.html
Miller, George. (2006). Environmental science. 2006.
Orr, D. W. (2004). Earth in mind: On education, environment, and the human prospect. Washington, DC: Island Press.
Pirog, R, & Benjamin, A. (2003, May). Checking the food odometer: comparing food miles for local versus.
Retrieved from
Checking the food odometer: Comparing food miles for local versus produce sales to Iowa institutions.
Producing profits. (n.d.).
Retrieved from http://lepton.marz.com/ncga/comm_dev_center/index_PG.asp
Sherry, Clifford, Company, R.R., & Leopold, Aldo. (1970). A Sand county almanac. Random House of Canada.
US & World Population Clock. (2009, December 17).
Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/main/www/popclock.html
What is Sustainable agriculture? (1997, December).
Retrieved from http://sarep.ucdavis.edu/concept.htm#AnimalPractices








15

THIRD PLACE
ANGELA HOOVER
12
TH
GRADE
KITTATINNY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

*************
Unfortunately, the ability to live in a sustainable fashion is an issue that has gone largely unnoticed in the developing world in
which we all live. With the drive to conquer, capture, spread, and claim more than just lands and people, we as a species have
tragically undermined exactly what it is we seek so relentlesslya safe, salubrious planet in which we may raise our children,
exist comfortably, and make livings for ourselves free from threat and harm. In our collective efforts to dissolve boundaries, erect
new testaments to human ingenuity and prowess, breach gaps in knowledge and barrel down the path of progress, we have
made an array of careless misjudgments and precarious sacrifices. To expand living quarters, we have slashed acres of
forested lands and paved over priceless bionetworks. The government turns a blind eye to heinous abuses committed by
businesses in order to insure less expensive products even though they may cost the trusting public its health at the very least.
Organisms from foreign sources traverse their native habitat boundaries with the influx of imported goods, all the while carrying
with them the potential of having deleterious effects upon the environment. Moreover, the question remainswhy such abuse?
Where did we as a species lose touch with our provider, Earth? What drove us from consciousness of terrestrial health? Most
importantly, how can we save ourselves from our destructive habits and learn to live sustainably? Are we too late?
Contrary to the opinions of some, there is reason to hope and always time to effect a change. In attempting to cure our
pressing sustainability quandaries, one may also question where we should begin. True, there are corruptions and contusions at
many levels, troubles to be addressed at every echelon of human living, but it is vital to solve certain issues above others if we
are to put the best foot forward on our seemingly daunting journey to stability. Grass root movements may hold the most promise


16
in spurring us forward in the good fight, but that does not necessarily rule out national or global movements either, though
expenses and communication will turn out to be great obstacles in standardization and globalization of common regulations,
themes and movements. However, if we all start out considering our means and strive for reachable sustainability goals that we
can attain on our own personal levels, enough momentum will be collected so that bigger entities will have no choice but to follow
suit. Aside from individual input, a striking start to get the gears moving in a sustainability renaissance would be at the state level.
Here in our home state of New Jersey and many other heavily populated and growing states, one of most pressing
issues that arises is that of smart growth. When closely analyzing the cities and suburbs of our Garden State, one becomes
aware of thin veins of surrounding greenery with a great amount of human intrusion. This translates into a poor use of available
space at the cost of environmental health. Most of New Jersey follows through with this building code, this sprawling
development. With sprawl, infrastructural buildings and developments are erected in whatever formations are fit to the builders
fancies without regard to the natural cycle of the habitat. Here, the true value of a wooded lot or a vernal pool is thought too little
of and is redesigned in a heartbeat to accommodate for the builders vision. From the view of urban planning institutions, such a
building style is considered superior due to its attractiveness, pedestrian-friendliness and compactness (Beck, & Kolankiewicz,
2007). However, when emphasizing only the positive attributes, some ugly truths remain undisclosed to the public. Though the
new development is aesthetically pleasing and less congested, sprawl devours open acreage and disturbs ecosystems, among
other issues (Kasabach, 2005).
Sprawl threatens sustainable lifestyles in that the exploited lands cannot support such population growth for an
indefinite period. By spreading out developments instead of condensing them, we are not just eliminating open space, but
allowing our society to fall victim to other issues as well. With urban sprawl, tree cover is diminished, habitat is lost, and the
amount of impermeable surfaces rises, increasing groundwater pollution when precipitation is not allowed to leach into the water
table through soil layers (Hoyt, 2010). Upon the urbanization of all available free, open space in the state of New Jersey, we will
come to realize the great harm that is being done to not only our present living conditions, but to the future as well. What we
need to do here in our home state is put forth a strong initiative to condense developing areas to protect our precious open space
commons. Instead of pursuing development in the hopes of becoming prosperous, we must take stock of our resources and live
within our means. By spreading human presence over greater expanses of land, we are making it very difficult for the ecosystem
to thrive and regenerate. In doing so, we are limiting our prospects for the future. Frighteningly enough, New Jersey is not the
only state trying to cope with development based sustainability issues. The whole country is in a crisis due to poor land use, but
on the larger scale, all the more overwhelming.


17
On a national scale, we should be targeting the dire situation of agricultural health for a sustainable tomorrow. Prior to
WWII, America was a nation raised upon the backs of small, individual farmers. Not only did they grow crops to feed their
compatriots, but they also knew how to do so in a sustainable fashion with the resources they managed to scrounge together.
After industrialization and increased demand, we in America are now deeply immersed in the age of the agribusiness (Krebs,
1998). Across the country, a colossal amount of acreage has been devoted to fields upon fields of staple crops such as corn,
soybeans, and wheat. While the importance of food is irrefutable to the growing country, its safety and adequacy have recently
come into question. Sanitation and contamination regulations are sorely lacking in the fields with major corporations and the
government being highly suspect. In our country, a sparse amount of federal agencies and even fewer inspectors work to
administer an entire gambit of outdated tests and regulations to over 100,000 farming tycoons, but to no avail (Meyerhoff, &
Schultz, 2006). From the field to the cooking pot, food travels unprotected and vulnerable through polluted fields, dirty
packinghouses and filthy supermarket shelves. With these bacterial infestations, millions of Americans fall sick every year with
fatality numbers reaching up to 9000 annually (Meyerhoff, & Schultz, 2006).
The problems that arise here also contribute to other issues within our nation. Lack of diversity proves to be unhealthy
and environmentally unstable in the long run (Picone, & Tassel, 2002). Staple crop species deplete the soil of its nutrients after
repeated plantings and spray-on pesticides are proving to raise more issues than were first suspected. In planting said
monocultures, we are participating in a genetic erosion among our crop species which will lead to the decreased ability to adapt
crops to future conditions (Picone, & Tassel, 2002). Not only that, but farmers agribusinesses are sweeping examples of poor
land use. Currently, the accepted way to grow any crop for the masses is to do so in bulk. This misappropriation of land is very
inefficienta healthier practice would be to maximize produce production in using only the most fertile lands, instead of every
acre of land that can be propagated (Lambin, 2010). Moreover, farmers incorrect or apathetic approaches to pollution,
pesticides, and contaminated wastes are conducive to public harm and abuse. This is most easily evidenced in reported
outbreaks of E. coli, Mad Cow Disease, Bird Flu and most recently H1N1, all traced back to contaminated food sources
(Silberner, 2009). If proper regulations had been followed and toxins dealt with or even proper recall protocols were to be
followed, catastrophic outbreaks of this magnitude could be prevented or stopping in earlier stages.
Currently, our methods of farming are not at all sustainable, nor are our techniques for stopping corporate abuse.
Traditionally, the Food and Drug Administration has served to be a reactionary organization in light of food-related maladies.
Sustainably, this is not the answer because if we focus only on cleaning up issues, we will never succeed in improving. The key
is in preventing problems from occurring in the first place while endeavoring to react to problems that arise (Silberner, 2009). In


18
addition, by spreading out farms in an attempt to meet growing needs, we as a people are wasting land space and raping the
land of it precious nutrients. Such exploitation cannot go on indefinitely and moreover, neither can the publics ignorance in the
matter. The government must take a hard-nosed stance in disciplining abusive agribusinesses and entice farmers to be more
conscious of what they can and should grow as opposed to whatever is capable of reaping the most cash at market.
In order to solve Americas troubles in farming and horticulture, we need to start with the government and farmers. The
farming practices we are coerced into accepting today translate into so much more than agrarian ignorance upon deeper
analysis. In the age of externalized prices, contaminated acres, poisoned waterways, unwholesome air quality, abused animals
and diseases are not accounted for (Moody, 2009). To prevent volumes of chemicals and toxins from joining our water table we
as a society must realize the potential we have in merging older farming practices with the newfound knowledge of smart
irrigation and creation of arable land. In increasing crop diversity and condensing farm space with more efficient farming
practices, we have the prospective to create more open space capable of being reclaimed by the wilds. If we were to pursue a
wider, more diverse plethora of crop species, we may come to find that they have a greater tolerance for certain strains of pests
and disease, allowing cultivators to cut back on pesticide use. The problems we encounter as a result of our own nations
industries have the ability to be fixed with a great amount of determination and increased sense of responsibility. There is,
however, a growing problem that is proving to be more difficult in overcoming and it involves all the countries of the world.
Globally, nations should be conscious and proactive in preventing the invasion and spread of non-native species to
other countries. Historically, people have never been entirely fretful about whatever bizarre creature was crossing borders within
the confines of crates of imported goodsthe issue at hand was whether their newest shipment was intact and if it was procured
at a reasonable price. So what if a strange rogue creature scuttled out from the packaging and found refuge in the storeroom or
made its way to the bushes across the streetout of sight, out of mind? The situation remained normal until problems species
such as the Asian long-horned beetle, milfoil, Japanese Barberry, or even the Zebra Mussel found a favorable niche in their new
home (Campbell, 2004). These organisms in addition to a myriad of other harmful species have infiltrated areas all over the
world and wrought havoc upon not only native species, but to specific industries as well. Invasive species are harmful in that they
are vectors of new diseases, promote extinction among native species, reduce biological diversity, alter ecosystem processes
and prove to be economically damaging (Vitousek, D'Antonio, Loope, & Westbrooks, 1996).
Invasive species have found success in other countries based upon two broad sets of factorsthese include species
based adaptations as well as characteristics of the given environment. Introduced species are usually of a generalist nature in
living space and diet, tend to proliferate quickly, and possess the ability of phenotypic plasticity, the ability to shift phenotypes


