Quit blaming Mother Nature

Dear editor, 

It is commonly agreed upon that every human leaves a carbon footprint during their lifetime.

This footprint [is left] through the products we buy for our existence, such as food, clothing, shelter, and other needed or wanted comfort items.

Then there are the luxury items such as luxury homes, boats, cars, airplanes, big screen TVs, etc.

Not one of these items doesn't leave a carbon footprint, as it is made, or when being used, or both. Wealth determines what your luxuries are and physical labor, intelligence or both helps to determine your wealth. But neither will create any type of wealth without desire or effort.

The world today is inhabited by about 7 billion people and, for the year 2050, projections put it at, about 9 billion people. Science's solution to lower these carbon footprints is the less carbon output of green energy to make these products. But this short-sighted scientific solution does not address available space for each and every person on this planet. Nor does it address the needed space to grow the additional food or to make these additional needed and luxury products.

Now, with an expanding population, the demand grows for these items. Now the supply must follow this rise or the cost of these products will go up in price, leaving the working poor with less ability to afford these products and having to do without the basics at some point.

It wasn't that long ago in our nation that land was free if you were willing to go west. Today, free land is almost unheard of and has risen to the point that, again, even the failing middle class almost can't afford it. So the supply of land is limited and the ever-growing population of bidders for this land continually inflates the price, just like an auction house full of bidders for the same item.

Today, to combat this never-ending problem, we now build in undesirable places such as floodplain areas, at the base and on the side of mountains, etc. These are all sold for the public's consumption with advertising phrases to make them desirable such as "mountain view,” "waterfront” or oceanfront property,” or "secluded” — which sounds great until Mother Nature proves otherwise.

As all this building happens, what is the one thing left out of science's carbon footprint equation? The removal of forests and vegetation that actually filter our air of carbon dioxide and man's carbon footprint.

Quit blaming Mother Nature and accept man's own responsibility for dominating the planet over everything else living, just because we think we have that ability — we don't! 

STEVEN KING

Milton

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This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Quit blaming Mother Nature