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Why I Can't Reduce My Carbon Footprint
Tony Romm is now a contributor for The Cram, a student news arm of the newly launched PoliticsDaily.com. To follow his future work, click here.
It would not be Earth Day weekend without the requisite guilt: Pesky environmentalists proselytizing their cause ad nauseum, hoping to influence at least one group of complacent bystanders to evaluate their carbon footprint. Though annoying, their cause has ample merit: A recent study by the National Climate Data Center reveals that the period between January and March 2009 was the eighth hottest on record. The next three months, for that reason, are certain to pan out no differently.
So on the heels of an excessively warm Earth Day, from the couch in my excessively warm apartment in Washington D.C., I decide to question my own impact on the environment. To do so, I locate an informal quiz at EarthDay.net, one of the "holiday's" leading advocacy groups. The verdict: I am a greedy, hoarding, inefficient waste of Earth space, living a lifestyle that, if emulated by billions, would destroy the Earth more than four times over:
I'm shocked; until now, I have no idea I'm truly wrecking the Earth, and I thus feel guilty. I subsequently consult the Web site's quiz-specific conservation guide, hoping to gain some insight into which specific behaviors contribute to my planet's downfall. What I find, however, verges on asinine.
The top tip EarthDay.net offers me is predictable: I should replace my most common household appliances with machines or devices that are more energy efficient. Although I have not the resources to make any such purchases right now, I estimate their cost using BestBuy.com anyway. My findings are hardly surprising. To replace the old refrigerator, washer, dryer, air conditioner and television in my apartment with the cheapest (and smallest) ENERGY STAR-compliant appliances on the market, it would cost me approximately $1,900, sans delivery and tax. This hefty sum excludes a host of other inefficient appliances that I normally use -- including my laptop and stove, for instance -- which would presumably cost me even more to replace.
(Click to read more about the quiz and what it means.)
The Web site also suggests I reduce my daily animal product intake by half, meat and poultry especially. I find this section considerably troubling, given that I eat poultry (never meat), at most twice per week. But I note it anyway: Abstaining from chicken and turkey saves me a few dollars -- until I decide to purchase an equivalent, pre-packaged good (which the Web site also discourages). On balance, I find I've actually spent more money than I would have normally budgeted for food, probably in a halfhearted attempt to purchase only those items packaged using recyclable materials. I also discover that I've produced about two times as much waste as I would have if I just ate the damn chicken sandwich I wanted in the first place.
Discouraged, I return to my checklist to note one final peculiarity -- my "energy land" consumption is massive. I start playing with the quiz's questions in a feeble attempt to lower this rating, and I discover only one: Turning off all power to my apartment, which somehow only reduces my overall Ecological Footprint by .2 global acres. I note similar changes to this measurement when I consent to living in a small house without any running water, or otherwise deprive myself of basic human amenities (that my apartment, much less the District, would not let me shut off even if I asked). I realize, at this point, that there's little net benefit to such massive inconvenience -- maybe $120 saved each month so that I can write this article in the dark without Internet -- so I quit the quiz and begin reflecting.
And it is at that point I realize I'm not alone in my frustration. It is somewhat indisputable that addressing global warming is a unparalleled "moral imperative," as the Goreacle told lawmakers at a committee hearing last week. The perennial images of melting ice caps and potent storms are haptic reminders of humankind's manifest wrath on the lonely planet that they greedily inhabit. To be sure, the green movement has its doubters, some of whom have received more attention than is naturally warranted. But Americans on balance seem to be slowly admitting their role in the Earth's progressive climate change, even if they are simultaneously taking credit for breakthroughs that are wholly fictional.
Consequently, it is no longer guilt or doubt preventing scores of Americans from altering their lifestyles in the name of a global pursuit. Rather, it's the economy: Utilitarianism, the greatest good for the greatest number of people, suggests rationalism, an implicit understanding of losses and gains, and amid America's economic meltdown, that calculation has itself become a contradiction. How does a family without a steady income outfit their empty kitchen with a new set of energy-efficient appliances? How can an underpaid D.C.-based, entry-level journalist afford an energy efficient car, much less any personal form of transportation? And why should either feel guilty for those inabilities?
Hypotheticals aside, this has been the ubiquitous struggle of the modern environmentalist movement: how to balance a legitimate, rational concern for the environment with the equally legitimate, equally rational economic constraints that tug constantly at families' wallets. The green thumbs among us have not an answer to this quandary, and it is evident in a number of their public information campaigns -- this quiz included. Indeed, I reckon I am not the only college student this weekend to question the utility of Earth Day-induced guilt; it is 88 degrees Fahrenheit here, which is hot even by the District's standards. I also know I'm hardly the only soul too poor to afford to save the planet. It's not that I don't care, it's just that I can't -- at least, by the real environmentalists' rigid standards.
