Much talk has been made of late regarding the importance of the environment.

As the backdrop against which we live our lives, the environment supports us, sustains us, and permeates all our activities and actions. There is, however, a fine balance between maintaining a sustainable environment, and continuing to perform actions that, while necessary to our economy and status of life, have a detrimental effect on natural resources and nature itself. What is clear, however, is that if we continue with our wanton destruction of the environment, we will soon be unable to survive on this planet in any way. One way of helping the environmental cause is to reduce the amount of waste that we generate and the amount of resources we use. This preliminary step is highly important in that a preventive measure is far more effective than a mitigative one. By taking steps to reduce the amount of water, electricity, plastics and other resources that we use, and reducing our carbon and waste output, we can expend more energy and effort on other measures, and decrease the overall impact on the environment. Taking public transport is an especially effective way to reduce ones carbon output, by dividing it between many more people and refraining from driving a car. The second way of saving the environment is to find myriad ways of reusing ones possessions and goods. Reusing a bag, or used goods, can help to prolong the life of that item, and prevent waste from building up too quickly. It also increases the value of the item. A common example is Bring Your Own Bag Day, where supermarket patrons are encouraged to bring their own shopping bag rather than ask for plastic ones. This reduces the amount of plastic wasted as well as encourages a more positive environmental attitude amongst patrons. Another solution is to refrain from using disposable cutleries, and instead take the time to purchase durable cutlery and the effort to wash and clean them regularly. Recycling is an extension of reusing our resources. Recycling is a way to refrain from wasting what we have too quickly, and helps to keep existing materials in circulation and in use, instead of being thrown away completely. Proper waste distribution and collection then becomes the utmost priority. Without proper collection and sorting, it is difficult to effectively and efficiently recycle waste to its fullest potential. A purer form of recycling, then, could come in the recycling of water, a task that Singapore has put great effort in. The reward has been NEWater an efficient and viable recirculation of water that helps to solve Singapore water deficit to a large extent. Reducing, reusing and recycling are all highly efficient and green habits in their own right. But it is only in tandem that they show their true worth. It is important that we make an effort to reduce the amount of resources we use to reduce our net impact on the environment and then reuse and recycle the materials we have already extracted, to prevent any lasting effects of undue and premature waste disposal and wastage of resources. If an environmentally friendly attitude is adopted by the majority of the human population, there is no doubt that a green, sustainable environment is within sight.