Greening the Conventions

So for the first time, both the Republicans and the Democrats are doing some things to make their Conventions greener. Now obviously, any time you have tens of thousands of people coming to an event with all the lights and bells and whistles, yeah there’s going to be an environmental impact. There’s also some greenwashing here, considering the political views, rhetoric, and actions when it comes to clean energy, climate change, and sustainability don’t necessary match the supposed enthusiasm there is for lessening the impact of a giant party.

That being said, I’d rather have both parties attempting to make some changes in they way they hold these things than not make an effort at all. At the end of the day 99.9% of us are hypocrites in some way, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t get points for trying. In an attempt to manage my own guilt, or perhaps this is actually a valid point to make, we don’t need to cut 100% of CO2 emissions tomorrow, we need to cut them 25% by 2020(for starters). Nobody is asking anybody to be perfect. 25% certainly isn’t perfect, but most scientists would consider it enough. But enough of that, the point is that regardless of how badly the DNC and RNC are greenwashing , the fact that they’re making conscious efforts is a good thing.

I poked around their websites, and was able to find the list of actions the DNC is undertaking. I couldn’t find anything on the RNC site, but I’m aware that they are undertaking many of the same actions the DNC is.

Here Are the DNC Actions

Both venues will be 100% powered by wind and solar power thanks to Xcel Energy. Both are also doing basic things such as recycling, and electronic media services to save paper etc. Also, transportation from hotels to the convention will be made with all flex-fuel and hybrid buses, and bicycles will also be available. A few things that the DNC is doing which the RNC isn’t is encouraging all of it’s delegates to pledge to buy offsets for their travel. So far at least 28 state delegations have done so. Additionally, at the Pepsi Center they are taking steps such as having energy efficient light bulbs, water saving faucets, and making their convention stage out of recycled materials and plants. The also have a target of keeping 85% of waste out of landfills with recycling, reusing, and composting.

Not bad, not bad at all.