Weird Environmental Arguments

[walkitout]

Please feel free to share the weirdest one you've seen.

Here's what triggered today's post:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-05/those-days-you-work-from-home-may-end-up-wrecking-the-planet

The argument is that while working from home saves you from the fossil fuels consumed by commuting, you wind up expending more fossil fuels by turning the heat on. Ignoring, for the moment, the fact that size of residence might actually matter here, there's an embedded assumption that is nowhere addressed.

Why is the residence presumed to be empty during the hours that the worker has the choice of either being at the office or at home?

Comments

[ethelmay.livejournal.com]

Do most people mess with the thermostat when they do leave the house empty all day? I suspect a bunch never bother. If more people did that, it would probably make up for the folks who turn the heat up when they stay home.

Nest thermostat

[walkitout]

Altho I sometimes hate the Nest, because it decides I'm not home. WHEN I'M RIGHT FUCKING THERE FREEZING MY ASS OFF. I discovered this tonight. A. and I were sitting in a chair together and I _still_ was getting colder and colder. Finally, I got up, look at the Nest, and, sure enough, it was set to "Away", which over time will allow the heat to drop to 50. Of course it hadn't gotten all the way there, yet.

My sister points out that they don't drop the thermostat, because they have a cat.

I've had to program the thermostat to bring the heat up for those times while we are away on vacay that someone else (cleaner, typically, but sometimes a painter) will be in the house.

Re: Nest thermostat

[ethelmay.livejournal.com]

We have a programmable thermostat, but not nearly as fancy. I never think to turn it down even when I know I'm going to be out for half the day or whatever. OTOH we almost never have it as high as most people would, so there's that.