This year’s theme for World Environment Day hits close to home for those of us here in St. Maarten – Air Pollution!
We’re all familiar with air pollution, especially because of the landfill, which reached its maximum capacity more than 10 years ago and sometimes sparks into flames. When that happens, all sorts of chemicals that are bad for our health are released into the air.
Most likely, you’ve seen (or smelled) the smoke for yourself, and if you read the newspaper or listen to the radio, you will have heard people debating what should be done about the urgent situation – from worried parents, to environmental organisations, to Parliament. It has been a “hot topic” for ages now, but not one that we have been able to solve quite yet.
Having said that, there have been many positive environmental developments on St. Maarten/St. Martin and the surrounding islands, and kids often get to be a part of the solution! Kids have taken part in so many beach clean-ups in the last few months, that everyone may have lost count!
Many schools have also implemented recycling programmes, and – thanks in part to our environmental organisations such as St. Maarten Nature Foundation and EPIC (Environmental Protection in the Caribbean) – kids have access to information that empower them to make better decisions.
Many other organisations have also popped up, especially since Hurricane Irma, that focus on reusing and recycling our waste.
Air pollution: A worldwide problem
World Environment Day is celebrated on June 5 every year. It was originally created by the United Nations (UN) to inspire people all around the globe to become active about the environment, and take steps to ensure the sustainable future of the planet – our one and only home.
Each year, a different theme is chosen, one that is considered a pressing environmental concern. On a global scale, air pollution is one of the greatest environmental challenges of our time.
According to the UN Environment Programme, some 92 per cent of people worldwide do not breathe clean air. Around 7 million people worldwide die prematurely each year from air pollution. Around 4 million of these deaths are in the Asia-Pacific region.
Air pollution costs the global economy $5 trillion every year in welfare costs, and ground-level ozone pollution is expected to reduce staple crop yields by 26 per cent by 2030.
World Environment Day 2019 urges governments, industry, communities, and individuals to come together to explore renewable energy and green technologies, and improve air quality in cities and regions across the world.
While the day is observed with different events such as clean-ups, rallies, or concerts all over the world, the official celebrations take place in one host country every year. Focusing on one host country helps to highlight the environmental challenges it faces, and supports worldwide efforts to address them. This year’s host country is China.
Social media!
Many people worldwide have gotten involved in promoting World Environment Day on social media. A special campaign invited everyone, including celebrities, online influencers and creators, to join the Mask Challenge.
From May 24 to June 4, the Mask Challenge involved people taking a picture or video of themselves wearing a mask – a symbol to show leaders that we want to breathe clean air.
In the same post, the person also had to describe what they would do to reduce air pollution. Then, they needed to tag three people, organisations or companies, and challenge them to do the same.
On June 5, World Environment Day, the Mask Challenge involves the person posting to take another picture or video, showing that they are fulfilling their commitment.
If you would like to see the posts, ask an adult to go to their social media pages and search for #WorldEnvironmentDay and #BeatAirPollution. You can also see more impressions like the ones shown here on www.maskbook.org
What are some of these actions anyone can take to reduce air pollution? Some examples are reducing consumption of meat and dairy (to help cut methane emissions), composting food items, recycling, saving energy by turning off lights and devices while you aren’t using them, and using public transportation or carpooling.
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Why China?
From clothes, to shoes, to furniture, tools and car parts, lots of things we all use in our everyday lives are made in China. The country’s industry and economy have expanded so much, that it is considered the engine of the world’s economic growth.
Along with all the expansion came the emergence of mega cities, increases in energy consumption, and more emissions of air pollutants.
For a city to be considered a “mega city”, it needs to have a population of more than 10 million. That’s around 125 times the population size of Dutch and French St. Martin put together – in just one city! China has the highest number of megacities in the world: according to the China Statistic Yearbook, there are 10 megacities in China.
Air pollution has become one of the top environmental concerns in China, in the mega cities and their close surroundings. That has forced the country to tackle the huge problem.
This is what Joyce Msuya, Acting Head of UN Environment, had to say earlier this year: “China will be a great global host of 2019’s World Environment Day celebrations.
“The country has demonstrated tremendous leadership in tackling air pollution domestically. It can now help spur the world to greater action. Air pollution is a global emergency affecting everyone. China will now be leading the push and stimulating global action to save millions of lives.”
With its growing green energy sector, China has emerged as a climate leader. The country owns half the world’s electric vehicles and 99 percent of the world’s electric buses. By hosting World Environment Day 2019, the Chinese government will be able to showcase its innovation and progress toward a cleaner environment.
