In recent years, the responsibility of protecting the environment has become a largely debated topic. Some people argue that the governments and large businesses should be in charge of preserving the nature, not ordinary residents. I firmly believe that the protection of the environment should be a shared responsibility of authorities, industries and individuals .
On the one hand, supporters of the protection by governments and companies argue for several reason. Firstly, governments can use their political power to maintain the nature such as imposing green taxes and environmental-related laws. For example, if the government imposes green taxes for drivers in order to reduce exhaust fumes from vehicles, dwellers are highly expected to follow the rule. As a result, the number of private car ownership may decline since people do not want to pay extra tax for the vehicle, which in turn reduces the amount of air pollution and greenhouse gases. Secondly, large companies commonly have a detrimental impact on the environment. Therefore, some people believe they should take the responsibility to protect the nature. For example, numerous industries burn fossil fuels and emit carbon dioxide to the air, they also produce contaminated and hazardous waste, which can indirectly contribute to the extinction of some species and harm marine life. If they become accountable for their actions and start to preserve the nature , several environmental problems including ozone layer depletion, contamination and extinction of species can be overcome.
On the other hand, I strongly believe that there is also another effective method to protect the environment which encourages authorities, industries and individuals to share the responsibility of preserving the nature. If both groups collaborate pressing environmental problems such as pollution, deforestation, water scarcity and the extinction of species can be addressed in a long-term period. For example, individuals can contribute to reducing exhaust fumes by adopting ride-sharing schemes, authorities can implement laws related to preserving the natural sceneries and industries can adopt environmentally-friendly practices such as renewable energy sources and recycling.
In conclusion, although it is valid that the protection of the environment should be the responsibility of authorities and large companies as they have power to control the public, I share the view that the preservation of the nature should be the shared responsibility of all groups including humans, governments and industries because they all have negative influence on the environment from different perspectives.