"...environmental destruction in the name of alternative energy..." Hmm. What about the habitat destruction caused by mining and drilling for fossil fuels? This is considerable. The data scientist Hannah Ritchie (who also has a Substack) notes that "At its fastest rate of deployment, mining quantities for low-carbon energy will be 500 to 1000 times less than current fossil fuel production." By the way, Mark Jacobson, a professor at Stanford, has broken the numbers down on land use for renewable energy versus fossil energy. He posted on Bluesky: "Busting a myth about how much new land is needed for the U.S. to run on 100% clean, renewable energy (wind, water, solar) for all energy purposes after electrifying all energy sectors (0.85%), vs on fossil fuels plus biofuels today (2.4%)." He has a YouTube video explaining this.
My intent in this piece wasn't to compare the environmental impacts of alternatives versus fossil fuels. Obviously fossil fuel production has immense impacts that as this point greatly exceed those of renewables. I wanted to point out the contradiction (and hypocrisy) inherent in destroying healthy ecosystems that are helping to regulate and stabilize climate and justifying this destruction by claiming it is necessary because reducing GHGs is the top priority.
This is like a cry in a wilderness that no longer exists. Or a wilderness that’s quickly becoming “unalive” which is a word I didn’t even know before I read this. I wholeheartedly agree that conservation gets a short shrift these days. It’s true in the mass media, and it’s certainly true when it comes to elections. I live in a city, which I think is a pro-nature statement in itself but I won’t get into that. You are right that people need to be fed, but don’t forget they also need two cars, a camper van, an ATV, a pick-up truck, a dirt bike and a boat, as well as a yard, a pool, and an AR-15, or so I’m told, and I suspect one reason you-know-who won in November is that a lot of people are mad that they haven’t got their second boat and their new e-bike yet, never mind the price of eggs. Whenever I venture into suburbia, whether it’s by car or by broom, I am struck by the sheer hedonism of Americans. The truth is, in our culture, it’s unfettered consumerism, not Jesus or Democracy or The Golden Rule that’s the true meaning of life. But I digress. The point you are making is that the powers that be (even if they are not in power now) have only focused on the issue of atmospheric carbon without considering the underlying cause which is simply the trashing of our environmental legacy. In my view, it’s because the truth about the utter excess of our national lifestyle will never be talked about as long as people expect to have everything. There are some bright spots here and there though. In California, for example, four large dams were recently removed, restoring something like 400 miles of river habitat. There are efforts like this being made in the West at least (always opposed by Republicans, BTW) and I am hoping that a new generation of younger conservation-friendly leaders and influencers (I’m forced to accept this awful term) will emerge before it’s truly too late to claw our way back from the brink.
I love hearing about dam removals out West. I don't think we're doing them in the East, whether that's because they aren't as necessary or the opposition is too great, I don't know. Yes, the consumerism is totally out of control! When they're not out in trucks that cost more than my house, my neighbors drive around in golf carts and ATVs that cost more than my car. And the pools and the hot tubs and the HUGE campers (not in my neighborhood but nearby.) And the gun collections! You're right, it is political death to even hint that maybe we need to give some of this up.
lf I had to bet money I'd say the global machine is going to go on appropriating most of the Earth's land surface for the next few centuries at least. There's too much money and power tied up in doing so. But from what I can gather, demographic estimates say developed countries are going to undergo major depopulation over the same time period, resulting in at least some abandonment of rural areas. Maybe that will open up some space for re-wilding in the next millennium. Unless Doomsday hits the reset button...
This sounds about right to me. I foresee our remaining iconic wild areas such as national parks and forests being looted to some degree but partially preserved as playgrounds for the rich. The not so desirable areas in the middle of the country might be abandoned eventually, especially if they hold nothing more to be exploited.
An excellent article Lynn Cady. We should be looking at the Earth beneath our feet and the life it supports and rebuilding that wonderful complexity rather than just staring at the skies and waiting for a techno fix to sort it all out.
I had a chat with some climate alarmists this week and the level of ignorance was astounding. I asked them for the primary publication relied upon by the IPCC for them to claim that CO2 retains heat and is responsible for an allegedly warming climate. There was no response (because it doesn't exist). I informed them that the environmental movement was hijacked by Edmund de Rothschild and his UN, oil tycoon lackey, Maurice Strong, when Mr.Rothschild gave instructions to world leaders at the 1987 world wilderness conference when George Hunt, a whistle blower, exposed the globalists plans to dominate the world through 'Green' policy!
This of course led to the UN sustainable development goals, the blueprint for totalitarianism; essentially, a modern rewrite of Karl Marx manifesto! I also mentioned how climate alarmists should me up in arms about the mass poisoning of our stratosphere with weather modification technologies such as stratosphere aerosol injection and solar radiation management. I explained that the same governments who are claiming that 'climate change' is caused by pollution, are using pollution to 'mitigate' climate change!!! I was met with more blank stares!
I explained how the real problems we face are mass chemical poisoning and land misuse, all a result of the anti human religion of Statism! In other words, the root cause of all our problems is illegitimate governance; a subject I cover extensively in my work on Substack and YouTube.
Thanks for the comment, Calvin. The weather modification technologies you mention are pretty scary, and there is probably more going on than is in the news.
