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Rethinking Transportation
>>American mobility is one of our society's greatest freedoms. We can go places faster and farther than any generation before us. This is a good thing. But our driving and flying contribute mightily to global warming! According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, our travel contributes one-fourth to one-half of the average American household's annual greenhouse gas production. We Americans account for roughly one-fourth of all greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Our transportation system is responsiblefor one-sixteenth to one-eighth of all greenhouse gases on Earth. What to do?
>>Unquestionably, changes in how Americans get around will be one of the ways to deal with global warming. Technological and structural adaptations on the societal level will be necessary. As individuals, our actions seem minor, if not insignificant, but they do add up. If we could reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, that would be a significant beginning. We can each take our own steps toward this goal and, as a congregation, we can make a difference.
>>The first thing we can do to produce less greenhouse gases is to use more efficient means of transportation. Automobiles lead the list, not because they are the most efficient, but because virtually all of us use them. If you’re buying a car, get a more efficient one (29mpg or better is called "efficient", 41 mpg or better is called "green", by the Carbon Fund). Consider a hybrid, because these cars not only get great mileage, they are "super-low" emission vehicles. The Toyota Prius from 2004 on is capable of a larger battery which can be recharged by wind power, a so-called "plug-in" retrofit: with a plug-in hybrid, driving becomes as low-polluting as is now possible, up to a certain range. Currently the cost of this retrofit is very high, but Toyota says they will provide plug-in hybrids within two years, so the cost will come down. Remember though, hybrids are not essential--any high mileage car, including diesels since 2006, is an improvement.
>>When driving a car, ask if each trip is necessary.
>>Combine errands as much as possible. If others are going in the same direction, carpool. We are working towards helping members know who their UU neighbors are, so to facilitate carpooling. (in fcat, if there is someone in the congregation with the computer skills we need to complete this, please contact us!!)
>>If you have a flexfuel vehicle, use E85 (85% ethanol) gas from the SeQuential Biofuels station at the 30th Ave exit on I-5. Check your car’s VIN on their website to see if your car qualifies (85fuel.com/e85101/faqs/cost.php) or go there and they’ll look it up. If you have a diesel car, all of them can use biodiesel, also available at this station. These are less polluting fuels.
>>However, the E85 fuel has drawbacks because the ethanol is made mostly from corn. First, when all the energy costs are considered (pesticide, fertilizer, tractor and harvester fuel, transport, and fuel production) burning E85 reduces greenhouse gases very little compared with petroleum fuel. Second, corn is a major food source and we are creating a competition between auto fuel for the richer and food for the poorer. Third, Lester Brown points out that corn production is profitable only with government support (your tax dollars.)
>>It may sound trivial, but if idling for longer than thirty seconds, turn off the engine to reduce the overall CO2 output. Consider forgoing one -- or more -- car-trips per week, especially for local travel, and use another mode of getting around.
>>Eugene has a superb bus system by mid-size American city standards. It’s true that taking the bus is much less time-efficient, even if it is more gas-efficient (and, surprisingly, more money- efficient, since driving has so many hidden costs built in). Nonetheless, take a look at the schedules and routes (www.ltd.org <http://www.ltd.org> ), and try to work it in.
>>For UUCE Sunday services, Bus 73 leaves the Eugene LTD station at 8:30, 9:30 & 10:30 AM, arriving at 40th & Donald eighteen minutes later. Still plenty of time to get a good seat! After some social time, the easiest and fastest return is on Bus 24, leaving 40th and Donald at 10:24, 11:24 & 12:24, back at Eugene station sixteen minutes later at 40 minutes after each hour.
>>Ride your bike! We have great bike paths, just not great biking weather for much of the year. This is mostly an option for the fair seasons. When coming to the Church, a lovely ride can be had for the whole family. The best route to UUCE up the hill is through Tugman Park across the creek to Donald. From there the Church is a half-block farther south. We acquired a secod bike rack this spring, so parking is easier than ever!
>>Walking is always a healthy option, a wonderful way to exercise and get around. At least to consider it, maybe walk home once a week.
>>We often fly for business or pleasure. Think about how warranted these trips are, because flying pumps out the CO2 more than any other mode of travel (and the high altitude makes its atmospheric warming action greater). This is a tough dilemma. It may seem impossible to forgo seeing family across the country or give up a long-awaited visit to a foreign country, but we can reduce these travels, be selective, judicious and "maximizing" of the value of the travel.
>> If we do fly, we can offset the greenhouse gases we produce. Since our reductions in CO2 are incremental, we can choose to make up the difference by contributing financially to efforts to bring about change. The Carbon Fund, at carbonfund.org, is the means that the UU Ministry for Earth has recommended that we use. The Carbon Fund was started by UUs; if the donation lists UUMFE, they get 7% (remember the seventh principle?).
>>Calculate how much CO2 you produce each year using the footprint calculator below, and then contribute that amount. It is a relatively small sum: $5.50 per metric ton of CO2 produced, with the average American individual producing 33 tons per year (directly and indirectly through all consumption). In truth, this payment does not erase the CO2 that we have generated, so it is not achieving carbon neutrality. But it does mitigate what we produce by investing money into renewable energy and into carbon sequestration through planting trees, etc. Think of it as a voluntary carbon tax devoted to reducing carbon in the atmosphere.
>>Our society has a ways to go, so every step counts. The journey of dealing with global warming is one that we are all making together, so we all need to think about how we will travel it.
Bon voyage!
Contacts: Erik Fisher at erikfisher@earthlink.net
Amy Raven asraven44@comcast.net
Eldon Haines rainbow-cat@comcast.net
See also: your Carbon Footprint calculator (pdf)
Unitarian Universalist Church in Eugene, Oregon
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