{"id":2240,"date":"2011-04-01T15:03:07","date_gmt":"2011-04-01T19:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2011\/04\/waste-not-want-not-dr-noll.html"},"modified":"2011-04-01T15:03:07","modified_gmt":"2011-04-01T19:03:07","slug":"waste-not-want-not-dr-noll","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2011\/04\/waste-not-want-not-dr-noll.html","title":{"rendered":"Waste not, want not –Dr. Noll"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Michael Noll advocated conservation and efficiency in the long-running
\n
\nGreening of America<\/a> email discussion, responding to
\n
\ntwo messages by Valdosta City Council member James R. Wright<\/a>.
\nDr. Noll cites our earliest American blogger. -jsq<\/p>\n

\nDate: Sat, 26 Mar 2011 15:55:16 -0400<\/p>\n

\nDear Councilman Wright.<\/p>\n

\n
\n<\/a>
\nValid points and a great question to ponder. You may recall my quote
\nfrom Benjamin Franklin: “Waste not, want not”.<\/p>\n

\nAdd to that a quote from the Sierra Club: “Energy use should be
\nminimized through conservation and efficiency. In the near future,
\nefficiency is the only “energy source” which does not incur some
\nenvironmental damage and which is available immediately in generous
\nsupply. Sophisticated building construction, efficient appliances,
\nrecycling, modernized industrial
\nprocesses, programmable thermostats, public transit supplemented by
\nfuel-efficient cars, and many other innovative technologies can reduce
\nenergy use tremendously, while saving money.”<\/p>\n

\nIn other words, we are wasting enormous amounts of energy and money\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

<\/p>\n

\nevery single day. We feel it when we fill up our gas-guzzlers, when we
\npay electricity and natural gas bills to heat or cool poorly insulated
\nhouses, and when we see the environmental consequences. At the same
\ntime, our dependence on “more energy” (as in more “want”) pulls us into
\ngeopolitical conflict hearths in the Middle East and makes us look for
\n“quick fixes” at home (such as biomass), regardless of the consequences.
\nWe are … if I may use the example … behaving like drug addicts,
\n“hooked” firmly to a materialistic and wasteful way of life that is not
\nsustainable.<\/p>\n

\nTo my knowledge there are more jobs in, say, the retrofitting of
\nbuildings & industries, improvement of infrastructure (e.g. smart
\ngrids), expansion of public transit (where applicable), solar, and
\nreforestation than in biomass in our region. (John Quarterman has done
\nan excellent job of looking into many of these issues. You might want to
\nexplore his blog. )<\/p>\n

\nNext Tuesday is a first good opportunity to meet with folks who are
\nbringing truly “green” jobs and energy to Georgia and beyond:<\/p>\n

\n
\nhttp:\/\/lake.typepad.com\/on-the-lake-front\/2011\/03\/mage-solar-at-lowndes-high-29-march-2011.html<\/a><\/p>\n

\nValdosta is a wonderful community, with many talents and potentials.
\nOnce we move beyond the idea to invest in a boondoggle like biomass, and
\ninstead invest in other initiatives, you will find that community
\nmembers are ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work.<\/p>\n

\nRegards, Michael G. Noll.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That was in response to the message from James Wright quoted in the
\nfirst paragraph
\n
\nof this previous post.<\/a>
\nCouncilmember Wright then sent the message with the rest of the paragraphs
\nquoted in that message, and Dr. Noll responded:<\/p>\n

\nSat, 26 Mar 2011 21:39:15 -0400<\/p>\n

\nGood evening Mr. Wright.<\/p>\n

\nI understand, but let’s keep two things in perspective:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \nIf we are to believe Mr. Lofton’s numbers, the jobs created with
    \nthis biomass project (for which there are alternatives as outlined)
    \nresemble less than 2% of the jobs he claims to have created during his
    \ntenure with the Industrial Authority.<\/p>\n
  2. \nI don’t think anyone who considers himself a true Christian or
    \nbelieves in the principles of commons sense and ethics would want to
    \ntrade a job for another person’s health.\n<\/ol>\n

    You are falling into the same trap I described earlier: some “business
    \npeople” see the desperation in the community when it comes to jobs and
    \ntake advantage of it, no matter what, because THEY will not have to
    \nbreathe in the air, or pay the bills for doctor visits resulting from
    \nthe air pollution.<\/p>\n

    \nIt should be your highest priority as a city council member to look
    \nbeyond the illusions created by those who lack the vision and
    \nresponsibility necessary to create healthy jobs for our community.
    \nStatements made by medical associations and thousands of doctors
    \nthroughout the country about the risks of biomass are not a matter of
    \nopinion, they are a fact.<\/p>\n

    \nIn the end, the last word belongs neither to you nor me. That last word
    \nbelongs to someone else.<\/p>\n

    \nRespectfully, Michael G. Noll.<\/p>\n

    \nP.S.: Please do not make any assumptions of my knowledge or experience
    \nwith poverty just because I happen to be teaching at a university. I am
    \nthe first in my family to do so.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Dr. Michael Noll advocated conservation and efficiency in the long-running Greening of America email discussion, responding to two messages by Valdosta City Council member James R. Wright. Dr. Noll cites our earliest American blogger. -jsq Date: Sat, 26 Mar 2011 15:55:16 -0400 Dear Councilman Wright. Valid points and a great question to ponder. You may […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[97,120,14,16,2,4794,1908,23,289,24,54],"tags":[8779,8738,1747,4112,7,703,4795,8715,8846,4796,6,8726],"class_list":["post-2240","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-activism","category-biomass","category-economy","category-environment","category-government","category-greening-of-america","category-religion","category-renewable-energy","category-science","category-solar","category-valdosta-city-council","tag-air","tag-biomass","tag-brad-lofton","tag-james-r-wright","tag-lowndes-county","tag-michael-noll","tag-miscanthus","tag-pollution","tag-religion","tag-torrefaction","tag-valdosta","tag-valdosta-city-council"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2240"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2240\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}