Put it on the label

Originally Posted to 'the Fake Headlines'

The Liberals had the one ton challenge, the Conservatives scrapped it. Now the Liberals, Bloc and NDP all insist the Conservatives stick to Kyoto and all parties agree that greenhouse gasses must be reduced and consumers are going to have to be a large part of the solution.

I would suggest a label on all products (and all product advertising) that gives you on a scale of 1 to 100 the environmental impact of that product. People have gotten used to thinking of consumer environmentalism in terms of things like fuel efficiency of automobiles and household appliances, recycling, renovating their home to make it more energy efficient etc., and while all of these are good and important things it actually goes much deeper than that.

Every product has an environmental footprint. A brief overview can be found here. But, in short that footprint is established by such things as

What is the product is made from?

By what process is it made?

How much energy is used in making it? (Some products take more energy than others to make - some factories use more energy for a process than other more modern factories.

Is the product made from recycled material?

Can the product be recycled or composted?

How much packaging is involved with the product?

How far does the product have to travel to market?

By what means does the product travel and how much fuel is consumed in shipping?

How long will the product last? (Will it last for years? months? or is it disposable?)

Are there hazardous materials involved with the product?

Is the product manufactured or harvested in an environmentally sensitive region? What is the impact of this on that region?

I believe if environment Canada (or some such agency) would rate each products footprint and then force producers to put that score on all product labeling and advertising it would go a long way toward helping consumers reduce greenhouse gasses.

It is true that there will be alot of lobbying - with various producers and manufacturers trying to convince Ottawa that their methods, factories, etc., deserve a better score. In many cases though companies will find that making minor changes in their actual practices improves their score for less money than a lobbying/marketing campaign would cost.

Just as with nutrition, Canadian consumers can have a substantial impact if they are given enough information and just as with nutrition, it should be the responsibility of Ottawa and the companies that produce retail goods to provide that information..