Time to pull the Ripcord!

Herman E. Daly writes: Recent increased attention to global warming is very welcome. But much of it is misplaced. We focus too much on complex climate models, which ask things like how far emissions will increase carbon dioxide concentration, how much that will raise temperatures, by when, with what consequences to climate and geography, and how likely new information will invalidate model results. Together these questions can paralyze us with uncertainty. A better question for determining public policy is simpler: “Can we continue to emit increasing amounts of greenhouse gases without provoking unacceptable climate change?” Scientists overwhelmingly agree the answer is no. The basic scientific principles and findings are very clear. Focusing on them creates a world of relative certainty for policy. To draw a parallel, if you jump out of an airplane you need a crude parachute more than an accurate altimeter. And if you take an altimeter, don’t become so bemused tracking your descent that you forget to pull the ripcord. ... We have moved from a world relatively empty of us and our stuff to a world relatively full of us, in one lifetime. In the empty world economy the limiting factor was manmade capital; in the full world it is remaining natural capital. Barrels of petroleum extracted once were limited by drilling rigs; now they are limited by remaining deposits, or by the atmosphere’s ability to absorb the products of combustion. But we continue to invest in manmade capital rather than in restoration of natural capital. In addition to this supply-side error, we have an equally monumental error on the demand side. We fail to take seriously that beyond a threshold of income already passed in the United States, happiness depends not on what we have, but on what we have relative to what our friends, co-workers and neighbors have. What we need is a stiff severance tax on carbon as it emerges from the well and mine. Besides discouraging everyone’s use of climate-altering fossil fuels, this would enable us to raise enough tax dollars to replace regressive taxes on low incomes. Let’s tax the raw material, not the value added to it by processing and manufacturing. Higher input prices bring efficiency at all subsequent stages of production, and limiting depletion ultimately limits pollution. Setting policy by first principles still leaves some uncertainties. It will require provision for making midcourse corrections. But at least we would have begun moving in the right direction. To continue business as usual while debating the predictions of complex models in a world made even more uncertain by the questions we ask is to fail to pull the ripcord. (05/13/08)

France moves to reduce Drunk Driving

BBC Behavioral Science -- France's cabinet is to hear a proposal to make breathalysers mandatory at late-night clubs and cafes from this summer when it meets on Monday. The ecology and health ministers are due jointly to present a draft decree that applies to all such establishments remaining open until 0200. Some 350 cafes and bars in western France have already run trials, Ecology Minister Jean-Louis Borloo said. The move comes after a weekend of road accidents, some alcohol-related. The Pentecostal holiday weekend saw at least 17 deaths in seven accidents, AFP news agency reports. "Health Minister Roselyne Bachelot and I will present a decree to make electronic breathalyser tests obligatory in drinking establishments open until 0200 so that everyone can check their level, their condition upon leaving," Mr Borloo said on the France 2 television channel. "I hope that by this summer, it will be obligatory in all such places." (05/13/08)

Wasting Food

BBC Behavioral Science -- People are needlessly throwing away 3.6m tonnes of food each year in England and Wales, research suggests. The Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) found that salad, fruit and bread were most commonly wasted and 60% of all dumped food was untouched. The study analysed the waste disposed of by 2,138 households. Environment Minister Joan Ruddock said the findings were "staggering" at a time of global food shortages and WRAP added it was an environmental issue. The study found that £9bn of avoidable food waste was disposed of in England and Wales each year. It is mostly food that could have been consumed if it had been better stored or managed, or had not been left uneaten on a plate. Much of that food waste goes into landfill rather than into council food disposal and composting programmes, it said. ... Using the same extrapolation, they also estimated the average UK household needlessly throws away 18% of all food purchased. Families with children throw away 27%. The study also suggested £1bn worth of food wasted in the UK was still "in date". Nearly a quarter, in terms of cost, was disposed of because the "use by" or "best before" date had expired. ... Ms Ruddock said: "This is costing consumers three times over. "Not only do they pay hard-earned money for food they don't eat, there is also the cost of dealing with the waste this creates. And there are climate change costs to all of us of growing, processing, packaging, transporting, and refrigerating food that only ends up in the bin." (05/13/08)

Pollution Risk for Deep Vein Thrombosis

BBC Medical Science -- Breathing in air pollution from traffic fumes can raise the risk of potentially deadly blood clots, a US study says. Exposure to small particulates - tiny chemicals caused by burning fossil fuels - is known to increase the chances of heart disease and stroke. But the Harvard School of Public Health found it also affected development of deep vein thrombosis - blood clots in the legs - in a study of 2,000 people. Researchers said the pollution made the blood more sticky and likely to clot. The team looked at people living in Italy - nearly 900 of whom developed DVT. Blood clots which form in the legs can travel to the lungs, where they can become lodged, triggering a potentially fatal pulmonary embolism. The risk of DVT is known to be increased by long periods of immobility. In particular, passengers on long-haul flights have been shown to be vulnerable, but so are people who spend long periods of time sitting at their office desk without exercising, or walking around. Researchers obtained pollution readings from the areas they lived and found those exposed to higher levels of small particulates in the year before diagnosis were more likely to develop blood clots. The Archives of Internal Medicine report said for every 10 microgrammes per square metre increase in small particulates, the risk of developing a DVT went up by 70%. (05/13/08)