Earthworks, A. M. (2022, August 4). Harmful mining provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act. Earthworks. Retrieved August 16, 2022, from https://earthworks.org/blog/harmful-mining-provisions-in-the-inflation-reduction-act/ 

This article discusses the Inflation Reduction Act as well as other issues that are not addressed by the act. The passing of this act encourages the purchase and usage of renewable energy through transitions from gas-run cars to electric cars or renewable energy: solar panels. That said it does forget to account for the high amounts of pollution created in the production of parts for these environmentally-friendly alternatives. In order to truly find a sustainable solution to the climate crisis, we need to find ways to limit pollution through the usage of certain goods and their production. 

 

I appreciate how this article addresses issues such as the pollution that is created during the production of energy-efficient solutions. It is important to try to make all aspects of our life sustainable even if we didn’t directly cause the pollution. For example, purchasing solar panels that required lots of energy from fossil fuels to create would not be efficient. However, I do not like the journalist’s all-or-nothing take. While it is ideal to pass bills that enforce zero pollution, it is not realistic in our current day society. Whilst it does not reach perfection we can still appreciate the strides that people have taken to lessen their carbon footprint.