Posted on 09/16/2007 8:04:32 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
(In homes and businesses across Wisconsin, people are striving to reduce their impact on the environment)
Fort Atkinson, WI - Scores of residents are pledging to cut their appetite for fossil fuels to fight global warming.
It's called the "Atkinson Diet," and it represents a shift in the way consumers and businesses are thinking about the environment across Wisconsin.
Some examples:
• Homeowners are taking steps to reduce energy costs and their environmental impact by installing energy-saving light bulbs in record numbers. About 1.2 million of the compact fluorescent bulbs were sold at a discount last fall, up 9% from 2005. This fall, state retailers expect to sell 275,000 energy-efficient holiday lights, said Sara Van de Grift of the state Focus on Energy program. That's 15 times as many as last year.
• The number of solar-powered homes participating in an annual showcase across the state has doubled since last year, and interest in solar power has spread from environmental education centers to businesses such as Kohl's Department Stores and GE Healthcare, the largest producer of sun-powered electricity in Wisconsin.
• Golf courses are using organic fertilizer rather than petroleum-based fertilizers, while hotels and bed and breakfasts are taking steps to save energy, conserve water and promote recycling. Travel Green Wisconsin has seen a tripling this year in these and other tourism-related businesses that have reduced their environmental impact.
Public opinion surveys document the growing concerns about global warming. Though many once doubted the problem, the public is more attuned to the link between the use of fossil fuels and climate change. As a response, they are looking for ways to use less gasoline and other fuels.
"It's clear the tenor of the debate has changed in the past year," said Michael Kraft, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
For Shandra Miller, her shift in thinking led her to install energy-saving light bulbs throughout her brick, three-bedroom home. The home sits across the street from a Fort Atkinson elementary school, where a more environmentally friendly geothermal heating and cooling system is being installed.
She and her family are biking more. They are taking their groceries home in dozens of reusable cloth and canvas bags.
"I don't think people would look at me and say, 'She's saving the environment,' " said Miller, a bookkeeper at an architectural firm. "But I believe in it."
Andrew Kirk, an environmental historian at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said the public hasn't been this concerned about the environment since the 1970s, when the Arab oil embargo pushed up prices at the gas pump.
Now, problems that range from sticker shock at gas stations to the changing climate and the safety of food are causing the public to make a "closer connection between the cause of environmental problems and their effect," Kirk said.
Many companies have embraced eco-friendly practices, in part because of the dividends they accrue from being seen as green.
A key factor: Global warming's higher profile, driven by heightened public concern and growing agreement among most scientists that human factors, such as the rise in greenhouse gases, are posing a threat to the planet.
Still it hasn't made a dent in the nation's growing carbon footprint.
Good deeds have been trumped by a burgeoning demand for fossil fuels, such as coal and gas, that produce greenhouse gases and contribute to global warming.
According to a new analysis conducted for the state's global warming task force, emissions in Wisconsin are projected to rise faster than the national average because of construction of new coal-fired power plants and rising demand for electricity. And they're expected to rise faster over the next 15 years than they have since 1990, the task force report shows.
That trend hasn't discouraged grass-roots groups from acting and businesses from taking global warming more seriously.
Shift in auto industry
A clear sign of the shifting mind-set took place last month in Traverse City, Mich., at the auto industry's summer conference, where fuel economy and global warming overshadowed other topics. Dave McCurdy, the top lobbyist for auto manufacturers, said Congress is demanding more action on environmental issues, especially stricter fuel economy standards. Cars with poor gas mileage send more greenhouse gas emissions into the air.
Changing their position on a federal climate policy, top auto executives this spring pledged support for a national plan to reduce emissions of gases linked to global warming.
"In Washington, there's a great deal of concern about climate change," said McCurdy, president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers.
"You're either at the table, or you're on the menu," he told an audience in Traverse City. "Right now, we're on the menu."
In some cases, investors also are pressuring companies on environmental grounds. In Wisconsin, this has forced utilities to pay more attention to climate-change issues, even as they build new power plants.
Last year, three electric utilities in Wisconsin issued reports that detailed, for the first time, how they would respond if forced by new regulations to cut carbon dioxide emissions at their coal-fired power plants.
Alliant Energy and Madison Gas & Electric Co., both of Madison, and WPS Resources Corp. of Green Bay were reacting to investors seeking shareholder votes to force the utilities to detail financial risks they could face because of their heavy reliance on coal.
The response underscores the new kinds of pressures on companies, especially those that rely on coal and oil, Kraft said.
"Green talk is cheap and easy," he said. "It's good for the corporate image to say, 'We're not being irresponsible.'"
Kirk, the historian, said, "the similarities between the '70s and now are striking."
In both periods, "apocalyptic" threats and "perceived scarcity really hit people," making them aware there are "environmental consequences to their daily behavior," Kirk said.
In the 1970s, the fears were polluted rivers, oil spills and the Arab oil embargo.
Now, Kirk says, global warming embodies that threat.
