[obol] Humans and the Planet

[Jason Randolph (Conservation For The Oregon Coast)]

Isn't the equation simply this...

Too many people + Too much greed + Too few resources = A complete global 
ecological breakdown

Essentially, in a nutshell, we must do something about one of the three 
above or we will ultimately reach an inevitable result. Unless we can 
learn how to generate enough electricity to power Los Angeles daily from 
a single pebble (or something similar), the too few resources issue is 
not something we will likely be able to resolve. Where does that leave us?

Personally, my wife and I use as little as we can (improving every day). 
This hasn't always been the case, but we see the necessity and are 
willing to take effort on "too much greed". We will continue to increase 
our capability to do more with less.

Have a goo day everybody!

Jason in Charleston



Dennis P. Vroman wrote:
> Well stated Tom.  Must admit some of these same thoughts have appear 
> in my head as well.  A friend of mine grew up in western 
> Massachusetts, where most all of the hardwoods were removed to 
> make charcoal for various uses).  The result of which was vastly 
> depleted hardwood forests (in northern NY also).  He never saw a 
> Pileated Woodpecker in his youth, but they are around now in the same 
> area.  I'm very thankful that the northern hardwood forests were 
> around as a youth - spent a lot of time in them (Red Squirrels, Ruffed 
> Grouse, Black-and-White Warblers, what treats).
>  
> ...perhaps an indication of how resilient ecosystems are.  Hoping for 
> the best, Dennis
>
>  
>
>     In an effort to head off the possibility of this veering off into
>     "the dreaded cat thread", I wanted to offer a few thoughts on this
>     fascinating topic.  Something that I've been ruminating on for
>     more than a little while.  And that's the effect of fossil fuel
>     depletion on our sport/citizen science.  I believe we are entering
>     a period of energy scarcity for which the citizenry is ill
>     prepared and the government immobilized.  I don't mean just that
>     running over to the coast or to central Oregon on a big day, or
>     any birding day, will become more expensive.  Or even that we
>     ought to think of ways to soften the impacts on the land of our
>     sport.  I mean the effect of the fossil-fueled extravaganza which
>     has allowed us - *within living memory* - to transform our
>     relationship with birds and the larger environmental contexts
>     within which they move and live and have their being.  Fossil
>     fuels have taken the pressure off woodlands and natural habitats
>     and allowed us to enjoy and learn about these ecosystems, in ways
>     unimaginable before this era and perhaps impossible after it.
>      
>     I feel very conflicted by the privilege I've had, growing up in
>     this era of human history, to travel extensively here and abroad,
>     yet I get such satisfaction from my local observations - the
>     return of siskins to my thistle feeder after an unusual absence
>     earlier this winter, the call of a sapsucker earlier in January in
>     the winter stillness, the geese commuting overhead before starting
>     their journey north.  I think of Mike Patterson not chasing
>     rarities farther than a day's drive.  I think of Donna Lusthoff
>     complaining about the fee trips when Portland Audubon prided
>     itself on running only free field trips.  I think of traipsing
>     around the surprisingly diverse urban habitats of Eugene with Dave
>     Irons on a CBC a few years ago, marveling at how dynamic the world
>     is - "natural" and "cultural".  Don't get me wrong - I enjoy
>     travel to distant lands and marvel at the beauty of tropical
>     habitats and birds - whole families of them, unknown here.  But I
>     wonder how this era of privilege will seem to us and our
>     descendants after fossil fuels.  I find myself wondering what of
>     enduring value we will wind up leaving, after the party's over?
>      
>     Tom Love
>     tlove at linfield.edu <mailto:tlove at linfield.edu>
>
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>
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