Can We Save The Environment With Our Passion?

[Wayne County Hose]

One of my favorite bumper stickers.
"Want to save the planet? Kill yourself!"
That passionate enough for ya?

 

[W7XYZ]

..... how can anyone born in the 50's like me say this country hasn't made extraordinary strides in environmental stewardship in the last 50 years.

I agree, but..... Hasn't it been more of a case of two steps forward and two steps backward? Think about Google's solar cells, the chemicals involved, the waste products, can we recycle those cells when they go bad? Where's the stuff from those toxic waste cleanup sites? How about all the synthetics, plastics, vinyls and other chemicals we've created! Are we going to give up on our fiberglass boats, our thirst for electronic gadgets, our fast cars with all the toys in them? I don't think so. How about the situation with the rain forest of South America? At best, we'll pass all kinds of regulations so that you'll need an environmental impact study just to go to the pot. Sorry about the rant, but I don't think mankind can fix it. We weren't very successful after the gas crisis days of the 70s.

One of my favorite bumper stickers.
"Want to save the planet? Kill yourself!"
That passionate enough for ya?

Yep!

 

[om21braz]

No, "We" cannot. IMHBO

 

[dave1949]

I agree, but..... Hasn't it been more of a case of two steps forward and two steps backward? Think about Google's solar cells, the chemicals involved, the waste products, can we recycle those cells when they go bad? Where's the stuff from those toxic waste cleanup sites? How about all the synthetics, plastics, vinyls and other chemicals we've created! Are we going to give up on our fiberglass boats, our thirst for electronic gadgets, our fast cars with all the toys in them? I don't think so. How about the situation with the rain forest of South America? At best, we'll pass all kinds of regulations so that you'll need an environmental impact study just to go to the pot. Sorry about the rant, but I don't think mankind can fix it. We weren't very successful after the gas crisis days of the 70s.

It's true, millions of tons of electronic gear end up in landfills although quite a bit is recycled to extract useful metals.

The goal is to incorporate the recycling or non-toxic disposal plan into the design of the product. Currently, most design and material selection ignores what becomes of the product at the end of it's useful life. There are companies who are looking beyond that point already and it will become much more common in the future.

What mankind makes, mankind can fix. It does require more intellect than is expressed in the typical bumper sticker.
Dave.

 

[ultrarunner]

By and large you will find TBN members to be good stewards of the land...

Just look at all the threads on building retention ponds, erosion control, fire breaks, planting trees, etc...

We also recycle... just look at the number of threads where someone is repairing old equipment keeping it from the salvage yard...

Many also practice sustainability... we rotate crops, maintain wood lots and try to live from the land...

Maybe we've been "Green" all along and no one ever noticed?

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I feel so green this morning. I spent $16 and a lot of labor replacing one BH hose that was a streamer when I bought it. I even caught the drain out when I broke the connections to replace the hose and retighten a loader metal line that had been repaired on the bucket end with about six pieces of steel tubing. I also felt bad about stumbling and kicking over that drain out bucket too.

 

[keegs]

By and large you will find TBN members to be good stewards of the land...

Just look at all the threads on building retention ponds, erosion control, fire breaks, planting trees, etc...

We also recycle... just look at the number of threads where someone is repairing old equipment keeping it from the salvage yard...

Many also practice sustainability... we rotate crops, maintain wood lots and try to live from the land...

Maybe we've been "Green" all along and no one ever noticed?

.....or are we just acting in our self interest?

It makes little economic sense for one to cause or otherwise permit damage to an asset like property or in some other way devalue it.

Of course there may be an economic opportunity that could produce an outcome that may exceed the value of one's property and the notions of good environmental stewardship.

That's the point really IMO...And it's the role of government as arbiter to sort out these questions of how economic activity, that is to say someone in pursuit of their self interest, impacts us all.

I'm pleased by the acknowledgements of many of you of government's successes in this regard.

I read the other day that Facebook was locating one of its data warehouses to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. The decision to locate there was driven by the availability of cheap energy generated at a nearby coal fired power plant. As was mentioned, datacenters consume lots of energy for running and cooling servers.

I guess if Facebook wanted to wear the green badge too they'd locate to Iceland, in which case we'd lose the jobs.

 

[The Haymaker]

When it comes to my tractor, I am doing my part to keep the earth healthy. I scrape and tear the topsoil so it has all eroded away. Therefore, it cannot grow greenery for those **** methane burping cows and their evil friends the ******* lambs cannot survive.

I have also minimized the amount of waste fuel and hydraulic oil I use for dust and weed control, using the rest to ignite bits of worn tires utilized as kindling for my non-epa wood stove. As for anyone enjoying this warmer and earlier spring..... You're welcome.

 

[Egon]

I know everyone here loves tractors but the environment gets worst each day are there any way to reduce our wastes and etc?

This one is easy; just eliminate the source!

But Then: For a short question list

How do we adjust the energy from the sun?

Can we direct all those rocks out there away from us?

Make volcanoes erupt only at command?

 

[Redbug]

This Google stuff is nothing but fluff and advertising. "Green" is just the latest fad to cash in on. Whatever happened about going green with subsidized corn? Crude came down in price and most of the alcohol plants being built went bust. Now Mexico won't starve because of diverted corn. It shows the real truth between environmental attitudes and the real green...the dollar. Google and the others have some great advertising that we fall over because of ignorance. Sorry for the sarcasm. I've seen it all.

Save the whales and kill the seals...