Saving the Environment?

Question

Hi!
I'm very concerned that there is not more effort to save the environment. I don't see it as the responsibility of the government to take the lead. I think people should be willing to take steps
to make a difference themselves without being asked, even if it is a small one, like turning off lights when not needed.
I know absolutely no one who quietly turns off a light switch with the environment in mind. Unless people are reminded, they do nothing? I really don't understand. The problem and some of the solutions have been around long enough for people to have established some sort of good habits. Must we always wait for a major crisis, like a blackout, before people will take steps to reduce
electrical usage, say .. or a water crisis before they have in their hearts to be careful of our natural resources ...

Personally, I like turning off lights. To me, daylight is beautiful and artificial lights are not, especially fluorescents.

Answer 1

There's a LOT more to saving the environment than turning off the occasional light! And you're right. We can't wait for the gov't to get involved. It's OUR job to save energy, cut waste and pollution, and protect our wildlife.

Answer 2

The problem here is that you think that the "solutions" are real, It certainly would save some money to turn off lights when they are not needed, but the generators need to run at a certain rate. My water usage is below the minimum tariff so I have no incentive to reduce it further, particularly by spending more than I save. Our Council is in the business of selling more water not less. The water crisis here was caused by an environmental "mistake". The catchment was filled with extra trees to justify our coal production. The trees reduce the yield of water to our dam so we no longer have enough even when it does rain.
I understand your confusion. You may be a little gullible!

Answer 3

Theres a lot that can be done.

Well, I am completely on your side. Because I am a person who really cares and wants to do something about this factor causing global warming. People don't realize that global warming is a real thing! they need to get off their butts and pitch in and save us and the world. Earth is counting on us. This year for Christmas i have driven to the close by Walmart and I am purchased enviorment friendly light bulbs that were on 74 cents. Which is am unbelievable price. Considering that i get the regular ones for about 2 bucks. I have purchased 10 light bulbs for each person who is coming for Christmas at my house this year. I have called them and ask they what they usually use around their house such as spray cans, the ones that spray with aerosol, Hairspray with aerosol, and other stuff. So i headed out to the mall and hardware stores and I have purchased the things they usaly use, but ones that are good for the enviorment.

At my house. My family likes to turn down the heat at only 55 degrees. (I am in MA) We have a pellet stove wich keeps the house nice and warm over the very warm winter. We have also cut down on trips and trips to the mall. So we can save money and have time to our selves then spending a billion dollars. Also in my house the electric bills have gone up almost 50.00 so we have desided that we wouldn't have the Christmas tree lights and house lights on when no one is really coming by our house and only put it in while the christmas vaction was happening.

I have noticed that over the last few years and talking to my parents about this that they said that when they and when I was a kid That it would be snowing in the first week of November and ponds and lakes would be frozen and waiting for pedestiants to skate on them. This year its already December and the tempeture is in teh 50s. Isn't that just simply amazing but very bad? Anyway it has only snowed about 1 time. It snowed about 3 days ago. we thought it was going to be a bad storm with the winds and everything. So we thought it was snowing all day but it was just winds blowing 1/2 of snow everywhere. It melted 3 hours after.

This is a real thing that is happeing to the world and we all need to do one thing to help save not only oursleves but our home planet, earth.

Answer 4

Turning off lights, recycling, walking, planting trees--these are all acts of conscience, good ones. Problem is, they won't solve the problem or really even come close.

The first thing is that we have to STOP using combustion for a source of energy.

The next thing is we have to discover a way of removing trillions and trillions of tons of carbon from the air.

Coal is black because it is almost all carbon, we have to stop putting it into the air, and even if we stopped completely, the earth will continue to warm and by the time YOUR children are grown, there will NO coastal cities any where in the world.

We must all face the truth.

Answer 5

In free market economies, money talks. Charge people the cost of environmental damage caused by leaving on the light. That means charging not only the cost of producing the electricity, but also include the cost of cleaning up the pollution or compensating people's health costs relating to pollution.

People pay more for organic food because they want to pay for cleaner rivers and healthy fish with their purchase of organic foods. They don't want to support farmers that dump tons of pesticides and chemical fertilizers that kill wildlife and cause toxic algae blooms. It would make more sense if keeping our air, water, and land clean was paid for by those that create the problem in the first place.

If electricity was charged for the damages from creating billion dollar Superfund sites and sending hundred of thousands of people into hospitals for pollution related illnesses, we would see that wind and solar power would be more viable and competitive compared to power from coal and oil. Only then will everyone realize the value of turning the light off when they aren't using it.

Answer 6

First u need to learn what is pollution and what is not. CO2 is not a pollutant it is food for the plants. The plants need CO2 just as much as u need oxygen. Weather u turn off the lights is irrelevant except paying the bill. CO2 is the beginning of mother nature recycling our air with a process of photosynthesis . This has gone for millions of years ,and the plants are doing a great job.