The statement below is by Freeholder Jonathan Young regarding Earth Day.
“The unprecedented events we have experienced this year have underscored just how quickly our lives can change in the face of a major crisis. At the same time quarantine orders have laid bare the impact our normal course of business has on our environment, as within weeks of the first COVID-19 closures, clean air and water returned to cities and places around the world that had been dealing with ecological issues for years.
This Earth Day, we cannot help but think of the catastrophe threatened by global climate change in the years and decades ahead. Much like we are experiencing in this current public health crisis, the economic and human toll that will be taken in the future by climate change will completely upend the normal order of society, if we don’t take significant action now. Unlike coronavirus, we can see this threat years in advance, but we must take advantage of this additional time if we are to avoid a similar disaster.
While we are unable to celebrate together this year, in parks or elsewhere, we can all observe this important day of recognition in meaningful ways at home. Take a walk and enjoy your community. Plant a garden, a flower, or a tree in your yard. Make a commitment to take your role in fighting climate change more seriously by sticking to recycling guidelines, ending your reliance on single-use plastics, or by taking other actionable steps that make you part of the solution.
Weeks of stay at home orders have helped us all to rediscover a love for the simple pleasures offered by a clean environment and mild climate. This Earth Day, let’s make a promise to protect the planet and do our part to keep the environment clean for all to enjoy, for many years to come.”