Urgent Action Needed

Environment Secretary Hilary Benn

UK research partnership responds to the urgent need for environmental action

19th June 2008

Urgent action is needed from the research community, government and the public to respond to inevitable environmental change here in the UK and internationally. This is the message at the launch of the UK’s £1 billion Living With Environmental Change programme in London today.

The launch comes just three weeks before world-leaders meet at the G8 summit in Toyako, Japan where ‘environment and climate change’ is billed as the main theme.

Living with Environmental Change (LWEC) is an unprecedented partnership of 17 research and policy-making organisations working together to find ways to cope with the environmental changes that are already starting to affect people’s wellbeing and livelihoods. The programme will address environmental change in the short-term and at regional level as well as the longer term global changes. A key objective is to provide the evidence-base that policy-makers and people need to make timely decisions that will enable us to prepare for the predicted changes and to manage the economic impacts.

Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP, said:  “"The UK is on track to meet and go well beyond its Kyoto commitments, but as a country we must do much more. That is why we've introduced the Climate Change Bill in Parliament which will set a target to cut carbon dioxide emissions by at least 60 per cent by 2050, and are looking at whether that target should be stronger still.”

"LWEC will meet many of the needs identified by the Stern Review, the United Nations' Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, and the recent reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The programme will also help us to implement the UK strategy for sustainable development."

Forecasts show that sea levels will rise, that low-lying areas like London will be more susceptible to flooding, and that the UK and other countries are likely to experience more frequent and intense storms and heat-waves. These changes will put increasing pressure on our natural resources.

The LWEC programme will transform how researchers, government and the public interact to tackle the key environmental challenges: climate change; loss of biodiversity; the availability of sustainable water and food supplies; preparing for and managing extreme events; protecting people, animals and plants from disease; and alleviating poverty in developing countries. The programme is an acknowledgement from researchers and policy-makers that climate change is only one part of a much bigger challenge: global environmental change caused by rapid economic and population growth.

LWEC will make a significant contribution to strengthening the knowledge and understanding we need to develop resilient ecosystems that ensure a sustainable supply of food and water is available throughout the world. 

Work on the programme is already underway in China, Sub-Saharan Africa, India and the Amazon basin. This component of LWEC is known as the Ecosystems Services for Poverty Alleviation programme, and is aimed at designing research programmes to inform the management of ecosystems in developing countries. Researchers and policy-makers met in Cape Town on 17 June to discuss initial assessment reports from these regions and plan the way forward.

The public will play an important part by providing information to the LWEC partners, who intend to engage with people about the changes we all face. This will help LWEC identify the research priorities and decide the best way to channel the research into effective policies that will enable people to make choices about their future.

The LWEC Partners Board meets on Friday to discuss specific priorities for its national and international programme of research. This will be a ‘living’ research programme that will change and adapt as needs and priorities are identified throughout the life of the Living With Environmental Change programme.

The larger part of LWEC will be built by the partners realigning relevant existing and planned research programmes, actively directing them to meet the LWEC aims and objectives. Many new activities will also be designed and funded, using resources from the last government spending review.

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Carbon Capture: is the UK ready?

22nd May 2008

The government must act to ensure that no new coal-fired power stations are built in the UK until carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology has been proven to work on a large scale and can be installed from the outset, a new report by WWF warned today. CCS is a process for trapping carbon dioxide (CO2) and transporting it to underground geological sinks for storage. CO2 is the principal contributor to climate change, which poses potentially devastating threats to people, wildlife and habitats across the world.
CCS is being heralded by government and the power sector as the solution to the high levels of emissions these new coal-fired power stations would create. However, CCS technology has yet to be demonstrated on a large scale power plant anywhere in the world. As a result, new coal plants are currently only proposed to be 'capture ready' at the stage of construction. The stated intention is to fit CCS technology at a later date, once its financial and technical feasibility has been established.
WWF-UK commissioned Edinburgh University's Scottish Centre for Carbon Storage to explore what the concept of 'capture readiness' means and what actions are needed to guarantee that all 'capture ready' power stations will be fitted with full-scale, working CCS within a reasonable timeframe. WWF has summarised and assessed these findings in a new report, Evading Capture.
"Currently, claims of CCS readiness do little more than refer to the need for power plants to leave space on the site for CCS equipment to be retrofitted in the future," said Keith Allott, head of WWF-UK's climate change programme. "There's no deadline for conversion to full scale CCS, let alone any guarantee that this would then be met. Reliance on an as yet unproven technology, however promising it may be, is a risky business – the future of the planet's climate cannot rely upon good intentions.
"To avoid dangerous climate change, there needs to be a rapid decarbonisation of the power sector and a radical shift in the way in which the UK and indeed the world sources its energy," added Keith Allott. "Renewables and greater energy efficiency should form the bulk of that shift, but fossil fuels using proven and strongly legislated CCS could also play a role."
At present the power sector is responsible for an estimated 37% of global emissions. In 2007, it was responsible for one third of the UK's total emissions – 180 million tonnes of CO2.
WWF is calling for the introduction of an emissions standard similar to that already in force in California, which will set legal limits on the amount of CO2 that new and replacement power stations can emit.
"It is time for industrialised countries to reduce our own carbon emissions and demonstrate the technology and policies at home that will pave the way to a truly sustainable, low-carbon economy," said Keith Allott. "Without an emissions standard to stop new unabated coal, we simply won't be able to meet the emissions targets currently proposed by the UK government's Climate Change Bill."
Today WWF, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds also issued a joint statement on the threat of new unabated coal stations. The four groups call on the Government to prioritise renewable energy and energy efficiency, to introduce a Californian-style emission standard for new power plants and to ensure that the UK's programme to demonstrate CCS technology is well-focused and is not used to legitimise a new generation of much larger "capture ready" coal stations.

