I don't think it's amazing to reach large local maxima for production efficiency when the major risks are ignored and we know about problems piling up that could dramatically reduce that efficiency in the future.

I think targeting that definition of 'efficient' is a mistake, as it doesn't represent the true, whole-system consequences. The efficiency metric you quote just completely ignores the pollution from the industry, which is a part of the system you're studying.

Passing the sound barrier wouldn't have been so amazing if the plane blew up just after.