[Buddha-l] Big is beautiful (was: Review of a review)

[Richard Hayes]

On Jul 2, 2010, at 2:36 PM, Franz Metcalf wrote:

> Richard,
> 
> Thank you for the link to that disturbing calculator. I found that my  
> meat consumption (which is by no means large) counts for one third of  
> my entire water footprint.

My usage came out to around 975 cubic meters per year, a little less than half the usage of the average American and about the same as the average Indian. Living in an arid environment, where water is the most important political issue, I was embarrassed to have such a large water footprint. Our garden has mostly xerophytic vegetation, but I have to confess I eat quite a bit of chile, which is a horribly water-intensive crop.

> As least I drink (mandatory Buddhist content) tea.

Being a member of the Tea Party puts you further along the bodhisattva path than I. Being a terrorist (in Lusthaus's eyes), I feel I must drink coffee from time to time, just to show my solidarity with Arabs. After reading up on virtual water footprints, however, I cut down a lot on coffee consumption. It takes 140 liters of water to grow, process and transport enough coffee for one cup, whereas it takes only 35 liters for a cup of tea. In this part of the country we drink "sun tea" in the warm months, made by putting some tea in a big glass jar and setting it out in the sun for several hours. After you strain out the cockroaches and drowned mice, it's quite good. That way of making tea eliminates using fossil fuels, which take frighteningly large amounts of water to process. 

We won't even mention cotton. All these years I have worn mostly cotton clothing, thinking it is a natural fiber, but it is one of the most environmentally damaging and water-intensive crops grown by human beings. Much better is hemp, but it is not easy to find hemp cloth. I used to wear hemp shirts and hats when I could get them, but my dog ate my last good hemp hat. 

Probably the only way to be environmentally responsible is to wear no clothing at all, like the first Buddhists. I once attended an ordination in which the ordinand insisted on taking his vows in the nude. It was an especially impressive demonstration of commitment, given that the ceremony took place outdoors in late January, when the temperature was well below freezing.

Richard