19
based on environmental stresses (Jong, 2005). Most invasive species exist in low population densities before spreading
throughout the infected country. Upon branching out to new habitats, invasive species will begin to compete with native species
for space, sustenance in the form of food and water and even nutrients. If these invasive species happened to evolve under the
influences of competition or predation in their homelands, the new environment may allow them to proliferate quickly if it lacks
prohibitive factors (Verling, Ruiz, Smith, Murphy Galil, & Miller, 2007).
Invasive species are so detrimental to the globe because once they cross borders to greener pastures, they are
incredibly difficult to eradicate and often have lasting effects upon the invaded area. For example, consider the Asian Tiger
Mosquito, imported to the United States in shipments of old tires. After the import of tires increased in the 1980s, the population
of mosquitoes also boomed. By 1992, the mosquito had made twenty-five new states its home and they have been spreading
ever since (Vitousek, D'Antonio, Loope, & Westbrooks, 1996). The propensity for mosquitoes to suck the blood of a great variety
of mammals has also allowed them to become vehicles for many diseases between species such as West Nile, St. Louis
encephalitis, LaCrosse (California) encephalitis, and Eastern equine and Western equine encephalitis ("Illinois department of,"
2007). Other species, such as the Zebra Mussel, have not only invaded costal waters successfully, but also work to alter
biological processes in the area they have taken over by decreasing biological productivity. Some invasive species are even
imported purposefully to new countries under the assumption that they will be beneficial in a new environment. Originally, the
golden apple snail was imported to the Asian rice ecosystem in hopes that it would provide the people there with a supplemental
source of protein( Vitousek, D'Antonio, Loope, & Westbrooks, 1996). However, the illusive gastropod wreaks disorder in the rice
paddies of Asia by devouring harvests.
We can solve issues such as this by enforcing stricter regulations upon imported goods and services around the world.
While many ecosystems may be able to cope with the attack of an invasive species in some sense through years of gradual
assimilation, the threat of invasive species around the globe is not a sustainable occurrence in the modern world if we desire to
remain stable. What remains to be done is to, once again, increase public empathy and global awareness. As of now, people are
under the impression that biological invasion is impossible to prevent due to the continued exapansion of the world economy and
that it represents a normal progression of evolutionary history across the planet (Vitousek, D'Antonio, Loope, & Westbrooks,
1996). While biological invasions have been a part of nature since the beginning of time, let alone our own history, the rate at
which they are occurring is far too high to be benign. While stemming the flow of foreign organisms into countries all over the
world will prove to be a difficult challenge due to the extensive reaches of global contact and trade, we must work together to
slow the process, even though halting it is unattainable. Hope does exist in convincing students, peers and the government that


20
the problem of invasive species is one we can conquer and is an issue even worth attacking. By implementing educational
instruction in dealing with invasive organisms and enforcing stricter guidelines in the field of inspecting imports, we can make a
difference. Existing laws such as the Federal Noxious Weed Act of 1974, the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and
Control Act of 1990 and the Lacey Act need updating and can stand to be strengthened and even expanded (Vitousek,
D'Antonio, Loope, & Westbrooks, 1996). Furthermore, if the public were to provide more support in prevention of invasive
species and display a greater concern in their environment, they could take initiative to recognize invaders and terminate them
before they are given the chance to spread. When a greater consciousness of the issues at hand is instilled within the minds of
the masses, the public will more likely be able to understand and achieve a change in a positive direction.
When observing the plight of our planet and the maladies we must deal with in society as a result of our own choices,
one cannot help but feel a deep sense of chagrin. Everywhere across the globe, people have fallen for the seemingly flawless
face of unheeded progress often at the cost of what they need the most. For the promise of a successful plot of land, people
have unwittingly chosen to pollute their water sources. To find a home in a safe suburb, people have hacked the trees of the
forest down to their stumps only to wonder why ecosystems fail and native species fall to disease and famine. What we need to
do, as a collective group, is to traverse the ingrained ideal that growth is the supreme goal for all of us and instead embrace a
lifestyle in which we follow smart maintenance of both growth and economics (McKibben 2010). For far too long has our
country with all its states pursued great wealth and spoils, now even the rest of the world is trying to achieve the same status as
our country. What we need to do in the states and across the nation is make smarter investments, think before springing into the
best deal. Globally, we all need to bond together in assuring each other native floras and faunas will not infiltrate their borders.
In dealing with our shortcomings and mistakes however, we must not sweep anything under the proverbial rug, but display them
for the entire public to see. Together, we must all work to cure the population of its money lust and apathetic sentiments toward
the earth. We can accomplish this by thinking globally and acting locallyit is not too late. We have only been given one planet
upon which to live and grow. If we hope to persevere and continue to do so, a change must be effected. A sustainable future is
waiting for us just beyond the horizon and it is up to us all to make the first steps.
Works Cited

Beck, R., & Kolankiewicz, L. (2007). Sprawl city: u.s. bureau of census data on urbanized areas.
Retrieved from http://www.sprawlcity.org/hbis/wis.html
Campbell, F. (2004, September). The Global invasive species team: regional lists of pests.
Retrieved from http://www.invasive.org/gist/products/gallery/regionlist.html
Hoyt, A. (2010). How urban sprawl works.
Retrieved from http://geography.howstuffworks.com/terms-and-associations/urban-sprawl2.htm
Illinois department of public health. (2007, March 29).
Retrieved from http://www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/pcmosquitoes.htm


21
Jong, G.D. (2005). Evolution of phenotypic plasticity: patterns of plasticity and the emergence of ecotypes. New Phytologist,
166(1), 101-118.
Kasabach, P. (2005). New Jersey future. Retrived from
http://www.njfuture.org/index.cfm?ctn=9t45e1o30v9g&emn=5u92y86g2h42&fuseaction=user.xcontent&XContent=1_4
Krebs, A.V. (1998). Corporate agribusiness--America's merchants of greed.
Retrieved from http://www.organicconsumers.org/corp/greed.cfm
Lambin, E.F. (2010, April). Solutions to environmental threats: Land use. Scientific American, 302(4), 58-59.
Meyerhoff, A., & Schultz, W.B. (2006, September 24). Something's rotten in food oversight. The Washington Post
McKibben, B. (2010, April). Breaking the grwoth habit. Scientific American, 302(4), 61
Moody, J. (2009). Agribusiness and the fall of Rome. Wise traditions in food, farming and the healing arts,
Picone, C., & Tassel, D.V. (2002). Agriculture and biodiversity loss: industrial agriculture .
Retrieved from http://www.landinstitute.org/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/08/23/439bd36c9acf1
Silberner, J. (2009, July 27). Contaminated food: a more watchful eye needed.
Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106973542
Verling, E., Ruiz, G.M., Smith, D.L., Murphy, K.R., Galil, B., & Miller, A.W. (2007, March 5). Supply-side invasion ecology:
characterizing propagule pressure in coastal ecosystems.
Retrieved from http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/272/1569/1249
Vitousek, P.M., D'Antonio, C.M., Loope, L.L., & Westbrooks, R. (1996). Biological invasions as global environmental change.
American Scientist, 84. Retrieved from http://ddr.nal.usda.gov/bitstream/10113/61/1/IND20537951.pdf







































