nate's+imagining+solutions

The Problem:

Natural gas development has too many negative impacts, and should be banned immediately. This is not a technological problem, it is a systemic problem.

Imagining Solutions:

1. Why are you concerned about this problem?

It has been shown, and I have seen personally, the negative impacts on: environment, health (physical and mental), climate, and communities. State and federal governments have special interests that sacrifice the rights of people for the sake of profit, and these governments work hand-in-hand with industry.

2. What solutions have been proposed so far, and what debates have these solutions provoked?

Advocacy groups fight back, using tactics such as the legal system (local rights, community zoning) and public protest.

3. What promise do you see in the solutions proposed so far?

As evidence from impacts becomes more apparent, impacted individuals connect with each other and their networks include more professionals: doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc. There has been some success in fighting back in NY, but the number of people being negatively impacted in other states is growing at an accelerating rate.

4. What limits do you see in these solutions?

These solutions make progress too slowly and in a region too narrow.

5. What kind of solutions are you prepared to undertake?

I think a complementary solution would be to expose the pseudo-science in policy making and in industry that creates a sense of debate (which is false).

6. What will be the biggest challenge in realizing the solution you have in mind?

7. What kinds of people will you need to help you?