It would not be Earth Day weekend without the requisite guilt: Pesky environmentalists proselytizing their cause ad nauseum, hoping to influence at least one group of complacent bystanders to evaluate their carbon footprint. Though annoying, their cause has ample merit: A recent study by the National Climate Data Center reveals that the period between January and March 2009 was the eighth hottest on record. The next three months, for that reason, are certain to pan out no differently.
So on the heels of an excessively warm Earth Day, from the couch in my excessively warm apartment in Washington D.C., I decide to question my own impact on the environment. To do so, I locate an informal quiz at EarthDay.net, one of the "holiday's" leading advocacy groups. The verdict: I am a greedy, hoarding, inefficient waste of Earth space, living a lifestyle that, if emulated by billions, would destroy the Earth more than four times over:
I'm shocked; until now, I have no idea I'm truly wrecking the Earth, and I thus feel guilty. I subsequently consult the Web site's quiz-specific conservation guide, hoping to gain some insight into which specific behaviors contribute to my planet's downfall. What I find, however, verges on asinine.
The top tip EarthDay.net offers me is predictable: I should replace my most common household appliances with machines or devices that are more energy efficient. Although I have not the resources to make any such purchases right now, I estimate their cost using BestBuy.com anyway. My findings are hardly surprising. To replace the old refrigerator, washer, dryer, air conditioner and television in my apartment with the cheapest (and smallest) ENERGY STAR-compliant appliances on the market, it would cost me approximately $1,900, sans delivery and tax. This hefty sum excludes a host of other inefficient appliances that I normally use -- including my laptop and stove, for instance -- which would presumably cost me even more to replace.
(Click to read more about the quiz and what it means.)
The Web site also suggests I reduce my daily animal product intake by half, meat and poultry especially. I find this section considerably troubling, given that I eat poultry (never meat), at most twice per week. But I note it anyway: Abstaining from chicken and turkey saves me a few dollars -- until I decide to purchase an equivalent, pre-packaged good (which the Web site also discourages). On balance, I find I've actually spent more money than I would have normally budgeted for food, probably in a halfhearted attempt to purchase only those items packaged using recyclable materials. I also discover that I've produced about two times as much waste as I would have if I just ate the damn chicken sandwich I wanted in the first place.
Discouraged, I return to my checklist to note one final peculiarity -- my "energy land" consumption is massive. I start playing with the quiz's questions in a feeble attempt to lower this rating, and I discover only one: Turning off all power to my apartment, which somehow only reduces my overall Ecological Footprint by .2 global acres. I note similar changes to this measurement when I consent to living in a small house without any running water, or otherwise deprive myself of basic human amenities (that my apartment, much less the District, would not let me shut off even if I asked). I realize, at this point, that there's little net benefit to such massive inconvenience -- maybe $120 saved each month so that I can write this article in the dark without Internet -- so I quit the quiz and begin reflecting.
And it is at that point I realize I'm not alone in my frustration. It is somewhat indisputable that addressing global warming is a unparalleled "moral imperative," as the Goreacle told lawmakers at a committee hearing last week. The perennial images of melting ice caps and potent storms are haptic reminders of humankind's manifest wrath on the lonely planet that they greedily inhabit. To be sure, the green movement has its doubters, some of whom have received more attention than is naturally warranted. But Americans on balance seem to be slowly admitting their role in the Earth's progressive climate change, even if they are simultaneously taking credit for breakthroughs that are wholly fictional.
Consequently, it is no longer guilt or doubt preventing scores of Americans from altering their lifestyles in the name of a global pursuit. Rather, it's the economy: Utilitarianism, the greatest good for the greatest number of people, suggests rationalism, an implicit understanding of losses and gains, and amid America's economic meltdown, that calculation has itself become a contradiction. How does a family without a steady income outfit their empty kitchen with a new set of energy-efficient appliances? How can an underpaid D.C.-based, entry-level journalist afford an energy efficient car, much less any personal form of transportation? And why should either feel guilty for those inabilities?
Hypotheticals aside, this has been the ubiquitous struggle of the modern environmentalist movement: how to balance a legitimate, rational concern for the environment with the equally legitimate, equally rational economic constraints that tug constantly at families' wallets. The green thumbs among us have not an answer to this quandary, and it is evident in a number of their public information campaigns -- this quiz included. Indeed, I reckon I am not the only college student this weekend to question the utility of Earth Day-induced guilt; it is 88 degrees Fahrenheit here, which is hot even by the District's standards. I also know I'm hardly the only soul too poor to afford to save the planet. It's not that I don't care, it's just that I can't -- at least, by the real environmentalists' rigid standards.