22

FOURTH PLACE
MICHAEL FOGG
12
TH
GRADE
KITTATINNY REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
*************
What would you do if I told you that human beings would perish in 10 years due to unsustainable lifestyles, depletion of natural
capital, habitat destruction, and war? Maybe we should back up a little, lets say it wasnt just your average Michael Fogg telling
you this, lets say it was E.O Wilson, and he gave you a 6-hour talk on the why and how of it. If he told you that the only way for
the human race to survive is to conserve the remaining aquifers, endangered species, forests, and to stop the usage of oil for
replacement alternative energy resources like solar, wind, and hydropowers, what would you do and how would you do it?
Hopefully that will never happen, but I strongly feel that human beings must change their ways of living; such as energy use,
resource consumption, and land usage in order to improve the future for the planet we depend upon for survival. After having an
environmental science and then an environmental science honors class, I have learned the ins and outs of sustainability and its
importance to human beings as a species, and I hope to convey them to you in a way that helps to develop an environmentally
sound consciousness for the future.
Sustainability is the ability of the earths various systems, including human cultural systems and economies, to survive
and adapt to changing environmental systems (Miller, 2006). To survive is to endure, and to endure is what human beings have
done as a species for approximately 10,000 years. Through trial and error, adapting to different habitats, local extinctions, natural
selection, etc., humans have survived almost everything. Now we face a new, greater challenge brought upon by ourselves. This
new concept of sustainability has been brought to light over the last century via industrialization, urbanization, extinctions, and
depletion of natural capital. Therefore, not many people are familiar with this term and may want to know why it is so important.
What we do now is anything but sustainable. Our current population of approximately 6 billion uses resources, consumes


23
energy, and lacks care for the environment (i.e. pollution/habitat destruction), and so forth. According to G. Tyler Miller, one path
to sustainability includes the following: Understand and conserve the Earths Natural Capital (the natural services and resources
that this planet supplies in order to keep all life alive), stop the degradation of natural capital (such as clear cutting, and water
usage), to find solutions to restore natural capital, as a result, the 4
th
step involves trade-offs (compromises we must make for
the solutions), and finally individuals must work together to solve the problem of our current lifestyle. Living sustainably means to
live off what our planet provides for us and not compromising for future generations, what we do now is create our own ways to
live and create our own supplies that later harm the environment which will directly translate to future generations, therefore, our
current practices are unsustainable. In order to view the pressing issues of sustainability, we must look at the three different
levels; worldwide, nationwide, and statewide, beginning with statewide.
To begin, we look to our lovely garden state, New Jersey, in which we live in and cherish dearly. New Jersey is the
most densely populated state in the nation, having a population of around 9 million, on only 8,700 square miles. With so many
people, there has to be a large demand for resources and energy. In fact, New Jerseys forests have been cut at least 3 different
times for the charcoal industry alone, and only 1% of its original forests remain (Miller, 2006). Even though using all those trees
for charcoal, New Jersey mainly gets its electricity from nuclear power, with more than half the state being nuclear dependant.
According to U.S. Energy Information Administration (USEIA), there are three nuclear plants in New Jersey, one in Salem
County (PSE&G), one in Forked River (Exelon Corp.), and another in Lower Alloways Creek Township (PSE&G). Even though
using nuclear power produces fewer greenhouse gases than by using coal and oil, there are still the radioactive waste materials
of Uranium 235 with which to deal. After the fission is complete, the fuel rod containing the used uranium must be disposed of
because it can no longer be used again inside the reactor for useful energy. The huge problem with nuclear energy is that we
have not discovered a safe way to dispose of these spent fuel rods. The ways that we store them now is either in large swimming
pool-like places inside the reactor filled with boric acid (which helps to absorb the radiation given off by the uranium or
plutonium), or in large barrels that are specially made to endure weather and temperature extremes and also to be completely
sealed. This cannot be recycled into the environment naturally and degrade back into normal elements as most other naturally
occurring elements do. It would release radiation into its surroundings and cause many problems for the environment through
radioactive decay. As of now according to the USEIA, New Jerseys total usage of wind, solar and hydropower amount to less
than 0.1% of New Jerseys total power usage. So why havent we tried using more of whats free and always there? Money is the
answer, and in todays economy nothing much will come of it, with New Jerseys school budget cuts as an example. Creating
wind turbines, solar farms, and hydropower plants costs large amounts of money that New Jerseys government cant supply


24
right now. In April 2006, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities approved regulations that expanded the States renewable
portfolio standard, requiring utilities to generate 22.5 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2021, with solar
sources generating at least 2 percent of this standard (USEIA, 2010). This is a promising look ahead for New Jersey for a more
sustainable lifestyle, but 22% is not enough, because there are still plenty of environmentally harmful electricity production ways
in the state, and in order to be completely sustainable (energy consumption wise) we would have to use all renewable resources.
Of course that presents a problem, because that involves oil companies losing business and car companies having to switch
over, and our entire oil dependant lives to forever be changed. With slow and gradual changes it is possible though, if every 5
years after the renewable portfolio standard increase, we change 10% of our energy consumption over for more renewable
resources, we could be completely renewable by 2066. With a cooperating governor of course, we could use a small state tax
increase in order to collect money for the construction of local plants for wind and solar farms, and hydro plants. Most of New
Jersey can be solar and hydro powered since we are a coastal state, and the fact that we live on the Delaware River can provide
for a lot of hydro power plants (assuming that the construction of said plants does not interfere with trout, shad, sturgeon, and
other fish migrations). The construction of these power plants must be preceded with heavy research done by Audubon societies
and NJ Fish and Wildlife in order to ensure maximum safety for local amphibians, fish, and migratory birds. The benefits of
renewable resources include its ability to repay for its usage. As argued in the Scientific American issue of November 2009,
The average cost in the U.S. in 2007 of its conventional power generation and transmission was about 7/kWh (cents per
kilowatt hour- a measure of the usage of electricity and its cost) and its projected to be 8/kWh in 2020, but today the cost of
wind, geothermal, and hydroelectric are all less than 7/kWh and projected to be 4/kWh or less in 2020. Eventually these
energy sources will pay off and we will not regret it when they do, because we will always have the sun, the wind, and
rivers/oceans as long as we walk this planet, but we wont always have crude oil. The unavoidable depletion of oil due to
humankinds attachment to it is something that we must all prepare for, this Long Emergency as James Howard Kunstler calls it,
and Beyond it is an abyss of economic and political disorder on a scale that no one has ever seen before. Of course those were
just his thoughts on what could happen, but the validity in his point is that if and when oil is completely depleted, unless we are
prepared for it we will suffer greatly. If we are to be prepared, we are to have to harness the most of the free energy our planet
provides us with in order to take those first few steps away from oil and onto a more sustainable lifestyle. Renewable resources
of energy may require a large amount of harnessing stations, but there is no harmful wastes produced just clean energy.
Secondly, we move to a national scale for the land of the free and home of the brave as we sing in our national
anthem, the United States of America. But just what and whom do we sing our love forcertainly not for the plants, of which we


25
exterminate whole communities without batting an eye. Certainly not the animals, of which we have already extirpated many of
the largest and most beautiful species (Leopold, 1949). With this he was speaking of Americans and their national anthem,
exploring what we sing our love for. Do you think before you spray that RoundUp on your lawn to take care of those nuisance
weeds? Did that thought ever cross your mind that youre harming native plant species just because you feel like it may result in
ecological backlash or unintended secondhand harmful effects of a substance on the environment? For example lets recall an
incident a few years back when DDT, or dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane for you scientists out there, when Americans were using
this repellent on crops to keep certain pests away and eliminate malaria, without many realizing, this chemical was very toxic to
many aquatic species, such as trout, crayfish and other shellfish and fish, but most detrimental to raptors, or birds of prey. It
became a reproductive toxicant for the raptors and songbirds, causing their eggshells to thin and result in a very weak egg. This
causes a great concern for the species future because as we know, the most affected raptor, the Bald Eagle, was brought down
to a critically endangered state due to loss of young. Theirs eggs were being broken so easily that close to anything could break
it, and as a result, their population plummeted. With help of human intervention, the Bald Eagle was saved from almost certain
extinction. The effects that humans have today change the world everyday, and everything we do matters. Biodiversity is
something this world was blessed with, and we laugh in its face every day with commercial fishing, repellants, exterminators,
habitat destruction, clear cutting, etc. People want their lawns to look pretty by eliminating dandelions and replacing it with
Kentucky Blue Grass, and then sprinkling their lawns with fertilizers filled with phosphates. None of which is native whatsoever to
the Americas, originating from Europe and Asia, and Mother Nature certainly does not open up a bag of fertilizer every week and
cover the planet. To find anything native in America is hard anymore, like the Russian olive, dandelion, apple tree, or the zebra
mussel you see in the lake, or the Asian carp you see 3 feet out of the water sometimes. These are only a few examples of some
non-native species in America, most are brought in with hopes to improve things, or come on accident. The result most of the
time ends with the non-native replacing a native species due to interspecific competition, or competition among a species for
food and habitat. These can sometimes cause a complete extinction of a species with or without the help of humans. For
example, lets take a look at the case of the Passenger Pigeon; a once thriving bird in North America is now extinct. While it
thrived, it was a stupendous and biological success. When it perished, it perished quickly and totally. The First of its problems,
and the most obvious, was the excessive and greedy slaughter practiced against it by humans. (Quammen, 1996). This bird had
a population of approximately 5 million before humans had entered the picture (1880), once they did; the last one recorded was
in March 24, 1900. A completely human induced extinction and not the only one. There is the story of the Dodo, the Tasmanian
tiger and the Honeycreeper. David Quammen explores these extinctions thoroughly in his book The Song of the Dodo. Each


