for mass transit. Such spending patterns, along with additional subsidies like tax write-offs for home mortgages, help generate suburban sprawl (and thereby exacerbate the ecological damage caused by cars). At the same time, regulators often tackle problems at the "end of the pipe" instead of seeking to change the productive processes themselves. (Williamson, T., 1999) Recommendations and Solutions "Not even the present world population of 5.8 billion people-let alone the 10 billion expected by 2050-can hope to achieve North America's material standard of living without destroying the ecosphere and precipitating their own collapse. The only alternative, if we continue to insist on economic growth as our major instrument of social policy, is to develop technologies that can provide the same levels of service with six to 12 times less energy and material" (Wackernagel and Rees, 1996:90-91). We now live in a world where the desire for possessions and services drives the global economy. It is unlikely that the materialistic goals of modern society will change in a manner drastic enough to change the way in which mankind interfaces with the world. In order to maintain the convenience-rich lifestyle, to which much of the modern world has become accustomed, our reliance on efficient technology must take precedence over the temporary increase in the cost of production. As theorized by the EPA in their 1996 study of pollution and pollution control, not only may pollution control not be a significant burden to the economy, but in the long run, it could actually improve the economy. “The finding is overwhelming. The benefits far exceed the costs of the Clean Air Act in the first 20 years,”(Morgenstern, R., 1996). The Clean Air Act to which Mr. Morgenstern referred was the basis of the 1996 EPA study. In 1970 the Clean Air Act was implemented and many environmental controls were imposed on manufacturing plants. In only 20 years, from 19...
