Voices is the Dorset Echo's weekly youth page - written for young people by young people.

Climate Change. Its happening and fast. No one can say they live the perfect life by causing no harm what so ever on the planet. But we can reduce what impact we do have.

So what will actually happen if we don’t stop climate change? The burning of fossil fuels produces 21.3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. Natural processes such as photosynthesis can only absorb half of what we produce, leaving the rest to go into the atmosphere. If this doesn’t stop the earth will continue to heat up and eventually ice sheets will melt. This means that sea levels will rise and coastal cities like LA and San Francisco will be under water. There are alternative ways to get energy. Renewable energy sources such as wind, solar power and hydroelectricity are all options we need to take to live a more eco-friendly life. This means our dependence on coal and other fossil fuels will drop.

Every year one million buses full of plastic gets dumped into the sea. If we don’t cut back on plastic then by the year 2050 there will be more plastic in the sea than fish. Do you really need a plastic bag for that? Do you really need a receipt for a piece of gum? Supermarket industries need to consider using less plastic and going back to paper bags.

If we don’t take action now we will face the worst threat to our planet ever. Do your part today.

Amy Tufnail, 14