Environmental Destruction on Both Local and Global Levels

People choose where they live for many different reasons. Often, a deciding factor in locating a desirable community for raising a family is the environment and the climate associated with that region. When large chemical companies come into a community, caring little for the well being of the local residents, there are often dire consequences for the area. Environmental destruction can easily be seen on both the local and global level, leading to detrimental consequences for civilization as a whole.
As cities and towns continue to grow, air pollution increases concurrently with the rising demands placed on the environment by local communities. While small towns may not directly cause the waste that they are associated with, suburbs often become dumping grounds for the big cities. It is true that there is a certain amount of waste and pollution that will be generated regardless of the actions taken to prevent it. However, both where the waste facilities are built and their faulty construction becomes an issue that frequently alters the lives of unfortunate community members. The construction of large plants are generally in areas that companies deem to show the least likelihood for resistance. Generally, these are minority-based communities that offer little in terms of time or the financial resources needed to fight off company plans to locate in a region. According to Bullard, “The builders of garbage landfills, incinerators, and transfer stations have generally followed the path of least resistance, which has led to placement of their facilities in economically poor and politically powerless communities.” (Bullard 60) Already lacking in resources, lower socioeconomic communities are often swayed by the company promises of bringing new jobs and money to the area. Little regard is paid to the possibility of permanent damage to the lands so often used by generations past.
Once companies have established a foothold in a community due to the lack of resistance by community members or the shady deals struck by politicians looking to turn a profit, the construction of the plants often goes unchecked with broken community promises. Companies that once promised to bring work to an impoverished area often fail in their commitments, instead offering only a small percentage of undesirable jobs to the locals. Gas leaks and explosions are commonplace in communities highlighted by these dangerous plants. According to the New Orleans Times-Picayune, “Loud noises, noxious odors and deadly chemicals are the constant neighbors of the citizens of Norco…Unexplained booming noises shake their homes in the night. Strange smells waft into their homes, producing headaches and breathing difficulties.” (Bullard 96) Protection from such dangers should have been accounted for in the initial construction of plants and refineries. Not only are the plants located deep within communities, but also they are often built within hundreds of feet of schools.
The effects of many small communities being overrun by pollutants compounded thousands of times over, leads to an extremely gloomy outlook for earth and its fragile ecological balance. Of course as Al Gore jokes, this is not to be confused by the supposed “balance” of gold bars and the entire earth. According to adversaries of global warming, generating wealth for their big time corporations should take an equal if not higher weight when compared with protecting the environment. This is the type of ideology that leads to cheaply made and installed parts that are the main cause of the aforementioned explosions and gas leaks that are so damaging to the environment and its inhabitants. A stricter global standard must be placed on pollution emissions. In addition to protecting the earth as a whole, the places that are unfortunate enough to house such industry would benefit with lower health risks and a better standard of living.
We must step away from the idea that people are too insignificant to generate change on such a large scale. As Gore put it, “We have everything, save perhaps political will. But in America, I believe political will is a renewable source.” Citizens of earth must band together to create a united front against global warming. Without a concerted effort to reverse the disturbing trend of the ozone being depleted and destroyed, future generations will be forced to endure unbearable living conditions that could ultimately lead to a failure of our race. This is not something that should be taken lightly, nor should it be looked at as something we can just put off until the next generation.