BY THE GREEN DUDE

It relates to the indiscriminate use of commercial fertilisers and pesticides , which is the practice of pumping poisons into the soil to increase yield . However , this harms the natural ecosystem that depends on each other .

Suppose all the worms get poisoned and die in large numbers ; human survival will also suffer . Worms are part of the biodiversity that helps make the earth fertile . Worms are also food for birds and other living things responsible for pollination .

Many species of bees have disappeared . Rainfall also prevents these bees from producing honey as they can ’ t get the nutrients from the flowers in that area . My supplier of stingless bee honey or madu kelulut in Hulu Langat has complained about this the last four months due to the heavy rainfall and flooding in that area .

Water that comes down in the form of rain cannot go into the soils because there is no organic content due to the lack of trees and vegetation .

So , one of the ways to preserve and increase organic content into the soil is by preserving the trees in our forest and preventing deforestation . One urgent thing to do is plant more trees everywhere , starting with our community . We need to make this a sustainable campaign for the next few years .

The Save Soil global movement

Some of the prominent world thinkers are now raising this issue . Prominent yogi , mystic , and visionary thinker and activist Sadhguru is leading this crusade not just in India but globally and spreading it via social media .

He speaks about the significance of living soil and emphasises its critical importance in preserving all life forms on earth . Save Soil is a global movement envisioned by Sadhguru to bring about a concerted , conscious response to impending soil extinction .

Dr Jane Goodall , DBE , founder of the Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace and bestselling author , Deepak Chopra are all speaking in support of the # SaveSoil movement .

Deepak Chopra urges the world to join the movement , which will also help reverse climate change .

We must start to help reverse climate change and recognise that what we call our soil , mother earth is a living organism . According to Dr Gooodall , one teaspoon of healthy soil probably contains more microbes than there are people on earth .

Some 87 per cent of all life on the planet depends on it . Every year an average of approximately 2,700 species of microbes are vanishing , 80 per cent of the biomass insects are gone , 66 per cent of the vertebrate population is gone

in the last 50 years and 92 per cent of the freshwater life is also gone . If we carry on like this , all the topsoil could be gone in 60 years !

Big risk to food security

This is an alarming revelation . According to Sadhguru if we start right now to put back these things in the next 15 to 25 years , we will be able to regenerate the soil on the planet to a significant level .

However , if we leave it without doing anything for another 30 to 40 years and the necessary biodiversity losses happen after that , then it will take another 150 to 200 years to regenerate the soil . That will be the most significant risk to food security and will lead to massive starvation on the planet .

Dr Chopra and Dr Goodall are urging everyone , especially the millennials to join the movement . With consciousness and awareness of the problem , we will be able to look for solutions and prevent greedy developers and corrupt governments from continuing the rape of the earth .

When we talk of climate change , we can already see this happening in Malaysia . The great flood that occurred in the last couple of months manifests this climate change .

Even in the last week of March , my place in Bukit Antarabangsa , Selangor , experienced hailstorms , and some of our neighbours could pick up chunks of ice on their balcony .

Some world bodies are predicting that countries like India will face a drinking water shortage in the next 25 to 30 years . We do not see this as an immediate problem in Malaysia as rain is abundant .

However , states like Penang , Selangor and Perak are finding ways to deal with the potential water shortage to the community as the population increases , and the water supply infrastructure becomes a pressing issue .

More than just monetary aid needed

Already Penang is looking at desalinisation as one way to meet drinking water demands . We don ’ t feel a crisis is happening because we have short memories .

After the great flood that hit Taman Sri Muda , Ulu Langat , Puchong and the centre of Kuala Lumpur , which damaged hundreds of cars and many other residential areas , most of us simply got back to our jobs .

We look to the authorities to help give monetary aid , and we think the problem is over .

However , when I visited some of my badly affected friends , I realised the significance of the flood problem . And every time there is a heavy rain , it sends shivers to those affected . And this fear is real as they do not have an alternative place to move or stay . They will have to deal with eventualities .

At a recent forum on real estate and development , a prominent developer warned the authorities to provide smart planning that will consider its impact on the environment . He was alarmed at the prospect of some local authorities turning water catchment areas and flood

However , when I visited some of my badly affected friends , I realised the significance of the flood problem . And every time there is a heavy rain , it sends shivers to those affected . And this fear is real as they do not have an alternative place to move or stay . They will have to deal with eventualities .”

mitigation pools into high rise residential units .

The case of the Taman Sri Muda floods was the result of the authorities giving a permit to build houses in an area already designated as a water catchment area . And the flooding is a result of that miscalculation .

Do we not wonder when floods happen in the East Coast and in the Klang Valley ? Do we accept it as an inevitable annual problem and not do anything to prevent it ?

We must now start preparing for mid to long-term measures to prevent massive floods from occurring .

Corruption is part of the problem

When the flood mitigation program via the Kuala Lumpur Stormwater Management And Road Tunnel ( SMART Tunnel ) was started in 2003 and completed in 2007 , we could see that the results had successfully prevented severe flooding in KL .

However , as massive development was still taking place , more floods in new areas are happening which begs us to ask the reasons and what are measures to prevent this in the future ?

One such reason is overdevelopment . It is like overfeeding your own body , resulting in diabetes , heart attacks , and strokes .

The call by NGOs and civil societies to impose a moratorium on development in KL and Selangor has fallen on deaf ears . And we cannot help but point our fingers on the authorities for not doing enough and not adhering to the urban master plan .

Many of us also conclude that corrupt politicians are part of the problem in approving risky and controversial urban projects in sensitive areas .

We need a change in mindset and thinking . The younger population , especially those with access to digital and social media , should join environmental movements such as Save Soil . After all they will be taking over this planet after we have long gone . — @ Forest

THE GREEN DUDE , who has taken a serious hobby of farming , such as planting bananas and other crops , realises the importance of maintaining healthy soil . Organic and natural fertilisers are the best choice versus the risk of chemical options to save the soil .