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Transition Nation

Bike to the future

22ndt May 2008

As the price of a barrel of oil reached a new high of $133 a barrel on Wednesday, Britain is waking up to the reality of life with Peak Oil.

Oil investor T Boone Pickens forecast that prices would reach $150 this year. Last week, prices were supported by Goldman Sachs forecasting that oil would reach $141 a barrel later this year. Meanwhile, oil for delivery in 2016 was approaching $140 - suggesting that this is the price firms expect to be paying in eight years' time.

The Government's official figures show that traffic volumes are down 2% since the start of the year, and 27% of motorists are thinking about cutting back on journeys, as the price of fuel hits consumers in the pocket.

The rising price of oil is building huge inflationary pressures in the economy, as the price of nearly all goods is linked to the the cost of transportation. In particular, food production is closely affected by fuel prices, due to the cost of oil-based fertilisers, and the supermarket distribution network. Workers are demanding increases in fuel allowances or basic pay to make up for their increased travel costs. These inflationary factors will make it impossible for the Bank of England to make further interest rate cuts, leading to the risk of a severe recession.

The weak US dollar has also been strongly linked with surging oil prices, as investors look to buy into commodities as a safe haven.

The Opec producers' cartel has said that it will not meet until its scheduled gathering in September to discuss increasing oil output - despite US calls for it to act to cool prices.

This was "further weighing on supply concerns and adding to upward price impetus" said Bank of Ireland analyst Paul Harris.

Opec president Chakib Khelil said earlier this week that speculators were responsible for the price increases, not traditional supply and demand.

The transition to a post-oil economy has started, driven not by concern over the role of transport in global warming, but due to the price of oil. There is a boom in people again starting to grow their own food, and the interest in local food will be boosted as imported food becomes more expensive.

The transition will not be easy, as we have become addicted to our cars, and to imported goods, but the return to a locally based economy will reap huge benefits to the environment and community life.

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Drifting Apart: Why Government Housing Policy is Failing

21st May 2008

A return to well designed high density living, in rural as well as urban areas, can build sustainable communities and secure environmental objectives. This is the conclusion of research being published by CPRE today.

"The Proximity Principle: why we are living too far apart", suggests that proximity encourages community interaction, makes public transport, local services and environmental initiatives more viable, and drives creativity – a key component of a successful economy.

Marina Pacheco Head of Planning at CPRE said:

‘Current housing policy is causing settlements to spread out wider, and people are now living further away from each other than at any point since the birth of modern cities. The creation of ten new eco-towns, the centrepiece of Gordon Brown’s housing plans, will only worsen this drift, and will weaken the social fabric of existing towns.’

Becky Willis, author of this report commented:

‘Despite the advantages of proximity, Gordon Brown’s housing policy is causing greater dispersal, by promoting new ‘eco-towns’ outside existing settlements and refusing to provide incentives for development within existing towns and villages. This report suggests that housing policy should focus on supporting existing communities.’

Professor Anne Power, Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion, LSE, said:

‘This report breaks new ground in thinking about density and proximity in rural and small-scale communities. It reinforces the urgency of compact development where people, services and amenities are all located close together so that people can live more sustainably in a more socially integrated way.’

Commenting on the report Jon Reeds, of Brownfield Briefing, said:

‘Living in well-designed, compact settlements has enormous benefits for community and climate. This report is a timely reminder for an overcrowded island addicted to urban sprawl.’

The Proximity Principle

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A Disaster for Wildlife

21st May 2008 A package of reforms to the Common Agricultural Policy announced by the EU today represents ‘a disaster for the UK’s wildlife’ says the Woodland Trust, whose worst fears have been realised. The reforms do not include an adequate replacement for set-aside, which is now to be abolished. Originally introduced to limit over-production, set-aside had the additional and critical benefit of providing invaluable habitats for wildlife across the whole landscape. The Woodland Trust had previously called for set-aside to be replaced with requirements for all farmers to provide some wildlife habitat on their farms in order to qualify for the basic Single Farm Payment. Instead, the EU is diverting more money into agri-environment schemes, which are voluntary and won’t provide the same landscape-wide wildlife benefits. “The Trust supports the abolition of set-aside in theory, but our worst fears have been realised because nothing has been put in place to ensure its benefits to biodiversity are retained or replaced,” said Fran Hitchinson, Trust conservation policy officer. “It’s a real kick in the teeth for wildlife and the landscape so many species depend on.” “This is potentially a disaster for the UK’s wildlife. Money is being diverted into agri-environment schemes, partly to fund projects to help combat climate change. But one of the best things we can do to help species survive and adapt in the face of a changing climate is to provide habitat across whole landscapes, which is exactly what set-aside achieved.” In the longer term, the Trust is calling for radical changes to agricultural policy so that farmers are rewarded for managing their land positively with the environment and biodiversity in mind, rather than the current outdated system which pays subsidies in return for simply complying with legal requirements. Battle looms over CAP - Telegraph 21/5/08

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M&S Wins Gold

14th May 2008

Marks & Spencer has received a prestigious international award – the World Environment Center's Gold Medal for International Corporate Achievement in Sustainable Development – for its sustainability initiative, called Plan A. Plan A is a 100-point, five-year scheme that aims to make the company carbon neutral (contribute zero CO2 emissions to the atmosphere), send no waste to landfill, set new standards in ethical trading and help employees and customers live a healthier lifestyle.

