Recession...

[Breadburner]

Good or bad for the environment....Discuss

[waterboy]

mixed bag. Less fuel usage, less consumption of throwaway items and more emphasis on re-use and conventional solutions. Unfortunately lots of homes are simply being walked away from. Their contents end up in landfills. Re-possessed cars have not been well maintained and are often recycled which is good, but the recovery rate of plastic, batteries, fuel, oil, in those vehicles is not 100%. Any increase in scrapping cars means an increase in wasted resources.

Poor education and lowering moral values of the masses means they'll simply steal to get by rather than learn to cope. I already see it in the retail environment I work in. Even businessmen who complain about their employee theft problems...are stealing basic items to stay in business. Business credit card purchases are increasingly being denied approval. Theft of things like pens, planners, ink and technology items are astounding.  Returns of likely stolen items is increasing. Most people aren't aware that most defective non technology products returned are simply thrown in a dumpster for crushing. Its cheaper than returning them to the manufacturer or rehabbing them. Terrible loss of labor and materials.

Perhaps, with some government tax incentive to industry, the renewable energy industry will flourish but the end consumer neither has the money nor the credit to invest in it so thats in doubt.

Too early to tell until the next administration puts forth a plan. In balance, unless businesses arrive that can profit on recycling, rehabbing and re-using, I'm guessing the bottom line is that the poor economy has a negative effect on the environment.

[YoungTulsan]

Recession = less consumption = better for the environment.

Less bread being burned instead of eaten too

[Gaspar]

Bad for the environment.  Thoughts and policies turn away from expensive clean technologies and focus on inexpensive means of energy production.

[we vs us]

quote:Originally posted by Gaspar

Bad for the environment.  Thoughts and policies turn away from expensive clean technologies and focus on inexpensive means of energy production.

Agreed.  In a downturn, emphasis is on conservative investments and steady rates of return, not on risk taking.  And environmental change is all about risk taking.

[midtownnewbie]

quote:Originally posted by Gaspar

Bad for the environment.  Thoughts and policies turn away from expensive clean technologies and focus on inexpensive means of energy production.

+2

[cannon_fodder]

Bad.

- Commodity prices are tumbling, which inhibits recycling of many materials

- Lower profit margins means companies may not be able to afford to be "green"

- Lost income for households means non-economical energy efficiency or efficiency investment (new furnace/windows) won't happen

- Commodity price drops include fossil fuels, meaning efficiency takes a double hit (no money for the new Prius and no longer a money saving venture)

- Governmental efforts focused on the economy, and the environment is usually set up as an alternative to the environment

- R & D is down

[sauerkraut]

I guess it can flip either way depending on what you do for a living and your view points. A recession can keep your girlfriend and/or wife apart from you, or so the lyrics go in a old song from the 1960's called "Recession".[B)]