Part II: Ecological Awareness
First, make sure you go down and read part I before beginning this post. Now you might be asking, after detailing Americans' extravagance in the previous post, how can you say Americans have more ecological awareness? The answer is simple. Indians are efficient because they cannot afford not to be. If gas was as affordable in India as in the U.S., you would see the same size SUVs as you do over there. Everything in India currently comes down to money, what can I afford? If I can afford it, well, let's go ahead and do it then. This may have been less true in previous generations, but in my generation, I see all too often people flaunting their wealth just because they can.
Let's talk about various aspects of ecological awareness:
Electricity - In the U.S., I militantly reduced electricity usage in our house. We were four people living in 3412 Hamilton Street Floor II. I made sure that all our lights were compact fluorescent bulbs. Our living room used the most electricity of any room in the house in that we used to use about 50 watts to light it. I also ensured that I bought about 200 kilowatt-hours per month of energy from PECO Wind. Ultimately, our per-capita annual electricity consumption was about 1,800 kilowatt-hours and roughly one-third of that came from wind. I also set up a clothesline in my backyard so I wouldn't have to use the clothes drier for half the year.
Meanwhile, in my own house in India, I'm shocked at the state of affairs. I see electricity bulbs everywhere, 100 watts to light a bathroom!!! A compact fluorescent bulb would do a far more efficient job for one fifth of that. I haven't pushed a move to make the house eco-friendly since we will be moving soon, but once we do things are going to change. But getting back to the point. Now as I am typing this, I am sitting in darkness and my laptop battery is helping me put down my thoughts electronically. I am sitting in darkness because there is a power cut. We get a power cut daily in the evening for roughly one to two hours per day. The reasons for this are numerous (rampant power theft in the countryside prevents the electricity board from expanding its electricity production to meet demand, plus government ineptitude, plus people not conserving electricity when they do have it, etc).
Anyway, the point is, at the moment, we do not have enough electricity in India to meet demand. So when we don't have electricity to meet demand, forget the idea of being able to choose where your power comes from. At the moment, we're just happy to have power, regardless of where it comes from. Now to be fair, we do have plenty of renewable power in India. Much of Bangalore's power comes from the Sharavathi Hydroelectric Project and southern India has among the largest windfarms in the world. India is among the top wind power producers and is looking to expand. But the fact that I'm trying to drive home is that India is pushing for renewable energy because other sources of energy are more expensive. Coal is abundant in central India and coal plants are plentiful there, but right now, the government is looking to all sources of electricity to try and fill the supply-demand gap.
If an option was offered in India today where people have a choice of purchasing wind power or other renewable power at a slightly higher cost, I would guess that the number would be far smaller than in western countries, even the United States which is arguably the least ecologically aware of them all. This is because I just haven't seen any ecological awareness that is not connected to cost. I was especially shocked that a prominent wildlife biologist in India drives around in a Mitsubishi Pajero, which is an insanely sized SUV. I just cannot understand how people do not see the connection between their own lives and the world in general. Every single person makes a difference, but people just don't seem to realize that.
Recycling - Recycling in India is non-existent. The civic authorities do not even dispose of trash properly, let alone recycle. The only thing you can recycle well in India is old newspapers and glass bottles, which people buy back from you. But forget about plastic and cardboard. Even in Philadelphia, which had this crazy policy of not recycling plastic, there used to be some civic organizations which I used to take my plastic to get recycled. Also, every plastic package in the U.S. is neatly labeled to show the type of plastic that it is with regard to recycling. It usually generally consists of a number inside a recycling symbol. As for the proportion of people that do recycle, the number is even smaller in India. Many people do not bother saving the newspapers or glass since there is no organized collection. Sometimes a guy will come in front of your house on a bicycle, but there are no timings for that. While there are morons in the U.S. that throw away glass bottles and plastic bottles when there are recycling bins within a block, there are still plenty of people in the U.S. that consciously make an attempt to recycle. That consciousness is not there in India.
And this is true with any x number of things ...
The general perception in India I've seen is, if you can afford it, go ahead and do it. This is whether it involves driving, using plenty of water or electricity, or just about anything. A good example would be rainwater harvesting. Some states in India are urging people to go about and harvest rainwater. This basically involves a mechanism where you engineer your roof such that rainwater flowing down would either be collected in a tank underground for non-potable use (washing clothes, flushing toilets, or even showering) or another mechanism where it would run directly underground to replenish groundwater so that your house has no effect on soil permeability.
If this was the U.S., then such a measure would have been immediately gathered by environmental organizations and "green" companies would have aggressively marketed it because there is a ready environment-conscious market. In India, that market is non-existent, and while I want to incorporate rainwater harvesting in the house we will be constructing / buying, I cannot find any web sites that offer detailed information and prices. Because of the lack of an environmentally conscious market, this brilliant idea is floundering in government plans and environmentalist web sites. An exception is the State of Tamil Nadu which has mandated that all new homes incorporate this feature.
As for environmental leadership from the government, we could certainly use a California over here.
In Gamble, Calif. Tries to Curb Greenhouse Gases
First, it's amazing what California is doing. More states should follow the lead. If Bush is not going to do anything about greenhouse gases, then individual Governors and Mayors should take the matter in their own hands. The picture showing that California will require solar panels to be a standard option for new homes once again highlights the general ecological awareness of Americans in general, and Californians in particular (the hicks in the South and those living between the Missisippi and the Sierra Nevadas are exceptions).
I watched with disgust a recent National Geographic program on Las Vegas that showed how much energy Las Vegas uses and how that energy comes, from burning coal. Therefore, it's amazing that California is giving these coal burners in the U.S. West the equivalent of the middle finger. The Rockies are among the best place to invest in wind and other renewable sources of power.
