Earth day is coming up, and I thought I would talk about how you can help the environment. It might not seem like there is a lot of things you can do to help the environment, but even by making little gestures in your daily life you can help.

Before we get into that, it is important to know the facts. There are a lot of different issues facing the environment. Some include pollution, global warming, climate change and islands of trash in oceans. There are a lot of ways you can help, but it is important to know about the different types of issues our environment faces. I am going to go over a few of the main issues and talk about the main facts.

Global warming is the gradual increase in the Earth’s atmospheric temperature. Certain gases in the atmosphere block heat from escaping including, methane, nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons (try saying that ten times fast. chlorofluorocarbons, chlorofluorocarbons . . . ). Another problem facing our environment is air pollution. Air pollution is partly caused by the burning of fossil fuels, and exhaust coming from vehicles. Another issue is when so much of our trash gets thrown into the ocean, that it forms islands of trash. This is the case with a lot of oceans.

If you take the time to think about ways you can help, it can end up making a big difference. There are a lot of things you can do to help the environment. For example, turning off lights when you leave a room can help save energy, and recycling will help reduce waste.

Another way to help is to spread the word about these issues, so, hopefully, people become more aware. The more people who know, the more people who can make a difference. You have probably heard of the three R’s: reduce, reuse and recycle. These words can help you remember how you can help the environment. To reduce waste, you can use reusable water bottles. According to container-recycling.org, more than 60 million plastic bottles end up in landfills each day, so even if you only use plastic water bottles every once in a while, think about how that much that adds up to. Only 9 percent of plastic bottles get recycled, so by buying reusable water bottles, you can reduce the waste of plastic bottles in landfills. You can reuse your cloth bags for groceries, instead of using plastic bags, and you can recycle as much as you can instead of throwing things away. Going to stores like Goodwill would also be reusing. It may seem hard to get into the habit of doing things like bringing your own bags to the grocery store and using reusable water bottles, but after a while, it will become easy and normal.

A good thing to do that my family did is to write a list of things you personally can do to help the environment. We keep this posted on the wall right by the phone where everyone can see it. This reminds us to reduce, reuse and recycle. Our list has turn off lights, let laundry air dry when it is warm enough, and some more. There are a lot of other steps you can take to help the environment. What will you do?

Editor’s note: Esme Ulland-Joy, is 10 and is in the fifth grade at Sandy Knoll Elementary School. Esme loves ballet, reading and science.