Counting On … – Page 33

Counting on … day 217

19th November 2024

Last week the UK announced its 2035 NDC* target – to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions by at least 81% on 1990 levels. The previous 2035 target was for a 78% reduction. The UK has an interim target of cutting greenhouse gases by 68% by 2030.

Greenpeace UK’s senior political adviser, Rebecca Newsom, said in a statement. “But targets need to be backed up with bold action. When the government submits its action plan next year, it must include details of how the UK will deliver a full phase out of oil and gas.” Hopefully we can count on the government to curtail the development of the Rosebank oil field. The development of the oilfield is in the balance as judges on Scotland deliberate as to the legality of the original licensing process.

nationally determined contribution – ie each nations’s undertaking to reduce national emissions so as to meet the targets of the 2015 Paris Agreement

Counting on … day 216

18th November 2024

One of the slogans of climate activism is ‘Make the Polluters Pay’ which feels very right and grounded in what is just – a sort of global scale ‘Rylands and Fletcher’ case: if A uses the land and in so doing damages land belonging to B, then A must pay damages to B. So if Shell’s extracting of oil pollutes the adjoining land, Shell should pay the appropriate sum in damages.

Burning fossil fuels pollutes the atmosphere, increasing levels of carbon dioxide, fuelling climate change and triggering damaging adverse weather events such as floods, droughts, wildfires etc. logically the polluters – those burning the fossil fuels – should pay up. But fossil fuels have been burnt by so many different people – individuals heating their homes, small metal workshops, whole industries, transport systems etc -and over a considerable period of time. The United Kingdom has produced a cumulative total of 79,777,710,000 tonnes of CO2 since 1750. When we then call on the Government to ensure payment of a fair share in climate finance to vulnerable countries in the global south, that payment needs to reflect the scope of the damage our nation has caused.

Counting on … day 215

15th November 2024

How much climate finance is needed?

“This year’s UN climate summit, being held in Azerbaijan, is focused on finance, and specifically the new collective quantified goal (NCQG) for climate finance, required under the 2015 Paris agreement. Rich countries are bound under the agreement to provide climate finance to help developing nations cut their greenhouse gas emissions and cope with the impacts of the climate crisis. The current finance goal, of providing $100bn a year to poor countries, is widely acknowledged to be inadequate, and most rich countries agree the figure needs to be several times higher.

Poor countries are asking for finance of about $1tn a year by 2035, based on widely accepted estimates of their needs. Rich countries are likely to agree to a considerably smaller sum, perhaps about half that amount, to be paid from their exchequers and through multilateral institutions such as the World Bank.

The gap could be met from a variety of means, including new taxes on fossil fuels or the diversion of existing subsidies to cleaner ends. These “innovative sources of finance” will not be fully articulated or agreed at Cop29 and will need further work.” (1)

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/nov/08/cop29-climate-talks-what-would-a-good-outcome-look-like?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Counting on day 214

14th November 2024

“Let’s dispense with any idea that climate finance is charity;” runaway climate change is impacting “every single individual in the world one way or another,” Mr. Stiell, the UN climate chief, said on Monday.

Why do poorer nations (in particular) need climate finance? Because it can enable them to:

take action to mitigate against the causes of climate change – eg switching to renewable energy, replacing wood/coal fired cooking stoves with electric ones, greening heavy industry;
take action to adapt to the ongoing effects of climate change – eg insulating buildings against extremes of heat, upgrading flood defences, improving early weather warning systems;
cover the costs of damage caused by extreme weather and other destructive effects caused by climate change.

Counting on day 213

13th November 2024

Adapting lifestyles and infrastructure to cope with the already present aspects of the climate crisis do not come cheaply – although it is definitely (infinitely) cheaper than the cost of making good the damage that would otherwise occur.

Not all countries can afford these essential costs. As a matter of justice and of common human decency we need to count on the world leaders to both agree and – most importantly – to pay their fair contribution to enable all global citizens to be protected.