WWF-UK is supporting Plan A by helping Marks & Spencer increase the sourcing of sustainable raw materials from its agricultural supply chain. The company is helping to fund WWF conservation projects in Borneo and the north-east Atlantic.

David Nussbaum, chief executive of WWF-UK, was invited to present the award in recognition of this collaboration. He said: "Marks & Spencer's Plan A leads the field in its engagement of sustainability issues with pioneering breadth and depth. The company steps outside of the traditional narrow focus of retailers and instead looks at the full range of impacts in production and supply."

The World Environment Center is a non-profit organisation that encourages companies to act sustainably.

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WWF reduces human-wildlife conflicts

Tuesday 13 May 2008

Better planning by governments could save lives and prevent millions of dollars in crop and income losses among the rural poor, according to a new WWF study on the conflict between humans and wild elephants in Africa and Asia.

Most conflict occurs when elephants stray into human settlements in search of food. They often damage crops and may injure or kill people, which can lead to the retaliatory killing of elephants.
The report, Common Ground, found the most serious conflict and harm to both human communities and elephants resulted from unplanned and unregulated development. In Namibia, elephant-related conflict costs communal farmers around US$1 million a year, while in some Nepalese communities it can result in the loss of up to a quarter of the household incomes of poor farming families.
"The report shows we can go from lose-lose to win-win for both humans and wildlife, with the clearest gains coming from the implementation of effective land-use planning aimed at reducing the potential for conflict," said Dr Susan Lieberman, WWF International's Species Programme Director.
For instance, the report recommends that agricultural developments are established as far away from wildlife habitat as possible.
In Namibia, levels of crop damage were closely related to the distance between farms and wildlife areas, with farms immediately adjacent to unfenced wildlife habitat being "a drain on the national economy". Conflict between humans and wildlife in just one region of Namibia was estimated as causing annual losses of US$700,000 to the national economy.
The report also found that an effective way to manage conflict between humans and wildlife was to give rights to a percentage of income generated from wildlife, primarily through tourism, to local communities – thus enabling such communities to benefit from neighbouring wildlife. Economic analysis in Namibia demonstrated that these communities were able to generate more income from wildlife than they suffered from economic losses caused by wildlife. In Nepal, communities that received benefits from wildlife and wildlife habitat showed a much greater tolerance towards elephants than communities that received no benefits.
Other important measures highlighted in the report that help reduce conflict include planting crops that are less appealing to elephants, or those that actively deter elephants.
"Local communities can benefit economically and coexist peacefully with wildlife," said Dr Lieberman. "What we demonstrate here is that proper planning to meet the needs of wildlife and the needs of communities is the key to reducing deaths, injuries and economic losses from human-wildlife conflict."

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Carbon Crisis

Mauna Loa observatory in Hawaii

13th May 2008

Scientists at the Mauna Loa observatory in Hawaii report that Carbon Dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere now stand at 387 parts per million (ppm). Most alarmingly the rate of increase in concentration appears to be accelerating, suggesting not only that measures to cut emissions are failing, but that natural carbon sinks like forests and oceans are losing their capacity to absorb carbon.

The annual mean growth rate for 2007 was 2.14ppm – the fourth year in the past six to see an annual rise greater than 2ppm. From 1970 to 2000, the concentration rose by about 1.5ppm each year, but since 2000 the annual rise has leapt to an average 2.1ppm.

Martin Parry, co-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's working group on impacts, comments: "Despite all the talk, the situation is getting worse. Levels of greenhouse gases continue to rise in the atmosphere and the rate of that rise is accelerating. We are already seeing the impacts of climate change and the scale of those impacts will also accelerate, until we decide to do something about it."

It should be noted that many scientists put the CO2 figure in pppm at the much higher figure of 430 ppm. The basis for the higher figure is that they are quoting a different scale that includes the other greenhouse gases, including the naturally occurring methane, and artificial gases like chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) to give a combined figure for carbon dioxide equivalence, which is abbreviated as CO2eq. Some leading scientists including James Hansen of Nasa, believe that the concentration needs to reduced to 350 ppm, while international treaties are currently aiming only to reduce the rate of increase.

Reacting to the release of new figures showing that the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is at its highest level for at least 650,000 years, head of Greenpeace's climate change campaign Robin Oakley said:

"We're now witnessing a key moment in the climate change story and it's not good news. The last time the atmosphere was this choked with CO2 humans were yet to evolve as a species. To even consider building new runways and coal-fired power stations at this juncture in history is an unpardonable folly, but Gordon Brown seems determined to stumble forward regardless with his ill-conceived plans in the face of the science and widespread public opposition."

In the worst case scenario, instead of a gradual warming of the climate, there is a series of positive feedbacks, such as frozen methane hydrates warming and release tonnes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, leading to runaway global warming that renders Earth uninhabitable. A growing proportion of scientists consider this nightmare a possibility.

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Thousands die in China quake

13th May 2008

More than 8,500 people in Sichuan province in China are feared to have died in the earthquake that struck the area on Monday, with 10,000 feared injured. Some 900 students were buried in a secondary school in the city of Dujiangyan, in Beichuan county, and it is feared the death toll will rise as news comes in from more remote areas. The 7.5-magnitude quake struck 57 miles north-west of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan.

