Forests in Decline

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At present, Japan is the world's model for stringent emission controls. Not only does that country have stricter vehicle pollution regulations than the U.S., but it's also the only government to limit nitrogen oxides coming from power plants. Cutting NOx by 73% and SO2 by an even greater amount has cost the utility customers of Japan a rate increase of about 25%. As a result, Japan's air quality has improved dramatically in the last 20 years.

. . A THING AS LOVELY AS A TREE

High technology isn't the only way to trim emissions, however. In the U.S., improvements in efficiency-resulting in the use of less energy-have done as much to help clear the air as have stack emission controls. And the clean air of Japan is, to a significant extent, a result of that country's conservation practices: The Japanese use 2.7 times less energy per person than the American populace. If we were to institute plausible conservation standards for just water heaters, refrigerators, and air conditioners, we could cut sulfur dioxide emissions by 12 to 20% by the turn of the century . . . and at a cost equal to 1% of the investment in flue gas desulfurization equipment that would be needed to do the same job. Furthermore, every ton of recycled copper prevents 2.7 tons of SO 2 from entering the atmosphere; that technique alone has cut Canada's sulfur dioxide emissons by a million tons per year, 21% of its total output. Similar savings can be achieved by recycling paper and aluminum. Reusing metals also reduces the burden of toxic metal pollution by limiting mining and smelting, two major sources.

No matter what specific relationship acid precipitation may have to other forms of atmospheric pollution, and no matter which one or what combination of these is causing the obvious damage to our ecosystem, burning less fossil fuel is bound to reduce the concentrations of the majority of forms of atmospheric pollution in our environment. Our best investment in pollution abatement is to put our money in efficiency, recycling, and appropriate renewable energy sources . . . to learn how to live with our ecosystem instead of attempting to patch it up with afterthought repairs. The central feature of any natural system is the manner in which all parts are inevitably interrelated, forming a circle of function; in the long run, technology won't allow us to stand outside that circle. As it goes, we go.

How are the trees in your yard doing?

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