World Environment Day, which originated from the adoption of the Stockholm Declaration in 1972, is a reminder of one of the most important roles of humans on the Earth, which is protection of biodiversity and the environment. Since life would be impossible without air, water, plant and animal diversity, we should strive all our might in preserving the ecological cycles and the natural species within them. This includes not only living beings but also extends to the support of the inanimate natural environment, such as space, mountains, seas, wetlands, caves, and even non-natural inanimate man-made environments.
In recent decades, we have witnessed events such as deforestation, mountain encroachment, drying up of riverbeds, streams and wetlands, burning of reed beds and croplands, destruction of coastal and desert environment, soil erosion, subsidence of plains, construction of destructive and unregulated dams, release of sewage into rivers and seas, accumulation of dry and wet waste in forests, nuclear and chemical experiments and the pollution associated with them and the relevant waste and so on. These events indicate an increase in environmental crises. They have consequences such as climate change and its serious challenges that require careful attention.
The most important document regarding climate change, which mandates collective and individual efforts by nations to reduce the production of greenhouse gasses such as methane, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide and to construct sinkholes to remove these gasses from the atmosphere, all of which are serious threats to the Earth, has been ratified in the most industrialized country in the world (New York 1992).
According to the ’21st Century Agenda’, all countries must cooperate at the highest level of practical planning in the field of environmental development and preservation in order to prevent the gradual destruction and devastation of ecosystems with the help of each other. They should also fight against social and economic inequalities, poverty, illiteracy, and lack of healthcare, which directly and indirectly impose increasing destructive pressure on the Earth. One of the most important concerns of the ’Third Generation of Human Rights’ has been the ’Right to Development’, the conceptual relationship and linkage of which to ‘environmental protection’ the notion of ‘sustainable development’ has emerged.
Based on ‘Article 1’ Section 1 of the United Nations Declaration of 1986’, the third generation of human rights goes beyond civil and social conditions and encompasses the environment, development and other inspiring aspects of ’Soft Rights’.
Furthermore, according to the ‘First Principle of the Rio Declaration of 1992’, humans are at the center of concern for any development and possessing physical and spiritual abilities is a part of their rights in harmony with nature. It is obvious that the realization of ’Development’ should not harm the living and non-living environment. Fortunately, we have witnessed various activities in this regard, such as:
Taheri Peace Organization, while commemorating this day, advocates for a society, where not only legal and humanitarian rights have their rightful place but also the natural rights of all living beings are respected. By recalling the twenty-fifth principle of the Rio Declaration, the organization considers ‘peace’, ’development’, and ‘environmental protection’ as interdependent and inseparable, understanding that world peace promotion is aligned with environmental preservation and defending human rights. Pursuing these goals together and simultaneously is essential.
Water is a life-sustaining substance for living things on the Earth, with some organisms living in it and others drinking it. Plants, animals, and humans alike depend on relatively pure water for survival. Generally, water pollution is a process in which the quality characteristics of water change due to various human activities aimed at meeting basic needs such as food, water, shelter, and transportation, as well as industrial production, leading to an increase in human and industrial waste and subsequently environmental pollution.
Access to clean water and an unpolluted environment is a part of the fundamental right of human and living beings on the Earthly planet entrusted to governments for the purpose of protection and conservation of environmental resources. Evidence suggests that the issue of the environmental rights of living beings on this earthly planet has faded away in the long run, but now, with the pressure mechanisms supporting environmental protection and human rights, efforts to prevent the rampant growth of water pollution and the pursuit of polluting agents should become a focal point for international peace and justice forums.
History has shown that underdeveloped societies suffer the most from shortcomings and the lack of sufficient utilization rights from environmental resources due to improper management.
Research indicates that surface water and groundwater pollution, caused by industrial and human sewage, pose significant global challenges, and ensuring access to clean water will soon become one of the world’s most challenging issues.
Soil is the foundation upon which the survival of millions of humans and living beings depend, playing a crucial role in their food supply. Globally, soil is perceived as the third major component of the environment.
Statistics show that one-third of the world’s soils are currently degraded due to pollution. From the scientific view, any change in soil properties that makes it unusable is called soil pollution. Soil has a high capacity for filtering and reducing the harmful effects of pollution, but this ability is limited. Most pollutants resulting from human activities, including unsustainable agriculture, industrial and mining activities, improper disposal of municipal and industrial wastes, and other incompatible practices, pose a major threat to soil’s purification capacity. This can seriously damage its healthy structure and the environment.
Pollutants enter soils through various pathways, such as excessive use of fertilizers and chemical pesticides in agricultural lands. Organic waste, whether domestic, industrial, or rural, and the increase of heavy metals in the soil are also among the ways soil is contaminated. Runoff pollution and suspended particles in the air are also considered soil pollutants.
Soil pollution, an invisible reality, the danger of which is felt worldwide, affecting even the water we drink and the air we breathe. Soil pollution and degradation significantly impact human food security.
Given the limited resources of soil and groundwater, this issue is one of the most important environmental problems in the world. If not purified, existing pollutants remain undecomposed and gradually penetrate deeper into the soil, leading to the contamination of groundwater aquifers. Thus, ecosystems will lose part of their preserved capital, which has been passed down from the past.
In this regard, soil degradation, meaning a reduction in soil quality due to human factors, undoubtedly requires heavy financial and time costs for its restoration. Perhaps humanity may never be able to fully repair this damage and return it to its previous state. Access to a healthy environment is a fundamental right for everyone worldwide. This right should not be denied to anyone by violating the procedural rights related to a healthy environment, which would prevent people from participating. As a result, to ensure these rights, there need to be systems that ultimately prioritize transparency and justice, emphasizing the principle of participation as a cornerstone of their governance and management systems to initiate a peaceful approach towards soil sustainability.
In other words, ‘Caring for the planet Earth begins with preserving the soil.’
Air is one of the significant and essential elements for the continuation of human life, abundantly present and accessible on the Earth’s surface; however, it contains a considerable amount of impurities.
Air pollution is one of the biggest environmental problems globally, threatening the health of living beings. Solid, liquid, or gaseous substances released into the air from natural sources or as a result of human activities harm human health, animals, plants, and ecosystem balances.
Environmental issues have taken on a global dimension in recent decades, presenting societies with numerous challenges such as high and inefficient energy consumption, destruction of natural resources, and pollution of water, air, and soil.
The scientific definition of environmental pollution is: any change in the characteristics of various environmental components to an extent that their previous use becomes impossible and directly or indirectly threatens the interests and life of living beings.
With the increase in population and industrialization of many cities, pollution has become one of the biggest environmental problems.
Today, the entry of particulate matter (PM) into urban areas is also considered one of the main threats to the health of humans and living beings. The World Health Organization has identified indoor air pollution as the biggest environmental health risk in the world.
Globalization and the increase in the global population, along with increasing interactions, have led to the emergence of common issues and intertwined fates of contemporary humans. This has led to a reduction in the volume and importance of individual, local, and national issues in favor of collective and global issues, and human focus has shifted to global common threats. In this regard, to mitigate the risks that threaten the environment through pollutants, there is a need for a plan based on global common interests and the realization of sustainable management in all environmental, social, economic, and cultural dimensions, which is achievable through comprehensive unity towards the development of global peace.
Taheri Peace Organization invites all international environmental institutions and organizations to use their utmost abilities to raise awareness and knowledge among nations to engage their people in conserving water, soil, and air, these valuable elements of existence, so that with a cosmopolitan approach (Interuniversalim), environmental protection can take place in a peaceful atmosphere.
