The Skriker Actor Packet

THE DAMAGE REMAINS...
! Despite our negligence about the environment, the deadly facts of damage remain.
Not only is Great Britain guilty of startling statistics of pollution and damage...America
to this day is also one of the world’s worst offenders.
10 Startling Facts about Pollution in America...
1. 40% of America’s rivers and 46% of America’s lakes are too polluted
for fishing, swimming, or aquatic life.
2. The Mississippi River – which drains the lands of nearly 40% of the
continental United Sates – carries an estimated 1.5 million metric
tons of nitrogen pollution into the Gulf of Mexico each year. The
resulting dead zone in the Gulf each summer is about the size of
Massachusetts.
3. 1.2 trillion gallons of untreated sewage, storm water, and industrial
waste are discharged into US waters annually.
4. Polluted drinking waters are a problem for about half of the world’s
population. Each year there are about 250 million cases of waterbased
diseases, resulting in roughly 5 to 10 million deaths.
5. Vehicle exhaust contributes roughly 60% of all carbon monoxide
emissions nationwide, and up to 95% in cities.
6. Large hog farms emit hydrogen sulfide, a gas that most often causes
flu-like symptoms in humans, but at high concentrations can lead to
brain damage.
7. Each year, U.S. factories spew 3 million tons of toxic chemicals into
the air, land, and water.
8. In the U.S. 41% of all insecticides are used on corn. Of these, 80% are
used to treat a pest that could be controlled simply by rotating a
different crop for just one year.
9. Every year, one American produces over 3,285 pounds of hazardous
waste.
10. Americans generate 30 billion foam cups, 220 million tires, and 1.8
billion disposable diapers every year. Over 80% of items in landfills
can be recycled, but they’re not.
11. Over 80% of items in landfills can be recycled, but they’re not.