Thursday, May 24, 2007

REACT: More environmental bees wax … royal bees wax.

A recent news item reported that the new wax figure of Prince Charles in Madam Tussauds’ London museum was developed in an environmental-friendly manner … green, as they say. This meant recycled wax from his old figure, new bees wax, workers laboring without power machinery. They rode bicycles to work, and worked only in natural daylight. A lot of symbolism … without much substance, I should add.

However, the item that caught my attention was the planting of three trees to compensate for the minimal carbon dioxide they did release into our communal atmosphere.

I recalled representing Motorola (my employer at the time) at an Arbor Day tree planting ceremony where Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, the First, officiated. He waxed on (no pun intended) about the contribution this humble tree (about 12 feet tall at the time) would make to our world’s environment. “Today,” he said, “we add one more tree to our world.”

Well, my mind drifted in wonderment to the question: From whence did this tree come? As surely as we were planting this future mighty Oak, it was brutally extracted from its former resting place. I failed to see the “addition,” the mayor so highly touted.

Since my early experience on that long-ago Arbor Day to the contemporary do-goodiness of Madam Tussauds’ wax artisans, innumerable trees have been ceremoniously planted to make their contribution to the atmosphere. In truth, not once was there a contribution, only a reallocation.

The only meaningful addition of trees to our world is the tree farming work of the lumber industry. Yikes!!! Think about that all you green genes. Driven by the profit motive of ruthless capitalism, more trees are being planted by industry than by all those green activists who so hate the loggers.

Just another little something to think about. You too, Al Gore.

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