We Want Climate Action Now

Thursday, 19 November 2020

NO FUTURE IN GAS - video

"Renewables provide the cheapest source of energy and are creating the energy jobs of the present AND the future.

Yet, our State (Victorian) Government has given the go ahead to open up polluting gas fields and a mega gas import terminal that will have little to no impact on our gas bills but a huge impact on our climate. To cut power prices, we need to invest in renewables and help get Brunswick and Victoria off gas. Download our fact sheet here.

Didn't know there was a problem with gas? Watch this video."

Dr Tim Read - Greens MP

Wednesday, 18 November 2020

Climate Ad Project

Stopping climate and ecological breakdown is a task of cosmic importance, and there is a place for each and every one of us in the movement. #IAmAClimateActivist

Faith Institutions Announce Largest-Ever Joint Divestment From Fossil Fuels (excerpt): 350

"Commitments highlight need for governments to increase ambition
on climate action.

WASHINGTON - Today, 47 faith institutions announce their divestment from fossil fuels, making the largest-ever joint announcement of divestment among religious leaders. These include Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish institutions from 21 countries.

Participating institutions include the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union, American Jewish World Service, and Anglican and Methodist churches across the United Kingdom. The full list of participating institutions is here.

The announcement coincides with the fifth anniversary of the Paris agreement on climate change. Faith leaders’ action puts pressure on government leaders, and their commitment to clean energy stands in stark contrast with many governments’ failure to deliver ambitious energy strategies. "

Go to complete 350.0rg article

divestment, 350, fossil fuel industry, Paris Agreement, faith institutions, jail climate criminals

Sunday, 15 November 2020

Politicians Try to Rally Support for Coal Despite Economics and Biden Presidential Win (excerpt): DeSmog

Sen. Mitt Romney

"The election results are a stark reminder of just how divided the country remains on many issues. However, in the days since the results were announced November 7, two senators from both parties are finding common ground in a familiar space: opposition to the Green New Deal and support for a dying coal industry.

Both Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) immediately took to CNN and Fox News in the days after the election was called to try and rally support for the fossil fuel industry in the wake of Joe Biden's election as president — a success which brings with it the promise of strong climate action.

But their comments also come on the heels of yet another coal plant closure in the U.S. and as the world's largest coal producer, Peabody Energy, warns of going bankrupt for the second time in five years.

Romney told CNN on November 8 that “I want to make sure that we conservatives keep on fighting to make sure we don't have a Green New Deal, we don't get rid of gas and coal.”

Pic from this blog

Meanwhile, Manchin went on Fox News on November 9 to alsocriticize the Green New Deal, saying, “That’s not who we are as a Democratic Party.”

“We’re going to use fossil in its cleanest fashion,” he added. Manchin's unwavering support for the coal industry is well documented and unsurprising as he ran a coal company prior to being elected to the Senate.

Manchin in his comments also echoed Romney’s call to not get rid of gas and coal, telling Fox News, “You have to have energy independence in this country. You can’t eliminate certain things.”

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) says who he voted for is “in the rearview mirror.”

Now “I want to make sure that we conservatives keep on fighting to make sure we don't have a Green New Deal, we don't get rid of gas and coal and oil, that we don't have a Medicare For All plan …” pic.twitter.com/6DmUivyzs3
— The Recount (@therecount) November 8, 2020"

Read complete Politicians Try to Rally Support for Coal Despite Economics and Biden Presidential Win

in DeSmog by Justin Mikulka • Thursday, November 12, 2020. Read time: 10 mins

Saturday, 14 November 2020

What is the Climate 21 Project?

The Climate 21 Project taps the expertise of more than 150 experts with high-level government experience, including nine former cabinet appointees, to deliver actionable advice for a rapid-start, whole-of-government climate response coordinated by the White House and accountable to the President.

The memos below contain the Climate 21 Project’s recommendations for 11 White House offices, federal departments, and federal agencies, as well as cross-cutting recommendations on personnel and hiring.

Importantly, the Climate 21 Project is not offering a policy agenda. Rather, the memos below contain

recommendations that can help the President hit the ground running

and build the capacity of his administration to tackle the climate crisis quickly with the existing tools at hand.

The recommendations are focused in scope on areas where the contributors have the most expertise. An all-of-government mobilization on climate change will require important work by additional federal departments and agencies that were not examined by the Climate 21 Project.

Go to https://climate21.org/

"A team of former Obama administration officials and experts have created a 300-page blueprint laying out a holistic approach to the climate while avoiding some of the pitfalls that hampered President Barack Obama, who shared some of the same goals but was unable to enact all of them. Dubbed the Climate 21 Project, it took a year and a half to develop and was delivered recently to Biden’s transition team. The document outlines how the incoming administration could restructure aspects of the government to move faster on global warming." Washington Post

Friday, 13 November 2020

The 40 Things Biden Should Do First on Climate Change (excerpt): Bloomberg Green

Randolph Bell, Director for Global Energy Security, Atlantic Council

Take care of fugitive methane emissions.

“Failing to fully address methane leakage is increasingly a risk for the climate and for the U.S. economy. Methane makes up at least 10 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions—recent analysis suggests far more—and is at least 25% more potent at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. With natural gas projected to play an important role in the global energy system even under aggressive decarbonization scenarios by providing low-carbon power in the developing world and feedstock for hydrogen production (with carbon capture and storage), addressing methane is crucial for meeting climate goals.”

“The U.S.’s methane problem has the attention of major oil & gas producers, who decried the Trump Administration’s August reversal of an Obama-era rule on methane. Engie’s decision last month, under pressure from the French government, to delay its $7 billion deal with U.S. LNG company NextDecade because of U.S. methane emissions underscores the risks to the U.S. economy.”

“President-elect Biden can immediately direct the EPA to initiate a new rulemaking process to ensure that industry monitors and addresses leaks in new equipment, as Obama’s rule did. Biden can also be more ambitious and address leaks in older equipment, an effort that was not completed under Obama.” —As told to Akshat Rathi

Go to complete Bloomberg Green story

Wednesday, 11 November 2020

A record hurricane season (excerpt): New York Times

Satellite image of the Atlantic on November 10th, 2020.

Image: NOAA

"Subtropical Storm Theta, which formed in the open waters of the Atlantic this week, became the 29th named storm of this year’s hurricane season, surpassing the total count from 2005. Scientists can’t say for sure whether global warming is causing more hurricanes, but they are confident that it’s changing the way storms behave. Here’s how.

Higher winds. There’s a solid scientific consensus that hurricanes are becoming more powerful. Hurricanes are complex, but one of the key factors that determines how strong a given storm ultimately becomes is ocean surface temperature, because warmer water provides more of the energy that fuels storms.

More rain. Warming also increases the amount of water vapor that the atmosphere can hold. In fact, every degree Celsius of warming allows the air to hold about 7 percent more water. That means we can expect future storms to unleash larger amounts of rainfall.

Slower storms. Researchers do not yet know why storms are moving more slowly, but they are. Slower, wetter storms worsen flooding.

Wider-ranging storms. Because warmer water helps fuel hurricanes, climate change is enlarging the zone where hurricanes can form. That could mean more storms making landfall in higher latitudes, like in the United States or Japan.

More volatility. As the climate warms, researchers also say they expect storms to intensify more rapidly. Researchers are still unsure why it’s happening, but the trend appears to be clear."

Go to New York Times