Are Environmentalists The Biggest GreenWashers?

According to Wikipedia (at least as of today), Greenwashing (green whitewash) is the practice of companies, activists, NGOs and/or governments disingenuously spinning their products and policies as environmentally friendly, such as by presenting cost cuts as reductions in use of resources.

As strange as it sounds many NGOs and Activists DO USE Greenwash as a tool to push agendas such as the Washington DC plastic bag tax. The following is an example of how facts were changed to help lobby for a bag tax in Washington D.C. and taxes and bans in other areas.

Many environmental NGOs claim that: “About 100,000 animals such as dolphins, turtles whales, penguins are killed every year due to plastic bags.” … I would challenge you to find one scientific study (not a quote) that shows this to be a fact.


I give you the Surfrider Foundation with a stated missions to lobby for bag taxes and bans. In their literature they state:

“100,000 marine animals are killed annually by entanglement in marine debris such as plastic bags.”

Yet they have no study to show it as fact. Some how in light of their undocumented claim they are allowed to promote their Faux science to politicians, innocent citizens and even schools under the umbrellas of authority and expertise that their 501 c 3 status gives them in public eyes.

Here I would like to highlight that I can show you two mainstream sites that show it is all fiction…

The Australian Government's Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts said the following:

‘A figure of 100,000 marine animals killed annually has been widely quoted by environmental groups; this figure was from a study in Newfoundland which estimated the number of animals entrapped by plastic debris in that area from a four-year period from 1981-84′

–this shows how the often quoted comment is out of control and based on a study that referenced abandoned nylon fishing nets from before plastic bags were in widespread use.

But wait there is more…the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) replied to the following question:

“Is it true that 100,000 marine mammals and/or sea turtles die each year due to marine debris/plastics/plastic bags?”

…with this answer:

“Origin of plastic bag statement: We were able to find no information to support this statement. An erroneous statement attributing these figures to plastic bags was published in a 2002 report published by the Australian Government; it was corrected in 2006. See the 2002 report published by Environment Australia entitled, “Plastic Shopping Bags – Analysis of Levies and Environmental Impacts” or click here.

In 2006, Environment Canada recanted the statement “A figure of 100,000 marine animals killed annually has been widely quoted by environmental groups; this was from a study in Newfoundland which estimated the number of animals entrapped by plastic bags in that area from a four-year period from 1981-1984” and replaced it with “A figure of 100,000 marine animals killed annually has been widely quoted by environmental groups; this was from a study in Newfoundland which estimated the number of animals entrapped by plastic debris in that area from a four-year period from 1981-1984.”

The original study cited by Environment Canada, and thus, Environment Australia, is:
Piatt, J.F. and D.N. Nettleship. 1987. Incidental catch of marine birds and mammals in fishing nets off Newfoundland, Canada. Marine Pollution Bulletin 18(6B): 344-349.”

So the question is…did the Surfrider Foundation use Greenwash and other NGO as a tool to impose the Washington D.C. bag tax? Only the public can decide and Karma will likely prevail if they have. If so I hope the public quickly does calls them on their heavy handed taxation lobby tactics.

They have already claim success for taxing Washington D.C. It is only a matter of time before they use Faux science to tax other communities...on their own DC website they claim responsibility for our tax:

"We have a law! The Anacostia River Cleanup and Protection Act has passed the DC Council, unanimously! Thanks to all the volunteers who stood outside grocery stores, staffed cleanups, signed postcards, attended hearings, and made dozens of calls and e-mails!"

How the DC Council Bribed Retailers to Pass a Tax

Prior to the Washington DC Bag tax and in other areas where taxes are under discussion retailers have opposed taxation. So why was the DC council able to pass a tax on consumer groceries without opposition from retailers?
Simply put they paid them off. Here’s how:

• Plastic shopping bags cost stores about $0.01 a piece.
• Wells wrote in to the tax a $0.01-02/bag refund to each store (0.02 if the store provides incentives for reusable bags)
• So the more you take the more they make (or at least the store breaks even)

So the city gets the tax and the store gets the refund, so everyone wins?

Not really. You the shopper still pays $0.05 for every bags of groceries you buy.

Is the San Francisco Plastic Bag Ban Just a Myth?

Within the United States the only major jurisdiction to claim to have a “ban” on plastic bags is San Francisco.

The urban myth of the San Francisco ban lies with the fact that law, called the Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance, was never intended to be and is not a ban on plastic bags. The law only applies to supermarkets making more than $2 million in revenue and pharmacies. This is about 1/3 of vendors by some estimates.

Contrary to what we are often told, if you visit San Francisco today you will still see plastic bags handed out.

Possibly the greatest false promise within the San Francisco ordinance was the belief that it would cut litter and lead to widespread use of reusable bags. Ironically it moved stores and consumers to paper bags which are now entering landfills in a greater volume than plastic ever did. Reusable bag

In reaction the Mayor has now called for a ban on paper bags.

Audi's Drops the Ball at Super Bowl

As Washington DC begins its second month under the Wells Plastic Bag Tax, the Audi Car Company had given us much to think about...mostly insensativity.

