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Carbon cop out

**helen****helen** Deactivated Posts: 9,235 Supreme Poster
Is the government doing enough to address pollution problems in the UK?
Mione doesn't think so - have a rant about her rant or maybe you're in agreement?

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    **Helen** wrote: »
    Is the government doing enough to address pollution problems in the UK?
    Mione doesn't think so - have a rant about her rant or maybe you're in agreement?

    Was there a cogent argument in there somewhere - it seemed to be a rant on 'aren't politicians all bastards, oh and by the way so are foreigners'

    That said personally I'd have said a UK target of 80% reductions by 2050 is pretty challenging myself
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7673748.stm
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I agree with the sentiments, but it was a bit.....meh. Same criticism of David Cameron for something that happened once, over a year ago.

    Why not mention the lack of pressure on companies to use less packaging, that is more recyclable, and adequate services to collect such items, before imposing fines for individuals overfilling their bins?

    The only point I disagree on is that this is somehow not the UK's (and Europe's and America's) responsibility. So what if the UK isn't one of the most polluted places in the world? We're only not polluted in this country, because we delegate all of the dirty work involved in paying for our lifestyles to poorer countries. I wonder how many of these dirty cities are involved in making things for local people, and how much of what they make ends up in Europe and America. It's the UK's responsibility, because the average person in the UK has about 4 times the carbon footprint of the average Chinese person. And there's another reason why countries like the UK need to take a lead in this, because we're the only countries capable of producing the technology to combat these problems.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Why not mention the lack of pressure on companies to use less packaging, that is more recyclable, and adequate services to collect such items, before imposing fines for individuals overfilling their bins?

    This :yes:

    I have worked in a wholesale and retail and it disgusts me how often I was changing packaging or had to package something that would be removed from it as soon as it reached the stores.

    Even if you as a customer buy something that's not packaged, there's no guarantee that it wasn't packaged three different times before being unpacked and sold.

    I think it's not talked about as much because it's not as obvious as the bins outside people's houses.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I suspect as the credit crunch becomes a reality you'll see less packaging - as its a relatively easy way to cut costs without cutting sales. I used to work on an energy programme and we estimated the average UK firm could cut its energy output by about 20% with low or no cost measures. If you're a manufacturing firm that can mean the difference between profit and loss.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Perhaps some good will then come from this economic uncertainty!!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    DrZork101 wrote: »
    Perhaps some good will then come from this economic uncertainty!!

    I'm sure it will, because people will have to evaluate what is shit about the system and get rid of that... but all the progress made in the last 80 years since the last big crash will be retained, thus we all profit. Imagine what the world was like in 1915 to 1935, despite the market crash it changed everything. Of course, then hitler came along and ruined everyones day, but it was an era of massive socioeconomic change, not necessarily just crashing and burning.

    It's quite exciting in some sense to be in what could be one of these 'revolutions' where, well, who knows. Communism? :D
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    ShyBoy wrote: »
    I'm sure it will, because people will have to evaluate what is shit about the system and get rid of that... but all the progress made in the last 80 years since the last big crash will be retained, thus we all profit. Imagine what the world was like in 1915 to 1935, despite the market crash it changed everything. Of course, then hitler came along and ruined everyones day, but it was an era of massive socioeconomic change, not necessarily just crashing and burning.

    It's quite exciting in some sense to be in what could be one of these 'revolutions' where, well, who knows. Communism? :D

    It's an old Chinese Curse 'May you live in interesting times'*

    It may be intersting to historians but to the PBI on the Somme or Russian Peasants being taken to death camps by NKVD goons, 'exciting' may be the wrong term.

    I've seen excitement - give me boring times any day









    * actually it probably isn't, but the originator probably thought anything half-wise had to come from Confucius
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