A definition of the term, "Consumer Goods."
For the purposes of understanding the goals of the Pro Active Alternative Energy movement, it is
necessary to understand the root causes of the formation of that movement. Among the most
ambiguous terms used today are the meanings of, "Consumer and Consumer Goods."
For our purposes the term, "Consumer" is defined as anyone that partakes of the goods and
services in the marketplace of general commerce. That is to say, anyone that buys anything for
consumption or wholesale purchase in bulk to use or possibly for resale or for combining or
rendering those goods into a new form. A "Consumer" buys and uses things and if they are in an
enterprise, they reform, manufacture or alter goods or trade them for profit or may just throw them
away after use. In the end, goods are used in some way to a point that they are eventually rendered
useless or eventually made waste of, by a consumer, none the less.
For our purposes the term, "Consumer Goods," are anything in raw or refined form which is
considered up for sale or trade or gathered or delivered into the custody of and by anyone or any
entity or any manufacturer, merchant, person or any other entity which we have described above as
a "Consumer."
.
Plastic wastebaskets are consumer goods. Woven hemp wastebaskets are likewise consumer
goods.
.
The purpose of making these distinctions in pro active alternative energy initiatives is to
differentiate goods and services framed in a manner such as to make judgements as to which are
higher or lower on a scale of sustainability or a on a pollution scale. As an example and to put a
fine point on this:
Plastic wastebaskets made of PVC take much more energy and transportation fuel to make them
available to consumers than locally grown and woven hemp wastebaskets. The cheaply mass
produced plastic wastebaskets beat the hemp wastebaskets on price points, hands down.
However, as such the plastic wastebaskets are much lower on the scale of sustainability and very
high on a scale measuring pollutive aspects when compared to hemp wastebaskets made locally,
which also reduces their transportation energy costs to market, as well.
Both kinds of wastebaskets useful lives may be similar but their impact on the Environment is
quite different after they wind up in solid waste landfills where what they do to the environment as
they decompose is a function of their impact on the environment, in addition. As such, one would
be better informed to purchase woven hemp wastebaskets if they were attempting to lower the
environmental impacts they cause by their consumer goods purchasing habits.
The most useful scale of consumer goods as regards sustainability and for pollution index
measurements is the Carbon Footprint * Index. Anything used by consumers contributes in
greater or lessor degree to this scale due to our use, as consumers, of objects made of and
formed by or delivered using, carbon energy either directly or indirectly as described above, in
modern times.
A native in the jungle next to a rice paddy in southeast Asia, feeding himself and his family from
their labor, making his metal tools by Hand and using animal power and his own muscles to
create survival for himself and his family, who's family gathers fuel for cooking in the jungle and
from rice chafe and bullock chips, would have a carbon footprint of 4 acres. That means that his
carbon Footprint, in his family of four which is using sustainable* and ever replenishing forms of
energy to survive, is one acre. If everyone on earth only had one acre (and their family of 4 had one
acre each, as well) they could (and do) all survive on this one planet.
A modern city dweller on the other hand, having two cars in their family of four (the wife works, too),
who eats and wears and buys goods from outside of their city, who never or rarely shares their car
nor ride public transportation, who often flies to other cities on business or the occasional vacation
trip abroad, who depends on fleets of tankers to bring energy and raw and finished goods for
further refining and delivery to their city and their self, would need 5 planets for families not
For the purposes of understanding the goals of the Pro Active Alternative Energy movement, it is
necessary to understand the root causes of the formation of that movement. Among the most
ambiguous terms used today are the meanings of, "Consumer and Consumer Goods."
For our purposes the term, "Consumer" is defined as anyone that partakes of the goods and
services in the marketplace of general commerce. That is to say, anyone that buys anything for
consumption or wholesale purchase in bulk to use or possibly for resale or for combining or
rendering those goods into a new form. A "Consumer" buys and uses things and if they are in an
enterprise, they reform, manufacture or alter goods or trade them for profit or may just throw them
away after use. In the end, goods are used in some way to a point that they are eventually rendered
useless or eventually made waste of, by a consumer, none the less.
For our purposes the term, "Consumer Goods," are anything in raw or refined form which is
considered up for sale or trade or gathered or delivered into the custody of and by anyone or any
entity or any manufacturer, merchant, person or any other entity which we have described above as
a "Consumer."
.
