Why Millennials Should Join Me In Supporting Environmental Causes.

By: Kay Lackey, M.A. (2014 WasteWater Education 501(c)3 Board Member)

For myself, and many other millennials, the environmental changes over the last 30 years make us concerned for the future.

There was a time when cell phones, cable, and computers were all luxury items but now, they are all major necessities.

These items have brought comfort and immediate satisfaction to our lives.
Just think of how easy it is to get directions, stay in constant contact, or work in a virtual environment on a daily basis like I do.
There is, however, a dark byproduct of these items and that is waste, tons of waste that have a major impact on our environment. Environmental waste has become a major issue in the last 20 years. According to Hoornweg, Bhada-Tata, & Kennedy (2013), the average American discards approximately their own body weight in waste every month! As the population increases so does the amount of waste discarded.  Where does it go? Our landfills are running out of space. Should we be surprised  how much floating plastic debris is cluttering up the Indian Ocean, confusing the search for Flight 370? Or that the Great Lakes are awash with microbead plastic particles?

So what, does this mean to myself and another millennials? Why should we care?

The stuff we throw away is clogging our air, waters and land.
Whether you are a millennial, baby boomer, or Y2K generation, it’s our generation’s responsibility now to protect the environment!
Recycle, reuse your waste to help the environment for future generations.
An important environmental issue for me is access to clean water, the most important resource for every living thing on the planet, yet I see constant pollution. For example, on January 9, 2014 in West Virginia, a Freedom Industry facility released a crude 4-Methylcyclohexanemethanol (MCHM) into the Elk River contaminating the West Virgina water supply. Contamination of the Elk River led to thousands of people losing access to safe drinking water, at an untold economic and environmental cost, with untold unforeseen future consequences.

Water is NOT waste and should be protected to ensure the survival of this planet. That is why I applied to join the WasteWater Education 501(c)3 board, to help ensure that all people have access to clean water, to decrease water waste, and to increase access to water conservation education. WasteWater Education 501(c)3  helps consumers understand the importance of protecting their water supply and helps communities implement environmental best practices to protect water for ALL our futures.