I’d like to begin by saying that our planet is certainly in danger. One cannot deny that the very existence of man inflicts damage on the environment. It is common knowledge that it was the influence of the human activity that has caused such a serious ecological crisis and has lead to such serious circumstances as the environmental pollution.
In the first place I’d like to mention the fact that originally human beings were not powerful or clever enough to affect their environment much. But they learnt various skills, for instance to use fire, so they were able to burn down areas of dry grass and trees, and to cultivate the soil, so they were able to turn wild bush or even woodland into fields. Later they learnt how to bring water to their land by controlling rivers or digging ditches, and this made it possible for them to change deserts into green land. But the more science advanced, the worse the effect of humans on the earth grew. They made metal tools to cut down large areas of forests for building houses, or for getting wood to cook with, and as a result, they turned green land into deserts, since trees attract rain, and the fewer trees there are, the less rain falls.
This destruction of nature has increased enormously during the past hundred years. Large areas of rain forests are being cut down every year, so that a time may come when the loss of these will change the climate of our world.
Apart from cutting the trees, I can’t but mention the fact that factories, power stations and cars that were built due to the development of science and technology pump large quantities of carbon dioxide and other waste gases into the air. This is a major cause of the greenhouse effect, which causes global warming of our planet. According to the research, carbon dioxide and other gases in the atmosphere trap the sun’s heat and this is slowly making the earth warmer. This can lead to droughts in some parts of the world, and floods in others, as ice at the North and south Poles begins to melt and sea levels rise. What is more, the Greenhouse effect waste gases can cause acid rain. Some waste gases dissolve in water in the atmosphere and then fall to the earth as acid rain. It damages trees and buildings, and it threatens fish in lakes and rivers to extinction.
Although, the situation is really serious, people can still do a lot to improve the situation. As far as I know, the governments of different countries attach great importance to the problem of environmental protection now. Specialists try to control the utilization of natural resources, they also try to prevent the pollution of rivers and lakes by equipping plants, factories and residential areas with special purification systems.
Finally, I must point out that environmental pollution is certainly the most dangerous side effect of human activity. Humanity has to face a serious problem nowadays, and it is our duty to prevent our planet from the destruction. Unfortunately, the process is being carried out slowly because of the lack of money. Although, it goes without saying that the solution of the problem depends to a great extent on the joint efforts of scientists all over the world.

Research Triangle Park, NC. Agency sponsor, RTI International attended the International Association of Science Parksat the Raleigh Convention Center, Raleigh, North Carolina, June 1-4, 2009.

Theme of the conference was "Future Knowledge Ecosystems."

RTI is a world leader, it bring more than 50 years of experienced knowledge into practice in support of development.