Are We as a Race Greener Than We Were Five Years Ago?

I don’t think anyone can argue that we’re not greener than we were five years ago.  Sure, there are places on the planet that haven’t gotten the message yet, and there are lots of places at war, which is definitely not a ‘green’ pastime.  But in most of the world, people are finally realizing that this planet wasn’t meant to sustain unlimited amounts of people drawing unlimited riches out of it without putting something back.

It won’t last forever, our continuing pillaging

But we still haven’t made large strides towards a greener planet – more like baby steps.  Speaking of babies, should your little one be wearing cloth nappies or disposable diapers?  The greener choice isn’t always obvious, which is part of what makes these decisions so hard.  For instance, if you buy new cloth diapers, wash them in very hot water, dry them in the clothes dryer, and buy new ones for each child, you’re leaving a bigger carbon footprint than someone who buys disposables.

On the other hand, if you get your cloth nappies from a friend or neighbour (clean, but used), the wash water isn’t above 60C, you hang them out to dry, and keep the same nappies for all the little darlings that come along, then the cloth nappies are the greener choice.

Old nappies aren’t green nappies…

Living green takes forethought and effort, which is why we’re probably not advancing in this area as fast as we could.  We’re a world of consumers.  We’re used to getting what we want, when we want it.  Now.

People in America are finally beginning to carry reusable shopping bags, which many of us in Europe have been using for decades.  People are beginning to recycle much more, and even compost their vegetable waste.  Seattle, in Washington State (U. S.) has even started a collection programme for food waste.  People put their food waste out with the recycling (in a separate bin), the City picks it up and takes it to a compost area, and then in the spring they sell it back to the very people who donated it, as finished compost!  The collection is free, and people can obtain natural compost without keeping a smelly bin somewhere.

Even little things can help.  For instance, if you have even a small garden plot, grow “companion” plants.  Basil and tomato flourish together, each helping the other by keeping pests away.  Using natural plantings like this reduces the need for pesticides. Those with larger gardens can grow overwintering plants that return nutrients to the soil when they’re tilled in, in the spring.  Fava beans are a perfect choice, as is clover.  This reduces the need for artificial fertilizers, and allows the soil to “grow” its own compost, as it did before human intervention.

Basil and Tomato - great together always!

But being green today is also much easier than it was even five years ago, which is helping us to head in that direction.  Because we’re used to “living easy” (see above) we will only expend a certain amount of effort in our quest for greenness.  Five years ago it would have taken quite a bit of work to find a fluorescent bulb for your standard light.  Now they’re everywhere.  More car shares and bicycle racks are popping up, as well.

It will always be easier to destroy the planet than to live sustainably on it, especially given the numbers of humans that are blossoming on our little floating rock in the sky.  This is why it may seem to many people that we’re not very much greener than we were five years ago, but in reality, when you consider the added strain of the additional people on the planet, the progress we’ve made seems even more impressive.

In some areas, of course, that’s been the path.  Wars in Africa, the Middle East, and Asian countries, to name just a few, have killed millions of people and created horrendous pollution from not only the explosions themselves, but the ordnance left behind, as well as the pollution required to manufacture the explosives.  Add to that the pollution created when this stuff is trucked or flown thousands of miles to its destination, and you can see how war is a huge polluter.

A green war? Hemp bullets? Recycled war heads?

But little things can pollute, too, and with millions of us on the planet, those little things add up.  The biggest, of course, is auto pollution.  The more we can walk, bicycle, or pole our gondola to work or shopping, the less of an impact we’ll leave on the planet.  Our homes can be made more efficient, whether we live in a tiny, walk-up flat or a country manor.  We can make informed choices when we purchase everything from laundry soap to cars to apples.  And we can change things with our vote, as well.

We can support candidates who care about environmental policies.  We can vote for “sin” taxes that cover not just liquor and cigarettes, but plastics and chemicals.  We can learn about carbon credits and passive solar and even active solar.  We can use non-VOC paints on our house and energy efficient windows when they need to be replaced.  We can plant trees of the perfect size around our house to provide shade in the summer, reducing our need for air conditioning and thus electricity.

Support Al Gore! Although he still may not win

Another thing that’s making our “green” easier is that people are more knowledgeable about carbon offsets.  If you need to travel, you can buy credits to offset the carbon you’ll generate with your air, rail, or auto travel.  Very cool!

But again, this all takes planning ahead, and a little education.   And perhaps that’s where the emphasis needs to be.  Yes, we’re probably greener now than we were 5 years ago, but we need to keep progressing forward.  People need to think about what they’re doing and if there’s a better way to do it, something that we’re not always used to doing.  Planning ahead means we can plan our activities so they leave as little impact as possible.

We all wanna stay here, don’t we?

We’re much greener than we were 50 years ago, of course, but even compared to 5 years ago, we’ve made our lives – and the planet – greener than in the past.

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