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UK Election and the environment
Forget Brexit and the current economy. Look further ahead.
The planet is currently projected to be 3-4 degrees warmer by the end of the century. Some recently estimates put it as high as 7C over pre-industrial levels by then (new positive feedback loops)
I've just been comparing manifestos.
(Don't take my word for it, look here - https://www.carbonbrief.org/election-2017-what-minfestos-say-energy-climate-change )
In essence, the Conservatives want to get every last bit of oil out of the North sea, frack for shale gas, expand airports (while claiming to lead the world in fighting climate change...) Note that our emissions have only fallen in recent years because we effectively export our carbon emissions by importing carbon-intensive products. When imports are added in, our emissions are still rising. They won't allow any onshore wind power, apart from on Scottish islands. No mention of carbon capture and storage.
Labour - ban fracking, want to have a lot more renewables, mention CCS, want to work onzsero-carbon heating for houses, but they still want to use North Sea oil and expand airports.
Lib Dems - want Cabinet position for Sustainability and have specific legislation intentions for green stuff. Would reduce energy bills by improving insulation rather than capping prices. No fracking, restore subsidies for renewables. Support CCS and want zero-carbon new homes. Help establish new industries in areas where oil is a major employer. Will not increase net number of runways in UK (I sense some weasel wording there)
Greens - what you'd expect. But most of us won't have a Green candidate with a decent chance.
Basically, if you want your children and grandchildren to have a world that is not headed like an express train for environmental collapse, your best bet is to vote Lib Dem. If you don't have a decent Lib Dem candidate, vote Labour.
We live in one of the richest countries in the world. If we don't make serious attempts to slash carbon emissions, then how can we ask anyone else to?
There are some Conservative policies I support, but I have a granddaughter. She will live in the world that we are a creating. It's going to be hot - our only hope is to try and keep it to just 2C rise -1.5C is already a lost cause.
The planet is currently projected to be 3-4 degrees warmer by the end of the century. Some recently estimates put it as high as 7C over pre-industrial levels by then (new positive feedback loops)
I've just been comparing manifestos.
(Don't take my word for it, look here - https://www.carbonbrief.org/election-2017-what-minfestos-say-energy-climate-change )
In essence, the Conservatives want to get every last bit of oil out of the North sea, frack for shale gas, expand airports (while claiming to lead the world in fighting climate change...) Note that our emissions have only fallen in recent years because we effectively export our carbon emissions by importing carbon-intensive products. When imports are added in, our emissions are still rising. They won't allow any onshore wind power, apart from on Scottish islands. No mention of carbon capture and storage.
Labour - ban fracking, want to have a lot more renewables, mention CCS, want to work onzsero-carbon heating for houses, but they still want to use North Sea oil and expand airports.
Lib Dems - want Cabinet position for Sustainability and have specific legislation intentions for green stuff. Would reduce energy bills by improving insulation rather than capping prices. No fracking, restore subsidies for renewables. Support CCS and want zero-carbon new homes. Help establish new industries in areas where oil is a major employer. Will not increase net number of runways in UK (I sense some weasel wording there)
Greens - what you'd expect. But most of us won't have a Green candidate with a decent chance.
Basically, if you want your children and grandchildren to have a world that is not headed like an express train for environmental collapse, your best bet is to vote Lib Dem. If you don't have a decent Lib Dem candidate, vote Labour.
We live in one of the richest countries in the world. If we don't make serious attempts to slash carbon emissions, then how can we ask anyone else to?
There are some Conservative policies I support, but I have a granddaughter. She will live in the world that we are a creating. It's going to be hot - our only hope is to try and keep it to just 2C rise -1.5C is already a lost cause.
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The LibDems ought at least to be the main Opposition party, on current policies. I wish.
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On the other hand if it's a seat where they know they can't win odds are activists are helping out somewhere else to let whoever can win have a chance: mind if I ask which seat?
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I think I'd better get in touch with the local LibDems.
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Carbon Capture and sequestration (CCS) is a pointless exercise if we keep on extracting and burning fossil carbon -- it is a very energy intensive process and insecure unless the captured carbon is turned into solid material i.e. coal. It might work if the human race built out a lot of nuclear power plants and used their output to power CCS but that's not going to happen.
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It's only good point is that it's better than coal without CCS.
We need to leave fossil fuels in the ground. All of them.
Nuclear is not zero carbon (but it's still better than fossil fuels). There's a non-trivial carbon cost to the mining, processing and transport.
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So whatever they say in the manifesto, it won't happen... particularly since they've ruled out going into coalition again, after what happened to them last time.
Frankly no major party is going to stand for election on a promise of reducing living standards for voters across the country, which is what a pledge to cut energy consumption would be presented as by their opponents :-(
Have you seen today's reports that the Hillary Step has crumbled off the face of Everest due to climate change?
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However, in spite of being annoyed by the way the people writing their leaflets insult my maths, I will still vote Lib Dem. They won't get in as a party (though my local candidate is in with a decent chance),but one has to have some opposition and then hope for people on the Tory back bench who will rebel on climate issues.
It's a long shot, but the only one we have.
Churchill got away with it during the war, but it's a difficult stance to maintain long term
I would vote for such a policy and accept the drop in living standards,but I'm in a minority.
Then again, if we took all the subsidies going into North Sea Oil, and added them to subsidising renewables...
British Columbia has a carbon tax which is popular and has not affected economic growth - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia_carbon_tax
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Only when you read the small print, it turns out that the "last election" in question was the one for the London Mayor, which bears practically no relation to constituency voting patterns in the local area at all. Very shoddy practice, if not active deceit.
And then they wonder why people think all politicians are liars... (Also, I happen to know that the Labour candidate in this (neighbouring) constituency is a career Nobody who has been gerrymandered in by Central Office over the head of a popular local activist -- who might actually have had an outside chance of winning the seat, as she has a lot of non-party support in the area. It's created a lot of ill-feeling in the local Labour party, in addition to being a monumental tactical blunder.)
The British Columbia thing sounds a bit like the plastic bag tax; an attempt to influence behaviour without imposing significant real costs.
I think somebody said to me once that the sustainable level of energy usage in this country would be something around what we were using in the 1940s -- certainly not pre-industrial, or anything like that. I could certainly survive happily around that level (having been brought up in a lifestyle not a million miles removed from that in the first place).
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