Living in the middle of West Texas, it is sometimes difficult to be as eco-friendly as I want to be. I guess I'll have to be happy winning small battles and hope someone will follow my petty example. For istance, the past few weeks when I've gone shopping at HEB (not Wal Mart*), I've gotten a lot of strange looks because I bring my huge Budda Bag to carry my groceries out instead of a myriad of wasteful plastic bags. I don't care about the looks and so what if I save 5 bags, in 10 trips to the store I'll have saved 50 bags!
*I went the majority of last year without one purchase at Wal Mart, but I fell into that deceptive "save 5 cents" trap when I was mvoing myself back into the dorms. It's really all a bunch of bull sh*t because every company has its major flaws. I guess I'm more disgusted with Wal Mart than any other corporation, so the Elizabeth Wal Mart ban is back in business.
When it comes to gas I'm kind of in a bind:
"Between its public denial of global warming and steadfast efforts to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling, Exxon made itself the target of concerned citizens internationally as campaigns to change the company's behavior gained steam. Exxon boasts a commitment to preserving biodiversity while simultaneously fighting policies designed to cut greenhouse-gas emissions."
"BP has a legacy of questionable ethics, toxic emissions and disregard for ecologically sensitive areas when it comes to oil and gas exploration. Most recently, BP is head of a coalition of oil and gas companies building the Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan pipeline across Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. The project has resulted in the widespread dislocation of residents without proper, and in some cases any, compensation."
"Chevron, formerly ChevronTexaco, has been directly and indirectly responsible for human rights violations in the Niger Delta, plus toxic dumping in several US states and in the Amazon rainforest. From 1972 to 1990 in Ecuador alone, Texaco Corp. was responsible for dumping 18.5 billion gallons of contaminated wastewater into rivers and open pits in the Amazon jungle, causing skin problems, miscarriages, and other ailments in local communities."
"Shell's most high-profile misdeed was its encouragement to use lethal force against environmental activists in Nigeria's Ogoni region. Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni leaders fighting to oust Shell from Ogoniland were detained by the Nigerian government and executed. Families of the deceased are still seeking justice. Aside fom the obvious environmental risks posed by fossil fuels, Shell continues to engage in the environmentally destructive practices of gas flaring, which exposes Nigerians to dangerous levels of air toxins. Shell has made a $1 billion investment in renewable energy resources and recently announced plans to sequester carbon at a gas-fired power plant in Norway. However, Shell's record should concern consumers and investors alike."
"Amerada Hess is working with BP to build the Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline through eastern and central Europe. This pipeline passes through or nearby seven conflict areas, necessitating a militarized zone that will span 1,000 miles. In the past, Amerada Hess has colluded with other oil companies to hide information about the dangers of MTBE contaminating municipal water supplies."
"Sunoco was one of several companies implicated for using MTBE, a potential carcinogen, for making gas burn cleaner. The chemical eventually contaminated some water supplies. Sunoco is a supporter of the Global Sullivan Principles for economic, social and political justice and has committed to compliance with the Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. While these initiatives are certainly in the right direction, Sunoco's very nature as an oil and gas company makes it a climate change liability."
Sources: Coop America
4 comments:
Congrats on the Wal Mart boycot. Beyond the questionable business practices, it is just a creepy place.
As far as the gas goes, good luck. I honestly go where the gas is cheapest and hope that the other eco friendly stuff I do balances it out.
It really is a very difficult decision... I guess you have to look at the lesser of all the EVILS. How terrible is that?
Living right in the heart of Vancouver, BC, I don't need a vehicle, which is great. I get around by transit or on my rollerblades.
When I go grocery shopping, I always rollerblade, so I only buy what I can fit in my backpack (no plastic bags if I can). That way, I don't buy anything I don't need and hopefully reduce the amount of waste that occurs by buying too much food which tends to go bad if you don't eat it in time. This means I have to go grocery shopping about twice a week, but I figure it's just exercise which is good for you, ha ha.
You can't win every battle, but like you said, it's winning the "small battles" where you can.
Every major corporation may have its flaws, but most others aren't driving business away from America and toward lower-quality products and using low prices on entry-level products to bait-and-switch consumers out of more money. That's not even touching how Wal-Mart's associates are treated.
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