Worldwide Protests: Citizens Urging Action on Environmental Pollution, Part 2 of a Multi-part Series

With more than 17% of the Amazon forests lost and an additional 17% degraded, scientists fear that we’re approaching a tipping point. “Until just a couple of years ago, all of this was pristine Amazon rainforest but hundreds of gold miners were given concessions here turning this into a vast desert that stretches from mile after mile.” The deforestation of the Amazon has had a profound impact not only on the environment but also on the lives of indigenous peoples. Indigenous people took to the streets to protest in Belém, where leaders of the eight Amazonian countries gathered at a summit to discuss the future of the Amazon rainforest. “We are here marching and saying that we do not accept mining in our territory, we do not want oil exploitation in the Amazon, that this has already impacted the lives of our families in our territories.”

The devastating 2011 tsunami severely damaged the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan. Japan began discharging the treated radioactive wastewater, which had accumulated in tanks, into the ocean on August 24. They plan to gradually continue this release over the next 30 years. This decision has sparked fear and anger among Japanese citizens and neighboring countries. Dozens of protesters demonstrated outside Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's office in Tokyo. Among the messages one reading don't nuke the Pacific.

In the UK, people, including celebrities, have also been involved in protests against wastewater discharge. Unlike actions against the radioactive discharge seen in Asia, these protests concern the dumping of sewage water into the sea, rivers, and northwest England’s Lake Windermere by utility companies. A similar situation is occurring in San Diego, California, USA, where people are protesting against wastewater- contaminated beaches, which pose risks to both residents living nearby and tourists. For decades cross-border sewage contamination from the Tijuana River has plagued the South Bay. People living in Coronado, visitors, and tourists are all urging elected officials to take action. Environmental pollution affects every living being on our planet, whether people are consciously aware of it or not.