In honor of Earth Day, I would like to dedicate this column to Mother Earth and offer some ways to honor thy planetary mother on her special day.
You could start with the typical Earth Day celebrations learned in elementary school — think back to Nickelodeon’s “Big Help.” Brainstorm ideas with your friends about ways you can make the Earth a better place. Gather a group of your pals and scour campus for litter. Plant some flowers or a tree. Heck — why not just hug a tree? Whatever you do, be kind to your mother. She brought you into this world, and she can take you out. Or was that Bill Cosby? My memory fails me.
Perhaps you desire a more clever way to observe Earth Day that will simultaneously help you soothe that raging case of senioritis. Or junioritis. Or maybe even sophomoritis for the particularly cynical second year students, although that may be a stretch. (Sorry freshmen, it’s nothing personal.) Think about it — if you do not go to class, then there will be no notes to take. Multiply 2-4 pages of salvaged notebook paper by a lecture of 200, or a campus of 40,000, and what do you get? A miniature forest filled with happy trees happy not to be cut down and ready to be hugged on Earth Day. Of course, those of you who are already green and take notes on your laptops are free to go to lecture, provided you e-mail your notes to the rest of us who will be observing Earth Day.
On a more serious note, Earth Day is a perfect time to reflect on some environmental legislation that could result in some major changes for Wisconsin. As described in Wednesday’s Badger Herald, a new energy bill is in the works that would lower emissions and mandate the use of renewable energy in Wisconsin. This bill, which was crafted by Gov. Jim Doyle, is worthy of passage for several reasons.
First, it shows Doyle cares about the environment and is committed to long-term change. As far as reducing emissions, the bill will institute a return to 2005 emission levels by 2014, as well as outlining a plan for reducing green house emissions by 75 percent by 2050. Not only is this timetable a realistic period to allow businesses time to adjust to meet the standards, it shows impressive foresight. A long-term plan is crucial for any legislation that seeks to have enduring impact, which is especially relevant to environmental legislation, since these issues will likely impact future generations and require more than a Band-Aid fix.
Even those who are apathetic to the uncertain plight faced by Mother Nature may be pleased to find the notion of long-term change extends beyond the realm of environmental protection and into an area that most citizens care about. The Public Service Commission predicts collective savings to the tune of around $1.2 billion for consumers over 15 years. Although in an ideal world everyone would care about how he or she impacts the environment, for many it boils down to another kind of green — money. Luckily, this bill will actually save consumers cash, so as long as they realize that the return on investment may not come immediately, but will accumulate over time.
A final point that speaks to this legislation’s merit is the estimation by The Public Service Commission that it will create upward of 15,000 jobs. Given the state of the economy, it is important that legislation targeted at addressing climate change also addresses the economic climate. This bill presents a way to kill two birds with one stone (metaphorically of course — Mother Nature would not approve of mindlessly killing her creatures). By targeting two important issues at once, this bill proves to be a practical, well thought out solution.
Earth Day is a time to take a moment to think about ways to improve the way we treat our planet. While the suggestions offered at the beginning of this article were meant as a light-hearted look at the ways some may choose or refuse to celebrate Earth Day, the prospective bill from Gov. Doyle is a much more serious matter that could really impact us in the Badger State. We should be proud to live in a state that looks to lessen its environmental impact through new legislation. We can only hope that the state Assembly will be as optimistic as our governor on matters concerning the environment by giving the bill the thumbs up when it comes to vote.
Holly Hartung ([email protected]) is sophomore intending to major in journalism.
