Sustainable Development related issues, reports & news

Sustainable Development: Principles, pioneers, enterprise...
Fair Trade:
Principles, pioneers, ventures...
UN Millennium Development Goals

News about the global environment

Fair Trade related issues, news & reports Global Environmental News
Global Democracy & Human Rights News Global Legal News
Ballot integrity & free elections Culture & Travel Information
THE TIME IS NOW FOR GLOBAL ACTION ON EMISSIONS REDUCTION
CRISIS POLICY FORUM PUBLISHED THIS MONTH AN INTRODUCTORY TEXT FOR AN ACTION PLAN TO CURB GLOBAL EMISSIONS & TRANSFER TO GREEN ECONOMY
28 November 2007 :: Crisis Policy Forum

Due to the science we already have, the laws we have to govern our own activity and to force government to act for the public health, we face the real possibility of being forced, in American courts, in the future, to pay for damage done to the most affected populations in other parts of the world, as a result of inaction by our government. And if not in court, then as a matter of the de facto urgencies of international political stability.

If we do not find a way to work to mitigate global climate change, future generations will look back and will see clearly that a zeitgeist of selfish convenience and primitive disregard for the wellbeing of our fellow human beings led to a reckless attitude with regard to this snowballing crisis. The public voice, and those campaigning for the level of public respect needed for election to office, should bring this issue to the fore, push for real initiatives to tackle the problem boldly, in a collaborative way, now.

The IPCC is one of the most comprehensive and prestigious bodies of scientists ever gathered from around the world, and it has been unequivocal in its reports this year. Every major player in world politics, including Pres. Bush, has acknowledged that global climate change is happening, and is the result of human activities. 2007 will be remembered as the year the climate crisis went public and stayed on the global public interest radar, for good. The United States cannot afford to be lagging behind, not now, and not in the eyes of history.

For public servants serious enough to work across ideological rifts, a proposal for responsible legislation to deal with this crisis (to be pushed for and initiated in advance of the November 2008 US elections):

Push a 90% emissions reduction goal for 2050, and make it global. (There's no reason this cannot be done. Wind-energy resources in Texas, Kansas and North Dakota alone could power the entire US economy and more, if properly funded and developed. Most nations have a surplus of wind resources; the secret is local development and responsible construction and implementation. Other new technologies and a rebuilding of transport infrastructure can help reach this goal, without undermining economic stability.)

Work to punish all forms of corruption associated with energy production, and implement stiff sanctions against any nation that does not severely punish such corruption (whether it's bribery is Appalachian coal mining schemes, Saudi authoritarianism and arms trafficking, Uzbekistan's megalomaniac leader, or China's support for the Bashir government in Khartoum).

Ensure that the US economy is incentivized, from top to bottom, to adopt renewable resources and that we can fund through innovation, entrepreneurship, research and development grants, the green technology boom, which if properly carried out, will far surpass the 1990s economic expansion related to the building and popularization of the world wide web.

Institute in US law a "limited use" doctrine for nuclear plants, which means they will be employed in a period of transition (with no new construction) as a means of softening the price pinch that could come to sectors that lag in the renewables transition. This is not meant to allow new growth or prolonged use of fossil fuels, but rather to avoid punishing the underprivileged for their lack of access to easy capital. Eventually, a plan will need to be implemented that will transition away from these extremely costly plants with unequaled capacity for contamination (in case of accident).

Greening the military: begin immediately the funding and incentivization for defense contractors of a transition to a military made more efficient, flexible and green in its global reach by way of the ecological (which in the very near future means economic) sustainability of its technologies and deployment systems. This will soon be a measure of rapid-deployment capacity, i.e. the ability to project power without bankrupting the state, so there is a direct security motivation involved in this. (The US military is a massive source of research and development, and cutting-edge technologies could emerge for civilian use, if the fossil fuel addiction is broken.)

