Caring for the environment should not be driven by altruism but by the exact opposite. The environment is not an optional extra or just a lovely backdrop to a glossy tourism ad. Things aren’t at the point of collapse yet, but the EPA warns that the environment has a “bearing capacity” and we risk overloading it. “We rely on our natural environment – our rivers, seas, air and land – to accept, assimilate, cleanse or store our public, industrial and private effluents and wastes. “Our natural environment provides such essential services, but its bearing capacity must be understood and regulated in environmental planning, consumption and production processes.

Source: Irish Independent November 25, 2020 02:26 UTC