Plastic wastebaskets are consumer goods. Woven hemp wastebaskets are likewise consumer
goods.
.
The purpose of making these distinctions in pro active alternative energy initiatives is to
differentiate goods and services framed in a manner such as to make judgements as to which are
higher or lower on a scale of sustainability or a on a pollution scale. As an example and to put a
fine point on this:
Plastic wastebaskets made of PVC take much more energy and transportation fuel to make them
available to consumers than locally grown and woven hemp wastebaskets. The cheaply mass
produced plastic wastebaskets beat the hemp wastebaskets on price points, hands down.
However, as such the plastic wastebaskets are much lower on the scale of sustainability and very
high on a scale measuring pollutive aspects when compared to hemp wastebaskets made locally,
which also reduces their transportation energy costs to market, as well.
Both kinds of wastebaskets useful lives may be similar but their impact on the Environment is
quite different after they wind up in solid waste landfills where what they do to the environment as
they decompose is a function of their impact on the environment, in addition. As such, one would
be better informed to purchase woven hemp wastebaskets if they were attempting to lower the
environmental impacts they cause by their consumer goods purchasing habits.
The most useful scale of consumer goods as regards sustainability and for pollution index
measurements is the Carbon Footprint * Index. Anything used by consumers contributes in
greater or lessor degree to this scale due to our use, as consumers, of objects made of and
formed by or delivered using, carbon energy either directly or indirectly as described above, in
modern times.
A native in the jungle next to a rice paddy in southeast Asia, feeding himself and his family from
their labor, making his metal tools by Hand and using animal power and his own muscles to
create survival for himself and his family, who's family gathers fuel for cooking in the jungle and
from rice chafe and bullock chips, would have a carbon footprint of 4 acres. That means that his
carbon Footprint, in his family of four which is using sustainable* and ever replenishing forms of
energy to survive, is one acre. If everyone on earth only had one acre (and their family of 4 had one
acre each, as well) they could (and do) all survive on this one planet.
A modern city dweller on the other hand, having two cars in their family of four (the wife works, too),
who eats and wears and buys goods from outside of their city, who never or rarely shares their car
nor ride public transportation, who often flies to other cities on business or the occasional vacation
trip abroad, who depends on fleets of tankers to bring energy and raw and finished goods for
further refining and delivery to their city and their self, would need 5 planets for families not
unlike themselves and to live on due to the
immense size of their Carbon Footprint and
everyone else that lived that lifestyle. A five
planet Carbon Footprint is not sustainable
by definition. Our culture and way of life is
on the road to extinction when our planet is
exhausted of consumer goods it no longer
has the raw materials to supply to us.
In addition, Carbon emissions in the guise
of nitrous oxide*, sulfur dioxide*and carbon
dioxide* belched into the air and into the
water table of our planet from industrial and
private users of carbon energy may be on a
fast track to massive climate changes that
will culminate in a major re-balancing of our
ecosystem that may or may not be able to
sustain higher life forms on this planet, as
trends currently stand.
With that in mind: Sustainability is the
goal of the pro active alternative energy
movement. As such the practical reduction
of one's personal Carbon Footprint to a
much smaller size by reducing our
immense size of their Carbon Footprint and
everyone else that lived that lifestyle. A five
planet Carbon Footprint is not sustainable
by definition. Our culture and way of life is
on the road to extinction when our planet is
exhausted of consumer goods it no longer
has the raw materials to supply to us.
In addition, Carbon emissions in the guise
of nitrous oxide*, sulfur dioxide*and carbon
dioxide* belched into the air and into the
water table of our planet from industrial and
private users of carbon energy may be on a
fast track to massive climate changes that
will culminate in a major re-balancing of our
ecosystem that may or may not be able to
sustain higher life forms on this planet, as
trends currently stand.
With that in mind: Sustainability is the
goal of the pro active alternative energy
movement. As such the practical reduction
of one's personal Carbon Footprint to a
much smaller size by reducing our
use of and purchases of energy intensive consumer goods becomes a worthy and
realistic and manageable mission in life. wr
Take the Carbon Footprint Quiz*
Return to: Definitions Home Page
This URL is: http://www.green-metroplex.com/Definitions/Consumer_goods.html
realistic and manageable mission in life. wr
Take the Carbon Footprint Quiz*
Return to: Definitions Home Page
This URL is: http://www.green-metroplex.com/Definitions/Consumer_goods.html