What is important to people? Important enough that they would pay for it. This question touches on the matter of conserving the environment, because although everyone knows that it is important, very few will take action or pay for it.
For South Africa it is of the utmost importance that the Department of Environmental Affairs spends its budget of R7,5 billion very carefully and cleverly. The government must get serious about conserving the environment. This is currently not the case and the government is creating the impression that it does not care about, for example, the pollution of our country's water sources.
Ultimately, humankind will not destroy the earth. Instead, humankind will make the earth uninhabitable and, thus, destroy itself.
We are heading to a climate crisis and although we know what needs to be done, we do not do it. Every consumer system and capital expense must be considered in the context of the environmental cost associated with it. If ordinary citizens were to do this, a department for Environmental Affairs would be superfluous and there would be R7,5 billion so spend on other important matters.
Environmental conservation should be approached in relation to the four elements: Earth, Air, Fire and Water. It can be done as follows:
• What is the effect of a specific action on the soil? Does it improve arability? Does it poison or erode the soil or does it make the soil unfit for use?
• What is being added or removed from the atmosphere? Carbon dioxide gas is the most important greenhouse gas. Does this action reduce or increase carbon dioxide emissions? There are more poisonous gases and one should ask the same questions about them.
• Is energy used sparingly? Generating energy from coal and crude oil is one of the greatest sources of greenhouse gases.
• Does this action allow water to seep into the soil or does it contribute to flash floods that are followed by drought? Does this action purify or pollute water?
The government will have to pull up its socks when it comes to environmental affairs as it does not have a good record in that regard. The FF Plus also wants the people of South Africa to realise that environmental conservation is not just the government's responsibility, so we should all take action.
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