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As our world is increasing in population, our natural resources are becoming more and more scarce. Lately it is becoming a bit of a fad to be eco-friendly or eco-groovy, but sometimes in the wrong way. For example, in this cartoon, the power that is being used for the gasless car is coming from a not so eco-groovy power plant that is dumping toxic waste into a landfill. Maybe she should be riding a bike instead. Of course, not all eco-groovy earth saving activities are bad for the environment, but it is important to truly live the part and not just do it half heartedly.
1 comment:
Very good point. I think this is something that is often overlooked. "Oh, hey. Check out this such-and-such. It's rechargeable. How eco-friendly, right?" Yeah, but are you recharging it from a renewable source? Or are you plugging it into the fossil-fuel-burning electric grid.
Interestingly enough, it might not be all bad news...
I took a great course a while back called "Green Works" (ED 136). One thing we talked about was how the use of electric vehicles (even if they currently rely on non-renewable power generation from the grid) sets the stage for a transition to a renewable grid.
If we stopped petroleum mining right now, and switched our grid to renewable energy sources, what would happen? While it sounds great in theory, think about how unprepared we would be. Most of our vehicles and countless other devices and machines run on petroleum.
What if, however, we start making these electric, battery operated, plug-in vehicles now? Well, when the day finally comes where we have a renewable grid, we will be ready. The consumer devices and products will be compatible with the infrastructure of the energy companies.
Josh Cohen
CCS Bio Alum
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