“Poorer developing nations are struggling to find the money to meet those increasingly urgent challenges, with this week’s Adaptation Gap report putting their annual adaptation needs at $215 billion-$387 billion, against international public funding of about $28 billion in 2022.

Wealthy governments say they’re on track to deliver a goal to double adaptation finance from 2019 levels by 2025, to around $40 billion a year – but that would only reduce the adaptation finance gap by about 5%, the report warned. (1)

https://www.climatechangenews.com/2024/11/08/rich-nations-on-track-to-double-adaptation-finance-but-huge-gap-persists/?utm_source=Climate+Weekly&utm_campaign=92eb3c50b7-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_10_25_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-33c1cd21bb-408145328

Counting on day 212

12th November 2024

Even if we stop adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, the CO2 that is already there will not immediately diminish. It will be there for decades to come, meaning that the higher global temperatures that we are already experiencing will also not diminish any time soon. And this means that the extreme weather events that we are now experiencing – floods, droughts, heatwaves, wild fires etc – are not going to diminish either. We therefore need to count on the world leaders at COP29 to agree measures to help us adapt to the changes in the climate that we have already caused – improved flood defences, developing new farming models, conserving water, expanding early weather warning systems, heat proofing buildings etc.

What is the difference between mitigation and adaptation?

“Climate change mitigation means avoiding and reducing emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere to prevent the planet from warming to more extreme temperatures. Climate change adaptation means altering our behaviour, systems, and—in some cases—ways of life to protect our families, our economies, and the environment in which we live from the impacts of climate change. The more we reduce emissions right now, the easier it will be to adapt to the changes we can no longer avoid.” https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/what-s-the-difference-between-climate-change-mitigation-and-adaptation

Counting on day 211

11th November 2024

Over the next two weeks we hope that we can count on the world leaders agree and enact radical policies that will curb the inexorable rise of the climate crisis. At last year’s COP28 they agreed to transition away from fossil fuels in what was a very woolly agreement. This year, with conviction, they need to agree to not just phase out but end our use of fossil fuels.

Fossil fuels are the biggest source of CO2 emissions which drive climate change. Currently carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are at 423.58 ppm (parts per million) – and rising. This is way above the safe level of 350ppm which was passed in 1990.

Click to access co2_trend_all_gl.pdf

Counting on day 210

8th November 2024

As consumers we do have some limited power – and all the more so when we band together.

By choosing products that are free of excessive packaging, by choosing products from companies that care about paying staff fairly, paying their taxes, avoiding slavery, supporting fair trade, being environmentally responsible, having realistic net zero plans etc etc, we are saying “Yes this is what we want you to produce!”

We can further this message by writing to those who could do better.

We can get together with others and sign petitions, or take part in boycotts.

Last year I ponder a similar acronym to LOAF for non food purchase and came up with SURE

Sustainable, Useful, the three (or more) Rs, and Ethical.

Counting on … day 1.210

Counting on … day 209

7th November 2024

Zero waste is an umbrella title that encompasses avoiding plastic and other unnecessary packaging, and other means of reducing waste – which might for example include composting the outer leaves of cabbages and onion skins, or turning apple cores into cider vinegar.

Going zero waste can revolutionise the way we live as consumers. Even if we can’t achieve a 100% target, we will be altering patterns of thinking both in ourselves and by those who supply us. This blog item reflects our household shift in this direction – https://greentau.org/2022/01/27/eco-tips-zero-waste/

Counting on … day 208

6th November 2024

As well as refillable water bottles and reusable cups, there are shops and providers (eg milk delivery services) where you can get packaging free refills for laundry and washing liquids, sugar, raisins and other groceries, and for edible liquids such as olive oil, wine and vinegar. You can even get refills of peanut butter! (I have yet to find a refill source for yeast extract).

Our local refill shops include Apple and Bees, Culver and Nelson (both in East Sheen) and The Source in Richmond. Refill shops are often small independent outlets or small chains. It is worth checking on the web to see what is available in your area.