Dale Rutstein of Unicef China, said Sichuan was one of the poorest provinces in China, which would add to the scale of the disaster:

"There are a lot of people living in marginal areas that are difficult to get to and a lot of the buildings in those areas are substandard and could collapse very quickly," he said.

A chemical plant collapsed in Shifang city, to the south-east of the epicentre, burying hundreds of people and sending more than 80 tonnes of toxic liquid ammonia leaking from the site.

Wyndham Jamesof Save the Children said the timing of the earthquake would contribute to higher fatalities:

"The earthquake was about 2.30pm and is a time when most children are in school. There are also other institutions like orphanages and hospitals that could be affected."

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who flew to Chengdu immediately, said China needed "calm, confidence, courage and strong leadership. We will definitely overcome this major disaster," he promised.

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Food Crisis Continues

UN food agency faces $750 million shortfall as it bids to feed world's hungry

WFP food convoy

20th April 2008

The recent drastic rise in food prices means the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) now needs more than $750 million to meet its commitment to feed the world's 73 million hungry people this year.

In late February, WFP announced that it required an additional $500 million, on top of its original appeal for this year of $2.9 billion, to carry out its efforts, but surging food prices have led WFP to revise that figure upwards to $756 million.

The cost of rice in Thailand, for example, swelled from $460 per ton on 3 March to $780 five weeks later.

WFP warned that prices could rise even higher. “We are not looking at a picture anymore, we are watching a movie,” the agency's Christiane Berthiaume told reporters in Geneva today. To date, $900 million has been received towards WFP's original appeal.

In a related development, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has accepted an invitation from Jacques Diouf, Director-General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to attend a summit on the topic of food security in Rome.

He confirmed his attendance today at the start of the 30th FAO Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, noting that the UN agency has a crucial role to play in tackling the issue.

The three-day event, which will start on 3 June at FAO Headquarters, “must take place in a rational manner, without being clouded by emotions or left or right-wing ideologies,” the President said. “We need scientific foundations so that people can discuss solutions to the crisis to offer to the world in years ahead.”

Dr. Diouf said the upcoming summit will be a “golden opportunity to adopt policies, strategies and programmes that will enable us to face the major challenges currently confronting us which, aside from the price surges, include the question of agricultural production, especially in poor countries.”

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has warned that the food shortages could threaten global growth and security. Opening a U.N. trade and development conference in Ghana on Sunday, Ban pledged to tackle the price rises, which threaten to increase hunger and poverty and have already sparked food riots in Asia and Africa.

"I will immediately establish a high-powered task force comprised of eminent experts and leading authorities to address this issue....The problem of global food prices could mean seven lost years ... for the Millennium Development Goals," he said. "We risk being set back to square one."

He noted that several countries had moved to try to offset the food squeeze by barring exports of rice and wheat, or introducing incentives for easier imports of foodstuffs. "This threatens to distort international trade and exacerbate shortages .... If not handled properly, this crisis could result in a cascade of others ... and become a multidimensional problem affecting economic growth, social progress and even political security around the world."

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Heritage Coastline Under Threat

19th April 2008

Portland is a unique island linked by a causeway to the Dorset mainland. To most people, Dorset conjures up images of unspoiled tranquillity. Its 'Jurassic Coast' is world-famous as one of the most beautiful parts of England. Portland is the home of Portland stone, used in some of the most eminent buildings in the country. What is perhaps less well-known is the terrible cost in lives and in environmental damage due to stone extraction on Portland. These days Portland stone employs few people; the remaining quarrying possibilities are limited. For many years, the most prominent quarry firm, Hanson's, seem to have had a "gentleman's agreement" not to exercise old mineral rights for further quarrying.

Recently however, Hanson's sold quarrying permissions to another company, Stone Firms Ltd. Stone Firms has declared its intention to quarry an area called 'the coastal strip', from Southwell Village to Portland Bill. This is an area of outstanding natural beauty, viewed by many thousands of visitors to the Bill, each year. Everybody who knows Portland is aghast at the thought that this precious coastline should be destroyed.
There is no argument that quarrying would devastate the entire area, affecting unique habitats, rare archaeology and the future of local tourism. However many people still believe that it enjoys protected status and "quarrying just won't happen."
Permission to quarry this land was granted in 1951. Back then, there was a great need for stone for post-war repairs. Controls were minimal and little (or no) thought was given to conservation. That 1951 legislation, from a different time, a different world, still applies today. As the 1951 permission is existing, Stone Firms has absolutely no obligation to notify the public before they start.  In fact, Stone Firms has told Dorset County Council that it intends starting quarrying in May 2008.

To visit the site dedicated to protecting the threatened coastline: Save the Portland Coastal Strip

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Vote Green, Get Green

Green Principal Speaker slams Cameron's 'deceptive' message and tells voters: 'vote Green, get Green'

18th April 2008

Green Party Principal Speaker Caroline Lucas MEP has responded angrily to Thursday's comments by David Cameron, labelling them as "misleading" and "deceptive" after the Tory leader told voters to 'vote blue, go green' during his local election campaign visit to Dewsbury, Yorkshire, pointing out that the environmental policies that Mr. Cameron is taking credit for in Kirklees are in fact Green Party actions.

Green Party councillors on Kirklees council (which serves Dewsbury) have delivered clean, renewable energy and energy efficiency initiatives to local residents, subsequently creating sustainable local jobs, making potential savings of hundreds of pounds for homeowners on their fuel bills and cut Kirklees' carbon emissions substantially.

