By John Mattingly Note: This is the second of a three-part series looking at the tension points between economic growth and environmental conservation. Growth: Like gravity, it’s the law. Though there are solid reasons for both adoring and admonishing growth, it’s actually circulating in our economic bloodstream. Our entire economic structure, from Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) to the Tax Code, to laws governing financial transactions, is all tilted – sometimes dramatically – toward favoring growth versus sustainability. 1. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, or GAAP, has yet to give ledger status to externalized costs and benefits. For example, the cost ...