Introduction

The unbearable heat of a New Zealand summer. Reclining on the beach with a
fruju in one hand as the potent smell of creamy sunblock drifts down the beach.
You dart across the sand avoiding scolded feet. The crisp water sprawls between
your fingers as you glide through the aqua ocean.
You surface
Your tongue runs over your teeth colliding with small specks of hard plastic. You
look down in shock to see you are swimming in a bowl of plastic soup.

You feel their hand embrace yours as you walk side by side through the field. You
wonder if they feel it too, or if the butterflies are only in your stomach. You peek
over at them. Their eyes are specked with yellow spots; the numerous
streetlights reflect a powerful glow. There it is, a dreamy picnic set up for you
both. You float down to the rug, in awe of this fantasy. Your eyes are as bright
as the stars, they declare. Your heart skips a beat. You lay down side-by-side and
stare up into the vacant, hazy blankness. What stars? you reply confused. They
search the heavens for a reply. But its too late, the moment has gone.

I hope that you noticed something peculiar about these scenarios. Both are
possible future insights to what a highly polluted world would seem like. New
Zealand is fortunate to have moderate pollution levels; this allows us to have the
power to stop pollution before it becomes a more severe problem.

And I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things. But
when you came in, you defiled my land and made my heritage an abomination.
Jeremiah 2:7

Pollution has been evident on this earth since the dawn of mankind. As the world
evolves, so does our land including the various ways it serves us as a natural
resource. New Zealand has changed the way in which our land is used, the New
Zealand parliamentary commissioner believes that this is driven by the heavy
reliance of the economy on exports of commodities (Wright, 2013). It is ironic
that in the attempt to improve and expand as a country, we are harming our
country instead. People hold pollution accountable for the deterioration of
nature, but who is in fact aiding this profanation?

The environment and pollution are juxtaposing ideas and do not belong together
in the same ecological niche. My book reveals what it must feel like to be a
poisonous pollutant, interfering with natures beauty and wellbeing.










Stream

Deep within the suburbs of Lower Hutt, she trickles through the environs that
are home to ordinary families. On the surface she glistens and sparkles, but the
shadows are where I loiter. I tarnish her pure shine. I disrupt the smooth
current. I sicken her banks with my unhealthy sludge. When disrupted I cause an
unbearable stench that makes the ducks scowl. You will find pieces of colourless
plastics trapped under her skirts; dull from the time they have spent soaking in
my poisoned water. Although fooled with her beauty, onlookers dare not swim in
her. Little do they know the depth of her problems.


I am pollution

Nine kilometres of contaminated waters flow through Wellingtons
outskirts. The Waiwhet stream is New Zealands most polluted urban
waterway, due to early industrial discharges of toxic waste. The stream is
contaminated through material pollution, but mostly through the
contamination of sediments and mud. The stream has undergone a 10
million dollar decontamination project in 2009, and a further 6 million
dollar clean up began this year (Field, 2014).

Beach

The wave breaks and stretches onto shore. When near, I latch on and am
drawn into the mysterious, dim waters of the Pacific Ocean. There I drift,
dainty and graceful, nave to the harm I will trigger in this foreign place.
The tide subtly leads me through the ocean Animals are mistaking me as
their prey. I am killing marine life in my path. The tide subtly leads me to
where the others rest, others of my kind. Battered and bruised, I arrive to
where they gather, like some sort of convention. This is my home now, at
least for the next forty years.

I am pollution

2) Far into the Pacific Ocean lies the consequence of mankind. A mass collection
of plastic litter known as the Pacific Gyre, gathers to create a cluster equivalent to
five times the size of New Zealand. This cluster retains plastics such as bags, nets,
and even helmets and computers. The smallest, yet most potent form of plastic
pollution is micro plastic. Broken down into small digestible morsels (Morton,
2008), these plastic particles are deemed to be a significant cause of marine
death. An estimated 3.5 million pieces of new plastic enter the worlds
oceans daily"(Morton, 2008), creating a world problem so severe it is hard
to comprehend.


Light pollution

My harsh beams turn to haze as I disperse my rays throughout this hollow
space. I spread myself across the sky like a blanket, ready to settle in for
the night. The silver sequins are speckled throughout the sky, but for my
eyes only. I have rid the earth of this glorious sight, and tricked it into
thinking the sky has been emptied of stars. Some are aware of their
existence up here in the night sky, but some have only seen the underside
of me. I am selfish, I am destructive,

I am pollution.

With more than half of the worlds population now living in cities, 3 out
of every 4 people in cities have never experienced the wonderment of
pristinely dark skies (AURA, 2013). Light pollution is the harsh result of
poor lighting design. Lights are misplaced causing an unwanted gloomy
haze to fill the atmosphere. Not only does this hinder the beauty of our
skies, but also it disrupts ecosystems, wastes energy and interferes with
inspiration.

Drain pollution

Drip by drip. I sit here for hours, creating a puddle getting bigger and bigger. The
engine leaves from above my head, exposing me to passers by. I lie here for days,
one with the road, waiting to be uplifted. Finally, the clean drops of rain awaken
my dormant film. I spread my liquid throughout the gravel; I know exactly where
I am headed. My rainbow sheen and slippery texture make it easy to gush down
the gutter grasping onto rainwater as I go. The leaves are gathered around the
entrance, challenging me to make my way through. I slip and slide effortlessly
reaching the grills of the drain. I know where I am heading next. The ocean.

I am pollution.

Storm drains are strictly a destination for water. Unfortunately, this water
collects foreign and unwanted objects during its journey to the drain. Storm
drains assist water directly into seas or rivers, therefore no filtering is carried
out. What goes in comes out the other end in the same condition.

Conclusion- end page


The unbearable heat of a New Zealand summer. Reclining on the beach with a
fruju in one hand as the potent smell of creamy sunblock drifts down the beach.
You dart across the sand avoiding scolded feet. The crisp water sprawls between
your fingers as you glide through the aqua ocean.
You surface
You take a deep breath and open your eyes to reveal the true beauty of our
country. The water is so clear you can see your distorted feet. You gaze up to see
dolphins leaping in the distance.
A sight we all want to see.