Home / Quotes / Quote by Denis Hayes

Quote by Denis Hayes

“Environmentally, business in America in 1970 was very similar to business in China today. Even if a CEO wanted to be a responsible corporate citizen, he (and they were all "he's" then) simply couldn't invest a billion dollars in pollution controls to produce a product that was indistinguishable from those of his competitors. His products would be priced out of the market. Passing laws that created a clean, level playing field for whole industries had to be a core focus of the 1970s.”

Quote by Denis Hayes

Author

Denis Hayes, born in 1944, is a well-known figure whose profession and category remain unknown. His biography, achievements, and influence are limited due to insufficient information. more

You May Also Like

“By 1975 - and continuing to today - all Americans came to believe that they had a "right" to a safe, clean, healthy environment. When I grew up, no one seriously criticized the steel mills and paper mills for the deadly stench they produced - that was the smell of prosperity. In the modern society, no one would tolerate such conditions in an American city.”

Believe Today Cities Environment Modern Conditions Grew Healthy Safe Paper Grew Up Clean Prosperity Smell Tolerate Continuing Steel Mills Modern Society American Cities Healthy Environment

Author:Denis Hayes

“With time environmental issues got much more complicated. It is pretty easy, if you know what you are doing, to stop a company from pouring poison into a lake where kids swim. It is much harder to address all the myriad greenhouse gases emitted by different sources - from petrochemical refineries to hundreds of millions of peasants cutting down trees for their incredibly inefficient cook stoves.”

“That said, I'm embarrassed and furious that so many coal-state Democrats in the U.S. Senate are paralyzing international progress to protect the short term interests of a dying industry that ravages the environment from mine to slag heap.”

Said States Term Interest Environment Progress Dying Mines Industry Protect Democrat International Senate Embarrassed Coal Short Term Furious Slag

Author:Denis Hayes

“There are a few obvious consequences and perhaps one subtle possibility. One obvious thing is that, to stimulate the economy, President Obama has committed to creating millions of green jobs that will leave a legacy - much as Roosevelt's public works did during the new deal.”

Jobs President Deals Millions Economy Possibility Creating Consequence Green Committed Obvious Legacy Subtle President Obama New Deal Obvious Things

Author:Denis Hayes

“Obama wants to build such things as smart electrical grids and high-speed rail lines, which will offer big environmental improvements. Another obvious thing is that large-scale project financing is virtually frozen, so a lot of renewable energy projects are on hold. If the system doesn't get unclogged before the developers run out of cash, they will be cancelled. Money matters, and we are racing against time.”

“You know, my main reaction to this money thing is that it's humorous, all the attention to it, because it's hardly the most insightful or valuable thing that's happened to me.”

Knows Money Attention Happened Humorous Valuable Reactions Insightful Valuable Things

Author:Steve Jobs

“The more subtle thing is more speculative. The world is well past its long-term carrying capacity for human beings living a European, much less an American, lifestyle predicated on planned obsolescence. International economic growth is largely a matter of accelerated movement of materials from mines and forests to the dump. Instead of saving and buying decent furniture we can pass on to our children, we charge our credit cards for shaped heaps of sawdust and glue that fall apart in less than three or four years.”

“he economy favors throughput over quality and craftsmanship, and economists are terrified because the American savings rate has crept upward from about zero to almost five percent. But the mortgage crisis and the burgeoning credit card crisis are causing Americans to become wary of irresponsible debt.”

Quality Economy Five Percent Crisis Rate Credit Debt Favors Cards Saving Zero Terrified Economist Savings Irresponsible Mortgage Credit Card Craftsmanship Mortgage Crisis

Author:Denis Hayes

“I would love to see a fundamental re-thinking of whether we truly want to be the world's largest debtor nation, feeding an insatiable desire for mall-crawling with cheaply made crap from all over the world.”

Thinking World Want Made Desire Nations Fundamentals Crap Feeding Malls Insatiable Crawling Debtors

Author:Denis Hayes

“Sustainability requires that we demand enduring quality. Steve Strong has a slide presentation pointing out that much of Oxford was built 800 years ago. What are we building today that will be here 800 years from now? If something like that emerged from this recession, it would help justify the hardship so many people are currently experiencing.”

People Ifs Years Helping Today Strong Quality Building Demand Built Years Ago Endure Justify Hardship Sustainability Pointing Slides Presentation Recessions Oxford

Author:Denis Hayes