We must fight our folly

World Environment Day, celebrated on June 5 every year, is meant to raise global awareness of the importance of healthy and green environment in human lives. This day is celebrated to encourage people from all walks of life not only to actively participate in the celebration but also to become active agents in developing environmental safety measures. It is a day to encourage people to make their environment safe and clean in order to enjoy safer, cleaner and prosperous future. This year’s celebrations were held under the theme ‘Beat Air Pollution’ as approximately seven million people worldwide die prematurely each year from air pollution, with about four million of these deaths occurring in Asia-Pacific.

Since most of us breathe air that is so polluted and put our health and well-being at risk, the federal government and the government of Punjab are encouraging people to explore renewable energy and green technologies and improve air quality in cities and regions across the country. It is pertinent to mention here that the government of Punjab has made strenuous efforts to protect, conserve and restore the environment in order to improve the quality of life of the citizens through sustainable development. The Punjab Environment Protection Department has directed the major industrial sector to install Air-Pollution Control System and liquid effluent treatment plants in conformity with the Punjab Environmental Quality Standards. The government has also installed Air-Quality Monitoring stations in Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad and Multan. In order to control environmental pollution. So far around 226 traditional brick kilns have been converted to Zigzag technology. All this is welcome as little things can make a big difference. Making a difference in how we do things in our daily lives can also help a lot. Therefore, we must join hands with the government to save the environment and every effort should be made for maximum tree plantation. If we had kept a check on ourselves as individuals and as nations, the damage to our planet would have been far less than what it is now. No political movement is more vital and timely than modern environmentalism, because we must save ourselves from our own follies.

Syed Ali Qasim

Lahore