Me, me, me, me.... <Who here doesn't commute 30 miles to and from work, alone in their car? Who doesn't use coal-fired generation, or its products? Who doesn't use the fast-food drive-through? Who doesn't eat the typical meal, the contents of which have traveled an average 1500 miles, often refrigerated, before ending up on someone's plate? >
Being a little more precise, I'm long gone from the commute and days can go by during which only my feet or bicycle leave the driveway as means of propulsion.
While I use a little bit of coal-fired generation, hidden in the raw materials of the few objects I buy, it's not much. I wouldn't mind using lots of coal but I prefer not to waste money.
I have been into a fast food drive through maybe twice in my life. I did take grand daughter on the bar of my bicycle, with padding for comfort, to McDonalds for some fries, tomato sauce and a play in the play ground on several occasions. They use good oil now.
My typical meal is eggs, corn, bananas [the bananas come a longggg way], apples, tomatoes, bread [I guess the wheat travels a long way or at least some of it], peas, beans, nectarines, onions, rice [good mileage there]. Sometimes fish and infrequently beef or fowl. Average distance per kilogram about 200 I guess. I buy the cheapest food of good nutritional value. I don't care how far it comes or how much CO2 is produced in the process, but of course the more it travels the greater the cost. I like cheap.
Peas are about the only refrigerated product. Meat is cooled. Milk powder is dry.
Hopefully nobody is so silly: <How many here are prepared to sacrifice their jobs and upward mobility to promote energy efficiency? > Dollars are the best measure of value. Energy efficiency is good to avoid wasting money. Same with producing not much CO2 = save money. It's selfish, but if somebody wants CO2 for their crops, they can buy fuel and burn it in their glasshouse.
No worries Jim.
Save money, not energy.
Mqurice |