26
mentioned species comes in contact with humans, and is later driven to extinction because of them. In the definition of
sustainability mentioned near the beginning of this essay, it said the earths various systems which includes all of the biotic
systems it supports. When humans intervene in these systems and disrupt the natural cycles, species loose habitat and some
become extinct. Something humans need to understand before clear cutting for logging industries is the species-area
relationship that we havent quite understood fully yet. What this says is within a given area containing a species, depending on
its size, part in the food chain and population it may or may not be able to survive in that given area. What we have generalized
is that a larger area will support larger species and or a larger diversity of species, or Less circumference encompasses less
area. That much is logically implicit. Less area harbors fewer species. Thats the empirical reality which Forster had seen with his
own eyes (Quammen, 1996). That is the general conclusion of the theory, but it has no specific amounts for any type of species
because there is no specific numbers for any species, each depend on the other for survival in any given habitat, and there is no
set number relationship between a species and an area. That is why it is so important for us to minimize out impacts on other
habitats, especially when clear cutting forests, because it can have detrimental effect on the species that live there. Even if a
single plant species were to be eliminated from a food chain, there could be other species that solely depend upon that for
survival, such as the story between the Dodo and the Calvaria tree. In response to intense exploitation of its fruits by dodos,
Calvaria evolved an extremely think endocarp as a protection for its seeds; seeds surrounded by thin walled pits could have
been destroyed in the dodos gizzard. These specialized, thick-walled pits could withstand ingestion by dodos, but the seeds
within were unable to germinate without first being abraded and sacrificed in the gizzard of the dodo (Quammen, 1996). This is
called obligatory mutualism, where one species depends on another for survival and is seen everywhere on the planet. If we
were to disturb the delicate links of the food chain, the effects could be detrimental to certain habitats. Now only 3% of Americas
original forests remain and most compose of what the average American owns in her/his backyard. In order to aim toward a
more sustainable lifestyle, logging companies must start the practice of planting trees for their own usage, to greatly reduce clear
cuttings devastating effects such as biotic impoverishment, loss of economic sustainability, and greater environmental instability.
Most importantly, forests provide the air that most creatures on this planet breathe, along with that they are a vital spot in the
food chain. So we must proceed with caution, conserve our remaining wildlife, practice alternative methods from clear cutting,
because they hold the key to our survival and for future generations.
On to our third and final topic, which brings us to a global scale and to our final and most important topic; Water
resources. Planet earth, as we know and love it, is covered in 75% water. The human body is composed mainly of water, having
a 50-80 percent of water. Water is the center of all life, and all life requires it survive in one way or another. It is also a perpetual


27
resource, an essentially inexhaustible resource ion a human time scale (Miller, 2006). But through industrialization,
urbanization, and pollution our perpetual resources have become tainted. How is this possible though, isnt water constantly
moving and being filtered through the ground? The problem is that microscopic things like phosphates from fertilizers, small
polymers, fecal coli form, ammonia, and so forth have leaked into the ground where runoff and leaching occurs. The water cycle
is an important and long cycle in which every person must understand in order to conserve our aquifers for the future. Starting in
the sky, water is in a condensed form trapped inside of clouds until the clouds become oversaturated with water. From there, the
process of precipitation occurs, where water precipitates from the clouds onto the ground. Once on land, the water infiltrates and
runs off due to gravity, going where it pulls them. On a mountain, the water will run down the mountain, and slowly travel to the
nearest aquifer and or body of water. An aquifer is where enough water builds up underground for it to be extractable. This
process of runoff can take an extremely long amount of time and according to Michigan Tech. University, groundwater travels at
a rate of .33 feet/day. If theres a mathematician nearby he/she would tell you in the span of a year, this groundwater will only
travel approximately 120 feet. Once this groundwater has runoff to the nearest body of water, evaporation will restart the cycle
again, bringing the water back into the clouds. So why is this process so important to us? Because aquifers provide for more
than half of the drinking water in the entire world. We as a species depend on water for survival; it rehydrates our systems and
replenishes our eukaryotic cells demand for water. Water should have top priority among all other resources because without it,
we cannot exist. Yet, we treat it like its not even there, letting our fertilizers seep through the ground, our sewage tanks leak,
storm water drains drain into swamps, and inadvertently pollute lakes, streams, and oceans. It is inconceivable that an ethical
relation to land can exist without love, respect, and admiration for land, and a high regard for its value (Leopold, 1949). What
Aldo Leopold was saying is that you cant have any connections with the land if you dont have some sort of emotional bond with
it. In the same sense, you wouldnt go to a friends house and just leave your trash anywhere; the same applies to the land itself,
if you have any sort of respect for it you will think twice before dumping something unnatural upon it. With such a slow
transportation process, groundwater is highly susceptible to pollution if it penetrates far enough into it. Fertilizers and septic
systems easily penetrate the soil and infiltrate into our aquifer systems, which cause irreversible pollution because nature has not
yet developed a better filtration system than to let it seep slowly through the soil and let that filter out the waste materials. Aside
from that, there are 37 major aquifers in the entire world, and 1/6
th
of our population doesnt have access to clean drinking water.
Aside from that, an average person in a developed country can use about 200 gallons of water per day. This is completely
unsustainable due to the waste of water in the process, like warming up a shower, leaving the leaky faucet, not using low flow
fixtures, and improper clothes washer loading. Water is something we need on an everyday basis and must conserve to its


28
fullest. But whats most alarming is that we are depleting our aquifers at a rate in which they cannot recharge themselves quick
enough. The survey, conducted by the Geological Environmental Monitoring Institute (GEMI) in Beijing, reported that under
Hebei Province in the heart of the North China Plain, the average level of the deep aquifer was dropping nearly 3 meters (10
feet) per year. Around some cities in the province, it was falling twice as fast. He Qingcheng, head of the GEMI groundwater
monitoring team, notes that as the deep aquifer is depleted, the region is losing its last water reserveits only safety cushion.
(Brown, 2007). The hardest concept about this is that almost nobody hears about this kind of emergency even though it concerns
the greatest for their health. Most would rather hear about the status of their economy than about what they truly need-water. If
aquifers were to continue at the rate of lowering they have now, human beings are doomed as a species without their most
necessary resource. This is anything but sustainable, and in order to change that path, the issue needs to be brought to light on
a global scale, not cause a panic among the people, but to inform and warn them about what needs to be done. The future
security of water and its aquifers is something that mustnt be ignored, and there are nations who still desperately need good
clean water. A priority to protect our aquifers musty be set by our nations leaders, and pollution cleanup efforts must be
exponentially increased in order for human beings to have a sustainable future. Without water, earths various systems cannot
continue because its systems depend upon water for survival, and that is our path towards a sustainable lifestyle.
Therefore, sustainability as a whole will be an extremely important concept for future generations and its implications
toward a better lifestyle. Within this concept of sustainability, the three most pressing issues, as previously stated, are as follows:
In New Jersey there is energy resources, nationwide, there is biotic impoverishment, and worldwide there are water resources.
New Jersey must make a slow but definite changeover from nuclear power and coal powers in order to reduce environmental
costs such as clear cutting and unusable spent fuel rods. This slow gradual change could be supported through small tax
increases to pay for construction of local hydro and wind farms to generate mass amounts of renewable energy that can
eventually pay us back for its constant availability and abundance. On the second topic of biotic impoverishment among the
nation, the causes were clear cutting and human induced extinctions in such cases like the passenger pigeon. Humans must
understand the concept of rarity before continuing the hunting of a single species. On the topic on a species population this case
is the moose in Maine; There are however, two problems with this that I can think of. First, the numbers are really just guesses.
Moose clearly dont line up for censuses. Some naturalists think the population may have been overstated by as much as 20%,
which means that the moose arent being so much culled but slaughtered (Bryson, 1998). This was his thought on the fact that
Maine only gives out 1500 permits for moose hunting, and has over 80,000 applicants. Biotic impoverishment is harmful to
sustainability because losing a species affects the way a community can operate as a whole, like losing a brake pad in your car;


29
things dont function as well, or dont function at all. Sustainability inquires the entire system to function and survive for future
generations, and biotic impoverishment hurts it greatly. Clear cutting, commercial fishing, and pesticides all harm the
environment in some way, some more noticeable than others. In order to slow and or stop these detrimental practices, there
must be supplemental practices, such as planting an artificial forest for clear cutting, strict regulations on commercial fisherman,
and absolutely no pesticide use unless it is proven solution that is biodegradable and unharmful. Finally the third topic was water
resources on the entire planet. The quickly depleting aquifers is something not to be taken lightly, and must be made public to
inform all of the people so they can stop any further pollution towards what they rely on for survival-water. We must protect and
conserve what we have so that nature can once again take its course and replenish what there once was.
References
Brown, L. (2007). Aquifer depletion. The Encyclopedia Of Earth.
Retrieved from http://www.eoearth.org/article/Aquifer_depletion
Bryson, B. (1998). A Walk In the woods. New York: Broadway Books.
Delucchi, M. & Jacobson, M. (2009, November). A path to sustainable energy by 2030. Scientific American, 301(5), 58-65
Leopold, A. (1949). A sand county almanac.
Miller, T. (2006). Environmental Science: Working With the Earth, Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing.
Quammen, D. (1996) The Song of the Dodo, New York: Simon and Schuster Publishing.
USEIA. (2010).






