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rick
10:00PM 10:00PM Apr 25th 2009
Hi, Tony Romm,
SURE you can reduce your "carbon footprint" -and you can help stimulate our economy and create new jobs in the process!
All you have to do is decide that you want to, and act accordingly.
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jan
10:50PM 10:50PM Apr 25th 2009
Common sense should rule. I imagine the steps mentioned are all ideal, but realistically, we have to go more slowly. Replacing sppliances as they wear out with energy efficient ones is logical. Tossing out everything all at once isn't. Presumably the writers of these suggestions were either too caught up in the issue to realize the impracticality of their suggestions, or they credited the reader with common sense.
These steps WILL save us money eventually, and they WILL have to be done at some point anyway. And there's so much more that can be done. Here's where those who complain about Obama's mortgaging of our children's futures - but not of Bush's - can do something for those little guys.
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Tammy Ashley
1:56AM 1:56AM Apr 26th 2009
This whole global warming/carbon footprint stuff smacks to me of outer lunatic fringe once young hippies who have just gotten older but are still on the lunatic fringe. Too much LSD if you ask me. I am an old hippie and I am all for saving energy and going green and carbon footprints and all that stuff if its by choice by each individual person, not being crammed down everyones throats and forced upon all of us. Most of this planet is water anyway and there are huge sections of it that are hardly occupied by human beings. Those that do inhabit these areas are either too poor to own modern day conveniences or have never had any before and don't want any. The people behind all this garbage are a bunch of maroons.
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Gregory Dittmer
4:23AM 4:23AM Apr 26th 2009
Reducing your carbon footprint is easy if you just look at it realistically.
I used to live in a town where people threw away perfectly good working appliances, electronics and a host of other items that went out of style or were not the color the person wanted. My next door neighbor moved into a fairly new home so the roof was in perfect condition. There was absolutely NOTHING wrong with the roof and it would easily last twenty years... but the guy didn't think it went well with the cream colored siding. No problem... he just hired someone to strip off his old roof and replace it with a GREEN roof... no, not green as in economically friendly... just the color green that went better with his siding!
The neighbor got a new car that had a remote control start-up feature that enabled him to start it up about 20 minutes before going to work so it had time to heat up or cool down according to the season.
Then he got a 2-cycle leaf blower because his "carpal tunnel" made it difficult to sweep his sidewalk and porch. So like clockwork, every Saturday moring at 8 AM he would put on he ear protection and fire up the leaf blower for about 20 -25 minutes of dust blowing under my bedroom window.
You might think I am just exaggerating, but I kid you not! I found a real nice receiver in the trash one day... I put in a new fuse and used it for many years before giving it to my son when he got an apartment. When people would upgrade their stereo equipment... out went the functioning "old" system speakers and all... I have a nice set of Realistic 8" two way speakers I use for my surround that I found in the trash.
So indeed there are those people that can just run out and order all new appliances just to cut the electric use. Unfortunately though, throwing out perfectly good items to fill up the trash dump isn't a good idea either.
Well, as I said, I USED to live there! Now I live with slightly more normal and realistic people. Here people use everything until it doesn't function... if it can be repaired for less than new... you can bet it will be repaird. Sometimes though, you just have to give up and go get a new product. When that happens, just look for something BETTER than what you had... even a little less electricity over time adds up.
When its time for a new vehicle, do you REALLY need that Tahoe or Hummer to run the kids to school or go to the post office or can you actually be just as well off with a Ford Focus?
I couldn't find a car made today that was compact and great on gas without getting a mortgage to pay for it. So I bought a very nice used Chevy Metro that is dependable and gets me near 40 MPG so I can save gas tooling around, going to work or running out for ice cream at 3 AM. If I do need something more beefy to pull my utility trailer or go up the hill to cut wood, I just use my Jeep Cherokee... otherwise it looks just as good sitting in my driveway.
If your lightbulbs burn out, try replacing them with a lower wattage or, better yet, get a compact flourescent. Compact flourescent lights are not like the old flickering tubes most people think of when they think flourescent. Now days they make a flourescent for just about every application you want... they have small base bulbs, cold weather starting bulbs in different colors, 3-way bulbs to fit any standard 3-way light socket, they come as flood lights and even tiny ones that will fit most range hoods.
