An article at Frugal For Life on how to reduce/eliminate phantom loads reminded me of a rant I’ve been meaning to make for a while now.
First, some background: “Phantom load” refers to the tendency for electronic gadgets to draw power even when many people wouldn’t expect them to. It’s probably not surprising that all those wall-warts we use to (for example) charge our cell phones and iPods draw power when plugged in…but many people don’t think about just how much electricity a desktop computer, TV, or DVD player draw even when turned “off”.
That’s the reason that many green folks are trying to educate consumers about the merits of unplugging their gadgets when not in use, and why I recently acquired several power strips with individually-switched outlets (since plugging/unplugging wall-warts is annoying).
However, one thing that I’ve noticed in all the green propaganda I’ve been reading is a lack of consideration for the fact that not everyone is as mobile or flexible as you or I might be. My wife, for example, developed a very nasty condition after a car accident which makes simply moving across the room an ordeal for her many days.
I’d ask her to plug or unplug her phone charger…or flip a switch…as appropriate, but that would be cruel and unusual punishment (either for her, for trying to conserve; or for me when she reacts to my making such a thoughtless request).
So, I’d like to ask manufacturers to please, please, please consider killing, or at least restraining their gadgets’ energy draw.
Similarly, perhaps green activists could also give some thought to folks with various disabilities when undertaking their crusades? Suggesting that we all unplug unused electronics is a noble idea, but rather difficult for some folks to achieve. Calling for new dwelling construction to be boxy, multi-story, small-land-footprint structures in the name of reducing environmental impact is nice…until you consider that not everyone can use stairs.
And on the banning plastic bags front—don’t forget that the ability to shift to large reusable bags, or handleless plastic bags is extremely constrained for limited-mobility people, for whom lifting more than a few pounds can be problematic.
Heck, my wife has resisted my efforts to quit getting plastic bags at the store because doing so will actually increase her dependence on me—she won’t be able to gather and take out small bags of trash, which she can do on good days now…but she probably wouldn’t be able to do if she were limited to large trash bags or paper bags.
Saving the planet and encouraging conservation are noble causes. However, please don’t lose sight of the less fortunate among us while pursuing those goals.