Common Sense Stewardship

[Mike Clifford]

The following article was found on the RecycledFish.Org website.

I thought it contained some thought-provoking comments and would like to share it with you here:

 

Stewardship to outdoor enthusiasts like you and me can mean things like catch and release fishing, selective harvest, or taking a kid fishing. All that is great! But you know, there’s really no reason not to live a “green” lifestyle off the water, too. All logic points to why we’d do it. It can save money, which we like. Green living conserves water and means less downstream pollution, which is good for the fishing we’re so fond of. Living green means better air quality and everybody likes that. It means having something great to pass on to our future generations, and as strangely intangible as that can be, it sure sounds good, doesn’t it?

 

But let’s be honest, living “green” means some other things, too, doesn’t it? Styrofoam is terrible, we all know that, but what if you go out to eat and you want to bring home leftovers, and it comes back to you in a Styrofoam container? What if it’s your turn to bring coffee for your pals at work, and the gal behind the counter hands you half a dozen Styrofoam cups? Living green means being a little more pre-meditated about how we do what we’re going to do. I like the convenience of bottled water, but I know better than to have 24 empty plastic bottles kicking around the recycle bin at the end of the week, so I buy one re-usable Nalgene bottle, put a Brita pitcher in my fridge, and instantly I cut out a bunch of plastic consumption (and cost!). I like the convenience of double-bagged plastic bags at the store, but the plastic bag mountain that was forming in my utility room convinced me to get a couple re-usable bags. Chlorine bleach and stuff with formaldehyde or diethelyne glycol and all those other cleaners work like a charm to keep the house clean, and they’re cheap! But when I found out that they’re creating trouble downstream, it was easy to justify the extra little percentage at the cash register to buy natural cleaners. Here’s one that really stings for lots of us: that big truck that pulls the big boat, both with their big engines.

 

So, living green does require some change, if we’re being honest. And for whatever reason, all of us seem so darned hesitant to take on change. Plus, have you met some of those “green” people? Utter nut-jobs some of them, with their dread locks and hummus and telling you to wash your car with three paper towels and a half a cup of water. Who wants to associate with people like that?

 

Well, we do, for one.

 

The time of division between all the different folks who are committed to stewarding our resources well – that time of division is past. Whether we call ourselves “sportsmen,” “conservationists,” environmentalists,” or any of the other eco-names, the time has come to overcome the petty that keep us from working together to create positive change. At the same time, we’ve arrived at a time in which we must overcome the inconveniences that prevent us from changing our own habits — and living green.

 

One of the issues that has been divisive has been that of global warming. If you believe the earth is heating up, then that’s a powerful, pressing motivation to change your habits. If you refuse to believe it though, then you can justify doing what you’re doing. Well, what if global warming is irrelevant to whether or not you – you personally – you as an individual, with individual impact – start making “green” changes today?

 

What do you make of all this?

[Guest One More Cast]

 

 

Thanks for posting this!

 

Living a "Greener Life" is a big topic in T.U. How can we justify a fight with Nestle over the bottled water issue when 6 of the 10 sitting around the meeting table had bottles of water in front of them? 2 car-pooled to the meeting, 8 others drove their own car. Now, most of my T.U. fishing friends pack Nalgene bottles when they fish. It's a very small effort but it's a start.

 

What can the ISA do among it's own membership? Let's look in the cabinet under then kitchen sink and see if the dish machine detergent contains phospates. We switched, ours now comes from Trader Joe's and it works pretty good.

 

Those of you who suck up my free coffee at the Shop will be doing so out of paper cups from now on.

 

Joseph