Thanks to the political will and dedication of Kirklees Green councillors, this region alone now produces 5% of the UK's total solar energy output. In addition, the Greens recently secured a further £10 million worth of budgetary funding for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in the Kirklees area.

Dr Lucas MEP said:

"It's highly deceptive for David Cameron to come to Kirklees and start cheerleading the Conservative record on the environment and housing.

"Kirklees is often recognised as one of most green councils in the country, but this certainly isn't down to the Tories. For 12 years, the Greens in Kirklees have been blazing a trail on sustainable housing and renewable energy that has saved the area energy, money and carbon emissions.

"Throughout the country, and at every level of Government - from local councils to the European Union - Conservatives have consistently worked to undermine and oppose environmental negotiations and legislation. 'Vote blue go green' is a grossly misleading claim.

"More and more people are waking up to the fact that if you want genuinely Green policies, you need to vote for Green candidates. Because it's clear what people get when they choose to vote Green - local representatives who work hard to turn radical and progressive ideas into a reality, and who bring a truly constructive attitude to local politics.

"Sorry Mr Cameron, but "vote Green, get Green'."

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Seal Slaughter

18th April 2008

In a desperate last ditch effort to salvage the dying sealing industry, Newfoundland Premier Danny Williams and Nunavut Premier Paul Okalik are calling for a ban on the use of the hak-a-pik – the spiked club that the sealers use to bash in the skulls of baby seals.

For years these two have argued that the hak-a-pik was a humane weapon for killing seals. Now they are saying that the vicious and medieval looking weapon is a symbol of “bloody carnage” that has to go.

Williams has said many times that the hak-a-pik is no longer used and that the seals are shot not clubbed, a statement contradicted with every image that gets sent back from the baby killing fields. The hak-a-pik is “a real image problem for us,” said Okalik.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is opposed to the killing of seals no matter what weapon is used.

“We are opposed to the clubbing, shooting, and skinning alive of baby seals period,” said Captain Paul Watson.  “The rifle is even more cruel than the hak-a-pik and the Sea Shepherd crew observed wounded seal gut shot seals wallowing in their own blood on the ice, screaming pathetically in agony as the sealers laughed like sadistic revellers at a baby bashing party.”

This move by Williams and Okalik is opposed by Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn who is a fan of the traditional hak-a-pik. A few years ago Williams and Okalik were saying the hak-a-pik was humane now they say it’s a cruel instrument.

“What they are attempting to do is to sanitize the slaughter in the belief that the Europeans will accept Canada’s annual ritual of blood and gore on the ice,” said Captain Watson.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is confident that the European Parliament will reject the apologists of cruelty and death and will pass the measure to ban all seal products into Europe.

“When they do that,” said Watson, “Europe will have moved humanity up the ladder of evolution and civilization.”

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Carbon Count

17th April 2008

Just when it seemed that Britain's largest superstore was a green villain, Tesco's has redeemed itself with news that from next month the shop will be putting carbon labels on its own-brand products, to allow consumers to choose items which are less damaging to the environment. Initially the labels will go on potatoes, energy-efficient light bulbs, and orange juice, stating in grammes the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from production and distribution.

Chief executive Sir Terry Leahy said: "We will give the carbon content of the product and the category average.....It has not been simple, but we are there," he told Eco. He hopes that the labeling system will become a standard, and to eventually extend it to 70,000 products, allowing consumers to choose the greenest products, just as they can currently see salt, fat, and sugar content of food.

Tesco's has been working with The Carbon Trust to find an accurate method of labelling. Leahy promised "a revolution in green consumption", saying he wants to bring the environmental movement into the mass market. Tesco's corporate carbon footprint is about 4m tonnes a year, so any move to greater environmental awareness will have a big impact. Tesco's will still have a long way to go however to win over green campaigners who are critical of the supermarket's impact on small businesses and power over small food producers.

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Food waste collections are green and save money

31st March 2008

Two thirds of households recycle their food waste when councils provide a weekly collection, along with fortnightly residual waste collection, research has found.

The reasons householders do or don’t take part in food waste recycling are outlined in a Defra-funded study led by consultants Brook Lyndhurst.  The full report, discussed at a conference for local authorities today, will be published later this spring.

Working with the Resource Recovery Forum and Waste Watch, Brook Lyndhurst’s project Enhancing participation in kitchen waste collection schemes – household behaviour and motivations,highlights the real scope for environmental and economic benefits of separate weekly food waste collection services for householders.

It shows that there are complex factors shaping the enthusiasm and effectiveness of householders when it comes to food recycling.  These factors include the type of collection scheme in operation, householder age and socio-demographic profile and local authority communications strategy.

This research, funded by Defra’s Waste & Resources Evidence Programme (WREP)  highlights a number of key findings:

Environment Minister, Joan Ruddock, said:

“Food wastage is an increasingly important issue, on environmental, sustainability, climate change and equity grounds.  There is also the real loss to the economy of so much potential value.

“This research shows that much more can be done cost effectively to prevent food wastage and to recover value from what is thrown away.  Food waste recycling was targeted by our Waste Strategy, and current studies show how local authorities can make real advances.

“European and UK legislation to divert municipal biodegradable waste from landfill rightly imposes tough targets.  Food waste recycling has an important role to play in helping Britain meet its international obligations.

“The most important lesson to learn is that householders do want to play their part. Government needs to provide support and guidance, and current research is helping to inform the debate.”

