Earth day celebrates and raises awareness about the Earth. Thanks to senator Gaylord Nelson, who was inspired by the protests of the 60s, Earth Day started in 1970 and occurs every Apr. 22. Nelson’s act opened the government’s eyes to the harm being done to the planet and created the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and acts later to protect the planet. On this day many people get together and engage in activities to benefit the planet such as cleaning up litter, recycling, planting trees or donating to environmental causes.  

“Earth day is important because it is a reminder that we only have one planet and we should do our best to make sure we’re living on it in a way that allows us to keep living on this planet,” Emily Payne, the teacher/sponsor for Green club at Wiregrass Ranch High School, said. 

Earth is home to many diverse ecosystems, habitats, and animals. Habitats act like the foundation for the ecosystem providing all the necessary conditions for the organisms within it to survive. Within ecosystems, organisms interact and affect each other and together create a complex harmony. Biodiversity in these systems is important because too much of one can mean too little or none for another and vice versa creating an imbalance in and out of that ecosystem.  

Ecosystem disturbances can happen for many different reasons, natural and human. According to the Conservation Foundation, natural disturbances such as volcano eruptions, floods, fires, landslides, and pest outbreaks can hurt ecosystems but can benefit others in fact some even adapted natural disturbances such as floods and fires. Human disturbances can include pollution, deforestation, over-fishing and hunting, urbanization/ land development, invasive species and mining. According to WHO, this destruction throws off and destroys habitats which can be felt all throughout their ecosystem, by disrupting food chains, reducing biodiversity, soil erosion, climate change, contamination, and even extinction.  

Imagine you were an animal and one random day your entire town was torn down and destroyed, and now unfamiliar creatures are building

on top of the land which you used to call your home. It would be a horrific experience, and no one would have clue where to go or what to do because everything you have ever known is gone. We would be devastated if it happened to us so why do we think it’s ok to do that to other animals? There must be a change to stop these tragedies from happening because it doesn’t just affect animals, it affects humans too. 

“The Earth is being harmed because resources are being used in a careless fashion without future perspectives and the lives of the organisms on this planet are not being treated with respect,” WRHS teacher, Emily Payne said. 

 Deforestation for example not only harms animals and plants in that area but the entire planet, according to WHO, “Forests store 80% of terrestrial biodiversity, absorbing approximately 2.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, helping mitigate climate change.” When there are less trees available to store this CO2, there is more of it in the atmosphere which results in adverse climate effects such as contributing to the greenhouse effect, trapping more heat on the earth. The rise in temperatures causes sea levels to rise, the acidification of the ocean and altered weather patterns along with other adverse effects causing even more harm and so forth. CO2 is an essential part of the Earth’s atmosphere so it’s not all bad but it’s important to regulate it, so it isn’t damaging the Earth and all its inhabitants. Everything on Earth is connected and it’s one of the many things that make the planet so fascinating.   

Many organizations have been created over the years to advocate, protect and research the Earth, big and small such as the International

Union for Conservation of nature, Natural Wildlife Federation, The Nature Conservatory, World Wildlife Fund, Jane Goodall Institute, and Natural Resources Defense Council along with many others. These organizations contribute to beneficial policy changes, spread awareness about environmental problems and solutions and promote and/or participate in research. For example, according to nature.org, the nature conservatory has “protected more than 119 million acres of land and 5,000 river miles,” and that’s just the impact of one organization. 

Countries around the world have also taken legal action to keep the world healthy such as the Paris Climate Agreement which includes 195 countries which is an agreement between the countries to work together and prevent further climate change and reverse it, and America has the clean air and clean water acts which regulates pollution in their respective jurisdictions. There is also the Endangered species act which protects species that are at risk of going extinct.

WRHS has also taken action with Green Club. The club hosts monthly litter

clean ups of the campus and monthly meetings to discuss and educate about environmental topics. They have been making efforts to spread environmental awareness around campus while keeping it clean. 

“I’ve seen the world be positively affected by our litter cleanups just seeing how people can build a community by picking up trash and they can also help clean up our school and make it look nicer,” Camille Monger, a senior and historian of Green Club, said. 

 Finally, there are many things people can do to have a positive impact on the Earth. To begin with, the three R’s are well known to be beneficial; three R’s stand for Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Its goal is to reduce overall consumption, specifically of environmentally damaging products, to reuse whatever you can to keep things out of landfills by giving something a new use, and then to recycle whenever possible. Everyday habits can also make a huge difference such as turning off appliances when they are not in use, switching off the lights when the room is empty, using less water, doing the three R’s, and using environmentally friendly options. The actions may seem small, but they make a big difference. 

“People should make an effort to be green because we all live on the earth and taking care of it is what helps all of us as organisms that live on the earth stay alive and thrive as a home,” a junior and a co-president in Green Club, Raksmey Pond said. 

 Earth Day should not be the only day when we are environmentally focused. What we do every day affects our planet and making green choices whenever we can will immensely benefit Earth and all that live on it. When humans hurt the Earth, they also hurt themselves and the future. It is so important that the planet is taken care of because it’s the only one we have. 

 “Change is necessary so that we can make sure that every organism on the Earth is as healthy as we are,” Camille Monger said.