50th Anniversary of Earth Day – Understanding the Environmental Religion

Environmentalism is the religion for the right people with the right ideas and the right intentions.

50th Anniversary of Earth Day

Understanding the Environmental Religion

        Environmentalism is a religion. Its pantheon of gods includes sustainability, green energy, biodegradability, conflict-free, organic, fair-traded, recycling, pesticide-free, non-GMO, renewable, wokeness, biodiversity and, of course, political correctness. Its angels are solar panels and windmills; its demons are coal, carbon dioxide and plastic. Its Eucharist is non-GMO organic food and its principal sacrament is recycling.

      It has its own dogma based on accepted myths rather than on objective reality. It persecutes apostates, calling them heretics. There is a mythical Garden of Eden where man existed in harmony with nature before falling from grace by polluting. Judgment day will come soon unless we earn salvation through sustainability. It is the religion for all the right people with all the right beliefs and with all the right intentions.

Five Biggest Environmental Myths

1. Recycling is good for the environment: Much recycled waste goes into the same landfills as other waste, but requires additional trucks, crews and fuel. The US Office of Technology Assessment reports recycling often leads to more pollution. Acolytes see recycling as a morally redemptive act satisfying emotional needs and requiring just enough effort, but not too much, to impart an eco-high. Our angst is with government- mandated recycling, not with market recycling. Businesses voluntarily and profitably recycle, inter alia, steel, aluminum, tires, copper, batteries, glass and newsprint. Only such market driven recycling makes sense economically or environmentally.

2. There is a shortage of landfills: If every US county devoted one square mile to landfills, it would be sufficient for 4,000 years. Private companies are opening huge new landfills and costs are plummeting. The only places where landfill capacity is scarce are in parts of the northeast and is due entirely to progressive politics.

3. Conserve paper to save trees: This is the biggest green whopper of all. Trees are a farmed product grown expressly for paper. To conserve paper to save trees makes no more sense than to conserve cloth to save cotton. Paper is natural, biodegradable, organic, renewable and sustainable. Working forests provide clean air and water, wildlife habitat and carbon storage; there are more trees planted than consumed each year. Environmentalists’ emails often include a political admonition to “please consider the environment before printing“. How would they react if Christians appended to their emails: “Please consider adoption before aborting”. In any event, please feel free to print this email, knowing that you will be helping to save the environment.

Plastic bags are a marvel of environmental efficiency.

Packaging is a problem: Packaging is a boon to the environment, resulting in less breakage and waste. Less advanced economies, without modern packaging, generate more waste. Mexico has fewer packaged goods but creates 33% more waste than a comparable US household. McDonalds produces less than two ounces of waste per customer, less than eating at home. As for those ubiquitous plastic bags, see infra.

Plastic is evil: Plastic bags are a marvel of environmental efficiency; they are cheap, convenient, reusable, waterproof, strong, light, utilize few resources, reduce waste and don’t require much energy to manufacture or to transport. Although they are not biodegradable (like many other things in a landfill), they also don’t decay and emit greenhouse gasses. Environmentalists virtue signal by banning plastic bags and straws, but they quaff water from bottles containing more plastic than hundreds of bags. Plastics pollution in our oceans is a serious concern, but most comes from fishing boats and all of it originates from China and third world nations – none from the USA.

        Here are the main takeaways. You will know it is okay to recycle when the market deems it profitable. Print this email and make as many copies as you like. Go ahead and use plastic bags, straws and utensils. Above all, remember that environmentalism is a vapid religion based on shared myths and is contrary to objective reality.