30

HONORABLE MENTION
DHARA SHAH
12
TH
GRADE
MATAWAN REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
*************
If one were closely to observe Henri Rousseaus painting Exotic Landscape (Albrecht Durer, Karl Storck, Henri Rousseau, losif
Ise-artisti nascuti in 21 mai, n.d.), one would notice the variety of plant and animal life, the even blue shade of the sky, and the
greenness of the plants. The beauty of nature that once surrounded human beings began to fade away in the mid-18
th
century
with the eruption of the Industrial Revolution. The creation of factories and industries originated in England and spread
throughout the world as quick as fire. The rate at which these buildings are being constructed is synonymous to the rate at which
Earth is being destroyed. The output of deleterious gases and chemicals into the atmosphere is not only due to factories, but
also automobiles, trains, refrigerators, air conditioners, and several other everyday items that we use. Additionally, these harmful
gases and chemicals are not only affecting the atmosphere, but they are also polluting our oceans, rivers, ponds, and streams.
Human beings and every other living organism in our biosphere have basic necessities. If these basic necessities arent
sustained and if Earths natural resources arent preserved, the living organisms that constitute our biosphere will no longer be
living. Careless human activities and unnecessary innovations are depleting natural resources such as water, coal, wood, plants,
animals, and minerals that Mother Nature was so kind to provide. The water that flows through the bodies of water and the air
pollution in New Jersey is hurting the residents of the state. The United States of America faces problems with being able to
conserve natural land and managing waste control. The most pressing sustainability issues in the world include the exponential
growth of the human population and most importantly, global warming. The sustainability issues that New Jersey, America, and
the world are encountering may not seem to have an effect today, but soon enough their effects will be revealed.


31
Everyday thousands and thousands of workers from New Jersey commute to New York City and everyday each
commuter increases the pollution in the air. Whether the commuters use a train or a car to get to work, they are hurting the
environment in which they live. Although, some car manufacturers and automakers have decreased the size of automobiles,
some manufacturers have increased the size of them. They are advertising how an SUV or a large automobile may be useful in
bad weather or rough roads. Unfortunately, the manufacturers are too concerned with making a profit that they forget the effect
that their avarice is having on the environment. Scientific research proves that the amount of pollution an SUV emits is 0.5 to 0.6
percent greater than the pollutant levels released by cars, (SUVs cited in air pollution study, 2007), and yet manufacturers
continue to manufacture large vehicles such as the SUV.
If research has proven that SUVs give off 0.5 to 0.6 percent more pollutants than cars, then imagine the amount of
pollutants that an airplane must release. The number of airports and air flights has drastically increased. For example, the
Newark Liberty Airport was originally only 68 acres when it was built in 1928 (History About the Airport, 2010). Over the years,
Newark Liberty Airport has slowly expanded its airports and in 2004, The airport expanded its cargo capacity with the opening
of a 142,000 square-foot facility, which combined with United and Continental's cargo buildings, increases cargo space at the
airport to 1.3 million square feet, (Facts & Info - About the Airport, 2010). According to the Port Authority of New York and New
Jersey, the airport contributes about $18.5 billion in economic activity to the New York-New Jersey metropolitan region including
more than $6.7 billion in wages and salaries157,000 jobs are derived from airport activity, (Facts & Info - About the Airport,
2010), and, more than 24,000 people are employed at the airport, (Facts & Info - About the Airport, 2010). Although, 24,000
people have secure jobs at the airport and the airport helps the economy, the airport is hurting the lives of the 24,000 people that
are employed at the airport and other countless lives that arent employed at the airport.
The increasing number of factories that are a result of expanding businesses in the 21
st
century contributes to air
pollution, as well. In New Jersey, there are ten coal-fired plants and other buildings that emit toxic gases and chemicals into our
rivers and atmosphere (Clean Air - Environment New Jersey, n.d.). The gases that factories and power plants emit into the air
are similar to the gases that are released through automobile emissions. In addition to polluting the air, the growing number of
factories in New Jersey pollute the states rivers, lakes, and streams. According to Environmental New Jersey, industrial
development contributes to the destruction of New Jerseys, majestic waterways, (Clean Water Environmental New Jersey,
n.d.) such as the Delaware River, Toms River, and Raritan River. For example, the power plant that is located on the Delaware
River, Mercer (Coal - Fired Plants in Delaware & New Jersey, 2007), releases hazardous substances and wastes that flow into
the Delaware River and affect the animal and plant life in the river (Stutz, 1995). The Hudson River, which is on the east coast of


32
New Jersey, has been polluted by two General Electric facilities which contaminate, over 200 miles of the river, (Contamination
of the Hudson River, 1999). Another main cause of water pollution in New Jersey rivers is chemicals and fertilizers that farmers
use for farming. Farmers use chemical fertilizers in order to enhance the quality and quicken the growth of crops. Since there are
rivers that flow through New Jersey, these fertilizers are deposited into the rivers by erosion (Main Causes for the Hudson River
Pollution, 2009).
Every time an automobile is driven, an airplane is flown, and coal is burned in a power plant, hydrocarbons, nitric
oxide, nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and/or sulfur dioxide are emitted into the atmosphere (Air and Breathing,
n.d. and Socha, 2007). Hydrocarbons are released through fuel emissions and produce smog as they react with nitrogen oxide
and sunlight. Smog causes irritation in the eyes, throat, and lungs. Smog harms the lungs and may even cause cancer to form in
innocent bodies. Nitric oxide, nitrous oxide, and carbon dioxide are released through the burning of fossil fuels and they all are
natural components of the atmosphere; however, excess amounts of them cause global warming by trapping Earths heat.
Carbon monoxide is a colorless and odorless gas and the inhalation of this potent gas has several side effects such as
headaches, nausea, dizziness, and unfortunately, death. Sulfur dioxide is also released due to the burning of coal and fossil
fuels. However, when this gas is released it contributes to acidic deposition, which can be in the form of fog, dew, snow, or rain.
Sulfur dioxide, not only affects humans but it also affects plants; in humans, sulfur dioxide affects the respiratory tract by making
it difficult and painful to breathe.
Pollutants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), mercury, and cadmium are diffused into the rivers of New Jersey;
they affect the animal and plant life in the water. Unfortunately, these toxic substances remain in the rivers for an extensive
amount of time because they are indissoluble. The addition of these lethal chemicals affects the organisms living in the rivers
because these chemicals are ingested by the organism. When organisms ingest these substances they become ill and
eventually die. New Jersey residents who consume seafood are likely to become ill as well. The addition of fertilization in the
bodies of water in our state results in extra nutrients being supplied to the rivers, lakes, and streams. Without the presence of
extra nutrients there is an even balance between algae and other plant and animal life. However, when there is an excess of
nutrients present, algae consume these nutrients and the balance is affected. As algae bloom, sun is unable to pass the surface
of the water and therefore, there is a deficient amount of oxygen available for the rest of the sea water organisms. As the
quantity of algae increases, the quantity of other organism decreases.
There are some simple things that can be done to simplify air and water pollution in New Jersey. Alternatives to driving
a car or riding a train or taking a bus include walking and bicycling. The innovation of hybrid automobiles, cars that run on a


33
battery and gas, is an invention that has helped decrease air pollution; however, the cost of hybrid vehicles is very high. If
automobile manufacturers reduce the price of hybrid vehicles then there is a greater chance of consumers buying a hybrid
automobile rather than a regular automobile. Even if the price of a hybrid vehicle is higher than the price of a regular vehicle,
consumers will purchase the hybrid vehicle due to the beneficial impact it will have on society. With more consumers buying
hybrid vehicles, automobile manufacturers will receive a greater profit; this system will be beneficial to the manufacturers and
most importantly, the environment. The methodology that has been applied to vehicles can be applied to airplanes; airplanes
should be run on electricity and have gas as a backup. If the battery were to become uncharged, the gas in the airplane would be
used until the battery was re-charged. The toxic chemicals that are released into bodies of water from factories and power plants
can be decreased if the usage of coal was limited to the factories and power plants. The replacement of coal with another from of
energy would be necessary. Factories can use nuclear energy rather than coal; unlike coal, nuclear energy doesnt release
harmful gases that affect our greenhouse. In order to reduce the amount of water pollution, the power plants in New Jersey
would need to find alternative substances that would replace PCB, mercury, and cadmium. These new substances would have to
be as effective as PCB, mercury, and cadmium in the power plants and either have a positive or neutral effect to the life in the
rivers.
As immigrants pour into America and as Americans migrate to suburban areas, thousands and thousands of trees are
cut down as we make room for them to settle. After the trees are cut down to build homes for the immigrants, more trees are cut
down to build shopping malls and grocery stores for these immigrants. The controversy involving the perseverance of our natural
lands has being going on for decades. The controversy involves demolishing the homes of many organisms and ruining the
environment over the idea of benefiting Americas economy. Statistics show that only four percent of original forests remain
standing in the United States and ! of these are part of the national forest system, (Environment Policy Issues, 2009). Natural
habitats are ruined due the growing population in America and in order to accommodate for the exponentially growing population,
farms are built. These farms provide the extra meat, dairy, vegetable, and fruit supplies that the increasing human population
needs at the cost of the homes of many other organisms.
Although the average number of children per household has decreased with time, there are greater opportunities in the
present for fewer children to receive an education in comparison to the past. Additionally, there are more adults attending college
due to the necessity to advance in todays world, as opposed to the number of adults attending college in the past. The increase
in the overall number of students who are attending school has affected natural habitats. Not only because more universities,
colleges, high schools, middle schools, elementary schools, and pre-schools are being built, but also because of the increase in


