In answer to my friend’s question “What am I doing about
Climate Change?”
No, I haven’t been protesting in the streets this time or gluing
myself to the pavement, but I have just contributed to the Timor-Leste
Community Forestry Programme via Gold Standard’s verified Offset Program. I know full well that many Offset
Programs are flawed and a bit like the indulgences which used to be sold by the Catholic Church as someone put it. They also distract us from the other things which really need to
be done or rather not done - to reduce actual emissions. However, retaining and restoring tropical forests remains
an important one, along with helping our neighbours, so I am sticking with this one
for now, especially as Timor-Leste was a place I wanted to go and help.
If you
want to know why restoring tropical forests still ranks highly when properly done, watch the excellent
Ted Talk by Chad Frischmann from Project Drawdown.
You could also do their excellent quiz, the results of which
may surprise you as much as they did me.
Until now nearly all
the focus has been on individuals – as with recycling it's much easier to point the finger at consumers, yet major issues such as mass transit, large scale
renewable energy production or the infrastructure to support say, electric
cars or switching to non –fossil fuels are largely beyond the capacity of
individuals. I’m sure by now we have all changed our light bulbs, set the
washing machine on Eco -wash and turned off our appliances when we aren’t using them,
so protest we must if our governments aren’t listening.
Population,
Proximity and Distribution
It’s
easy to say that of course, and it may well work in small, largely homogenous and
densely populated countries like those in Europe or Asia, but without wishing to make
excuses for my own country or state, it becomes very difficult when you have a
small population, are long way from anywhere and spread thinly over very large
distances. At present, few people here have a choice as to how they get to work, how their children get to school, or
where they buy their food. Those who could afford it got solar panels long ago,
while the rest of the population has been stuck with higher charges as
electricity providers have scrambled to make up the shortfall in their
accounts.
The
Displaced Footprint
There is also another aspect which troubles
me. In Australia's case, Agriculture and Mining are the
biggest contributors to our greenhouse emissions, yet we are producing these
things for export to other countries to whom that carbon footprint - including the
fossil fuels and power generation which enable it to happen, rightfully belongs. The same
applies to countries which manufacture bulk goods for export. I suspect that our
per capita emissions are already inflated by our relatively small population,
but add to that the huge distances over
which these goods are transported and the fact that most of these industries operate in
remote locations, their impact will be
disproportionately large. It’s all very well to say that Denmark for example,
which I admire greatly in most respects –it really has public transport
and cycling nailed, only has a per capita footprint of 6.5, but where for
instance are its clothes, footwear and appliances made? Or its electronics and cars? In China? In
South Korea? In India? And is that counted towards its footprint or theirs?
And where have the raw materials come from? Australia perhaps, Brazil or maybe Canada, whose emissions are also high on a per capita basis, but which may be a little closer to the action. I'd be very happy for someone to tell me I am wrong about this.
Given
that shipping and transport are primary factors in CO2 production, it is a good
argument for a return to regional self –sufficiency which would also help our unemployment situation.This too is an issue which requires government intervention, well beyond the
purview of the individual. While we are at it, could someone also please ask why all our public buildings and schools do not yet have solar panels? That is something which we as a nation could do easily to reduce our carbon footprint and it would create employment as well. Having said that, I know there is room for improvement at all levels, including here at home.
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