Safefertilizer’s Weblog

Haven’t we reached the point where it can be “normal,” instead of “trendy,” to be “green?”  If you live a healthy lifestyle that’s good for the planet, and good for you, why is it called “green?”  Should that be what we all strive for? Of course, it doesn’t hurt to have Earth Day, just like it doesn’t hurt to have Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day.  However, the same argument that everyone makes about Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day is that they are holidays that should actually be celebrated, year-round.  I would argue that Earth Day fits well into that category.  Here’s why:

In a Time Before Plastics

There was a time when people had no choice but to be earth-friendly in the way they went about their daily business.  A time before plastics.  Plastic started out as a plant derivitave.  During the late 19th century, scientists used cellulose (a component of plant walls), nitric acid and alcohol to develop the first hard plastic.  Rayon fibers were originally synthesized from plant materials.  However, digesting plant fibers in harsh chemicals does not exactly preserve their “earth friendly, natural” state.  Natural rubbers from plants were discovered and used widelyprior to synthetic rubber.  Then came the “breakthrough.”

Bakelite, the first plastic to become widely available commercially, during the 1920s, and PVC, which came into use after World War I, opened the door to massive use of plastics.  Because it was relatively inexpensive to manufacture, using petroleum products, plastic started to replace many natural containers/substances.  Instead of cotton fabrics, people wore rayon or polyester.  Instead of silk stockings, they wore nylon.  Instead of cloth bags, they used plastic.  Instead of glass jars, they used plastic.  You get the point.  Remember that “Sugar in the morning, sugar in the evening” commercial?  Substitute plastic, and you understand where we are now.

How Convenient is Plastic if it is so Destructive?

I think something we’re trying to get back is the “long view.”  It is a pretty abrupt about-face from scientific progress, and developments for hundreds of years.  It is easy to see how we got here, really.  When your life depends entirely on getting food for your family, working a farm and staying alive, any new development to make life easier is positive.  As economies grew, prices rose, and industrialization pushed people off the farm and into the cities.  At that point, folks were dependent on others to grow or raise food, and get it to them in an edible format.  So, anything that made transport easier and less expensive was celebrated.  The grind continued.  Cheaper, easier, cheaper, easier, cheaper, easier.

STOP:  Why are the ice caps melting?!?

Backpedaling as Fast as we Can

So, turns out that plastics may be convenient in the here and now, but there might not be more heres and nows if something isn’t done to curb their over-use that results in clogged land fills, pollution from factories and melting ice-caps, which will potentially further reduce arable land mass.  How do we make sure people are interested in “going back to the land” and “being kind to the earth?”  Make it FUN!  Make it TRENDY!  Show celebrities doing it!  Cue the guilt trip! Cue the re-usable bags at Wal-Mart!  (Made of plastic, but since it won’t go away, might as well recycle it!)  Show the adorable Master Card commercial with the little guy helping his dad be more earth-friendly.

Less Fuss is Actually Fine

It is actually ok to be good to the earth, good to yourself, and good to your friends and family without getting so wound up about it.  I would argue that one way to accomplish this is for everyone to be a little more tolerant of people that are already doing this.  We’re not freak shows, we promise!  We may not be famous, we may not be rich, and we may not be vegan, but we’re doing what we can, and we’re happy doing it.  If we promise not to proselytize about what we’re doing, do you promise to let us do it in peace?  How about if we promise not to tease you if you decide that what we’re doing would work well for you?  Sounds good to me!