The government spends a lot of our money trying to reduce pollution. The Solyndra debacle was just one high profile example that illustrated why the government shouldn’t be in the green business.

So if the government can’t clean the environment efficiently, are we doomed? No. Just like e-cigarettes, the product of profit-driven private sector innovation, are helping smokers quit like no government program ever has, an app is reducing pollution around the world.

The app, called Waze, is in the news because Google is on the verge of buying the Israeli tech startup. It would be Google’s 4th largest acquisition by value. Waze, according to it’s website, is

the world’s fastest-growing community-based traffic and navigation app. Join other drivers in your area who share real-time traffic and road info, saving everyone time and gas money on their daily commute.

That’s why it is a success — because consumers save time and money by using it. Less traffic = less gas. The money drivers around the world are saving is a boon to the environment.

The Waze example represents the opposite of how liberals want to “protect” the environment. Liberals want to use taxpayer money to reduce our productivity for hypothetical environmental benefits. Waze, on the other hand, created by the private sector in pursuit of profit, saves us money while actually reducing environmental impact.

If you want to protect in the environment, you’d do more good as a venture capitalist (or advising one), directing resources to winning companies like Waze, rather than volunteering for an activist group or working for the Environmental Protection Agency.