ESG Radio Newsletter 3rd December 2015

Hello – well this week has seen a flurry of activity in Paris, for the start of the much-anticipated Climate Change Summit. People everywhere will be watching and waiting to see if meaningful steps are taken at this point to steer humanity in the right direction. David Attenborough, the world-renowned naturalist was asked if he felt confident about the talks this time. He said he wasn’t and that the scale of the problem was hideous.
However he added that it seemed to him that the danger is becoming more and more clear to the people attending this conference and that there is, at last, the chance that something might come out of it.
Attenborough is backing the Global Apollo Programme – a 10-year plan to make renewable energy cheaper than the use of fossil fuels.

This programme suggests that developed countries of the world get together the scientists of the world to solve the remaining problems – in the gathering, transmission and the storage of energy. He believes that if we do that everyone will benefit and that the oil and coal, which is causing all the problems, will remain in the earth where it does no harm at all. The arguments for such a programme are powerful.
We recommend you read the report available on line: just Google Global Apollo Programme.
Lets hope that that this programme can obtain real support and traction at the current climate talks session.

These talks would have had far greater profile in the world media had they not been superseded by the horrific acts of violence in Paris a few weeks before. Add to this the tragic scenes of humanity on the move with the refugee crisis and it is clear that attention and resources are currently being directed towards issues of security and humanitarian aid. With climate change posing worsening conditions for countries around the world, these issues, we are told, will only grow making the current Paris Talks the most important issue going on at the moment.

Our WishList, published online leads with Climate Change and Energy calling for wider discussion locally so we, as a community, can understand and participate in the current drive to reduce our own impacts. We realise that Government has an Energy Policy that sets out its plans to meet renewable energy targets and this is also welcome. More dialogue and debate is needed at community level on such a major issue.

An update for those interested in the LNG and Power Station issue. The ESG has held a number of technical meetings with experts over the past few weeks and is now once again assimilating information given. We have also obviously taken every opportunity to express our concerns and calls for what we consider to be the key issues and best outcomes. More will be published separately soon. See esg-gib.net for more info.

Finally, a date for the next DPC meeting –taking place on the 11th December, possibly the last one of the year. At its usual time of 9.30am at the John Mack Hall, Charles Hunt Room. The agenda should be found online tomorrow.

Thanks for listening!