I don't think it is any big secret that I am most passionate about the environment and the animals that inhabit it. I should also say that I don't consider us human beings to be in any way superior to the animals on this planet just because we have higher cognitive skills. In fact I would say that they are far superior and we have a lot to learn from them about their conservation practices.
So since I am sitting on my ass all the time and I can still type, it only seems logical that I do what I can for the environment. I'm not exactly sure what that will look like, but I am going to just get started and see where it leads.
One thing that was brought to my attention a while ago are the overwhelming benefits of Industrial Hemp. Adding industrial Hemp as a major crop source is only difficult because we have made it so. The DEA erroneously categorizes Hemp as a drug like it's sister plant Marijuana.
So lets just tackle the biggest environmental issue right off the bat. Our dependence on non renewable fossil fuels is completely unnecessary. Did you know that Henry Ford's first model T was built to run on hemp oil? Can you imagine what our world would be like now had we followed Ford's genius and weren't so dependent on non renewable fossil fuels? Just look at the most recent debacle in Iraq or the Middle East in General. The implications are staggering.
"Why use up the forest which were centuries in the making and the mines which required ages to lay down,if we can get the equivalent of the forests and mineral products in the annual growth of the hemp fields? Henry Ford (http://ushistory4you.hubpages.com/hub/Henry-Fords-Hemp-Car)
A friend posted a piece on facebook this week that is very difficult to accept, but important to understand. We are unknowingly responsible for the clear cutting of the most bio diverse habitats on earth for palm oil, that is used in countless products that we buy off of the grocery shelves. What would happen if we were aware of this one fact and we were able to pressure our government to ban the use of palm oil under an environmental protection act? What if these companies were forced to find alternative vegetable oils, like hemp seed oil to use in their products? Isn't it worth it?
Borneo and Sumatra are two of the most bio-diverse regions of the world, yet they have the longest list of endangered species. This list includes the magnificent orangutan. These two South-East Asian islands are extremely rich in life, containing around 20,000 flowering plant species, 3,000 tree species, 300,000 animal species and thousands more being discovered each year. Despite this amazing biodiversity and delicate web of species, an area the size of 300 football fields of rainforest is cleared each hour in Indonesia and Malaysia to make way for the production of one vegetable oil.
http://www.saynotopalmoil.com/
Orangutans are one of the many being brutalized, killed and their habitats being destroyed for one vegetable oil.
Following is a video that gives very important information about industrial hemp. Please take the time to familiarize yourself with all the potential that hemp holds and ask your representative to support House Bill 525 here http://capwiz.com/norml2/issues/alert/?alertid=62399531
There are other calls of action at http://www.votehemp.com/what_can_i_do.html
Please let me know if you have acted on this bill and pass the information on to the people you know.
