I've known for some time that palm oil plantations were a significant cause of tropical deforestation, so I've been personally avoiding purchasing any product that mentions palm oil on the label (yes, even Newman's Organic chocolate goodies). But after reading an article about the murder of orangutans as a part of the clearing of forests to make room for these plantations, and then seeing these two articles today, I decided to make a public plea: please do not buy any product containing palm oil.
As the second article makes clear, palm oil is present in vast numbers of products and often labeled only as "vegetable oil," in the U.K. at least. I find it hard to believe that the US has stronger labeling laws of any sort than the EU, but the labels I read here usually list the possible suspects in parentheses, e.g. "vegetable oil (soy and/or cottonseed and/or palm)." But now I think it might be wise to just avoid all products that don't say what kind of vegetable oil.
I don't normally ask people to make lifestyle changes, but I can see no morally valid reason for not caring about the fate of our forests, the most diverse communities on the planet, and critical entities in preventing runaway global warming. For today, that is all I can say.
Long-term Solutions to Accelerated Global Warming
At right, below "What is a Wedge?," are links to three proposed solutions to our climate emergency, the top being my low-tech and conservation-oriented plan, the next being a tech-heavy plan of a prominent scientist/politician, and the third being the inept Obama Energy Plan. If technology-dependent plans are adopted, by the time it becomes painfully obvious that they won't work, that will be too late. I feel that solutions relying heavily on technology will allow our excessively consumptive ways to carry on, and therefore are doomed to failure because we cannot continue forever on a path of endless growth on a finite planet. Most of the posts on this site explain my ideas in further detail. I think the best solution is right here: Relocalization, not Militarization.
For New Visitors to this Blog
As this is a blog that displays posts reverse-chronologically, if you are interested in starting with my first post, see the Blog Archive at right and start with Climate Change Basics. If you wish to make a comment that disagrees with the causes, or trivializes the severity, of accelerated global warming, then this is not the cyber site for you. Such comments will not be posted. To post your actions, click here.
For New Visitors to this Blog
As this is a blog that displays posts reverse-chronologically, if you are interested in starting with my first post, see the Blog Archive at right and start with Climate Change Basics. If you wish to make a comment that disagrees with the causes, or trivializes the severity, of accelerated global warming, then this is not the cyber site for you. Such comments will not be posted. To post your actions, click here.
01 May 2009
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