Defra is also funding work by the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to trial household food waste collection systems.  WRAP is supporting 19 councils to conduct weekly food waste collection trials, to develop good practice guidance in the design and operation of food waste collection schemes.

These trials are testing last year’s research which indicated that councils should consider collecting food waste separately as:

Building on the findings of this research the trials have been designed to assess the costs and performance of food only collections in a UK context.  This has involved the provision of containers and liners, design and issue of communication materials to householders, and trying out different collection vehicles and crewing levels.  Extensive monitoring of the trials include participation monitoring, capture rate analysis and customer feedback.

Early results are encouraging and suggest that the schemes have been well received and are acceptable to householders.  Initial diversion estimates indicate that around 3kg of food waste per week is being collected from households taking part.  Participation rates so far are in the range 50 per cent to 80 per cent.  The final report on the trials is expected in early June.

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Timber Trade

Scandal Exposed

20th March 2008

Vietnam is operating as a centre for processing huge quantities of unlawfully-logged timber from across Indochina, threatening some of the last intact forests in the region, a major new report reveals.

Undercover investigations by the UK-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and Indonesian NGO Telapak have revealed how Vietnam’s booming economy and demand for cheap furniture in the West is driving rapid deforestation throughout the Mekong river region.

Field investigations in Vietnam and neighbouring Laos, including secret filming and undercover visits to furniture factories, have demonstrated that although some countries like Indonesia have cracked down on the illegal timber trade, criminal networks have now shifted their attention to looting the vanishing forests of Laos.

This illicit trade is in direct contravention of laws in Laos banning the export of logs and sawn timber and EIA/Telapak are calling for urgent international action.

Investigators visited numerous Vietnamese furniture factories and found the majority to be using logs from Laos. In the Vietnamese port of Vinh, they witnessed piles of huge logs from Laos awaiting sale.

At one border crossing on one occasion alone, 45 trucks laden with logs were filmed lining up to cross the Laos border into Vietnam.

The report estimates at least 500,000 cubic metres of logs are moved in this way every year.

Since the 1990s, Vietnam has taken steps to protect to conserve its remaining forests while at the same time, massively expanding its wooden furniture production.

Vietnam has an unenviable track record in using stolen timber. Past investigations have revealed it laundering illegal timber from both Cambodia and Indonesia

The plundering of Laos’ forests involves high-level corruption and bribery and it is not just Vietnam which is exploiting its neighbour; Thai and Singapore traders are also cashing in.

Posing as investors, EIA/Telapak investigators met one Thai businessman who bragged of paying bribes to senior Laos military officials to secure timber worth potentially half a billion dollars.

“The cost of such unfettered greed is borne by poor rural communities in Laos who are dependent on the forests for their traditional livelihoods,” said EIA's head of Forests Campaign, Julian Newman.

He said the local people gain virtually nothing from this trade, with corrupt Laos officials and businesses in Vietnam and Thailand, the profiteers.

The report concludes that to some extent the dynamic growth of Vietnam’s furniture industry is driven by the demand of end markets like Europe and the US.

“The ultimate responsibility for this dire state of affairs rests with the consumer markets with import wood products made from stolen timber,” said Julian.

“Until these states clean up their act and shut their markets to illegal wood products, the loss of precious tropical forests will continue unabated.”

EIA/Telapak are calling for: better enforcement by the timber-producing and processing countries and new laws banning the import of products and timber derived from illegal logging in the EU and US.

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Sqeaky Clean Greens

Green Party Principal Speakers, Sian Berry,

candidate for London Mayor, and Dr. Derek Wall

20th March 2008

Kirklees Green Party today launched a online film, showing how the Kirklees Green councilors are delivering reduced fuel costs, reduced carbon emissions, and improving resident's quality of life across the region.

Since first being elected onto the council in 1996, Kirklees Green Party have delivered clean, renewable energy and energy efficiency initiatives to local residents that potentially saves hundreds of pounds each on their fuel bills. Because of these initiatives, and with Kirklees Green Party switching council transport use to a pool of low emission cars, Kirklees council is recognised as one of the greenest in the country, with 5% of the UK's total solar energy produced in Kirklees alone.

In the film, Kirklees Cllr Andy Cooper highlights the Green Party policy of universally free wall cavity and loft insulation - a measure that traps heat in the home rather than letting it escape through the walls - saving home owners up to 30% off their fuel bills and a potential total of £4.5 million.

He also takes us on a tour of Primrose Hill, or 'Solar City', that has had 129 homes fitted with solar panels that generates, on average, 15% of the home's electricity and 60% of the home's hot water - energy that is carbon and cost free. The 'free at the point of purchase' loans for renewable energy installation is set to be massively expanded that will ensure cleaner, cheaper energy for the more Kirklees residents.

Green Party Councilor Andy Cooper, who led Kirklees council in establishing sustainable initiatives, said

"I'm proud of what we've been able to achieve in Kirklees. We've created jobs for the local are, we've helped protect the environment, we've made the council more efficient and reduced its costs, we've helped cut fuel bills for local people right the way across the borough, we've helped save millions of pounds.

"We've had a real impact on people's quality of life. If you want to see more of this, if you want to see more of this from your council, and from Kirklees, then vote Green on May 1st."

To view the film

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Nuclear Nonsense

20th March 2008

Environmentalists have reacted with scorn to Prime Minister Gordon Brown's statement on security issues, on the grounds that it gives insufficient weight to green issues.

