POOOiNTS to ponder

Polluted Olympics

I share this merely as a prompt to ponder various issues, from 'The Two E's - Economy vs. Environment' to enviROI, especially with things that may be billed as 'green', and even more so at a point in time that may not reflect the totality of impacts.

SIR – Your report (July 31) on the air quality around the Stratford Olympic site paints a stark picture of athletes breathing polluted air, but the residents are already doing so, and there is a solution – now.
The Rail Freight Group has calculated that 800,000 truck movements could be saved in the area if rail freight were used for deliveries of steel, precast concrete and prefabricated building elements, all of which were transported by rail for the construction of Heathrow Terminal 5. Rail could also be used for the removal of contaminated waste.
The rail facilities on the Olympic site are hardly used. The Olympic Delivery Authority could require contractors to use rail, but relies instead on the media swallowing their green hype rather than confronting the facts that, unless they take urgent action, this will be the most polluted Olympics in history.
Lord Berkeley
Chairman, Rail Freight Group
London WC1

Tricky one. There can be little doubt that in terms of emissions, the mere creation of and consequences of this event cannot in any way be viewed as making the world 'greener'.