34
the amount of paper products that are being used. Paper is made from the fiber in the bark of a tree. As a result, as the number
of people attending schools is increasing so is the number of trees being chopped down.
The destruction of natural habitats and deforestation has had a significant impact on Americas environment. Trees
were provided by Mother Nature to help balance the levels of carbon dioxide and oxygen in the air. Humans take in oxygen and
let out carbon dioxide. Trees take in carbon dioxide, and other gases produced by pollution, and let out oxygen. Thus, the more
trees there are in America, the less pollution there is. This means that if there are fewer trees and if the population of America is
exponentially increasing, there will be an insufficient amount of oxygen readily available to United States residents. The
annihilation of natural habitats is not only affecting humans but also the animal species that are being forced to move out of their
homes and the plant species that once thrived where the new Lowes was just built. When these organisms are forced to
become aliens and attempt to survive in a new habitat, survival rates become very low. In their new habitats, these aliens are
forced to compete for food, water, and shelter. However, sometimes the migrating species are unable to adjust to a new
environment and as a result, are met with disease or death. Lastly, the species that once lived happily where the new Lowes
was recently constructed, offset the balance and structure of the new habitat that they plan on inhibiting; which, in turn, leads to
the destruction of another set of species. The impact that the endangered or extinct species has on humans is considerable. The
majority of the medication that Americans use comes from plants, and the majority of food that Americans consume comes from
animals. Consequently, the constant slaughtering of trees and natural habitats would deprive Americans of certain medications
and foods, which would be detrimental to many American lives.
In order to solve the problem of deforestation and the disruption of natural habitats, environmentalists and scientists
need to take into account the human, animal, and plant species. Instead of building single family houses, buildings larger than
apartments should be built. More families would be able to live in a large building that has a base congruent to that of a single
family house. If 300 families occupied a large building with a base of 400 feet by 400 feet and a height of 600 feet , then 750,000
square feet of land would be saved from destruction and the countless number of organisms wouldnt have to suffer from disease
or death. With the increasing number of students enrolling in school, there has been a dramatic rise in the number of trees that
have been cut down in order to supply paper to these students. If environmentalists and scientists discovered a different material
that would be sufficient to write on then the number of trees being slaughtered would be reduced. Additionally, in order to reduce
the number of trees being chopped down, the American government can enforce strict laws on reusing and recycling paper.
In 20
th
century, Americans disposed more than 208 million tons of solid waste each year, (Bassis, n.d.) and each one
of us produced, 4.3 pounds of waste per day, (Bassis, n.d.). Within the past decade, these numbers have dramatically


35
increased and the issue of waste disposal has caused great concern in our nation. The waste disposed can be classified as
either solid, liquid, sludge, and water dissolved material. Solid waste is composed of less than 70% water (Bassis, n.d.); it
includes waste such as household garbage, and industrial and mining wastes (Bassis, n.d.). Liquid waste is composed of
approximately 1% solid, and these wastes contain salt and metals (Bassis, n.d.). Sludge is a type of waste that consists 3% to
25% of solid, and water dissolved material is waste that is able to completely dissolve due to its fluidity (Bassis, n.d.).
There are several ways waste in America is disposed and these include landfills, incineration, and pumping waste into
deep wells. Dumping waste into a landfill is the most common and the cheapest method of disposing waste in America. Landfills
impact the environment as methane, a gas that contributes to global warming, releases into the atmosphere as the waste
decomposes. Incineration involves burning waste and as a result, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere which also
contributes to global warming. Finally, a method that is unpopular is when waste in America is disposed by pumping it into deep
wells (Bassis, n.d.). When waste is pumped down wells there is a great possibility of explosions and earthquakes to occur
(Bassis, n.d.).
The amount of waste disposed in America can be lessened if all the waste products could be reduced, reused, and/or
recycled. Waste products can be reduced by the amount of material manufacturers use to create the product. Waste products
can be reused if consumers find a way to reuse the products they purchased. Waste products can be recycled if the product
claims its recyclable and if consumers are concerned about the environment. A giant step that can lead to a remarkable
decrease in waste disposal is if producers discovered a way to make their products recyclable or if scientists discovered a way to
make products that are not recyclable, recyclable. It is true that these improvements to the amount of waste disposed will cause
consumers to have thinner wallets, but in the long run, wouldnt it beneficial to their health and prosperity?
Every species on Earth has a carrying capacity and sooner or later it is met. Similarly, Homo sapiens have a carrying
capacity and their population can be described as a J-curve, as many ecologists would describe it. The J-curve represents how
the population of humans has been exponentially increasing. Additionally, based on evidence from other species, following every
J-curve is an S-curve and the S-curve is formed when the J-curve begins to level off, which is when the population reaches its
carrying capacity. A population that is growing at such a tremendous rate can only grow so much until its surrounding
environment begins to deprive the population of essential resources. As the human population increases, the world will run out of
density dependent factors such as food, water, and space to provide for its inhabitants. Consequently, humans will be faced with
famine, as they are forced to live close to one another, and competition, as they are forced to compete with one another for
essential resources.


36
Before the improvements in medicine and sanitation the deaths and births in the world balanced one another. In the
past, the possibility that a baby survived, after being conceived, was minimal and the average life span was much shorter than it
is now. Scientists today are more capable of preventing and curing diseases than ever before. Improvements in the water people
drink, the food people eat, and the environment in which people live in has helped humans survive and live a longer life (Kinder,
2010). In the 20
th
and 21
st
centuries, due to modern medicine and sanitation, there is a greater possibility that a baby will be
capable of growing up and the life span of humans has drastically increased, too (Kinder, 2010). As more humans are capable of
surviving and living longer, more resources are needed in order for them to survive. The exponentially increasing demands for
vital resources will only cause the demanders to suffer.
The increase in the number of Homo sapiens on Earth today has caused a decrease in everything surrounding the
them. With more humans living in the world, there has been a decrease in the quantity of our natural lands, water, forests, and
animal and plant species (Simonetta, 2010). There has been an increase in the number of hazardous gases being released into
the atmosphere. The increase in the number of gases has caused pollution and global warming. In order to preserve our natural
lands, forests, and bodies of water we must first be able to recognize the intensity of this issue. The people that are able to grasp
the concept of overpopulation and the people that are highly educated will be the ones who can help the issue. Although there is
no law on the number of children a family can have, the concept of having one child rather than three should be iterated. By
taking these simple steps, the Homo sapiens wont have to face the difficulties that they would face if nothing is done to help
solve this issue.
When the Suns rays beam on Earth, some of the heat is transferred into Earth and some of the heat is reflected into
space. When there is higher amount of carbon dioxide, methane, and other toxic gases in the atmosphere, heat is more easily
and readily trapped. Unfortunately, the Earth has been getting warmer and warmer ever since the invention of factories and
automobiles, which has resulted in global warming. These two innovations have contributed to the amount of lethal gases in the
atmosphere by increasing carbon dioxide levels. The burning of coal, fossil fuels, and petroleum, which are forms of energy that
help cars and factories run, emit carbon dioxide into the air. Furthermore, the increase in the amount of waste that is being
disposed and decomposed is raising methane levels in the atmosphere. With an excess quantity of these two gases in the
atmosphere, the heat provided by the sun is more easily trapped on earth, These gases act like the glass on a greenhouse -
they let the sun's heat in but they stop it from getting out, (Environment Policy Issues, 2009).
There are significant consequences the world is facing due to global warming. The ice glaciers around the world are
melting, the temperature is getting too warm for some species to survive any longer, and normal weather patterns are being


37
disturbed. As one would expect, the warm climate is causing the ice glaciers to melt, which in turn is causing the levels of oceans
and seas to rise. As water levels are becoming higher, islands are facing difficulties along the coastal region as the increase in
water level causes the island to become smaller. The idea of an island shrinking its perimeter and area is a frightening thought
because it always leads to the question of whether or not the entire island will be overflowed. As natural habitats become warmer
than what they should be, organisms encounter problems in being able to survive the increasing heat. Thus, some species
become endangered or extinct. For example, the polar bears that thrive in extremely cold temperatures find it difficult to be living
in a warm environment. The difficulty the polar bears face as they adjust to the heat has caused their species to become
endangered. Without the interruption of any environmental intrusions, there are patterns of weather that occur on Earth.
However, due to the increase in temperature, there will be more evaporation occurring in our bodies of water (The Effects and
Consequences of Global Warming, 2009). Consequently, higher evaporation rates will result in higher rates of precipitation. As
anyone can deduce, the effects of global warming will be deleterious to the health of humans and other organism inhibiting Earth.
In order to improve the issue of global warming we must take actions that would reduce the amount of carbon dioxide,
methane, and other hazardous gases in the atmosphere. Instead of driving an automobile everywhere, walking and bicycling
could be considered alternatives. The number of miles a vehicle can travel per gallon should be increased and the price for the
energy efficient vehicles should be reduced so the majority of the population can afford them. Factories should use electricity or
solar energy instead of coal to run their facilities. Improvements in waste disposal, such as enforcing laws that require people to
reduce, reuse, and recycle, should be enacted. Manufacturers need to create products that can be recycled and scientists need
to discover a method that allows all products to be recycled. The steps that need to be taken in order to improve the global crisis
we are currently faced with are compulsory.
The acceleration at which the world is advancing and the improvement in technology over the past few decades has
actually caused the world to decelerate. Although the global sustainability is more known it is caused by the sustainability issues
in New Jersey and America. New Jersey is currently facing problems with air pollution and water pollution; America is facing
problems with deforestation and waste control; the world is facing problems with the increasing population and global warming.
In 2001, after President Bush took the oath of office, he had to make a decision on whether or not America would be a part of
Kyoto Protocol (West, 2010). The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty that is supposed to bring countries around the world
together to overcome and decrease global warming. President Bush and members of the US Senate believed that the ratification
of Kyoto Protocol would mean that America would have to lower its emission rates which in turn would hurt Americas economy.
When America, one of many nations that is responsible for the majority of carbon dioxide emission, rejected its participation in


