我们赖以生存的环境We Need to Live in a Clean Environment（第二名）之一
    As modern science and technology make increasingly faster and broader strides, man has also made an enormous stride toward modern civilization. However on the other hand, our environment has been contaminated by all kinds of pollution, especially industrial pollution. Man’s greed to lead a comfortable life without knowing the consequences has resulted in endless environmental disasters. First of all the air we breathe is always thick with fumes and smog. We feel we are almost smothering sometimes. If a person has long lived near factories that produce air pollution, he is very likely to contract lung cancer. Then comes water pollution. May people do not have good sanitary habits and they throw garbage at random. Hence we can see rubbish floating on the sea and rivers. Many people are deprived of the pleasure of fishing and swimming. There is a problem of rubbish, too. FROM liuxuepaper.com.

Some kinds of rubbish cannot be disposed of and they are piled up little by little, and our space of living is being taken up. The fourth kind of pollution right beside us” something we may encounter every day. It is the cigarette. With the development of our economy, many people can afford this bad habit of smoking. And they become dangers to not only smokers themselves but the people around them. Pollution has been in existence for a long time, yet only of late have voices been raised against it, because the problem is growing more and more serious. Therefore, man has come to realize that those who produce pollution are, in fact, the victims of it and that it is time we took concrete steps to protect ourselves. Otherwise, we may end up with no pure water to drink, no clean air to breathe, and no safe place to live in. An erroneous but popular concept is that economic prosperity can be only achieved at the expense of a clean environment and public health. It is true that what is done cannot be undone. But we can still try our utmost to minimize the damage already done and meanwhile eliminate the causes of pollution. Both the former and the latter tasks rely on government action and every resident’s cooperation. We should emphasize the importance of prevention in particular. Repairing the damage already done only is like treating the symptoms but ignoring the sickness. In short, it is everyone’s right to live in a clean environment and it is everyone’s responsibility to leave a clean world for the generations to come. Only when everyone is aware of his right and faces his responsibility can we live in a clean environment.