Fact or Myth? Knowing the Environment

In an era of advancing technology and people relying on what can be found

on the Internet to provide all types of information, it’s hard to know what’s real or what’s now referred to as “fake news.” This is especially true when it comes to topics regarding the environment.

As some of you are aware, CREEC shares an Environmental Fun Fact on Twitter every weekday. The reasoning behind this is that we want to provide a place where individuals can be involved with environmental education no matter where they are. After talking to some community members, though, we have realized that we need to do more to help anyone become true stewards of the earth.

Therefore, today we are going to take them time to discuss what we believe are the top 3 environmental myths that need to be busted, and hopefully bring some truth to the conversation.

Myth 1: Climate Change is a natural phenomenon

We feel the need to blunt and just come out and say that Climate Change is NOT a natural phenomenon. Yes, there are natural cooling and warming periods, but there is no historical evidence of temperatures rising this quickly in such a short amount of time. Human activity has led to an increased amounts of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, major deforestation on all of the world’s continents, and degradation of complex and necessary ecosystems. What we and the earth are undergoing right now is because humans have decided that they need to continue making technological advancements in order to “better” human lives, without necessarily taking the well-being of other living organisms into consideration.

Myth 2: Recycling is the cure all of our environmental problems

Don’t get us wrong, recycling is a great practice that we encourage all individuals to partake in. However, it is not the overall solution to stopping the environmental degradation our earth is currently experiencing. Recycling will help us reduce the amount of waste that ends up in our landfills, and allow us to not use as many raw materials for new products. But, it doesn’t help reduce the millions of metric tons of carbon emissions that are released on a daily basis from our transportation and energy systems. These two areas are what we need more people to pay attention to and be more active in making sustainable choices. By simultaneously focusing on recycling, transportation, and energy systems, we will hopefully be able to find a solution to our environmental crises, not just parts of it.

Myth 3: Everyone needs to switch to electric cars ASAP so society can stop using so much fuel

Yes, electric cars are a great investment. Yes, electric cars are more environmentally friendly than other fuel-based vehicles. And yes, electric cars are becoming more popular and more attainable throughout most areas of the United States. However, all of this doesn’t mean you should go and purchase a brand new electric car right away. We say this because it’s important to remember how much energy it takes to make a new vehicle. Electric cars are environmentally friendly in the sense that they don’t emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere; but they still require for metals to be mined, and processing and manufacturing plants to run in order to build a new vehicle. Therefore, it is strongly encouraged for car owners to only consider purchasing an electric car if they are in the market for a new car, because it would not necessarily be more sustainable to make the switch if your current car is still up and running effectively and efficiently.

Sources

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/green-living-blog/2009/nov/26/top-10-green-living-myths

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/top-10-myths-about-sustainability

http://www.dw.com/en/four-climate-change-myths-debunked/a-38530311