I can tell you from personal experience, the new CFL's last for years and will save a LOT on electricity used for lighting! If you REALLY want to go high tech, they are now coming out with some very functional LED lights that use a fraction of what the CFL's and they last even longer!
If you are buying a new air conditioner, look for the EER rating, the higher the number the less power it uses. Try to NEVER buy an air conditioner that has a rating less than 10... there are ones that go as good as 11 and 12 if you spend a bit more.
If leaves are gathering in your yard, the good old fashioned rake will do a great job. It will also give some light exercise without gas fumes and it costs a LOT less to buy and nothing to use.
There really are endless possibilities and ways to cut your carbon footprint, you just have to think about it before you go out and do whatever you did last time. Every little bit does add up to be quite significant when thousands or millions of people cut down a bit. So never claim you CAN'T cut your carbon footprint unless you REALLY try!
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K.K.
4:32PM 4:32PM Apr 26th 2009
You might not reduce your carbon footprint all at once, immediately, but you can do it over time. First of all, I've found vegetarian chicken patties that cost less than regular chicken patties (morningstar farms). You might not afford an electric vehicle now, but your current one will eventually need replacing, consider replacing it with an electric or hybrid. Green products might cost a bit more, but when you take a step back and look at all the unnecessary crud we buy (entertainment, conveniences, snacks, etc.) you can gradually replace that with healthy, important necessities.
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eyeswideopen911
4:39PM 4:39PM Apr 26th 2009
I JUST CAN'T BELIEVE THAT ANY ONE WITH COMMON SENSE WOULD BELIEVE FAT AL, THERE IS NO GLOBAL WARMING IT'S A LIE AND AL IS MAKING LOTS OF MONEY ON THIS LIE,AS I HAVE SAID OVER AND OVER BACK IN THE SEVENTYS IT WAS GLOBAL COOLING, BEING A YOUNG ZOMBIE I DID BELIEVE IT,BUT I'M GROWN UP AND DON'T DRINK THE KOOLAID ANY MORE,I'M TELLING YOU IT'S ALL BULL CRAP SO THESE CORRUPTED POLITICIANS CAN MAKE MONEY.IF THEY GET THIS BILLPASSED FOR CAP &TRADE ARE ENERGY BILLS WILL BE SKY HIGH, THAT IS THE TRUTH.AL TALKS THE TALK BUT HE DOESN'T WALK THE WALK, HE USES MORE ENERGY THEN ANY BODY I KNOW, WAKE UP,IT'S NOT TO LATE.
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undrgrndgirl
12:57PM 12:57PM Apr 29th 2009
for me it's not about whether global warming is real or not, caused by humans or not, but the amount of GARBAGE and POLLUTION we produce...we ARE killing the planet, killing the food we eat, poisoning our water, etc (just look at the chesapeake if you don't believe it - fishing is down in some places as much as 90%, killer whales in puget sound are loaded with pcbs and newborns are struggling to make it to their first birthday)...using things 'til they are used up and recycling what's left is what we all need to do...what's wrong with turning our trash into raw materials for new products? why drive a vehicle that only gets 19 miles a gallon when one that gets 40 would do the job just as well? why use chemicals when things like baking soda, borax, salt, citrus and other 'natural' cleaners work better!? the list goes on and on and you don't need to be a global warming believer to reap the benefits of cutting the costs of living.
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Bill520
9:10PM 9:10PM Apr 26th 2009
They only one causing global warming is Al Gore with all the hot air he is blowing up your @ss.
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Master Shake
1:51AM 1:51AM Apr 27th 2009
When the tide waters start licking at the steps of the White House, you'll be doing some serious carbon footprint reductions BY LAW - believe me. LOL
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jeff
12:31PM 12:31PM Apr 27th 2009
How come Obama burned 9,000 gallons of jet fuel on Earth Day to give a speech about going green?
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Gregory Dittmer
4:56PM 4:56PM Apr 27th 2009
eyeswideopen911
4:39PM 4:39PM Apr 26th 2009
I JUST CAN'T BELIEVE THAT ANY ONE WITH COMMON SENSE WOULD BELIEVE FAT AL, THERE IS NO GLOBAL WARMING IT'S A LIE
***************************************************
Bill520
9:10PM 9:10PM Apr 26th 2009
They only one causing global warming is Al Gore with all the hot air he is blowing up your @ss.
##################################################
While it is true, Al Gore could be making a fortune in books and speaking engagements, global warming is NOT HIS idea!
The general consensus of the majority of scientists is that global warming is a fact. The only thing left to speculation is how much, if any, has Man affected the climate.