The majority of climate researchers have concluded that growing emissions of carbon dioxide from vehicles and power plants are key reasons why Earth is expected to warm at a faster rate this century.
They project that sea levels will rise, raising threats to coastal communities during the next century. For the Great Lakes, it is predicted that lake levels will fall even farther than the near-historic levels besieging the lakes. If that happens, it could imperil shipping and ecosystems. Scientists also predict more heat waves and the potential for more disease outbreaks.
Businesses respond
The growing concern that humans can have a lasting imprint on the environment is prompting many people to make changes. And businesses are responding to those concerns.
At Future Green, a retailer of eco-friendly products at 2352 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. in Milwaukee, sales have tripled from two years ago.
"Things began to pop about six, seven months ago," said Lisa Sim, 41, who opened the store in December 2003.
Her top seller: racks of brightly colored organic cotton women's clothes, which are produced with fewer fossil fuels.
"When my customers buy green products, they think, 'I'm making a change,' and they feel good about it," Sim said.
Increased environmental awareness has helped explain Organic Valley's booming growth, said George Siemon, chief executive officer. Based in LaFarge in western Wisconsin, Organic Valley is the largest organic cooperative in the country. Sales rose 38% in 2006 to $334 million. This summer, it opened a $17.5 million distribution system in a new industrial park where the co-op could tap biodiesel or other renewable energy sources planned there.
"The green movement is searching for its own identity," Siemon said. "It's not one thing. It's buying local, buying carbon credits or just reducing what you use.
"Organic food is part of many fibers - clean air, clean water, sustainable farming and global warming."
J. Walker Smith, president of the market research firm Yankelovich Inc., said even though green marketing advertising is becoming more widespread, not everyone is embracing it.
About 29% of Americans surveyed by the firm said they couldn't "care less" about environmental issues and have no appetite at all for eco-friendly products, Smith said.
In Fort Atkinson in Jefferson County, residents came up with their diet plan this year out of frustration that the federal government was moving too slowly to curb emissions of greenhouse gases.
So far about 100 individuals or families are slimming down. Their actions range from simple steps such as hanging out their laundry to the pledge of one dieter not to drive his car for a year.
Organizer Kitty Welch said she got the idea after hearing about how communities fought obesity by banding together to try to lose weight.
Global warming "is such a huge issue, and it really needs everybody to hit it on all cylinders," she said. "With a low-carbon diet, I thought, why don't we try to put the whole city on a diet to see where we can get together."
But to date, the efforts represent only about 1% of the city's population.
Welch said it's still in its infancy and continues to grow. Twenty people have joined the program in the last month alone, including principals of two schools installing geothermal systems for their buildings. They hope to get students involved.
As of this month, the hospital is on board as well. "You can't really talk about keeping people healthy if you're not going to keep the planet healthy," said Katy O'Brien, who coordinates wellness programs for Fort HealthCare.
Across the state, interest in buying renewable power is surging. We Energies' program that lets customers buy renewable electricity has grown by 35% over the last two years. But it represents less than 2% of the company's 1.1 million electric customers.
Fast-selling hybrids, the darling of green-minded folks, will represent only 2% of 2007 new vehicle sales, industry forecasts show.
The small numbers aside, global warming appears to be getting the public's attention. A poll in April by the St. Norbert College Survey Center found that 83% of Wisconsin residents consider the effects of global warming to be serious.
A national poll taken at the same time by Stanford University, the Washington Post and ABC News showed that Americans are more concerned about global warming than at the same time last year.
The poll found that 33% of the public considered global warming to be the world's top environmental issue - up from 16% in 2006.
Nature and religion
If some people are getting into the green spirit, so is religion. Churches were early venues for screenings of "An Inconvenient Truth," and in recent years, issues of nature are being woven into the life of many religious communities.
"When I speak to groups about these things, it is clear that the average parishioner is hungry to hear them," said David Rhoads, a theologian who lives in Racine.
"They are eager to connect their faith with their environmental concerns and ready to understand ecological crises as spiritual problems."
Rhoads, who teaches at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, founded "Web of Creation," an online resource for churches to infuse environmental teachings into their ministry.
The Web site is supported by his synod, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the National Council of Churches.
Early forms of the Web site have been around since 1998. But it shifted to a stronger focus on global warming in the last two years "because it's the most urgent issue we have," Rhoads said.
In Fort Atkinson, Shandra Miller has encouraged her boss to replace his energy-wasting light bulbs. She uses a black-screened search engine on her computer called Blackle that purports to use less electricity.
She got the tip when she went on the "Atkinson Diet."
"People see global warming as such a large problem, and they go, 'Well, what can I do about it?'
"But if you're on the diet, you can say here are all these little things we can do.
"And if we all group together, it'll have a huge impact."
It’s great they link environmental issues with the Arab Oil Embargo. I missed the dissenting opinion on all this, but I’m sure it was in the article someplace.
