But the self-sustaining won’t last long. You see, humans come along, looking for something profitable, take it, and leave a gap in the self-sustaining process. Although we, the homo sapiens, are quickly working to stop this, there is simply nothing we can do in only a few years. It would take 5.6 Earths to support the average American’s lifestyle if they lived forever. This is a big problem.

So what can you do? Well, it would take the efforts of a whole planet to save it. What we can do is we can stop wasting so many resources. We can take shorter showers, not flush the toilet just to get rid of bugs. We can also stop using too many aerosol sprays.

We also might all grow trees in our yards if we live in houses. Trees are actually able to undo the pollution we have left on the environment. If convenient, try to recycle. Landfills take over a hundred years to decay a piece of paper so you should try to recycle.

The humans also make a cycle in this self-sustaining. But they also destroy some of it. Whenever humans destroy an environment, they try to bring it back, they usually use samples from other locations. For example, once, pollution was so bad on an island, a whole corral reef surrounding it had disappeared. So a group of scientists found similar corral on another nearby island and took a small specimen. They planted it carefully in a strategic position so that it would grow into another corral reef.

Say plants are growing in a location such as a rainforest. Then let’s say that monkeys live there too. The plants grow food for the monkeys. The monkeys come and eat the fruit and the seeds too. So a few days later, after the monkeys processed the fruit, they extract it from there systems. The monkey had planted a new tree somewhere else and had made it possible for reproduction with room to grow for the plant. The other factor is, when a monkey dies by the plant, the monkey becomes fertile soil and gives the plant plentiful nutrition.

Obviously, an SUV is not an economical choice for a car as far as gas is concerned. Most SUVs are lucky to achieve 15 miles to the gallon, whereas a compact car like a Nissan Sentra can achieve as high as 33 miles to the gallon. This is because the SUV weighs a lot more, so it takes more power (gas) to haul it down the street.
So obviously, the person driving the SUV is going to have to fill up much more often (and in much larger quantities) to get the same amount of usage out of their vehicle as a Sentra driver. To put this in much more simpler terms, take two people who have to drive 100 miles to work each day, with the miles per gallon noted above. The SUV driver would need about 7 gallons whereas the more economical Sentra driver would only take about 3 gallons. Put these figures over the course of a year, and times it by all of the SUV drivers in the world, and you’ve got a serious problem.

I don’t buy the argument that SUV drivers need the room, because I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen one small woman driving a huge SUV. This is the worst display of ego, ignorance, and consumerism I’ve seen in recent times. The gas supply is short as it is, why do we need to put more stress on the situation by continuing to drive these wastes of space we call SUVs? It is this author’s firm belief that the vanity of SUV owners are a significant cause of the gas crisis.

Some SUV drivers I’ve spoken to express regret over their purchases, because their gas bills now far exceed the monthly payment for the vehicle itself. To sell the SUV would be difficult in a time when people are trying to save money, not add to their bills. So we shouldn’t look at all SUV drivers as if they are doing this on purpose—they may just have no other choice at this point but to drive these gas guzzlers.

So if you are a young person who is nagging your parents for a big truck, curb your enthusiasm and think about the fact that you wouldn’t be able to afford it in due time. If you are going through a mid life crisis or have a napoleon complex, please go see a therapist rather than satisfying your urge to buy an SUV. A big truck will not fill the void!