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Essay: Real Environmentalism (view source)
Revision as of 02:38, March 2, 2011
, 02:38, March 2, 2011no edit summary
===Waste Reduction / Excessive Consumerism===
===Waste Reduction / Excessive Consumerism===
Who hasn’t driven through some wealthy town on garbage day and spotted a new-looking sofa, TV, lawn machine, piece of furniture? It looks like the stuff you buy, only it’s being thrown out? And where does it go? Either in the ground, or to China<ref>Electronic waste is often shipped to China to be "recycled," i.e. crudely smashed, burned, or otherwise dangerously broken down by workers. One village in China has become known as an "e-waste village" because it is a major center of this primitive recycling business</ref>. All of these perfectly good items end up useless, dumped in a landfill or scrapped for parts. And yet, they could be donated, even sold, to those in need. Thus, the issue of waste reduction is not only environmental (wasted resources) but social (reduces supply of cheap used items for the disadvantaged). There should be a powerful Christian motivation here to reduce consumerism, or at least to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in the landfill.
Who hasn’t driven through some wealthy town on garbage day and spotted a new-looking sofa, TV, lawn machine, piece of furniture? It looks like the stuff you buy, only it’s being thrown out? And where does it go? Either in the ground, or to China<ref>Electronic waste is often shipped to China to be "recycled," i.e. crudely smashed, burned, or otherwise dangerously broken down by workers. One village in China has become known as an "e-waste village" because it is a major center of this primitive recycling business</ref>. All of these perfectly good items end up useless, dumped in a landfill or scrapped for parts. And yet, they could be donated, even sold, to those in need. Thus, the issue of waste reduction is not only environmental (wasted resources) but social (reduces supply of cheap used items for the disadvantaged). There should be a powerful Christian motivation here to reduce consumerism, or at least to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in the landfill.
Another detailed point must be made under this heading. There is a lot of talk about recycling, and recycling is good. But when an item is reusable (e.g. an old TV) and there is someone who wants that item, it is wasteful even to recycle it. It is economically wasteful (because the market value of the item will almost certainly exceed its scrap value), environmentally wasteful (because it takes no resources to continue using an item, while it takes at least some resources to reprocess an item), and socially wasteful as explained in an earlier paragraph.
==="Capitalism" in Garbage Disposal===
Have you ever thought about how, if you live in a town, you pay the same amount in garbage disposal taxes whether you put out a houseful of trash or just a few bags? The quite common flat-tax system of garbage disposal is "socialistic," because it does not promote individual responsibility. In "capitalism," individual responsibility is the flip side of individual economic freedom.
In some municipalities, "capitalist" garbage disposal exists. Sometimes humorously referred to as "pay as you throw," a fee is placed on each unit of garbage put out for disposal. An individual pays for exactly as much garbage as he produces. Therefore, there is a strong motivation to throw out as little as possible, and to compost, recycle, and donate as much as possible.
===Composting===
===Composting===
Composting is not talked about a whole lot, even by environmentalists. Perhaps this is because few people enjoy spending time with their garbage (which is understandable).
Composting is not talked about a whole lot, even by environmentalists. Perhaps this is because few people enjoy spending time with their garbage (which is understandable). But composting is just as important as recycling, only it "recycling" organic trash. Instead of TVs and bottles, it is recycling lettuce scraps and moldy bread. Composting reduces the mass of garbage that will end up in the landfill, and it also keeps the organic matter in circulation. When organic trash goes to the landfill, it may take years or even decades for the matter to decompose and return to the earth. When composted, however, it is returned to the earth in matter of days.
==Energy Savings==
This issue is last because it is least important. The main reason we are told to save energy is to create less CO<sup>2</sup>, but since man made global warming is by no means proven, CO<sup>2</sup> emissions are not that big a deal. The other reason for saving energy is that fossil fuels are for the most part nonrenewable. We will almost certainly have discovered sustainable renewable energy sources by the time fossil fuels run out, however, so saving energy is good, but is far less important than the other issues outlined.
==The Real Environmentalist ==
The real environmentalist is not stereotypical hippie driving a Smart Car, eating vegan, and conscious of his personal carbon footprint. This image has little to do with true environmental stewardship. The real environmentalist is out "in the field," picking up litter, counting his bags of trash, and donating his used goods. And perhaps most importantly, he recognizes God as the Creator, and derives his respect for nature from the fact that it was made by the Creator, who saw that it was good.
==References==
==References==