NEWS

Thursday, October 05, 2006

The NY Times’ Simple Diet to Lose Half a Ton

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By Think Salmon

Feeling like thinking salmon is a bit too difficult? A bit of, well, a pain in the ass to make changes that benefit salmon and salmon waters?

That’s how lots of people think. But New York Times writer Andrew Postman wanted to try. His article, detailing his quest to lose a half ton, is called The Energy Diet. In it Mr. Postman details simple, small changes to make that make a real difference to his carbon emissions—the main contributor to global warming.

What does that have to do with thinking salmon? Salmon need cool water, and lots of it flowing in rivers and streams, to migrate to their spawning grounds and reproduce. Global warming causes warmer waters and lower water levels. It hurts salmon. Cutting back on carbon emissions is a major way to think salmon.

I’ve tried to be responsible. I’ve thought pro-green thoughts and occasionally even done pro-green things. I’ve run the dishwasher and washer-dryer only with full loads. I’ve recycled, as ordered, though like every New Yorker I’ve ever met, I suspect the system does more good for our feelings than for the environment. I’ve shaved while showering, although I can’t remember anymore whether that’s a good or a bad thing.

I’ve been too busy to do much more, though, and too confused and overwhelmed by all the eco hype out there, and too inflexible to seriously change my lifestyle. No way am I hanging clothes out to dry on a clothesline. I won’t drive more slowly—as President Bush, like past presidents, has urged Americans to do to save gas—and neither will you, and neither will anyone. And I recently bought a flat-screen high-def 37-inch TV, an energy-Hoover you’ll have to pry from my cold, dead hands; if you haven’t seen an N.F.L. game on something like that, my friend, you might as well watch curling.

Recommended reading for everyone who wants great ideas to make the world better, great ways to think salmon. And easy too. Two light bulbs swapped to compact fluorescent bulbs save 300 pounds of carbon a year. 250 pounds by a 30 second change to computer settings.

You’re gaining weight by not making these simple changes.