The survival of the race being no small matter, I did a bit of research
(including reading for a MSc in Public Understanding of Environmental
Change) - and what did I come up with? Well no one has got the complete
answer, basically because most of us are still in denial and too
attached to our comfortable petrochemical consuming lifestyles.
But there is one thing that all the experts all agree on (well those
who aren’t on the payroll of big oil) and that is we need
to reduce our fossil fuel consumption and make the switch
to renewably sourced energy. We can do it, and as Bert
Metz from the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency recently
said at the Avoiding Dangerous Climate Change Conference (Hadley
Centre, Feb 05) ‘no new technologies are needed to stabilise
greenhouse gas concentrations’.
This means we need to development of a portfolio of renewable energy
generation options, however given that most renewable energy sources
are not at a commercially viable stage for the time being at least
‘it is recognised that wind must meet three-quarters of the
(UK) government’s 10% (2010) renewable energy target’
(SERA, 2005. Our Energy Future: The Future Role of Wind Power).Regional
and local development plans should contain policies that promote
and encourage, rather than restrict, renewable energy projects.
But down here in Cornwall there are a few of us that care enough
to fight the nimbys, who would rather see millions die than a wind
farm and the local Councillors who listen to them. And what are
we doing?
- lobbying the planning departments and our District Councillors
- by writing letters in of support our local wind farm proposals;
- taking to the streets and running information points
to educate people about the issues and drum up support for wind
power;
- monitoring and writing to the local media to dispel
the anti-wind propaganda they callously tout;
- running educational events for school children;
- creating a web resource to provide information for Yes2Wind
and climate campaigning in the South West;
- joining with our ‘up in smoke’ allies at a local level
to encourage people to switch to renewably sourced energy tariffs.
As a hero of mine once wrote ‘having once recognised truth
one can no longer take comfort or pleasure in its compromise’
and as another said ‘inaction is a weapon of mass destruction’
so the time is now to get active and help reduce
the effects of the ongoing mass extinction (we all are creating
right now) whilst we still have a slim chance. So ‘embrace
the revolution’ and say Yes2Wind…
Cornwall members: contact Ben Simpson (bensimpson@ampmail.co.uk)
to
get active.
