A short post this time, but Derby Climate Coalition recently took part in a demonstration against INEOS in Chesterfield, showing opposition to fracking by the company.
At a meeting, INEOS are reported to have said that they “will choose and pay for the company who will monitor them”. The audience is reported to have been very skeptical about this.
On Saturday the 7th of May, protesters met on Beeston High Street just outside Nottingham. There was a lively protest attracting much public attention about how the Conservatives have undone actions to limit climate change since they were elected a year ago.
In 2008, the Climate Change Act committed the UK to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050. Recognising the crisis faced and the need for urgent action, all major parties supported it. But since the current government took office on 8 May 2015, there have been a series of major policy reversals taking us backwards on climate action.
It was saddening to see the closure of Derby City Council’s Climate Change Unit on the first of April.
In 2006 the Derby Campaign against Climate Change raised climate change with Derby City Council, which prompted the then leader, Chris Williamson, to lead the development of a cross-party climate change strategy. This resulted in the adoption of the agreement to cut the Council’s own greenhouse gas emissions by 25% over five years and to address the issue across our city. All this was backed up by the setting up of the Council’s Climate Change and Energy Management Unit (CCEMU).
Continue reading Closure of Council’s Climate Change and Energy Management Unit
February 2016 global surface temperature anomalies. Photograph: NASA GISS
This week saw a lot of bad news.
One headline read “Current record-shattering temperatures are shocking even to climate scientists”. February 2016 was likely the hottest month in thousands (yes thousands) of years, as we approach the 2°C danger limit. “Stunning,” “wow,” “shocker,” “bombshell,” “astronomical,” “insane,”“unprecedented”– these are some of the words climate scientists have used to describe the record-shattering global surface temperatures in February 2016. For more on this read the Guardian report and the Observer had this follow-up item: February was the warmest month in recorded history, climate experts say
Or for a change, lets look at the reports on February’s record heat in the Daily Mail
The Chancellor said he would “put the next generation first” in Budget 2016, yet failed to mention climate change or the Paris Agreement to tackle global warming. In effect it was a Climate-wrecking’ Budget after £1bn tax breaks for oil and gas industry. Continue reading Osborne delivers climate-wrecking budget
We think this article from Tuesday’s Independent is rather fine:
As flooded homes painfully dry out, we should reflect and wake up to the broader truth, based not on computer predictions but the evidence in front of us, that we are entering a new climatic age.
Public perception of a changing world is sometimes slow to materialise, unless it is jolted by exceptionally violent events. Once the first atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in August 1945 there was no doubt that humanity was in a different place; and similarly, the fall of New York’s twin towers in September 2001 unmistakably signalled a new world order. Continue reading Sceptical about climate change? Just consider December’s weather
We are putting the following question to the full meeting of the Council on 6 pm, 25 November 2015.
Considering that 80% of all known fossil fuels must stay in the ground to avoid warming by more than 2 degrees as well as the need to ensure Pension funds are not left in these potentially stranded assets, will the Council recommend that the Derbyshire County Council Pension Fund
Continue reading Question to Derby City Council about pension fund investments in Fossil Fuels
On Thursday November the 5th John Selwyn Gummer – now Lord Deben – addressed a meeting of more than 100 people at Derby Cathedral. An outspoken voice on climate change, Lord Deben chairs the Independent Committee on Climate Change and will be representing the UK at the Paris 2015 conference.
Continue reading Chair of Independent Committee on Climate Change speaks in Derby
On the 29th of November there will be marches, throughout the world, around the UN climate talks in Paris. Derby Climate Coalition is supporting the London march. Our coach leaves Belper at 8.30 am and Derby Full Street at 9.00 am. It is expected that we will sell most tickets at £7.50 but if you can afford it please buy the full price ones and there area few £1 tickets.
Details are subject to fine tuning and further information will be sent out to those who register. Please register here: https://nov29derbyandbelpercoach.eventbrite.co.uk
Speak Up For Climate Mass Lobby of Parliament
Organised by The Climate Coalition. At Westminster on 17 June.
Join thousands of people as they descend on Westminster for a day of action on climate change. Celebrate all the things you love that could be affected by climate change, hear from some fantastic speakers – and be part of the UK’s biggest ever climate change lobby.
We are trying to book a coach from Derby. Contact us as soon as possible if you are interested.
