WITH EACH OF US
aware of the state of environmental destruction — be they rapid deforestation, the irreversible extinction of countless species, the contamination of rivers and seas or the choking air pollution — are we truly worried enough to do something about it?
The 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) campaign has been around for decades. From recycling bins for plastic bottles to paper products and metal cans, as well as exchange points to facilitate reuse of old clothes, furniture, toys and other things, everything has been prepared, yet most of us don’t utilise them.
There are also numerous rubbish bins around and many people still litter!
We complain about the quality of air every time the haze envelops the country, yet we see no issue with open burning. We are quick to blame neighbouring countries for the smoke, but think it’s all right to clear plantation land by burning simply because it’s cost-effective.
We want clean water, but we’re still flushing oils, chemicals and toxic waste down drains, not bothered that all that muck ends up in rivers and oceans, poisoning the very fish we feed our children with, as well as the water they drink. In fact, polluted drinking water affects half of the world’s population, with 250 million water-related diseases reported every year.
We complain about the amount of plastic we see in our oceans, yet we complain when supermarket checkout counters no longer give free plastic bags.
We want clean air, yet we are not effectively pushing our policymakers to opt for cleaner energy alternatives in our transportation, factories and power plants. Many still don’t consider fuel efficiency or emission levels as a top priority when choosing which car to buy, preferring to look at power, style and cosmetics instead.
Over half of our electrical power generation is still fuelled by coal — a major contributor of the greenhouse effect — as opposed to much cleaner alternatives such as natural gas, solar, wind and hydroelectric, and we’re not complaining because it doesn’t “touch our pockets”.
Change needs to start with us. Pressure from society has resulted in drastic changes in environmental policies in other countries, and coupled with technological advances that have made cleaner living economically feasible, there’s no reason we cannot do the same.
In the Netherlands, all electric trains are powered by wind. Norway merchants) are made directly from the trustee to the said service providers. The Touch ‘n Go card merely acts as an electronic purse to provide the convenience of speed and security when making your everyday micro-payments.
For more information, visit www.touchngo.com.my, follow us has gotten so efficient at turning its household waste into energy that it has had to import rubbish from neighbouring counties to fuel its power stations (this began with a banning of landfills in 2009).
All light vehicles in Brazil run on a mixture of sugarcanesourced ethanol and conventional gasoline, with the biofuel reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 61 per cent.
Here, we’re heading in the right direction. There are more and more hybrid vehicles being sold and many electric vehicle charging ports being offered at service stations and mall car parks. We see cycling tracks being built and “no automobiles” days being introduced in the city.
With solar panel prices being reduced steadily, we find more developers including them as part of their property offerings.
But we need to do more. We need to advocate the message to our family members, friends and communities that the fight to conserve our environment is real and urgent.
We need to make immediate lifestyle changes that may cost a bit more in the short run, but will save us a much bigger cost in the future.
PAK CHAK MAN Alor Star, Kedah
at @MyTouchnGo via Facebook and Twitter, SMS TNG <your inquiry> SEND to 36266, email careline@touchngo.com.my or contact Touch ‘n Go Careline at 03-2714 8888.
SYAHRUNIZAM SAMSUDIN Chief executive officer, Touch ‘n Go Sdn Bhd