How you can help keeping Earth healthy

You wanted to know

"How do you help the Earth stay green?" asked a young patron who attended Schaumburg Township Library District's Summer Science program in Hanover Park.

Going green means caring for the Earth - the water, land and air.

On a small scale, it means recycling items that can be reused to limit energy use and reduce garbage. On a grand scale, it means putting laws in place to protect our surroundings from toxins and pollutants - the whole chain starting with all forms of animal and human life, the waterways and seas, the land and surrounding air.

Green issues include global warming caused by greenhouse gases and their effect on all aspects of the environment, such as hazardous weather conditions and temperatures that challenge life at all levels.

Thomas Theis, director of the Institute for Environmental Science and Policy at the University of Illinois Chicago, adds human well-being, respect, fairness and cultural enrichment as outcomes of a green environment.

"All of these things rest upon a healthy and robust environment," Theis said. "Just as human companies and factories supply goods and services to us that we can purchase, the Earth's ecosystems supply goods and services that we need to survive - things like breathable air, potable water, arable land, pollination services, a huge supply of energy, minerals, systems capable of decomposing and recycling our wastes, and even wonderful places with vast vistas that make us feel good just to look at them. And the best part is that these are all free, all we have to do is keep them healthy."

The idea of keeping our environment healthy goes back more than 100 years when state and national parks were set aside to restrict development from encroaching on significant natural monuments and to allow access for all to these magnificent expanses.

Private organizations, such as the Audubon Society and Sierra Club, developed popular support for America's unique bird populations and geological features, and President Theodore Roosevelt established the National Parks system. Fast forward to the 1960s when Rachel Carson's best-seller "Silent Spring" quickly spread the connection between crop-protecting chemicals and bird deaths, cancer-causing agents and toxin levels in crops. Resulting environmental laws brought rules and regulations for air and water quality.

The 17-year-old Institute for Environment Science and Policy combines four research areas to address green issues - human-natural interactions, urban sustainability, environmental policy analysis and environmental manufacturing.

Top issues on how to keep Earth green are similar to those faced when Theis began his work as institute director 13 years ago.

"The precarious state of many of Earth's systems are of concern. This complexity, coupled with 7 billion people, has presented us with an array of much more complex and often global problems," he said.

"Climate change is a good example. Global climate change is taking a toll on how they function. But there are many others: ozone depletion is still of concern. As we have become more urbanized, land use issues have grown, air quality is still not good in many regions of the world, the supply of potable freshwater is threatened, and our food safety and supply continue to be threatened."

The second concern is an old one - the emission of large quantities of wastes and toxic substances into the environment. Although we have many laws that seek to control this, these are mostly trying to keep up with the problem; it is very hard to get ahead.

The third concern is lack of knowledge and complacency. In the 1960s, '70s and '80s, much of the pollution in the world was very visible - fish dying in lakes, rivers catching on fire, air quality so poor that millions were adversely affected. We did a pretty good job cleaning those problems up, but as the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind."

Can we help make the Earth green? Absolutely, and Theis suggests a few steps to bring about a green lifestyle.

"Read as much about the environment as possible. Go to Chicago's great museums to learn how the environment works, and press your teachers to include more modules on environmental awareness," he said.

You might be in for a surprise when you calculate your carbon footprint - the amount of greenhouse gases your household produces. Log onto websites such as www.earthday.org/takeaction to find out more. Tell your parents to join you in learning about going green so you and your children can enjoy a clean, healthy and beautiful Earth.

Check it out

The Schaumburg Township Library District suggests these titles on going green:

• "Environment Infographics" by Chris Oxlade

• "Making A Difference: The Changing the World Handbook" by Ali Cronin

• "Protecting the Planet: Environmental Activism" by Pamela Dell

• "Making Good Choices About Conservation" by Janet Levy

• "Love Your World: How To Take Care of the Plants, the Animals, and the Planet" by Dawn Sirett, Rachel Parfitt, Howard Shooter and Dave King