Tackling Environmental Sustainability in my Imagined Country
As the president of any given nation focusing on environmental sustainability, my main concerns would be the conservation of biodiversity, the effects of Climate Change, and the reduction of fossil fuels. One way of increasing the biodiversity in many countries, with the exception of areas whose climate could not support heavy vegetation, is through the commission and propagation of food forests. A food forest as defined by the Beacon Food Forest Permaculture Project is “a gardening technique or land management system, which mimics a woodland ecosystem by substituting edible trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals. Fruit and nut trees make up the upper level, while berry shrubs, edible perennials and annuals make up the lower levels (“Beacon Food Forest Permaculture Project”).” This can also be seen in the diagrams below:
Through this model of creating functional green spaces, and or partially replacing the nations current agricultural systems with this method of cultivation, a giant change would be seen in the biodiversity of the nation. Whether or not a food forest, as a method of cultivation, is suitable as the nation’s main or secondary model of production is still in question, and more research is needed. Regardless, food forests are a promising option for the future as a tool in fighting the loss of biodiversity, and deforestation, if not to improve agricultural sustainability as well. As the president of a nation I would start by incentivising a national change at the individual level. My policy, known as the Food Forest Act, would grant tax deductions on any property if that property hosted a food forest. In addition to this, food forests would also be implemented in any zones facing deforestation.
Alongside the Food Forest Act, I would also subsidize the use of renewable energy, with the exception of hydroelectric dams. As hydroelectric dams harm surrounding ecosystems by holding back sediments that naturally replenishes riverbeds in the area, hydroelectric dams would not be encouraged as a form of renewable energy (“The Downside of Dams: Is the Environmental Price of Hydroelectric Power Too High?”). Instead, there would be a large emphasis on generating energy from a balance of renewable forms of energy, like solar and wind power. Thorium would replace any nuclear reactors in place, and all other forms of energy based on fossil fuels would be phased out over time by subsidizing renewable energy and applying tariffs to fossil fuels.
Thorium, for those who do not know, is three time more common than uranium in the Earth’s crust, not as radioactive, commonly discarded as a byproduct of mining, and is so energy dense that you can hold a lifetime supply of energy in your hand (Follows; Sorensen). Thorium can be used to generate energy through Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors (LFTRs). This involves thorium decaying into uranium 233, which is a radioactive process, but does not require manipulation of pressure or water cooling to function as other reactors do (Follows; Sorensen). That being said, by combining the Food Forest Act with this plan to shift toward renewable energy and then replace conventional nuclear reactors with LFTRs, my nation will become more environmentally sustainable.
Work Cited
Follows, Mike. “Is Thorium the Perfect Fuel?” Education in Chemistry, Royal Society of Chemistry, 8 May 2014, eic.rsc.org/feature/is-thorium-the-perfect-fuel/2000092.article. Accessed 2 October 2018.
NA. “Beacon Food Forest Permaculture Project.” Beacon Food Forest, Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, 2018, beaconfoodforest.org/. Accessed 2 October 2018.
NA. “The Downside of Dams: Is the Environmental Price of Hydroelectric Power Too High?” Scientific American, Springer Nature America, Inc, NA, www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-do-dams-hurt-rivers/. Accessed 2 October 2018.
Sorensen, Kirk. TED: Ideas Worth Spreading, TED Conferences, LLC, Apr. 2011, www.ted.com/talks/kirk_sorensen_thorium_an_alternative_nuclear_fuel. Accessed 2 October 2018.
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