Reacting to the speech at the launch of the government's new national security strategy, Greenpeace campaigner Louise Edge told Eco:

"It's obviously good news that Brown seems to be adopting a joined up approach to the real security issues facing the UK public. But he simply can't square his commitment to freeing the world from nuclear weapons with last year's decision to renew Trident. And he's living in cloud cuckoo land if he thinks building more nuclear power stations around the world will do anything other than increase the risk of more countries getting hold of the keys to build their own nuclear weapons."

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Whales Rescued

Controversial Russian oil pipeline defeated

Virgin guilty of "high altitude greenwash"

27th February 2008

Virgin Atlantic has been accused of an environmental con-trick after the airline prepared to fly a test plane between Heathrow and Amsterdam powered partly by a biofuel made from babassu nut and coconut oil.

Greenpeace claimed that production of this biofuel could lead to massive greenhouse gas emissions and that Virgin's support for a third runway at Heathrow airport betrayed the company's true attitude towards climate change.

Bosses at Virgin have been vocal supporters of a third runway at Heathrow, a proposal which is set to increase the airport's capacity from 480,000 flights per year to 702,000 by 2030. A report from the respected Tyndall centre for Climate Change Research demonstrates how the predicted increase in aviation emissions will single-handedly make it impossible for the UK to meet its responsibilities to tackle climate change.

One engine used in today's flight was partially powered by a biofuel made from a combination of babassu nut and coconut oil. Recent scientific studies have shown how the cultivation of biofuels can cause severe damage to the climate, due to "indirect effects" such as the displacement of traditional crops onto newly deforested land.

Reacting to the news, Greenpeace chief Scientist Dr. Doug Parr said: "Despite what Virgin want us to believe, today's flight is nothing short of high altitude greenwash. This is a company hell-bent on unrestrained airport expansion, starting with a third runway at Heathrow which would almost double the number of flights from one of the world's biggest airports.

Biofuels can often cause more damage to the environment than fossil fuels, and Virgin is using this flight to divert attention from an irresponsible, business as usual attitude to climate change."

Steve Ridgeway, the chief executive of Virgin Atlantic, claims that limiting growth at
Heathrow wouldn't prevent climate change. But research shows that if the UK is to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 - a proposal that Gordon Brown is now thought to support - then every other industry in Britain would
have to reduce its emissions to zero by that date. Even then, the target would still be missed.

So-called "first generation" biofuels - those that are based on existing food crops - have been comprehensively discredited as a solution to transport emissions. The Royal Society and the government's own Environmental Audit Committee have warned that the technology can seriously damage the climate, and both the French and British governments have recently announced reviews into the adoption of biofuel targets, citing mounting concerns over their environmental impact.

For example, the "indirect effects" of biofuel production include an increase in demand for palm oil, which is imported into the EU to be used in the food industry because homegrown rapeseed oil is increasingly being used in biofuels. Palm oil is heavily linked with deforestation in the carbon rich peat swamps of Indonesia, which creates massive greenhouse gas emissions.

Dr Parr continued: "The scientific evidence is now clear - using the finite amount of land we have to grow biofuels is bad for the world's poor, bad for biodiversity and
bad for the climate. Instead of looking for a magic green bullet, Virgin should focus on the real solution to this problem and call for a halt to relentless airport expansion."

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Blackout Britain

12th February 2008

Across Britain some councils are experimenting with switching off the streetlights at midnight in a bid to reduce Council Tax bills and meet their commitment to reduce global warming.

Buckinghamshire is carrying out one of the most radical trials of the new approach. More than 1,700 lights, which illuminate 25 miles of roads, will soon be switched off completely. The council claims the scheme will save £100,000 and nearly 600 tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year.

However some reservations have been expressed by the police, concerned about crime, and motoring organisations who have safety fears.

Derek Barnett, of the Police Superintendents' Association, said: "Good street lighting reduces crime, it makes the public feel safe and it reduces the risk of road traffic accidents.

"I would need to feel confident that the environmental savings were being balanced against the impact on local crime."

Motoring organisations have also warned that the changes could increase the number of road accidents.

Edmund King, the president of the AA, said: "There is concern that some local authorities appear to be doing this to save money, rather than to save the environment.

"In terms of road accidents, we have to be sure that this won't lead to more deaths and injuries on the roads, particularly for cyclists and pedestrians who are difficult to see at the best of times.

But Paul Bettison, chairman of the Local Government Association, which represents councils, denied suggestions that the blackouts could put lives at risk.

"Street lighting costs the council taxpayer hundreds of millions of pounds a year," he said.

"Councils want to provide value for money to local people and it is right that they look at ways of lighting the streets that are less expensive.

"The safety of the streets and local people must be at the heart of everything a council does."

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Welcome to the Anthropocene

11th February 2008

As the Winter that never was fades, and the early February sun brings out the Spring flowers, it is increasingly clear that Britain has already entered a new climatic phase that scientists are calling the Anthropene. A new climatic era has begun, the first ever to be shaped not by random natural cycles of Ice Ages or phases of solar activity, but inadvertently, by the actions of mankind. Global warming is no longer some science fiction theory for future generations to worry about. It is already with us. The danger is that having started the warming process, it will be impossible  to stop it, as positive feedback mechanisms kick in, and the thawing permafrost releases its hoard of methane. In the meantime, for a few brief years, we will bask in  winter temperatures that were unthinkable only a few decades ago. With our insatiable thirst for foreign holidays and cars, it seems increasingly unlikely that anything can be done about it, and that we risk ending up with a climate like that on Venus, and an uninhabitable planet.

