The main squeeze: Waste of energy

by Tanya Dreizin

The climate crisis is not new news - we know it’s here, it’ll worsen in the coming decade, and those who contributed the least will suffer the most. Now, the conversations have shifted towards solutions. How will we adapt and mitigate the effects of climate change to protect this planet? What can we do to help fix this problem, on both an individual and collective scale? Do we focus on mitigation, or do we focus on adaptation? As there are so many existential questions, divisive opinions, and so much information out there on what can be done (paper straws, anyone?), we want to break down some often cited solutions. First, we’ll start with some well known false solutions, and then move into more holistic solutions that not only create resilient ecosystems, but societies.

False Solutions

While the term “false solutions” might sound kind of harsh, it’s true 🤷🏽‍♀️. A false solution refers to a “solution” to climate change that doesn’t actually solve anything. These kinds of “solutions” still harm or pollute the environment, actively harm frontline communities, and are generally just band-aids for large polluters to continue padding their bottom line while greenwashing their commitment to climate change. They’re also tricky - on paper, they sound pretty good. In practice, not so much. Here are a few false solutions to spot: 

Carbon Markets: Buckle up, this one is controversial! Carbon markets, like the cap-and-trade program, are meant for governments to cap greenhouse gas emissions from a specific sector or industry. This was set up internationally after the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, giving some nations the opportunity to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions while others could sell their emissions credits. We have evidence that this doesn’t work - not only did some countries use carbon markets to get rich, emissions have also increased by 600 million metric tonnes. Not only does this clearly not decrease emissions, it also has an adverse effect on those on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Carbon markets can create sacrifice zones and increase climate inequities, especially in the Global South. If it doesn’t work, creates new problems and exacerbates existing ones, should we keep pushing for a carbon market? 

Waste-to-Energy: Here’s looking at you, H-Power. Waste to energy is exactly how it sounds, burning waste at facilities that turn it into energy. On Oʻahu, 10% of our energy comes from this source. While waste-to-energy does reduce trash in the landfill, it also emits various pollutants into the air that are harmful to human health, can potentially destroy recoverable materials such as wood and plastic, and disincentivizes sustainable waste management and recycling. Waste-to-energy can even have harmful terms - if Honolulu doesn’t produce enough trash for H-Power, the city needs to pay a fine. From 2013-2016, Honolulu paid H-Powerʻs parent company $6.2 million. Incentivizing trash production? Definitely a waste of energy. 

Biofuels: Biofuels are renewable energy made from living materials, such as corn, sugar cane or soybeans. While this may sound better than alternative forms of energy, it still isn’t the best we can do for the climate crisis. Biofuels require a lot of land, which leads to deforestation and releasing CO2. It also can cause food prices to increase and creates more competition for life-sustaining resources, such as land, water and food. And, it still doesn’t decrease our reliance on fossil fuels. Ugh.  

Holistic Solutions

False solutions exist, but so do holistic solutions to approaching climate change. These solutions are guided by Indigenous Traditional Knowledge, place-based experience and public-interest science, understand the connections between the environment, economy and human needs, are rooted in democracy and center those who have suffered the most harm historically (Amorelli et al., 2021). These solutions might require more creativity and commitment to principles such as environmental justice and participatory democracy, but they also serve to tackle the deep rooted issues (such as white supremacy and colonialism) that not only have contributed to climate change, but also denigrate our collective well-being. Below are a few real-world examples to show that holistic approaches to tackling the climate crisis work.

Land Back: “Colonialists viewed nature as property to be owned, or resources to be commodified. In contrast, many Indigenous Peoples speak of inherent rights accompanied by inherent responsibilities to the natural world” (David Suzuki Foundation, 2023). Indigenous People across the world were forcefully removed from their lands centuries ago, lands that they understood, managed and were in relationship with for generations. California recently put this to practice by transferring 2,325 acres back to the Maidu people, who will manage this land through controlled burns, pruning and traditional Indigenous methods. 

Zero Waste Strategies: Instead of creating more waste to burn or that will sit in landfills, working towards zero-waste could actually be an opportunity to not only create less waste (obviously) but to also create new jobs and pathways towards a Just Transition. The GAIA Zero-Waste Toolkit for cities lays a pathway towards a zero-waste economy by providing a roadmap for a legislative framework and offering solutions such as micro-composting centers, material recovery facilities, resource recovery centers and mulch pits. There are also plenty of options for small and large-scale composting. Although zero-waste seems difficult in a time of convenience, it is possible to achieve! 

Centering self-determination and participatory democracy: Contrary to some economic theories, corporations are not people and often do not have the best interests of the people at heart. Real solutions to the climate crisis do not center those who have created the problems in the first place, but rather place power at the local, community level. Locally-owned energy or small-scale agriculture are both ways that this can incrementally happen by bolstering democratic participation and working towards dismantling monopolies.