"...environmental destruction in the name of alternative energy..." Hmm. What about the habitat destruction caused by mining and drilling for fossil fuels? This is considerable. The data scientist Hannah Ritchie (who also has a Substack) notes that "At its fastest rate of deployment, mining quantities for low-carbon energy will be 500 to 1000 times less than current fossil fuel production." By the way, Mark Jacobson, a professor at Stanford, has broken the numbers down on land use for renewable energy versus fossil energy. He posted on Bluesky: "Busting a myth about how much new land is needed for the U.S. to run on 100% clean, renewable energy (wind, water, solar) for all energy purposes after electrifying all energy sectors (0.85%), vs on fossil fuels plus biofuels today (2.4%)." He has a YouTube video explaining this.
My intent in this piece wasn't to compare the environmental impacts of alternatives versus fossil fuels. Obviously fossil fuel production has immense impacts that as this point greatly exceed those of renewables. I wanted to point out the contradiction (and hypocrisy) inherent in destroying healthy ecosystems that are helping to regulate and stabilize climate and justifying this destruction by claiming it is necessary because reducing GHGs is the top priority.
This is like a cry in a wilderness that no longer exists. Or a wilderness that’s quickly becoming “unalive” which is a word I didn’t even know before I read this. I wholeheartedly agree that conservation gets a short shrift these days. It’s true in the mass media, and it’s certainly true when it comes to elections. I live in a city, which I think is a pro-nature statement in itself but I won’t get into that. You are right that people need to be fed, but don’t forget they also need two cars, a camper van, an ATV, a pick-up truck, a dirt bike and a boat, as well as a yard, a pool, and an AR-15, or so I’m told, and I suspect one reason you-know-who won in November is that a lot of people are mad that they haven’t got their second boat and their new e-bike yet, never mind the price of eggs. Whenever I venture into suburbia, whether it’s by car or by broom, I am struck by the sheer hedonism of Americans. The truth is, in our culture, it’s unfettered consumerism, not Jesus or Democracy or The Golden Rule that’s the true meaning of life. But I digress. The point you are making is that the powers that be (even if they are not in power now) have only focused on the issue of atmospheric carbon without considering the underlying cause which is simply the trashing of our environmental legacy. In my view, it’s because the truth about the utter excess of our national lifestyle will never be talked about as long as people expect to have everything. There are some bright spots here and there though. In California, for example, four large dams were recently removed, restoring something like 400 miles of river habitat. There are efforts like this being made in the West at least (always opposed by Republicans, BTW) and I am hoping that a new generation of younger conservation-friendly leaders and influencers (I’m forced to accept this awful term) will emerge before it’s truly too late to claw our way back from the brink.
I love hearing about dam removals out West. I don't think we're doing them in the East, whether that's because they aren't as necessary or the opposition is too great, I don't know. Yes, the consumerism is totally out of control! When they're not out in trucks that cost more than my house, my neighbors drive around in golf carts and ATVs that cost more than my car. And the pools and the hot tubs and the HUGE campers (not in my neighborhood but nearby.) And the gun collections! You're right, it is political death to even hint that maybe we need to give some of this up.
lf I had to bet money I'd say the global machine is going to go on appropriating most of the Earth's land surface for the next few centuries at least. There's too much money and power tied up in doing so. But from what I can gather, demographic estimates say developed countries are going to undergo major depopulation over the same time period, resulting in at least some abandonment of rural areas. Maybe that will open up some space for re-wilding in the next millennium. Unless Doomsday hits the reset button...
This sounds about right to me. I foresee our remaining iconic wild areas such as national parks and forests being looted to some degree but partially preserved as playgrounds for the rich. The not so desirable areas in the middle of the country might be abandoned eventually, especially if they hold nothing more to be exploited.
An excellent article Lynn Cady. We should be looking at the Earth beneath our feet and the life it supports and rebuilding that wonderful complexity rather than just staring at the skies and waiting for a techno fix to sort it all out.
Yes, indeed. Thanks for the encouragement, Chris!
I had a chat with some climate alarmists this week and the level of ignorance was astounding. I asked them for the primary publication relied upon by the IPCC for them to claim that CO2 retains heat and is responsible for an allegedly warming climate. There was no response (because it doesn't exist). I informed them that the environmental movement was hijacked by Edmund de Rothschild and his UN, oil tycoon lackey, Maurice Strong, when Mr.Rothschild gave instructions to world leaders at the 1987 world wilderness conference when George Hunt, a whistle blower, exposed the globalists plans to dominate the world through 'Green' policy!
This of course led to the UN sustainable development goals, the blueprint for totalitarianism; essentially, a modern rewrite of Karl Marx manifesto! I also mentioned how climate alarmists should me up in arms about the mass poisoning of our stratosphere with weather modification technologies such as stratosphere aerosol injection and solar radiation management. I explained that the same governments who are claiming that 'climate change' is caused by pollution, are using pollution to 'mitigate' climate change!!! I was met with more blank stares!
I explained how the real problems we face are mass chemical poisoning and land misuse, all a result of the anti human religion of Statism! In other words, the root cause of all our problems is illegitimate governance; a subject I cover extensively in my work on Substack and YouTube.
Thanks for the comment, Calvin. The weather modification technologies you mention are pretty scary, and there is probably more going on than is in the news.
It's observeable and it's horrific. Jim Lee is the go to on that subject.