Transformation from a Radical to a Rational Environmentalist
The book Confessions of a Greenpeace Dropout: The Making of a Sensible Environmentalist by acclaimed author and co-founder of Greenpeace, Patrick Moore, was recently published and presents in layman’s terms what can go terribly wrong in an organization initially created to be a positive force in improving the environment and then morphing into an organization where fear, misinformation and hidden agendas actually cause harm to the planet and its inhabitants.
In 1970 it was first known as The Don’t Make a Wave Committee, a small group of radical activists whose meetings were conducted at a Unitarian Church in Vancouver, British Columbia. Shortly thereafter the committee changed its name to Greenpeace—and an environmental movement was born. The name Greenpeace was adopted by the co-founders in recognition of its first major campaign of eliminating the prospect of a nuclear war by banning nuclear weapons and testing so that a “green peace” could be realized.
In the book’s earlier chapters there are harrowing and intrepid tales of the author’s and his cohort’s under-funded and heroic battles against world powers in eliminating aboveground nuclear testing, preventing and eliminating the killing of whales, stopping the inhumane slaughter of seal pups, and greatly reducing toxic discharges into the air and water. Greenpeace deserves much credit for these very successful campaigns to improve the earth’s well-being.
Later in the middle 1980’s as Greenpeace grew into a global organization with branches throughout the world and hundreds of millions in revenues, it began heading in a direction that Dr. Moore (PhD in Ecology) felt was very counterproductive. He concluded that Greenpeace’s hierarchy had decided to pursue an agenda of choosing militancy over diplomacy, propaganda over science, dogma over compromise and “nature” over human-beings. And try as he did, he determined that he could not change the minds and methods of Greenpeace’s leadership.
After 15 eventful years of being a Greenpeace founder and leader, Patrick Moore left and began advocating for environmental causes he felt he had a firm grasp of the background science and could use a common sense approach of consensus-building and problem solving. He formed a consulting firm (named Greenspirit in 1991) and remains, to day, a force in using science and reasoning to solve some of the planet’s most vexing problems. Listed below is a summation of his unshakeable and researched beliefs stated in his book:
- Grow more trees and use more wood
- Use hydroelectric energy wherever possible
- Nuclear energy is essential for future growth
- Geothermal energy is an important and significant renewable energy source
- Develop technologies that use less or no fossil fuels to operate
- Genetic science improves the well-being of people and the environment
- No killing or capturing of whales or dolphins
- Aquaculture (fish farming) is a boon to mankind
- There is no undue cause for alarm concerning climate change
- Poverty is the world’s worst environmental problem
- Most campaigns against useful chemicals are based on fear and misinformation
In regard to the last belief, Dr. Moore vehemently and continuously rails against Greenpeace’s vicious campaign against chlorine, which they call the “devil’s element,” PVC which they refer to as “the poison plastic” and other chemical compounds.
He has pointed out to many audiences that chlorine is:
- The 11th most abundant element in the earth’s crust
- Used in over 75% of all pharmaceuticals
- Mixed with water to produce hydrochloric acid which aids in digesting human food
- Added to drinking water making it the biggest advance in public health—ever
His defenses against anti-PVC lobbyists include the following points:
- PVC’s fire resistance makes it the preferred material for electrical insulation and conduit
- PVC pipe leaks and corrodes less than concrete or metal piping systems and costs less
- PVC plants produce less than one-half of 1 percent of all dioxins in the environment
- PVC does not even rate as one of the top 10 dioxin producers in the world
- PVC is used in hospitals since it is impervious to germs and easy to disinfect
- PVC resin and compounds have never been proven toxic by any credible scientific organization
The Confessions of a Greenpeace Dropout has a lot of convincing arguments in its 380 pages. When one finishes Moore’s book, it is clear to conclude that the reoccurring theme throughout his thought provoking writings is looking at environmental challenges logically and scientifically balancing the needs and values of humans and their environment. In this way any radical environmentalist can be transformed to a rational one.
David Chasis
Chasis Consulting, Inc.
