Earth Day

Happy Earth Day Vancouver. Today I went to the dinky little info fair at Capers, then I went up to Our Community Bikes to get a part for my bike. Some people are heading up to Eagle Ridge Bluffs. Others don't know its Earth Day, others don't care. They're going to twin the Port Mann Bridge and there is nothing we can do about it. Then it will be a monument to poor planning as it stands empty and foreboding as nobody can afford gas to drive over it.

Hey did you know it's basically pointless to recycle if you're a meat eater? Agribusiness wastes something like 100 times the energy as recycling saves. Plus, if you drive a car you might as well not bother. I don't want to be a doomsayer, but is just seems people are more interested in how big their cell phone is. But there are steps, quietly and slowly shuffling towards sustainability...

There is a good article today on Common Dreams today. It informs us that "China just mandated stronger fuel economy standards for its vehicles than we have in the United States, and it imposed a tax on gas-guzzling vehicles and disposable wood chopsticks. Brazil has shifted almost half its cars and trucks to ethanol. London imposes a toll on all vehicles entering its congested business district. Sweden is on course to become the world's first country with an oil-free economy. In Barcelona, 40% of new buildings have hot water courtesy of solar power."

Locally, there are organisations like Thee David Suzuki Foundation, Smart Growth (No, its not like the boil on Richard E. Grant's neck in How to get Ahead in Advertising), B.E.S.T. (who have the best acronym ever), The Livable Region Coalition, and BALLE who are having a locally sourced fashion show on Wednesday at at St. James Community square. Dorothy Woodend and Vanessa Richmond of The Tyee will be there to discuss their experiment in ethical shopping.

There may yet be hope. I hope.