Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 22, 1990 TAG: 9004230193
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: F-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
The greatest threat to living things is the destruction of their habitat. Rain forests are being cleared for farming, towns, and cities.
Passenger pigeons have been extinct since 1914 because people shot them for food and sport. The black rhinoceros will become extinct because people kill it for its horn.
The giant saguaro cactus is an endangered species. Cattle and vehicles crush them. Tourists build houses where they grow and take them for house plants.
About 3,000 kinds of plants have been used for food, but today, food comes from only about 15 kinds of plants. Also, about 50,000 kinds of medicines and chemicals are found in plants. People could be affected by the possible extinction of plants.
Human populations have increased in Africa, and the animals are being moved from where they live because farmers want their land. The farmers kill rhinos and elephants for eating and trampling on their crops. They also drain marshes, and that can affect a food chain.
Please listen to my suggestions on saving plants and wildlife. Maybe we could set up groups and organizations to help countries learn what they are doing to their environment. We can educate people on the value of conserving plants and wildlife. If people realize its importance, maybe we will have an improvement of plants and wildlife by the year 2000. AI LINH TRAN ROANOKE
by CNB