Peak Green?

Lawrence Solomon in the Financial Post:

The next commodity to tumble from unsustainable peak levels: environmentalism.
In part, I am making this prediction because, in my 30 years as an environmentalist, I have never seen so many governments and so many corporations so profusely espousing so many environmental causes. Where promoting environmentalism was once seen as daring and counter-cultural, today it has become banal, no longer the exclusive preserve of a Body Shop chain, but of every retailer down to Wal-Mart. For the same reason that clothes go out of fashion after the masses embrace them, mass-marketed environmentalism will come to be disdained. That won’t sell for long.
I am predicting a collapse of today’s Wal-Mart environmentalism for another reason, too: Much of it is misguided, based on misunderstanding and vacuity.

I think he's on to something, I mean, anyone remember this guy from a few new cycles back?:

Of the current fight against global warming, Gore said: “This is a rout. We are losing badly.” He cited tropical diseases entering countries for the first time, and devastating hurricane activity as some of the recent consequences of climate change.

The latest headline scrape tends to back up their assertion, as once fashionable eco-posturing politicians continue to take it on the chin:

In a surprise announcement at the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention this afternoon, Campbell unveiled a "Climate Action Revenue Incentive" program which will reimburse municipalities for the carbon tax they pay.

The only catch, Campbell said, is that the municipalities must first sign onto the Climate Action Charter which pledges carbon neutrality by 2012.

Following up in the Tyee:

Qualicum Beach councillor Mike Wansink said he would like to cut local government emissions but the investment costs too much. To become carbon neutral, he said, his town would have to purchase electric cars and power official buildings and streetlights with expensive green energy.

"Municipalities probably don't have enough resources to be able to buy those sorts of things," he said. "Zero net emissions in three years is virtually impossible."

[...]

Quesnel Mayor Nate Bello told The Tyee that his city staff is already stretched to the limit trying to deal with such issues as mountain pine beetles and economic development.

"The [provincial climate change toolkit] website is great but cash would be better," he said.

And I hope you're all sitting down, but a study has determined that "Green idealists are most likely to take long-haul flights". From the Guardian's 'Ethical Living' files:

According to the researchers, people who regularly recycle rubbish and save energy at home are also the most likely to take frequent long-haul flights abroad. The carbon emissions from such flights can swamp the green savings made at home, the researchers claim.

Stewart Barr, of Exeter University, who led the research, said: "Green living is largely something of a myth. There is this middle class environmentalism where being green is part of the desired image. But another part of the desired image is to fly off skiing twice a year. And the carbon savings they make by not driving their kids to school will be obliterated by the pollution from their flights."

Some people even said they deserved such flights as a reward for their green efforts, he added.

You've all heard of Mr. Dion's Green Shift sales flop. This speculative bubble has peaked, folks. Time to sell now and cut your losses.
# 3:56 PM