Today I was asked to look at a Super Bowl Audi Car commercial portraying plastic bag possession as a crime. This year will be the third in a row where Audi is buying air time but it may be the last, at least for their ad firm. The Audi commercials show a ficticious and heavy handed environmental police force arresting people in their homes and during minor daily activities for what the portay as environmental crimes. This group is called "the green police" complete with green uniforms and logos.

So you are probably saying sounds funny that a group called the green police was aresting people for doing no harm other than having a plastic bag, and at first I thought it was cute but misguied. But then I read in horror (as reported in dailyfinance) that during World War II there was a Nazi Green police that rounded up people in their homes. But those peole were merely our Jewish ancestors.

Yeah it is sad that you portay plastic bags as a crime as we work to repeal an oppressive bag tax is forgivable.

But the realization that you use recreation of a repressize nazi police force to do it makes me want to vomit.

SHAME ON YOU AUDI. A German car company should know better than that! No excuse!

Who Exchanged Reduce Reuse and Recycle with Tax, Ban and Prohibit

Big Business Replaced by Big NGO

When did we abandon the environmental pricaples of reduce, reuse, & recycle for tax, ban and prohibit? We never did, but there is a group that is working behind the scenes to change US environmental policy to one of extreme regulation and regressive taxation rather than activism and personal responsibility.

It is not enough that that DC levied a $0.05/bag tax as of January 1st, now Oregon, Washington State and Florida are being pushed to enter in to discussions to tax and/or ban bags. Even Brownsville TX seemed to recently pass a plastic bag ban because of grass roots movement (many other cities also held these discussions in the past year). What seem to be a random series of events or a true grassroots effort is actually linked as strong pattern pointing to one group, the Surfrider Foundation.

Over the past few years almost every small town, city or state that has proposed a ban or tax in Hawaii or the lower 48 states has a Surfrider Chapter within 15-20 miles of the city near the capitol. This is not a conspiracy as they have quietly been claiming responsibility for these new taxes and restrictive legislation victories.

In strong irony Surfrider has never tried to legislate recycling or responsibility laws (such as litter enforcement). That is to say rather than encourage better behavior outside of their social circles they have launched a strategy of regulation against the masses. Do they feel that people can't be changed and have to be controled? Who knows

Now I am not saying that Surfrider or anyone should not have a voice, but there is one thing that is being missed in their growing political influence. They are a 501 c tax exempt group conducting regular and growing political and lobbying activities.

This means that your tax dollars, or more exactly their tax exemption funded by your tax dollars, are being used to campaign to tax and regulate you.

How is that for a double tax burden…but in a way you have to give them credit they were savy to turn the government against us. Shouldn’t someone review their status before we all get taxed or regulated to death?

Don’t take my word that they are the source simply read a few of these articles and links.

Surfrider DC Chapter takes credit for our tax and asks for support to tax Maryland and Virginia

http://www.surfrider.org/capitol/plastics.html

Rick Hayes, incoming chairman of the Sebastian Inlet Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation quoted support for tax/ban in Florida

http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20100118/NEWS01/1180307/1006/news01/State+studies+tax++eventual+ban+of+paper++plastic+bags

The Portland chapter of the Surfrider Foundation has collected 5,000 signatures asking the city to ban plastic checkout bags

http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2010/02/should_oregon_ban_plastic_bags.html

Surfrider holds tax and ban ralleys at Hawaii and California State Capitols

http://www.surfline.com/surf-news/press-release/rise-above-plastics-rally-at-california-state-capitol_40755/

The list goes on…Palo Alto, CA; Seattle, WA; Manhattan Beach, CA; Red Bank, NJ; Westport, CN…

Lets Celebrate the New Decade With a New Bag Tax?

Almost two weeks ago we welcomed in the new decade with a new tax in Washington D.C. I always thought we should only impose taxes in time of crisis. In other times we should manage what we have or in the case of taxes and the government, what we are given.

Last year one of the most aggressive taxes that I have ever encountered was levied on DC when the counsel passed the "Anacostia River Cleanup and Protection Act of 2009". This was not a tax that was needed to clean up the Anacostia River, rather the river was used as an excuse to create a tax and punish people like me that choose to shop with plastic bags. Additionally all of the river's problems were taxed upon plastic bag shoppers through a scheme of collective punishment, rather than fining those that litter.

Back in the early 1990s when I was serving in the military officers were taught that group punishment doesn't work because it is unfair to the majority. In this case people like myself that reuse our bags in our bathrooms and kitchens as trash bags (I also place a few in my son's diaper bag and pick up after my dog with them) are penalized because some people litter. Yet as anyone in the DC area knows, plastic bag litter is a minority of the litter we see. Cigarette buts, cans, bottles, paper are just a few of the things I came across walking my dog this afternoon as I wondered..."why am I financing these peoples bad litter habits?"

Can you believe today I was even charged for a bag at Subway?

I decided that this was too much government for me, we need to repeal the DC bag tax and possibly the DC Counsel. Please leave you comments about this tax and help build the cause "Repeal the DC Bag Tax"