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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] Efficiency

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Subject: Healthy soil and sustainable growing

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  • From: "Phil Bunch" <pbunch@cox.net>
  • To: "'Healthy soil and sustainable growing'" <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Efficiency
  • Date: Tue, 25 Dec 2007 05:38:31 -0800

It may be helpful to think in terms of effectiveness rather than efficiency.
In either case the context within which one is acting, either effectively or
efficiently is the key to the outcomes. I like effective because it has a
connotation of having a goal in mind. Efficiency is driven by a short term
objective of minimizing input and maximizing output. This over
simplification can divert ones attention from other goals and can become a
goal in itself.

In my view efficiency has its place as long as it is an appropriate place
given the full spectrum of needs associated with a process or project. Like
any other powerful tool it must be used responsibly. This implies we
understand all the important ramifications of what we are doing efficiently.


-----Original Message-----
From: livingontheland-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:livingontheland-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Liz
Sent: Monday, December 24, 2007 2:59 PM
To: Healthy soil and sustainable growing
Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Efficiency

At 02:37 PM 12/24/2007, you wrote:

>Granted the semi is more fuel efficient. But let's don't forget to allocate
>part of the embodied energy in the semi manufacture, or the cost of the
>highways. Moreover, it's unlikely that the 1400 mile food was grown without
>costly fossil fuel inputs and heavy machinery with embodied energy in its
>manufacture.


Throwing in a few more observations about efficiency here--efficiency
is not necessarily the highest desired outcome. Machines can be made
more efficient. Working with the land, with animals, with the weather
and the climate, is not always amenable to increases in "efficiency."
Nor is it always desirable. Making efficiency the most important
outcome treats non-predictable components as though they can be made
predictable. In the short term, this may work. But it works by
pretending that the physical system is an open one, or by simply
ignoring the warning signs of an unstable system.

Viewing people and other living organisms (not to mention the short
term weather and the long term climate) as comparable to machines is
short-sighted and stupid. Just ignoring for the moment the embedded
energy, as a system extends it dependencies, it becomes more
vulnerable to known problems and more at risk for unknown or
unconsidered or just unpredictable ones. Making one part of the
system more efficient (whatever that may mean to the people involved
in that part of it) often creates completely unexpected problems in
other parts of the system. What is needed is not increases in
efficiency, but increased understanding of how all the components of
a living system work together.

Liz in SW VA
http://life-as-a-spectator-sport.com

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