Prince Charles Says He’s Worried About His Fourth Grandchild Growing Up On A Polluted Planet

Prince Charles is excited for his fourth grandchild, but he’s worried about how Meghan Markle and Prince Harry‘s future son or daughter will be affected by pollution.

The 69-year-old has proven his commitment to conservation of the environment over the years, so while visiting Ghana recently, he shared his concerns for the bundle of joy on the way. “I am about to have another grandchild actually. I suspect quite a few of you may too have grandchildren or will do soon,” he said, according to The Telegraph. “It does seem to me insanity if we are going to bequeath this completely polluted, damaged, and destroyed world to them.” He added, “All grandchildren deserve a better future.”

He then continued his speech by opening up about innovative ways to reduce waste. “A good start has been made. The matter of plastic debris in the environment, in particular, the ocean, is now on the agenda,” he said. “We do, however, need to keep it there as the amount of plastic entering the ocean every year is, unbelievably, set to get worse rather than better. We cannot, indeed must not, allow this situation to continue.”

Charles added, “A solution is achievable and simply has to be done for all our sakes — and, above all, for the long-term viability of all those species in the sea which are already suffering unbearably because of our actions.”

Prince William and Prince Harry revealed in Prince, Son And Heir: Charles At 70 how Charles used to have them pick up trash to reduce pollution. “He took us litter picking, when we were younger, on holiday,” William, 36, said in the flick (set to air on Thursday, Nov. 8 at 9 p.m. in the UK), according to The Telegraph. “We were in Norfolk on school holidays, and went out litter picking with him.”

He added, “Both of us thought, ‘This is perfectly normal, everyone must do it.’ We’re there with our, basically, spikes, stabbing the rubbish into black plastic bags.”

Harry, 34, also shared that he and his brother were inspired to protect the planet by their father and late mother Princess Diana’s efforts. “He’s done an amazing job. Without telling us what we should be doing or the direction we should go in, he’s just let us learn from the nature of the job, learn from him, learn from mummy,” the red-headed royal shared. “To the point where I used to get taken the mickey out of at school for picking up rubbish. I didn’t go out consciously looking for it but when you go for walks anywhere and you see something and it stands out, you pick it up.” We bet Charles will instill this motto in all his grandchildren!

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