Guest Opinion

Enviromentalists, Pick your Battles

by Ben Brandt

I have a problem with the path advocated by many environmentalists. The approach drives people away from making sustainable change, and distracts our energies from more productive goals. Specifically, environmentalists are mistaken to focus their attack on thermostat settings, air conditioning, hot water heaters, personal automobiles, and meat consumption. Instead of using guilt as leverage to coerce people to downsize their lifestyles, I propose channeling our energies and resources toward infrastructure improvements that allow us to consume at our present level – in a sustainable manner.

Let me start by stating that I do consider myself to be an environmentalist. However, to me that means providing stewardship of our resources for the next generation, not living a third-world lifestyle. Can you imagine modern environmentalists during the great (whale) oil shortage of the late 1850s? They would tell us that the whales are being hunted to extinction, and that we must not burn whale oil lamps at night. Add in some guilt-inducing statistics, like that 99% of the world’s population goes to bed when the sun goes down, and that the 19^th century American consumer is the first generation in the history of the world to think that they can stay up until 10 or 11 o’clock every night. The whale oil problem was solved without reverting to a more primitive lifestyle, and we should treat modern problems no differently.

I agree that our current pattern of consumption is un-sustainable, and there are massive changes ahead. For instance, we are heading toward peak-oil production. Nobody can say for certain whether that peak was last year or 15 years off, but it’s coming soon. How are we helped by turning down the thermostat an extra 5 degrees? When oil is $250 a barrel and rationed by the government, it won’t matter that you lowered your thermostat and super-insulated you house. You’re still not getting any oil. Responsible stewardship (to me) is switching to geothermal heat and baseboard electric heat. I know geothermal is expensive to install in new construction, and even more expensive to retrofit. We need motion at all levels, from zoning regulations forbidding fossil-fuel burning furnaces in new construction, to motivated individuals who take the plunge and retrofit. I’ll gladly pay more to heat my house if I’m choosing a sustainable fuel, but not to outbid the Chinese for the world’s last barrel of oil.

Sustainability will attract more supporters with a message of stewardship and lifestyle enhancement than with a message of guilt and lifestyle reduction. What percentage of the population are vegetarians? Very few. We alienate the vast majority of our potential base of supporters with soulful lamentations on the amount of grain necessary to create a pound of beef, and the huge quantities of fresh water consumed. Is there a water problem in the Western USA? Yes, and it requires the concerted effort of our whole society to solve. We need desalinization plants, wastewater recycling, storm water capture, and heaven forbid –LIMITS on the populations of desert cities. Don’t tell me to consume less beef; it won’t solve the problem. Have a look at the population growth of San Diego or Las Vegas. Are we all going to become vegetarians so that another million people can live in the desert?

Some will object that my proposals of expanding our capacity are expensive, and that it is more practical to curtail our consumption. In many areas that’s true. In the supermarket, I see way too much packaging. I see whole coconuts wrapped in plastic wrap (why?); at the deli I see pre-sliced pounds of American cheese wrapped in plastic wrap (fair enough) and supported by a small Styrofoam tray (totally unnecessary). In this area, it makes sense to reduce.

To avoid the runaway greenhouse effect, we are going to need to reduce our household carbon footprint to zero –or very close to it –over the course of the next generation. We all need geothermal heat and air conditioning and a solar panel (or windmill) to power it. We need plug-in electric cars, and storm water collection. As environmentalists, I believe that our efforts are best spent providing leadership to sustainable lifestyles and policies, rather than leading the retreat from modern conveniences.