Plan for "jump" generation innovations: energy resourcing is still in its infancy, comparatively (fossil fuels are square one; nuclear a bold but ill-advised 'spur'; renewables are the first step toward rational sustainable energy policy; after renewables, or within the context of, there will come a more advanced mode of powering the global economy). Geothermal still relies on risky construction methods, wind requires massive construction and solar occupies space (ever less, but still a constraint), whereas new capabilities may be lying in wait beyond the scope of current scientific methods.

Let's think ahead and privilege the "zero emissions" criterion. The more we can do to implement large-scale energy solutions that are in themselves zero-emissions processes, the larger the percentage of current emissions we can do without. It's that simple.

A viable, comprehensive action plan for serious global reductions over coming decades requires a collaborative framework wherein:

  • democracy is not in any way curtailed nor are totalitarian measures elevated by the global protocols;
  • global treaties are bold, viable, respected and implemented;
  • median wealth of the human population globally is increased (to de-incentivize violations).

A combination of military investment, industrial incentivization, market-driven competition, and consumer-friendly implementation strategies, will help the US economy move away from the risks (economic, sanitary and environmental) of the dependence on carbon-based fuels. [Complete Text]

BACKGROUND:
DISTILLERY DEMAND FOR GRAIN TO FUEL CARS VASTLY UNDERSTATED
WORLD MAY BE FACING HIGHEST GRAIN PRICES IN HISTORY
19 March 2007

Investment in fuel ethanol distilleries has soared since the late-2005 oil price hikes, but data collection in this fast-changing sector has fallen behind. Because of inadequate data collection on the number of new plants under construction, the quantity of grain that will be needed for fuel ethanol distilleries has been vastly understated. Farmers, feeders, food processors, ethanol investors, and grain-importing countries are basing decisions on incomplete data. [Full Story]

WORLD’S WATER RESOURCES FACE MOUNTING PRESSURE
26 July 2006 :: Elizabeth Mygatt

Global freshwater use tripled during the second half of the twentieth century as population more than doubled and as technological advances let farmers and other water users pump groundwater from greater depths and harness river water with more and larger dams. As global demand soars, pressures on the world’s water resources are straining aquatic systems worldwide. Rivers are running dry, lakes are disappearing, and water tables are dropping. Nearly 70 percent of global water withdrawals from rivers, lakes, and aquifers are used for irrigation, while industry and households account for 20 and 10 percent, respectively. [Full Story]

SUPERMARKETS & SERVICE STATIONS NOW COMPETING FOR GRAIN
24 July 2006 :: Lester R. Brown

Cars, not people, will claim most of the increase in world grain consumption this year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture projects that world grain use will grow by 20 million tons in 2006. Of this, 14 million tons will be used to produce fuel for cars in the United States, leaving only 6 million tons to satisfy the world’s growing food needs. [Full Story]

WORLD GRAIN STOCKS FALL TO 57 DAYS OF CONSUMPTION
GRAIN PRICES STARTING TO RISE
15 June 2006 :: Lester R. Brown

This year’s world grain harvest is projected to fall short of consumption by 61 million tons, marking the sixth time in the last seven years that production has failed to satisfy demand. As a result of these shortfalls, world carryover stocks at the end of this crop year are projected to drop to 57 days of consumption, the shortest buffer since the 56-day-low in 1972 that triggered a doubling of grain prices. [Full Story]

NORWAY TO BUILD ARCTIC SEED BANK
FACILITY WILL STORE SAMPLES OF ALL KNOWN CROP VARIETIES
18 January 2006

The Norwegian government has announced plans to create a global seed bank, to be located in the nation's arctic subsoil, to preserve all world crop varieties against extinction, should any number of natural disasters strike. The seed bank will be located inside a frozen mountain on the island of Spitsbergen, in the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. [Full Story]

Intercept News Briefs
Sentido.tv is a digital imprint of Casavaria Publishing
All Excerpts & Reprints © 2000-08 Listed Contributors Original, Graphic Content © 2000-08 Sentido

About Sentido.tv
Contact the Editors Sentido.tv Site Map
Visit ad links for more topical reading; Sentido not responsible for sponsors' content...