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eyeswideopen911
1:33PM 1:33PM Apr 28th 2009
THE SCIENTIST THAT I HAVE HEARD SAY NO WAY IS THIS TRUE, IT'S MOTHER NATURE THE WEATHER CHANGES ALL THE TIME.COMMON SENSE.THIS YEAR IT IS GOING TO BE COOLER.GREGORY DITTMER
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Mark Cox
12:09AM 12:09AM Apr 29th 2009
Why not simply contact an electricity Service Company that generates using wind or run of the river, like I do in Manhattan and simply buy renewable electricity for your apt. i can run my dryer or dishwasher guilt free since although I voluntarily pay a premium per kw/h consumed, I don't have to worry about waste or being on the human footprint.
THE MOMENT I am able, I will also do all the other things I have to do.
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Gregory Dittmer
4:59PM 4:59PM Apr 28th 2009
eyeswideopen911
1:33PM 1:33PM Apr 28th 2009
THE SCIENTIST THAT I HAVE HEARD SAY NO WAY IS THIS TRUE, IT'S MOTHER NATURE THE WEATHER CHANGES ALL THE TIME.COMMON SENSE.THIS YEAR IT IS GOING TO BE COOLER.
###################################################
Virtually all reputable scientists say the earth is warming and is already as warm as it was 1,000 years ago. The thing that seems odd is while the earth is warming overall, there are some places where it will be cooler with a lot more snow along with wide ranging variety in weather everywhere.
Man is using millions of tons of carbon fuel whether its oil, gas or coal. It took millions of years for all that carbon to be trapped in the earth... all of the carbon that used to be in the atmosphere. Man, in less than two hundred years has released MILLIONS of tons of that carbon back into the air. So, in my opinion, Man does have SOME effect overall.
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eyeswideopen911
7:00PM 7:00PM Apr 28th 2009
Gregory Dittmer, in the seventys it was global cooling as a young kid i did believe what the goverment was telling us, now it's global warming,i want theses politicians to stop playing with are heads,all so they told us not to trust any 30 year old or older.Fat Al was telling the young kids not to listen to their parents when he was speaking at some school about a month ago.Also cap and trade is a big tax these politicians will put on us,we wan't let them do this.
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Georgia
5:06PM 5:06PM Apr 28th 2009
A good way to cut down on a lot of carbon emissions and save taxpayers a lot of money would be to stop letting congressmen(and women) fly on private jets at taxpayers expense. These trips serve only as free vacations anyway. Even the President should be limited. It was ridiculous how many people he took to Europe with him and the whole purpose, or so it seemed, was just to put down America.
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lol
10:48PM 10:48PM Apr 28th 2009
I will reduce mine when Obama stops flying all over the place and wasting money, Gore stops flying all over the place and clinton stops flying all over the place. Better yet- make the senators and congressmen reduce their's and maybe I will even consider reducing mine--- as it is- I don't drive much, I don't go out much -- other than to work etc and I keep my electric bills down--- more than I can say for reid, pelosi, obama, clinton, gore etc.
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lol
10:52PM 10:52PM Apr 28th 2009
I would bet there is more to this story then you let on. We got rid of "perfectly good" roof last year due to the fact that it was totalled by a hail storm. Looking at it it looked great- until you saw it up close. I highly doubt that this guy wanted to "waste" 20,000 dollars on a roof to change it's color. Good thing you are not a detective--- you would send the wrong guy to jail.
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undrgrndgirl
12:56PM 12:56PM Apr 29th 2009
personally, i found the quiz to be quite misleading...for instance there were several categories that did not have an answer that actually fit my lifestyle - particularly the one dealing with newspaper, magazine and book purchases...i rarely (almost never anymore) buy newspapers or magazines, but i do buy books occasionally maybe 10 a year, so i had to guess at that one. it didn't ask about water usage, but because i live alone its hard for me to have enough clothes to wash to do a "full" load...i use as little as i possibly can...i also use more "processed food" because as one person i can't eat through enough fresh local food to justify the cost or waste (i'd end up throwing away a lot of it), nor do i have a lot of freezer space (i have a small fridge, maybe half the size of a "normal" fridge)...i almost NEVER use the dishwasher and have a toaster oven instead of heating up the full size oven...the calculator really needs more questions and more answers...
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Caterina Pryde
6:17PM 6:17PM Apr 29th 2009
I live in an apartment in Chicago. We put a windmill, it's about 5 ft high, on the roof to provide some electricity. Built it ourselves, it cost less than $200. My electric bills went from @ $185 a month to @ $20!! that's going to save me nearly a grand in just one year. It doesn't matter that it's green, it's a GREAT money saver.
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