Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
h a l f b a k e r y
Experiencing technical difficulties since 1999

idea: add, search, annotate, link, view, overview, recent, by name, random

meta: news, help, about, links, report a problem

account: browse anonymously, or get an account and write.

user:
pass:
register,


                 

EnviroPoints

taking the blindfold off consumers
  (+5, -1)
(+5, -1)
  [vote for,
against]

People are becoming increasingly concerned with the environment, but it is all but impossible to know where all the products you buy come from and what goes into them, and it is difficult for the government to regulate all factors of production.

The solution? - EnviroPoints

Main Idea - All branches of industry are assessed for environmental impact, different outputs/inputs are all given point value and the final score of all the production factors appear on the final product.

1ton of toxic waste = minus 200 points, 1 ton of garbage = minus 50 points, use of fossil fuels in one fork lift = minus 5 points Of course it works both ways x amount Solar power = so many points, water treatment plant on site = x points And so on and so on

The score would appear on the final goods and on company websites. Giving power to the consumer to select against the companies with negative environmental impact. Industry would strive for higher EnviroPoints, building windmills, recycling, etc, the cost would be more then paid back in environmental benefit (it could also be transferred to caring consumers).

Wow! -23421 points for a bottle of coke! No thanks! I’ll have a pepsi at a slim -10654

TheAggie, Apr 04 2006

[link]






       In theory, this is wonderful, but the way things usually go means there will be plenty of deceit when it comes to these *points*. I will donate an organic, whole wheat bun anyway.+
xandram, Apr 04 2006
  

       Immensely practical.
RayfordSteele, Apr 04 2006
  

       Can we... err... the owners of manufacturing plants trade EnviroPoints?
I plant a forest, native plants, endangered species, a few wetlands; I sell carbon tonnes to industry but I slightly change the name of the holding company to also sell EnviroPoints from it. *Love* it, darling. Bun.
  

       And welcome to the hb, by the way.
methinksnot, Apr 04 2006
  

       I guess if you did nothing at all you'd have zero points. Points would be alloted whenever changes are made in the production process, good or bad.
TheAggie, Apr 05 2006
  

       neat. Price is already a pretty good enviropoint indicator (in a free market (ever seen one? not me, too many subsidies)...).
sophocles, Apr 06 2006
  

       If by 'people' you mean you, PiMpCiNo, you may be right. If by 'people' you also mean me, you are, often, wrong.
imaginality, Apr 06 2006
  

       Yup. At this point, only a fool would insist there's no market for people conscious of the impact of their consumption. It's not 100% of the market, but it's a fast growing sector.   

       As for inspection/certification, it'd have to be an educated guess. There are already orgs working on this for investment & profiling companies.
sophocles, Apr 06 2006
  

       There's already an inspection and certification process for organic produce. But this is vastly more complicated.
methinksnot, Apr 07 2006
  
      
[annotate]
  


 

back: main index

business  computer  culture  fashion  food  halfbakery  home  other  product  public  science  sport  vehicle