CHAPTER VII:

ENVIRONMEN
TAL
EDUCATION
AND
AWARENESS
Environmental Education promotes environmental
literacy and develops the skill needed to be
environmentally responsible.

Environmental Education refers to education efforts that

increase public awareness, concern, and knowledge
about environmental issues and provides the critical
thinking, problem-solving and decision making skills
needed to make responsible decisions about the
environment.
Environmental degradation is
the deterioration of
the environment through depletion
of resources such as air, water and
soil; the destruction of ecosystems;
habitat destruction; the extinction of
wildlife; and pollution.
Socio-Environmental Issues
 
Environmental and social issues may manifest in many different ways and affect the
viability of a financial institution's client/investee operations. Environmental issues
may present themselves as temporary or permanent changes to the atmosphere, water,
and land due to human activities, which can result in impacts that may be either
reversible or irreversible. Social issues may emerge in the workplace of a
client’s/investee’s operations and may also impact surrounding communities
A client’s/investee’s performance in the areas listed below can represent environmental and social risks
to the operation:

•  Air emissions and air quality –air pollution

• Energy use and conservation – the use of nonrenewable fossil fuel) and renewable (solar
power)resources

• Wastewater and water quality – water pollution

• Water use and conservation – proper usage of water for institutions (schools, buildings, malls, cities,
towns. etc.)
 
• Hazardous materials use- the usage of explosives, toxics, flammable gasses ,and radioactive materials
during operations like mining or in factories
 
• Wastes - can be a by-product of a manufacturing process or an obsolete commercial product that can no
longer be used for its intended purpose and requires disposal

• Land contamination - Land can become contaminated due to releases of hazardous materials, wastes, or
oil, including naturally occurring substances.
 
• Biodiversity and natural resources – the conversion of forests, mountains and other natural resources
into housings or facilities can lead to loss of bio diversities in our ecosystem.
 
• Occupational health and safety - Providing workers with a safe and healthy work environment, free from
physical, chemical, biological, and radiological hazards inherent in a particular industry sector, is essential
for ensuring the long-term sustainability of a client's/investee's operations.

• Community health, safety, and security - A client's/investee's operations can increase the potential for
community exposure to risks and impacts arising from accidents, structural failures, and releases of
hazardous materials

• Indigenous peoples- (tribes or first nation people) mostly affected by the loss of bio diversities and natural
resources because they live there. If a client’s/investee’s operations are initiated and conducted without the
involvement of Indigenous Peoples, this can lead to misunderstanding and conflict.
 
• Cultural heritage-(archeological, historical, religious and artistic significances) If a client’s/investee’s
operations are initiated and conducted without consideration for cultural heritage, there are significant legal
and reputational risks.
Waste Management Issues
One of the major waste disposal problems is attributed to the generation of too much waste. America alone is
responsible for the producing of about 220 million tons of waste annually. In 2007 for instance, it’s recorded that
Americans generated nearly 260 million tons of municipal solid waste. This is about 2.1 kg per person each day.
The point is; if these are only figures in America, let’s try to imagine the amount of waste produced by the rest of
the population across the globe.

 Effective waste disposal and management

 
An effective strategy for municipal waste disposal and management can offer improved solutions for
the various problems associated with waste materials. It ensures there is gradual improvement of new
and cost-effective facilities which aim to encourage higher environmental protection standards. An
effective management strategy will also see to it that landfills are purposefully located to ease waste
collection, transfer, and monitoring or recycling. This can be achieved through the implementation of
waste disposal plan which must include proper monitoring and regulation of municipal solid and food
waste, livestock waste, sewage sludge, clinical waste, and construction waste.
Geo- Environmental Issue

The 2011 off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku Earthquake of March 11,
2011, caused devastating geotechnical and geo-environmental issues
mainly in the coastal area of the Tohoku and North-Kanto Regions,
Japan. As a result of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami,
approximately 23,000 Gg (23,000,000 t) of disaster debris was
generated, with more than 12 million m3 of tsunami deposits left in the
flooded area. The geotechnical utilization of the soil fraction in the
disaster debris and tsunami deposits has presented a huge challenge to
geotechnical engineers since
 The clearance of debris and tsunami deposits is an urgent task which must be completed
within a few years and

 Although a large amount of waste-mixed soil can be used in the construction of new
embankments and levees to protect the coast from future tsunamis, their geotechnical
properties have temporal and spatial variations. In addition, the environmental monitoring
data on soil and groundwater quality conducted over the affected area is briefly reviewed.
The results of several wide-area monitoring efforts conducted by different organizations
indicate that no significant soil or groundwater contamination has occurred. However, the
localized contamination near industrial plants where toxic chemicals leaked due to the
earthquake and tsunami needs to be carefully taken into consideration during future revival
and redevelopment works.

 Another serious geo-environmental issue is the management of the

radioactive contamination of surface soils caused by the accident at the
Fukushima First Nuclear Power Plant
 Pollution is a global problem. Although urban areas are
usually more polluted than the countryside, pollution can
spread to remote places where no people live.
 The three major types of pollution are air pollution, water pollution,
and land pollution.
 
 Air Pollution
 
Sometimes, air pollution is visible. A person can see dark smoke pour from
the exhaust pipes of large trucks or factories, for example. More often,
however, air pollution is invisible.
 Land Pollution
 
Many of the same pollutants that foul the water also harm the land.
Mining sometimes leaves the soil contaminated with dangerous
chemicals.

• Water Pollution
 
Some polluted water looks muddy, smells bad, and has
garbage floating in it. Some polluted water looks clean,
but is filled with harmful chemicals you can’t see or
smell.
 Environmental health issues which include:

 Handling Issues of Disease Control

 Disease mitigation and control is one main aspect affecting environmental
health. This can be paraphrased as assisting to build up or improve waste
management systems to prevent the possibility of waste polluting drinking water
sources or triggering the spread of illnesses.
 Food Management
 
Food management is a well-known issue that affects environmental health.
Food management regulations will concern everything from how seed is
harvested and prepared to what types of fertilizer and pesticides are used to
nurture the crops to maturity.
 Water Quality Issues
 
Guaranteeing that portable or enough drinking water will be readily obtainable to
the local community is yet another main aspect of environmental health.
Environmental health campaigners will look to find ways of developing water
reserves that can be wholly cushioned from the possibility of contamination.

 Housing and Transportation

 
Environmental health also looks at the quality and condition of
transportation and housing. In recent times, an example of how
environmental health helped to change and shape building policies
is the focus on removing lead and asbestos from building.