A Comment to the Local Paper

Recently an article appeared on the local paper that caused me so much thought since living on my own. How much do we impact our environment? What do we expect to be here?

I took the quiz and I felt it inadequate. The thought that draws me away from this quiz’s results is the focus. Yes, cars and trucks directly use oil (in the form of gas). However, people are focusing on cars only. So much of what we consume needs gas to exist.

Why are there bananas in Minnesota? Why are tomatoes around during January? We expect foods to be in the grocery store when we find that “perfect” new recipe. Every wonder how they got there? Strawberries when it’s snowing? To move goods quickly from Chile to the United States when it’s winter requires gas and oil. Once I mentioned the anomaly of eating organic strawberries in December to a group of nutrition-focused people, and the response was, “it’s in season somewhere in the world.” Why do I need to have it here in December? What fruits and vegetables should be here in December?

Water. Almost every living thing on Earth needs water, including us, yet we treat it like it will always be there. We expect to take a shower every day, wash dishes keeping the water on, wash the perfect outfit in the washing machine even though we don’t have enough for a full load. Ever wonder where the dirty water goes? At the wastewater treatment plants, wastewater is purified using mostly natural processes; however, it requires fuel (i.e. oil and gas) to run the pumps, computers, and gauges. The more water we send down the drain will require more cleaning time. But, we expect water to be in our faucet. Some people need to play golf in the desert and have a perfectly manicured lawn with beautiful plants.

Apparently eating meat is deemed “eco-unfriendly”. While over-consumption of meat is eco-unfriendly, so is over-consumption of vegetables out of season (see above comment). Styrofoam trays filled with 8 chicken thighs from four to eight different chickens are eco-unfriendly. Taking a whole chicken and cutting it into individual pieces to use entirely over a span of two to three days is better use of energy (and cheaper). Beef is a new animal to the over-consumption, and cattle are grotesquely slaughtered at alarming rates to feed our need for red meat. Why do we need to have 15 ounces of red meat to feel our meal is worth the price?

Consumption is an interesting term because it encompasses so much. From the plastic bags we expect to have to protect our produce from the “germs” present on the grocery store checkout conveyer (when we have more germs on our hands) to the plastic toothbrushes we use every day. Plastic is the one substance we created that does not break down (quickly). Every wonder where it goes? Try Hawaii (the non-tourists islands), mainly in the stomach of seabirds which eat shiny, colorful objects that run up on the shore. “But I throw my plastic toothbrush in the trash…doesn’t that go to the landfill?” you ask. Yes, but every wonder how those landfills deal with so much trash? Some does land in the ocean (out of sight, out of mind).

I could go on and on, which again is why I didn’t like that quiz. I want you to think about the plastics you use and wonder, do you need it? Can you recycle it? Think about how much food you eat and the type of food you eat. You can survive eating more seasonally, and many people feel we can avoid many illnesses in the process. Do you need to drive? Can you walk? We need to be a little inconvenienced...otherwise, we won’t survive.

The Earth will survive with or without us.