Chapter 10 | Expenses of Environmental Sustainability from Ma’aser Kesafim

Introduction

The choice to act for the environment or at the very least to mitigate its damage oftentimes involves monetary expenses. At the personal level, including factors of sustainability into the choice of electronic devices, vehicles, and the like can offset valid economic considerations; and on the public level, creating a change in awareness requires educational resources, and leading to practical change requires infrastructure, such as recycling facilities and roads tailored towards vehicles that do not cause pollution, and so on and so forth.

As a basis for this discussion, we will briefly mention the halachot of ma’aser kesafim that apply to our case. The Sages instructed that each person should separate a tenth of their income for charity ¹. There are those who say that ma’aser funds must be given to the poor alone, however the custom follows those who are lenient and apply them to other mitzvah needs as well ².

On this backdrop, one can discuss whether it is permissible for a person to spend his ma’aser kesafim in order to conserve the environment. From a practical perspective, the issue is divided into two parts: 1. Is it permissible to donate from one’s ma’aser kesafim towards NGOs and outreach material dealing with sustainability? 2. Is it permissible to use ma’aser kesafim in order to subsidize purchases of products with a low carbon footprint?

The Halachic Discussion

Donations Towards the Furthering of Environmental Conservation

The halachic authorities explain that the needs of the public also have mitzvah status, especially if there is benefit for the poor as well ³. Included in this, the authorities write that there is room to contribute even to organizations that further medical research and other aspects of worldly rectification ⁴. In light of the aforementioned, it seems glaringly obvious that it is permissible to donate of ma’aser funds even to organizations and initiatives that further environmental conservation and sustainability. This is because, in light of our previous chapters, they integrate acts of kindness, saving lives, and fulfilling the obligation of “to tend to [the land] and to guard it” 

Purchasing Ecological Products

As a general principle, one should not use their ma’aser kesafim to fulfill mitzvot that they are obligated in (such as purchasing a set of tefillin). However, for the beautified fulfillment of a mitzvah (such as purchasing high-quality tefillin), many authorities permit using ma’aser funds in order to cover the difference between the basic and beautified fulfillment ⁵. Similarly, even when a person purchases something that he benefits from, if he purchases it at a higher price in order to fund a poor worker, it is permitted for him to spend the difference from his ma’aser funds ⁶. On this basis, one should consider when they are buying something for their own benefit, that if there are two possibilities in front of him, one cheap and unbeautified from the halachic perspective (such as food of ‘normal’ kashrut) and the second is expensive and beautified (such as food of mehadrin kashrut), it is permissible to cover the difference from one’s ma’aser funds ⁷. It seems that when dealing with a product which has significant ecological value and were it not for his use of ma’aser funds he would have been forced to purchase the more harmful item, one should permit him to use his ma’aser funds to cover the difference. This is because ecological concern is an urgent public need (to the point of risk to life) on the one hand, and on the other we are dealing with a ‘beautification’ that the individual is not obligated to invest a sum of money that does not fit with their financial status, therefore one can be lenient in the matter. Despite this, one should ensure that this is performed only in specific situations where the benefit of environmental conservation is significant, and it is appropriate to use only some of one’s ma’aser funds (up to about a half) for these purposes and not the entire sum ⁸.

In Practice:

It is permissible to contribute money from ma’aser kesafim towards organizations that further environmental conservation. Similarly, one can use some of their ma’aser funds to cover the difference necessary for purchasing ecologically friendly products instead of products that are not, while ensuring that they will be utilized for significant environmental benefit. This halachic ruling emerges from the recognition of the issue of sustainability as a purpose defined as a mitzvah matter. It is possible that this position has a much broader influence at the level of the community and state, such as in the world of “funds allocated for religious purposes (hekdesh dati)” and the permit to use these allocated funds for essential environmental issues.

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