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permaculture - Re: [permaculture] Bring On the Biofuels

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  • From: Marimike6@cs.com
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] Bring On the Biofuels
  • Date: Mon, 28 Apr 2008 09:59:44 EDT

In reply to this conversation,

>I think this author is clueless. How much rainforest is falling to produce
more sugarcane?

>None, in fact. The sugarcane growing areas are a long way from the
rainforests, as that author said. Rainforest are being destroyed through
illegal logging and burning to provide cattle ranches.

...that has been the pattern in Brazil. But the forests of Southeast Asia are
fast disappearing to be replaced by oil palm. Apparently more lucrative than
beef. And they're now taking the Congolese forest too, with oil palm to
follow
the logging phase.

That would still leave the Orinoco Basin pretty much intact. But
unfortunately it is underlaid by the world's largest deposit of tar sands-- a
field that
pretty much sits under the whole area. And since it's a sheet deposit it can
only be depleted by stripping off the entire overburden.

I would like to join you in the hope that mankind will have the decency to
collapse without destroying the planet for everyone and everything else. But
I
don't think that's how stripping the place bare actually works. I think we as
a
species are bright enough to figure out how to totally consume every
conceivable resource... and that we'll do so until even the richest among us
start to
run short of stuff before they begin to figure out why we should save
whatever's left.

Why? Because there are two kinds of people. And the kind that "make shit
happen" are busy starting wars, using up resources, carving up what's left of
the
commons to put in their own pockets, and in general getting even more rich
and
powerful. While the kind who know better are peaceful, quiet, minimal impact
types and leave very small footprints.

That's why there's no serious stopping power on earth today. The people like
us are just using moral suasion-- and we're up against forces that can't be
morally swayed. As long as they are able to gain, they will continue doing so.





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