Today is International Earth Day

Earth Day is celebrated around the world on April 22.

The purpose of World Day is to draw attention to the protection of the Earth’s natural environment.

On the first Earth Day, initiated by American university student Denis Hayes, on April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans raised their voices for nature. This event of historic importance brought about important changes in the United States – and beyond the country’s borders: strict laws were passed in the USA to protect air and water, new environmental protection organizations were formed, and millions of people switched to a more ecologically sensitive way of life.

It has been held in Hungary since 1990. Earth Day has been celebrated in Ukraine since 1992, initially it was praised as a day of nature conservation. Then in 2009, on the initiative of Bolivian President Evo Morales, the United Nations declared April 22 as “International Earth Day”, so it is already celebrated as International Earth Day in Ukraine.

In 2024, plastics are again in focus. The all-dominating plastics also threaten the basis of our existence, the diversity of the living world, and biological diversity. Activists try to draw attention to the fact that we can do a lot with small steps to protect our planet.

But global warming, human activity, overfishing and hunting, and the destruction of animal habitats—cutting down forests, flooding or draining areas, etc.—are causing problems. In addition, the war in Ukraine also affects the extinction of species. The existence of more than 80 species is threatened by hostile attacks on nature parks and zoos.

In Ukraine, the protection of rare and endangered animals and plants is ensured by the Ukrainian Red Book. In recent years, the number of plant and animal species listed in the Ukrainian Red Book has increased. Of the species common in Ukraine, 1,409 are on the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, of which 187 (13.3%) are endangered.

Another large-scale environmental problem is pollution, because air, water, and soil can take millions of years to clear, even if all traffic and industry stops. The war has a particularly strong impact on Ukraine, because due to constant fires and explosions, there are already excessive amounts of heavy metals and other harmful substances in the soil at the sites of hostilities. Moreover, now nuclear energy is also in danger.

The average level of air pollution in Ukraine in 2022 was 12.5 points on the air quality scale, which is 1.2 points higher than in 2021.

In Ukraine, the industrially developed regions have the highest man-made load. Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad, Donetsk and Poltava counties produce the most waste. The lowest rate of specific waste production is in the counties of Herszon and Zsitomir, as well as Subcarpathia. The amount of waste per capita exceeds 1,000 tons in Donetsk, Zaporizhzhya, Ivano-Frankivsk, Cherkassy, ​​Ternopil, Mykolaiv and Vinnytsia regions. The least amount of waste is in Transcarpathia.

Intensive agriculture damages the environment through the use of artificial fertilizers and pesticides. Urbanization leads to the displacement of flora and fauna, soil degradation and an increase in harmful emissions into the atmosphere. One of the negative consequences of the war is the disappearance of high-quality Ukrainian chernozhom, i.e. black soil. Experts from the Ukrainian nature conservation group conducted an analysis and said that the continuous bombings and attacks lead to the destruction of fertile lands, the restoration of which will take years and decades.

The war has a negative impact not only on the Ukrainian nature and environment, but also on the world. With the loss of agricultural land, new land can be planted, which is now home to rare species, and birds can change their flight paths, which also affects the processes of other animals. Thus, the consequences of the war will take decades to recover.

On Earth Day, they draw attention to environmental protection with various programs: trees and flowers are planted, the surrounding areas are cleaned of garbage, garbage collection campaigns, drawing and video contests are announced. Various sports events are organized.

Transcarpathian educational institutions also join the initiative. The II. The Ferenc Rákóczi Subcarpathian Hungarian College also celebrates Earth Day every year. This year, those interested were awaited with professional presentations and a thematic competition.

At the Péter Dobrai Secondary School in Nagyberegi, students made various objects from recycled waste, showing their creativity. The smaller ones made pots out of PET bottles, in which they planted flowers. In addition, during the lessons, the teachers drew attention to the importance of protecting our Earth and our environment.

Subcarpathian.ma