Thread: Synthetics

Point well taken. That's why we need more renewable energy sources as well. To feed our increasing energy needs, we'll have to find a more efficient and cost-effective way to use solar and probably use that for generating hydrogen fuel cells.
By the way, is it possible to produce plastic out of biomatter? I'm basing this question on the fact that we can make diesel fuel out of cooking oil.

Originally Posted by ForestryProf

Can anyone explain to me how it is more environmentally friendly/conscious to use a non-renewable resource rather than a renewable resource to produce a product? I'll go further...how can one justify not using a natural/renewable resource that is freely available as a waste product and will have to be disposed of if not used for some other purpose? Sounds like a poster child for any recycling program, no? How about this, your alternative is to make the same product out of oil. This is environmentally conscious?

I am afraid I do not entirely agree with Ed. If you look at the environmental cost of things you should not only look at the material itself (renewable fur versus synthetic hair) but also look at the waste produced in processing things. After skinning a dead badger you have to clean and cure the hairs, desinfect them because badgers carry diseases like bovine TB (which can cause atypical TB in humans) and possibly even H5N1 virus (commonly known as the bird flu virus that might one day mutate and cause a human flu pandemic). Curing and desinfecting causes a lot of chemical waste. I am quite sure curing and desinfecting will be done in China, a country with a dreadful environmental pollution track record.

To give you another example: WWF in the Netherlands still sends its three monthly magazine in a plastic wrap to its members because the production of a paper wrap is more polluting & energy consuming.

I look at it this way.

If rat hair was better than badger hair, would we be so concerned about skinning the little critters ?.

What if cute cuddly bunny wabbit fir was the best stuff, lordy lordy would we be in big trouble.

Why don't we eat horse meat anymore ?. Very popular up to 100yrs ago. Still is available in France. Armies ate their horses, good cavalary soldiers, when caught in the open with no cover would shoot their own horse and use them for shelter. Didn't think twice about it.

Through the centuries popular fads and trends have come and gone. What used to be totally acceptable once may well be not tollerated or even illegal today.

I accept todays laws and don't worry too much about the rest. Let's face it, if I gave up eating meat, I would eat more veggies and they make you f@&t more so what are you then doing to greenhouse gasses and global warming ?.

Gary

Originally Posted by garythepenman

Why don't we eat horse meat anymore ?. Very popular up to 100yrs ago.

Exactly around the advent of the automobile. Not enough horses to go around any more.

X

Hey look there is an increase in the buffalo herds and suddenly buffalo burgers in your local diner. We eat what we have alot of.

Originally Posted by xman

Exactly around the advent of the automobile. Not enough horses to go around any more.

X

I have the occasional horse steak or two. If one of my friends who was on a saddle before she learned how to walk ever finds out, she'll send a hit-squad after me lol.
My belief is that as omnivores, we should eat animals but we should also use every scrap of the animal that we kill. That is why I'm not a big fan of fur. Now when it comes to cuddly-wuddly little bunny brushes... If their hair was any good for'em, I'd use one, especially since I like rabbit meat, as long as I don't bite down on a shotgun pellet. Lost a filling because of it once lol.
Again, my interest in this topic is more technical. Can we outperform Mother Nature?