List of environmental Problems

Environmental issues are issues related to human impact on the living environment, habitats, land use and natural resources.

The following alphabetical list shows some of the main known environmental issues by major topic title:

• Acidification (includes algal bloom, coral reef loss, etc.)
• Biodiversity (conservation of biological diversity)
• Conservation (nature and animal conservation, etc.)
• Consumerism (linking the state of consumers within the economy to environmental degradation and social malaise, planned obsolescence)
• Deforestation (illegal logging, impact of fires, rapid pace of destruction, etc.)
• Desertification
• Endangered species / threatened species (CITES, loss of species, impact of chemical use on species, cultural use, species extinction, invasive species, etc.)
• Energy (use, conservation, extraction of resources to create energy, efficient use, renewable energy, etc.)
• Environmental degradation
• Environmental health (poor environmental quality causing poor health in human beings, bio-accumulation, poisoning)
• Environmental impact assessment (one major current form of assessing human impact on the environment)
• Food safety (including food justice, impacts of additives, etc.)
• Genetic engineering or modification (includes GMOs)
• Global environmental issues (in recognition that environmental issues cross borders)
• Grassroots solutions (local and regional environmental issues solved from the bottom-up)
• Habitat loss (destruction, fragmentation, changed use)
• Intergenerational equity (recognition that future generations deserve a healthy environment)
• Intensive farming
• Invasive species (weeds, pests, feral animals, etc.)
• Land degradation
• Land use planning / Land use (includes urban sprawl)
• Natural catastrophes (linked to climate change, desertification, deforestation, loss of natural resources such as wetlands, etc.)
• Nuclear power, waste and pollution
• Over-exploitation of natural resources (plant and animal stocks, mineral resources (mining), etc.)
• Overfishing (depletion of ocean fish stocks)
• Ozone depletion (CFCs, Montreal Protocol)
• Population issues (overpopulation, access to reproductive control (reproductive health), etc.)
• Reduce, reuse, recycle (and refuse) (ways to reduce impact, minimise footprint, etc.)
• Soil conservation (includes soil erosion, contamination and salination of land, especially fertile land; see also desertification and deforestation)
• Sustainability (finding ways to live more sustainably on the planet, lessening human footprint, increasing human fulfillment with less impact) (see also sustainable development and poverty alleviation)
• Toxic chemicals (persistent organic pollutants, prior informed consent, pesticides, endocrine disruptors, etc.)
• Water scarcity