Lecturer outlines steps for sustainable environment

Kayla Webley
2004-02-20
The Daily

Environmentalist Lester Brown spoke to a crowd in HUB 108 yesterday afternoon about his newest book, Plan B: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble.

Brown founded the Worldwatch Institute, the first research institute devoted to the analysis of global environmental issues. He is the head of the Earth Policy Institute, which he founded, to provide a vision and road map for achieving an environmentally sustainable economy and an ongoing assessment of progress in this global effort.

The book exhibits Brown's view of environmental problems he said will, if continued, lead to dismay.

"If the environmental trends of recent decades continue, we will be in trouble," he said.

According to Brown, the question is only what form the trouble will take and when it will occur.

Brown's answer to this is that trouble will occur on the food front within the next couple years.

According to Brown, the problem will occur on the food front because of the dwindling grain supply. He said the grain supply has not increased in the past eight years and for the past four years, grain production has been short of consumer demands. This shortage has led to the lowest grain levels in 30 years.

Brown said the two culprits behind the lack of grain production in recent years are falling water tables and rising temperatures.

Rising world temperatures is a main threat because, according to Brown, with each degree the temperature rises, 10 percent less yield of grain can be expected.

According to Brown, the event that will serve as a wake up call to the world about the "food crisis" is when China comes into the world market, which could occur at any time. This will shock the system because China has the resources to buy out many food resources to support its massive population. As Brown explained, China is currently able to buy out the entire U.S. grain supply, twice.

The three principal goals stated in Brown's book are to stabilize the population, raise water productivity and reduce the global temperature by cutting carbon emissions.

The greatest change Brown would like to see to eradicate these problems is the increase of wind-generated electricity. He views wind power as a huge resource in making the transition away from fossil fuels.

As Brown pointed out, wind power is also a great resource because it is cheap, running around only 4 cents per kilowatt-hour. Brown is excited that wind power plants are increasing, especially across Europe, where 36 million residences are powered by wind.

"This is not something that might happen or could happen, this is something that is happening," said Brown.

Brown affirmed that a major restructuring of the economy was needed. He said this is because, as a society that watches market signals, the market is lying when it comes to the ecological truth.

According to Brown, the world is at a crucial time to make a decision between doing nothing and waiting until something bursts or becoming the generation that could stabilize the population and climate and eradicate poverty.

"We may decide before too long that the cost is too high and we are going to change," he said. "[It] could happen within a few years."