38
Kyoto Protocol, it tremendously hurt the Earth. Unfortunately, our leaders were only considered about the prosperity of America,
but they didnt realize that Americas prosperity meant turmoil for the world. As the earth continues to suffer, more and more
issues related to an overpopulation growth, air pollution, water pollution, deforestation, waste disposal, and global warming are
brought up. These issues that are presented to us are depicting how important it is that we help solve the issues or at least, help
lower the negative impact the issues are having on us. In order to overcome these burdens, everyone must take a part in helping
the Earth. Like Neil Armstrong said, A small step for man, is one giant leap for mankind, (Jones, 1995).
Works Cited
Albrecht Durer, Karl Storck, Henri Rousseau, losif Ise-artisti nascuti in 21 mai. (n.d).
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nascuti-in-21-mai/
Air and Breathing. (n.d).
Retrieved March 18, 2010, from http://www.nutramed.com/environment/carsepa.htm
Bassis, Luke. (n.d.)
Retrieved March 20, 2010, from http://www.umich.edu/~gs265/society/wastedisposal.htm
Clean Air Environment New Jersey. (n.d).
Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://www.environmentnewjersey.org/clean-air
Clean Water Environmental New Jersey. (n.d)
Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://www.environmentnewjersey.org/clean-water
Coal - Fired Plants in Delaware & New Jersey. (2007)
Retrieved March 18, 2010, from http://www.industcards.com/st-coal-usa-de-nj.htm
Contamination of the Hudson River. (1999).
Retrieved March 19, 2010, from http://web.bryant.edu/~langlois/ecology/hudsonpollution.html
Environment Policy Issues. (2009).
Retrieved March 18, 2010, from http://www.newsbatch.com/environment.htm
Facts & Info - About the Airport - The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. (2010).
Retrieved March 18, 2010, from http://www.panynj.gov/airports/ewr-facts-info.html
History About the Airport The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. (2010).
Retrieved March 18, 2010, from http://www.panynj.gov/airports/ewr-history.html
How is Paper Made?. (2001).
Retrieved March 19, 2010, from http://www.tappi.org/paperu/all_about_paper/paperMade.htm
Jones, Eric M. (1995).
Retrieved March 21, 2010, from http://history.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11.step.html
Kinder, Carolyn. (2010).
Retrieved March 20, 2010, from http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1998/7/98.07.02.x.html
Main Causes for the Hudson River Pollution. (2009).
Retrieved March 19, 2010, from http://www.howtodothings.com/home-garden/main-causes-for-the-hudson-river-pollution
Simonetta, Jay. (2010).
Retrieved March 21, 2010, from http://ezinearticles.com/?Human-Overpopulation-Causes,-Effects-and-
Solutions&id=1985200
Socha, Tom. Air Pollution Causes. (2007).
Retrieved March 18, 2010 from http://healthandenergy.com/air_pollution_causes.htm.
Stutz, Bruce. Delaware River. (1995).
Retrieved March 18, 2010, from http://www.delawareriverkeeper.org/factsheets/delaware.html
SUVs cited in air pollution study. (2007). Facts On File, Inc.


39
Retrieved March 18, 2010, from Science Online http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE40&SID=5&iPin=
UPI20070827-09482800&SingleRecord=True
The Effects and Consequences of Global Warming. (2009).
Retrieved March 21, 2010, from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/effects-consequences-global-warming.html
West, Larry. Kyoto Protocol What is Kyoto Protocol? (2010).
Retrieved March 21, 2010, from http://environment.about.com/od/kyotoprotocol/i/kyotoprotocol.html













































40

HONORABLE MENTION
EVAN JACKSON
9
TH
GRADE
RAMAPO HIGH SCHOOL
*************
Someone steps out of a futuristic spaceship and sets foot upon a distant planet or the moon he/she plans to inhabit. The picture
cuts to an image of Earth, but not as we know it. It depicts fire and death, all of the natural resources gone; war ravages the
world, and pollution gives rise to the start of the demise of Earth. Many of us have seen a movie or played a video game where
humans have been forced to search for an alternative planet other than Earth because it is no longer able to sustain life.
Although these scenarios are set in the future, the matter of Earths sustainability is fast becoming a pressing issue among many
environmentalists. The ability for Earth to sustain life is dependent on the way humans treat it, and of late, we havent been
treating it as we should. As the human population increases and the demand for non-renewable resources such as coal and oil
increases, we deplete what we need to conserve. When these resources are exhausted we have to be ready with an alternative.
It is estimated oil will run out in the next two decades, and in that time the worlds population will have become much larger.
Another concern is the preservation of natural resources, such as the rainforests we have been cutting down and the
oceans we have been polluting. Ocean circulation patterns have a very strong influence on climate and weather, which in turn
affect the food supply for both humans and animals.
Lastly, a factor many do not realize is wars between countries. Many countries fighting nowadays are leaders in the
distribution of oil, and instead of fighting, should be thinking of alternatives to oil. As one may see, the current sustainability issue
in the world is a pressing and important matter humans need to sort out if we intend to continue to live on Earth.
By the year 2050 the worlds population will increase to approximately 9.7 billion, an additional three billion people. The


41
current population is tearing through the resources available and an increase will only further the depletion, if there are any
natural resources left. Most of the rise in population will be in third world countries such as in India where there is a rapid growth
rate. These are countries that are already in a state where sustainability is an issue and an increase in population will not help. A
swell in population anywhere means an increased demand for natural resources that are already running thin. The answer to this
problem is to find an alternative to the natural resources that we are using at such a fast rate. As of now, the biggest concern
seems to be oil. Although scientists have begun to experiment more with solar opportunities as means to get energy, it has not
been as widely used as it should be. Another alternative could be electrical, such as charging something instead of fueling it.
Both of these concepts have their flaws however. To effectively use solar energy one would need a way to store it for a later use
because the sun is not always shining, also the sun is not up for as long in the winter. Solar energy has been used on houses
instead of oil, it is initially very expensive and some people do not want huge metal plates on their roofs. These plates however
do benefit the economy and actually decrease ones bills to become profitable in the long run. If someone is not using electricity
provided by an electrical company and instead using solar power, he/she would pay a much lower monthly bill than someone
who uses solely electrical power. The other alternative to oil would be electrically charging a car. The electrical alternative would
be exclusively for cars, because the amount of electricity needed to heat a house would be astronomically expensive. We have
seen the use of electricity to charge cars with the increase of production of hybrid cars that run on gas and electricity. Although
these cars are becoming increasingly popular the electrical aspect of them is kept only to specific speed limits, meaning that
owners cannot use the economically beneficial part of their car on highways. In cities these cars become increasingly useful,
because a single charge is enough to go to a destination, and one does not go above 30 miles per hour in the downtown area of
a city. Both of these alternatives could be crucial to the sustainability of the human race on Earth because they provide a solution
to non-renewable resources in constant natural resources. These substitutes for the current choices of energy are not without
their disadvantages, however with work from scientists creating these ideas and cooperation from the population, they could
provide a viable alternative to oil and coal.
Along the lines of finding alternatives to non-renewable resources is the conservation of rainforests and trees in
general. Other than being habitats and homes for many of Earths animals, trees give off a percentage of the oxygen humans
breathe. The rainforests such as the Amazon and other parts of South America are the contributors of more oxygen than most
people are aware. Imagine each tree in the world as a lung in your body. There are millions of trees in the world, and in that case
ones body has one enormous lung. If someone cuts down a couple hundred trees, or takes away part of ones massive lung,
there may not be a noticeable difference in the body. However, as humankind takes down whole forests or large sections of