Basically, I'm not going to detail the entire article because it would make more sense for you to read it. It's also not entirely within the scope of this commentary, but do give it a read. My already high admiration for the State of California has risen even higher.
Let's talk about various aspects of ecological awareness:
Electricity - In the U.S., I militantly reduced electricity usage in our house. We were four people living in 3412 Hamilton Street Floor II. I made sure that all our lights were compact fluorescent bulbs. Our living room used the most electricity of any room in the house in that we used to use about 50 watts to light it. I also ensured that I bought about 200 kilowatt-hours per month of energy from PECO Wind. Ultimately, our per-capita annual electricity consumption was about 1,800 kilowatt-hours and roughly one-third of that came from wind. I also set up a clothesline in my backyard so I wouldn't have to use the clothes drier for half the year.
Meanwhile, in my own house in India, I'm shocked at the state of affairs. I see electricity bulbs everywhere, 100 watts to light a bathroom!!! A compact fluorescent bulb would do a far more efficient job for one fifth of that. I haven't pushed a move to make the house eco-friendly since we will be moving soon, but once we do things are going to change. But getting back to the point. Now as I am typing this, I am sitting in darkness and my laptop battery is helping me put down my thoughts electronically. I am sitting in darkness because there is a power cut. We get a power cut daily in the evening for roughly one to two hours per day. The reasons for this are numerous (rampant power theft in the countryside prevents the electricity board from expanding its electricity production to meet demand, plus government ineptitude, plus people not conserving electricity when they do have it, etc).
Anyway, the point is, at the moment, we do not have enough electricity in India to meet demand. So when we don't have electricity to meet demand, forget the idea of being able to choose where your power comes from. At the moment, we're just happy to have power, regardless of where it comes from. Now to be fair, we do have plenty of renewable power in India. Much of Bangalore's power comes from the Sharavathi Hydroelectric Project and southern India has among the largest windfarms in the world. India is among the top wind power producers and is looking to expand. But the fact that I'm trying to drive home is that India is pushing for renewable energy because other sources of energy are more expensive. Coal is abundant in central India and coal plants are plentiful there, but right now, the government is looking to all sources of electricity to try and fill the supply-demand gap.
If an option was offered in India today where people have a choice of purchasing wind power or other renewable power at a slightly higher cost, I would guess that the number would be far smaller than in western countries, even the United States which is arguably the least ecologically aware of them all. This is because I just haven't seen any ecological awareness that is not connected to cost. I was especially shocked that a prominent wildlife biologist in India drives around in a Mitsubishi Pajero, which is an insanely sized SUV. I just cannot understand how people do not see the connection between their own lives and the world in general. Every single person makes a difference, but people just don't seem to realize that.
Recycling - Recycling in India is non-existent. The civic authorities do not even dispose of trash properly, let alone recycle. The only thing you can recycle well in India is old newspapers and glass bottles, which people buy back from you. But forget about plastic and cardboard. Even in Philadelphia, which had this crazy policy of not recycling plastic, there used to be some civic organizations which I used to take my plastic to get recycled. Also, every plastic package in the U.S. is neatly labeled to show the type of plastic that it is with regard to recycling. It usually generally consists of a number inside a recycling symbol. As for the proportion of people that do recycle, the number is even smaller in India. Many people do not bother saving the newspapers or glass since there is no organized collection. Sometimes a guy will come in front of your house on a bicycle, but there are no timings for that. While there are morons in the U.S. that throw away glass bottles and plastic bottles when there are recycling bins within a block, there are still plenty of people in the U.S. that consciously make an attempt to recycle. That consciousness is not there in India.
And this is true with any x number of things ...
The general perception in India I've seen is, if you can afford it, go ahead and do it. This is whether it involves driving, using plenty of water or electricity, or just about anything. A good example would be rainwater harvesting. Some states in India are urging people to go about and harvest rainwater. This basically involves a mechanism where you engineer your roof such that rainwater flowing down would either be collected in a tank underground for non-potable use (washing clothes, flushing toilets, or even showering) or another mechanism where it would run directly underground to replenish groundwater so that your house has no effect on soil permeability.
If this was the U.S., then such a measure would have been immediately gathered by environmental organizations and "green" companies would have aggressively marketed it because there is a ready environment-conscious market. In India, that market is non-existent, and while I want to incorporate rainwater harvesting in the house we will be constructing / buying, I cannot find any web sites that offer detailed information and prices. Because of the lack of an environmentally conscious market, this brilliant idea is floundering in government plans and environmentalist web sites. An exception is the State of Tamil Nadu which has mandated that all new homes incorporate this feature.
As for environmental leadership from the government, we could certainly use a California over here.
In Gamble, Calif. Tries to Curb Greenhouse Gases
First, it's amazing what California is doing. More states should follow the lead. If Bush is not going to do anything about greenhouse gases, then individual Governors and Mayors should take the matter in their own hands. The picture showing that California will require solar panels to be a standard option for new homes once again highlights the general ecological awareness of Americans in general, and Californians in particular (the hicks in the South and those living between the Missisippi and the Sierra Nevadas are exceptions).
I watched with disgust a recent National Geographic program on Las Vegas that showed how much energy Las Vegas uses and how that energy comes, from burning coal. Therefore, it's amazing that California is giving these coal burners in the U.S. West the equivalent of the middle finger. The Rockies are among the best place to invest in wind and other renewable sources of power.
Basically, I'm not going to detail the entire article because it would make more sense for you to read it. It's also not entirely within the scope of this commentary, but do give it a read. My already high admiration for the State of California has risen even higher.
posted by Vivek at 8:41 AM
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