‘World Environment Day’ observed on 5th of June each year, calls for protecting our natural surroundings. The Day celebrated under the ambit of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) marks an occasion to raise awareness on the challenges facing our environment such as; pollution, illegal wildlife trade, sustainable consumption, sea level increase and food security.
It aims to reinforce environmental measures for improving quality of life, especially for our future generations, in accordance with UN Sustainable Development Goals. This year’s theme for the World Environment Day is ‘Only One Earth’, which calls for transformative changes to policies and choices to enable cleaner, greener and sustainable living, in harmony with the nature.
This year, UNEP is also celebrating its Golden Jubilee and pertinently, the first ever theme of World Environment Day, ‘Only One Earth’ which was adopted in 1974, has been re-selected. Although five decades have elapsed, the theme is as significant as ever and emphasizes on all of us that this planet is our only home and humanity must safeguard its finite resources.
Setting the priorities right, Pakistan has been proactively focusing on measures to protect the environment so as to reduce destruction caused by a myriad of anthropogenic activities. Pakistan Navy celebrates World Environment Day to underscore the significance of environment and undertakes numerous protection measures, particularly focusing on the marine environment.
PN has launched various initiatives, such as Trees & Mangroves Plantation Campaigns, banned the use of polythene bags in naval premises, collection of solid waste in harbours and installation of Reed Bed Reverse Osmosis Plants for Sewerage Water Treatment in residential areas. It is also planned to introduce the ‘Three Bin System’; to segregate trash for landfills, recyclables for reuse and compost the organic material to enrich soil and help plants grow and keep methane gas from polluting our air.
A number of activities have been planned by Pakistan Navy’s Field Commands to inculcate sense of responsibility among all personnel to preserve our precious environment. I expect all Marine community to put up dedicated efforts to make these events a success. Besides collective activities, individual actions taken towards a common purpose can also cumulatively create enormous effects.
On this Day, let us reaffirm our commitment and resolve to ensure a cleaner and safer environment which directly affects our quality of life. I would also urge the industrial community to come together and embrace best practices and principles for the protection and preservation of our shared asset; The Environment.