42
rainforests, it is like taking away large chunks of a giant lung. If people are not replanting the trees they are cutting, then their
lungs will continue to deteriorate. Surely one will feel the effects of having three-fourths of a lung or half of a lung removed. This
would be harmful to ones health, ultimately resulting in death. That is the issue we are facing with the trees and the rainforest.
Taking away small forests or a couple of trees in the rainforest here and there is harmless, but these subtractions will continually
accrue if we do not replant what we are cutting down. Each of these trees is a separate ecosystem that houses many different
animals. As we are cutting down trees we are literally destroying their homes. There are millions of different animals living in the
rainforests, and most of them call a tree their home. Forcing the wildlife out of their natural habitats depletes and damages the
ecosystem when some of these animals disappear for good. In order for life on Earth to be sustained, the animal kingdom needs
to remain unchanged. If one animal species goes extinct, it will have a rippling effect, which can be detrimental to the balance of
the ecosystem and ruin the rainforests on which we rely on for a percentage of our oxygen.
The cries to stop polluting the ocean have been heard throughout humanity for decades, and they are not without
warrant. The ocean is a big factor in the weather and climate on the Earth, influencing when it rains and when it shines, two
aspects integral to in agriculture. One of the greatest influences on the climate and in turn agriculture is El Nino. El Nino is an
oscillation of the ocean-atmosphere system in the tropical Pacific. When El Nino is active, it is responsible for most of the
weather in the southern part of the world. When taking all of the influences the ocean has on Earths weather into perspective,
one can easily realize why it is so important to maintain its health. Polluting the ocean makes it difficult for fish and other marine
animals to live, and if enough waste is put into the ocean, these sea creatures will begin to die. If humans do not cease to trash
the ocean, it will become a lifeless body filled with garbage. Some scientists believe if enough pollution is put into the ocean, the
ocean will be unable to restore its health, and slowly deteriorate. If the ocean ceases to live as it is now, it would throw weather
and the climate into disarray. This would prove detrimental to the human race and sustainability on Earth, and could spell the end
of life on Earth. As humans pollute the ocean or fish an area too successfully we are ruining the oceans ecosystem. Big fish eat
small fish, and if the small fish arent there to be eaten, the big fish die, and if the big fish die, then so do its predators. If humans
destroy marine life, it will upset the stability of the ocean and wreck one of the biggest habitats on the planet.
Constant war amongst countries is not helping the matter of sustainability by any means. Countries should be
working together to solve oil problems and ways to conserve non-renewable resources. Many of the countries involved in wars
are the biggest contributors of oil to the world. Venezuela, Iraq, and Iran are among the worlds biggest exporters of oil and yet
they are the ones fighting the most. Although the fighting has much to do with the varying ethnic and religious beliefs clashing
with each other, these countries need to observe the power they have over the oil industry and start making steps to find a way


43
to conserve what is left. As these countries fight, they put forth their efforts into war instead of oil alternatives. If the
aforementioned countries continue to wage war and focus attention away from the matter at hand, the oil will eventually run out,
and the Earth may no longer be sustainable to human life.
One of the biggest topics flooding the media, having movies devoted to it, concerts to bring awareness to it, and
bringing about a worldwide phenomenon is global warming. These days, nay-sayers aside, one would be hard pressed to find a
person who does not know the negative effects global warming is having on the Earth. The list of global warmings devastation
on the Earth is a long one; the ice caps melting, water levels rising, the hole in ozone layer, a worldwide rise in average
temperatures, and the disappearance of animal species. Out of all of the current issues involving sustainability on Earth, global
warming has definitely received the most attention and hype, and because of the measures we have taken, we are making a
successful attempt at slowing global warmings effects. The causes of global warming are varied, as diverse as carbon dioxide
emissions from fossil fuel burning power plants to methane emissions from animals, agriculture such as rice paddies, and
methane emissions being released by the melting Arctic sea beds. Many of the causes are things humans can take strides in
improving. One of the causes, deforestation, is not a difficult issue to combat. Simply replant trees in places you have cut down,
or spread out the logging so it is not is one concentrated area. Some however, such as the carbon emissions from transportation
require the cooperation of the society. Almost all things man made that move require a form of energy, usually oil, coal, or
electricity. To reverse the negative effects of these emissions, humanity needs to make some changes. The first would be to
make every car have an electrical or solar energy feature, meaning oil is not the only option when one needs to use their car.
People would also need to use these features more frequently. The way to accomplish that would be for manufacturers of these
cars make their alternative energy sources more powerful and a viable alternative. They would have to give drivers a reason to
use their electrical or solar features, such as making them able to go above a certain speed limit or giving them a bigger charge
so they can last longer. Making service of these hybrid cars is also mandatory to increase the use of them. If manufacturers can
find a way to do these things, we will see a drop in the effects of carbon emissions. Another cause is the carbon dioxide
emissions from fossil fuel burning power plants. Because coal is the only way to provide the energy in these plants, it is polluting
the air at a rapid rate. The answer to this specific problem has been mentioned before in this essay, and it is finding the
alternative to coal as an energy source.
The aforementioned causes of global warming have led to effects that future generations under us will still be
struggling to mend. One effect, the rise in sea levels worldwide, is already causing countries to plan for mass relocation and is
currently forcing millions to move. The rise in sea levels is believed to be caused by the melting of two enormous glaciers of off


44
Antarctica and Greenland. Even in parts of the world far away from these melting ice caps, it will cause the sea to rise. Many of
the cities near the coastline of the United States are in jeopardy of disappearing. The nation of Maldives is already feeling the
effects of the rise in sea level which is giving the people of the this nation no choice but to start looking for a new home due to
the rise in sea levels near it. This identical dilemma will soon hit islands all over the world where they are not high above sea
level. The loss of life would be devastating, not to mention the loss of billions of dollars in tourism and travel, which is what most
of these countries base their economies off of. In relation to the matter at hand with the oceans condition, will be the increase in
killer storms worldwide. Another consequence of the oceans rise in temperatures will be the initiation of more violent storms,
which are the Earths way of cooling itself off. The trend of an increase in these kinds of storms will rise as the oceans
temperature does, meaning solving the oceans many dilemmas will counteract a lot of other problems global warming is
causing.
The effects of global warming would start the destruction of many of the things humans need to sustain life on Earth.
Massive crop failures, the extinction of millions of species and lastly, the end of the coral reef, one of the worlds biggest
ecosystems, are in store for Earth unless the causes of global warming are halted. All of the species placed here on Earth
provide a purpose for the planet to sustain life. Whether it is balancing out the amount of a specific animal or a carrier of pollen to
cultivate the world, all animals are integral to human sustainability. Global warming is causing the demise of many species that if
lost would be detrimental. The coral reefs are among the biggest ecosystems on Earth. They are also going to be among the first
to be destroyed by global warming. The coral reefs provide a home to a substantial amount of species of marine life that are very
important to the oceans well-being. Coral reefs are living, breathing creatures that humans are destroying at an alarming rate.
Should humans succeed in decimating all of the coral reefs worldwide, it would wipe out an entire ecosystem that is integral to
the sustainment of the oceans marine life. If humans become unable to grow crops, it would undoubtedly spell the end of the
world. The worldwide loss of jobs, is a problem in and of itself, however the big question remains, what will we eat? It is
undeniable that humans need to have a balanced diet to stay healthy. A worldwide crop failure would mean humans are without
anything grown in the ground to eat, and we would be forced to eat only meat. Many would believe this to be okay, however what
do most animals humans consume eat? These animals would be left without their food and would not be able to live. When all of
the animals are dead and all that is left of crops has been distributed, the human population will slowly begin to die out. It would
start with in third world countries or the lower classes; the famine would then creep into the working class who would also be left
without food. Even the upper class would not be able to prevail against such a disaster. Do not think otherwise, massive crop
failures would bring about the end of human life on Earth.


45
Sustainability is the capacity to endure life. As of now, the Earth has sustained life for millions of years with few
problems. Then the Industrial Revolution occurred and the Earth has been in a state of shock ever since. Global warming, the
demise of millions of species, coal and oil deposits in the ground running dry, and the balance of nature disharmonized have all
been caused by us. No doubt, humans have certainly not been kind to the Earth. Along with the rise in technology has come the
rise in pollution and destruction humans have caused. Almost every single object in the world needs some sort of power device,
be it oil, coal, or electricity. The problem is not that we need to power these things; it is how we are doing it. By operating in
power plants we are polluting the Earth by expelling the CO2 emissions into the air. When we refine oil we are polluting the sea
with crude oil that is dumped into the ocean. When we cut down a section of a forest to develop, we are removing homes for
different animals. When we drive cars or boats and fly airplanes, we are producing fumes that rise into the atmosphere and have
begun to tear a hole in the ozone layer. By living our lives polluting the Earth and upsetting the balance of nature, we are coming
closer to the Earth being unable to sustain life. Almost everyone in the world we live in is a culprit, and we all need to make a
change. There are ways to reverse the effects of global warming, we have the means to save the ocean, and we can all make a
few changes in our lives that, with cooperation of the whole population in the world can continue to live on an Earth that will
sustain life. We are all responsible for our home, Earth, and it is time we take responsibility for our actions and we start to help
make Earth sustainable for the future generations. If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and then
make a change. These lyrics taken from a song by Michael Jackson should resonate in every person who calls Earth their
home. The sustainability of the Earth is a pressing issue that with a combined effort of the six billion people on Earth can be
continued, however if we carry on with our current ways, we may very well need to find a new place to call home.
References

Coral Reefs - Ocean World. (n.d.). Welcome to OceanWorld - Bringing the Ocean to the Classroom. Retrieved March 7, 2010,
from http://oceanworld.tamu.edu/students/coral/
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