No dissent allowed. “You are at the table, or you are on the menu.” ;)
The main spiritual problem is the ghostly appearance of my bank account when they get done implementing all these windmills.
So what are the Greenies going to do in 4-5 years when the CFLs start crapping out and people start throwing the the little mercury bombs in the trash?
Pass another law?
2% are renewable, 2% are Prius-type cars...
About the same as everywhere else.
Then put your money where your mouth is and renounce the Green Bean Casserole. Nothing has impacted this Earth more with despicable results than canned onion rings and cream of mushroom soup. Sure, it's easy to be "green" when Thanksgiving hasn't arrived, but watch the Lutherans suddenly go silent when they pull out that gawdawful recipe and write 3 large cans French Style Green Beans on their shopping list. If you want to change the world, start with your own fake onion rings.
> So what are the Greenies going to do in 4-5 years when
> the CFLs start crapping out and people start throwing
> the little mercury bombs in the trash?
Enterprise FL users are already required (in most places)
to segregate their FL tubes for separate disposal.
It’s just a matter of time before residential CFLs are
classified as hazmats for disposal purposes.
With any luck CFL will be eclipsed by LED, and the
de minimus Hg problem will soon be history.
The real threat to the environment (if any) is not so
much what people are doing, but that there are so many
of us doing it. The further back in time you look, the
less green concern you find, and the fewer people.
They had no effect (outside of small closed systems
like Easter Island, and even there the main problem
was population).
The solution relies on devout followers of Al Gore’s
Hot Air Church. They must terminate their membership
in the human race, and get head count down.
LOL! I’m a Lutheran and I hear that loud and clear. What’s your opinion on green jell-o and it’s adverse effects on the environment? That’s a menu staple at all ‘Pot Luck Church Basement’ gatherings! :)
Well, being the rebel greenie Lutheran I am, I've been trying to perfect the "Marshmallow Peeps suspended in green Jello" side salad for years. Since Peeps appear at all recognized holidays, this could be a real trend setter. The secret is in the green Jello. It simply must be green. I, too, care about the environment. Forming a Greenpeepce Group is proving a little difficult, though. Too many members simply love the pink chicks. The real meaning of Easter and all, you know....;)
I love Peeps! I’ve never considered that I’m destroying the environment while snacking on them, though. I like ‘em CRUNCHY. You open the package and let them get stale for a week or so. Nothin’ tastier, IMHO.
Here’s a recipe for you:
“Peeps-on-the-Lawn” Dessert Salad
Ingredients:
Peeps
1 5-oz package instant Cheesecake flavor pudding mix
1 cup milk
1 12-oz container whipped topping
5 Granny Smith apples
5 Snickers bars
Small chocolate crunchy Easter Egg candies
Green food coloring
1. Make instant pudding using the milk. Mix in with whipped topping.
2. Core, peel, and dice apples. Add to mixture.
3. Dice slightly chilled Snickers bars, add to pudding mixture.
4. Use several drops of food coloring to turn mixture a light green color.
5. Pour mixture into a large pan
6. Refrigerate until chilled
7. Just before serving, arrange Peeps chicks and bunnies on top of the green “grass”. Drop in assorted little egg candies to complete the decoration.
http://www.topoimagery.com/peeps/salad.html
Take your favorite homemade vanilla ice cream recipe (I have one for White Chocolate Vanilla), put in ice cream freezer and when it is almost done, add chopped up Easter basket candies (peeps, robin's eggs, cadburry eggs, jelly beans, hershey's kisses, etc. Then freeze to desired consistency. The candies all stay at their original candy consistency (chewy, soft, crunchy, etc.) I actually tried to enter this recipe in the Food Network Ice Cream contest that Haagen Daas was sponsoring, but, get this, and I'm not joking: they wrote back that all ingredients had to be "NATURAL" ingredients, and specifically pointed out "peeps" as not natural. lol! Do you want to reconsider that you (we) might JUST be destroying the environment with our peeps??!!
The History Channel just flashed a tidbit that claimed if everyone in the US installed just ONE of the fluorescent bulbs it's would save the equivalent energy of 800,000(!) cars.
OK, fine. I have three of those things installed. That's 2.4 million cars. I'm doing my part.
Now leave me alone! ;)
Sorry. Had to un-Freep myself to watch the Packers slap the Giants...
I watched that whole stupid two-hour ice cream show, LOL! Sticky Toffee Bun or something won? It looked awful. I wanted the Fig or the Canolli flavor to win. :(
Your ice cream sounds wonderful. I have an ice cream maker and we have a lot of fun coming up with ideas.
Egg Nog run through the ice cream maker makes an awesome sorbet-like treat. *SLURP*
No kidding. Those of us that have always lived a simple, “Conserve”-ative lifestyle have done more in our lifetimes than any of these Greenies ever will.
Why aren’t there mass suicides if they’re feeling so guilty about trashing the planet? Morons.
And celebrities are installing dimmer switches in the interior of their private jets.
Remove the "and", and you pretty much sum up what's going on here.
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