Ever since Earth Day 1990, many people, including me, have become more aware of our environment

and how we are destroying it. Earth Day helped teach me the facts and convinced me to start recycling our garbage.

When I learned the statistics on how many trees it takes to make one Sunday New York Times, I became very frustrated. My family, as well as many others, was helping destroy forests by not recycling our newspapers. I urged my parents to recycle our newspapers, but it seemed to be a hassle to them. To me it was not a hassle, but a commitment to save the trees. I was even willing to bring the newspapers to the dump. Soon, though, we all became more sensitive to what we were throwing away. After we started recycling newspapers, metal cans, glass and plastic came next.

Many people do not care where their garbage goes, as long as it leaves their homes. Garbage is beginning to collect at our local dumps and these dumps have become another urgent environmental concern.

Characters on television shows have started making a point of recycling and that has made more people aware of the situation. And I hear environmental statistics and tips on both programs and commercials. This too, helps spread the word.

I do not know what more we can possibly do to get America aware of this problem. Earth Day is one way. n