Pollution: Scoping Out a Broader Definition

Know the Facts poster. Artist unknown, 1941, Silkscreen on board. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago, RX20769/2190. Photography © the Art Institute of Chicago.

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Normally, when one thinks of pollution, the mind immediately thinks of air, water, or noise pollution. But what about adding inaccuracies to the list? Unlike facts, inaccuracies spawn faulty conclusions and misguided direction.

Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into an environment that causes instability, disorder, harm, or discomfort to the ecosystem. In my mind, inaccuracies fit the bill.

While preparing last week’s blog post on printing, I initially wrote about the added negative environmental impact of full-color versus one- or two-color printing, which was based on old, no-longer-valid information. It was only after I was asked for a citation to back it up that I discovered that this was inaccurate.

The fact is, most heavy metals were phased out of printing inks in the 1970s when the EPA and waste regulations began to affect the use of these materials. In the 1980s the technology to develop pigments while maintaining color standards continued to improve and the remaining heavy metals were phased out of inks, according to the Newspaper Association of America.

This experience served as an important reminder that though we may need to disseminate information quickly, we should always remember to stick to the facts and be able to back them up.

One way that libraries can help the green movement today is by offering facts, thus reducing inaccuracies, on important environmental issues to their patrons. This can be done in a variety of simple ways including bulletin boards, discussion groups, and documentary screenings. Libraries can also offer programs teaching interested parties how to verify if what they’ve heard or read is indeed factual. And, of course, let’s not forget the ever-impressive-at-getting-to-the-truth reference desk. How many of your patrons are using this gem in their quest to help Mother Earth? As a marketing person, I can see a successful PR campaign in the making.

In ending, I’d like to share one of my favorite quotes, attributed to Bernard Baruch, a key adviser to Presidents Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt: “Every man has a right to his opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts.”