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The World's First Green City

11th February 2008

Work has started on what is being claimed to be the world's first zero carbon, zero waste city, a car-free example for the rest of the world to follow. It is being built in Abu Dhabi, a rich Arab nation that has one of the biggest per capita carbon footpints. Critics suggest that the city is being built to distract from this fact, and that it will be a playground for the rich, rather than a practical reality.

Masdar City will cost $22bn (£11.3bn), take eight years to build and be home to 50,000 people and 1,500 businesses. The project is supported by global conservation charity, the World Wide Fund for Nature. The city will make use of traditional Gulf architecture to create low-energy buildings, with natural air conditioning from wind towers.

Water will be provided through a solar-powered desalination plant, and the city will need a quarter of the power required for a similar sized community, while its water needs will be 60% lower.

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Open Season

30th January 2008

The US government has opened up 3 million acres of pristine Alaskan wilderness for logging, mining and road-building. The Tongass National Forest is home to grizzly and black bears, wolves, eagles and wild salmon, and environmentalists are furious at this latest example of Bush's hostility to environmental issues, and pandering to vested interests in the oil and timber industries. The move reverses the "Roadless Rule" protection given to the area by President Clinton.

Robert Vandermark, manager of the Pew environment group's heritage forests campaign, said:

"In its final months, the Bush administration is attempting to give logging and mining industries the keys to the Tongass National Forest, the world's largest intact temperate rainforest. Wild areas like the Tongass contain watersheds that provide clean drinking water, wildlife habitat and outstanding outdoor recreation opportunities that should be kept safe for generations to come."

The US government still refuses to sign the Kyoto Treaty, and continues to undermine efforts by other nations to reduce emissions. On Monday President Bush announced a plan to spend $2 billion over the next three years for a new international fund to promote clean energy technologies and fight climate change. This compares to the $80 billion a year being spent on the war in Iraq.

On energy issues, Bush once again used the State of the Union address to call for the United States to cut back on its use of imported oil, which earlier this month hit a record $100.09 a barrel, by developing new sources of energy.

"To build a future of energy security, we must trust in the creative genius of American researchers and entrepreneurs and empower them to pioneer a new generation of clean energy technology. Our security, our prosperity, and our environment all require reducing our dependence on oil."

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Whaling Resumes

30th January 2008

Both the Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd protest groups have had to abandon their harassing of the Japanese whaling fleet after running out of fuel, after two weeks spent hindering the hunt for whales. Greenpeace estimates that its action saved up to 100 whales by preventing the factory ship from operating:

"Without the factory ship, the remaining hunter vessels have been unable to operate, bringing the entire whaling programme to a halt".

It estimated that the Japanese needed to catch about nine minke whales a day, and an endangered fin whale every other day, to meet its quota of 835 minkes and 50 fins by the time the hunt ends in mid-April.

Though commercial whaling was banned in 1986 Japan is permitted to conduct annual culls for what it describes as "cetacean research".

"There is now discussion amongst some Japanese people that this insignificant industry is not worth the international condemnation Japan is receiving," Sea Shepherd said.

An Australian coastguard ship is still tracking the fleet but will not attempt to frustrate the whalers. It was dispatched to collect evidence for a possible legal challenge to the annual slaughter.

Meanwhile in the UK, Green Principal Speaker Derek Wall today pledged his support for Martin Wyness and his 14 year-old Sophie, who were arrested when they refused to leave their anti-whaling protest inside the Embassy of Japan. Sophie and Martin have been charged with criminal trespass, have been fingerprinted, and had their DNA recorded.

And because the pair were arrested on foreign soil, their case is to be decided by the Attorney General. The court case is on 6th February at 10.00 am, at the City of Westminster Magistrates Court, 70 Horseferry Road, London. Sophie is to stand in an adult court and faces a maximum sentence of 6 months in prison.

Dr. Wall, who has campaigned against whaling for a number of years and personally supports the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd, said

"The slaughter of animals as beautiful and intelligent as whales is wrong. Whether it is Captain Paul Watson from Sea Shephard in the Pacific or Sophie Wyness arrested for demonstrating inside the Japanese Embassy with a simple banner saying 'Stop the Whaling', those who resist this extermination will have my support.

"In 1986, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) enacted a moratorium on all commercial whaling. Since then, three nations - Iceland, Norway, and Japan - have slaughtered over 25,000 whales under the guise of scientific research and for commercial purposes.

"I abhor this practice. The Green Party opposes all lethal or harmful uses and treatment of these animals. In particular, whaling is a premeditated, deliberate and unnecessary cause of animal suffering. It is not justified even if supposedly undertaken as 'scientific research' or 'subsistence hunting' rather than for commercial profit.

"The Green Party condemns those governments who seek, through the International Whaling Commission and otherwise, to continue whaling."

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Canon Can

Saturday 26th January 2008

Greenpeace is calling on the camera manufacturer Canon to apply pressure on the Japanese government to stop whaling. Canon make much of their protection of endangered species in their advertisements.

This is the statement Greenpeace are asking Canon's CEO, Mr. Fujio Mitarai (who is head of the Japanese Business Federation ), to sign: "Canon is committed to building a better world for future generations, and does not support the hunting of endangered or threatened species with anything other than a camera. Canon believes the lethal whaling research programme in the Southern Ocean should be ended, and replaced with a non-lethal research programme." Thanks to the direct action of the Greenpeace vessel Esperanza, whaling has been delayed by thirteen days.

Link to Greenpeace letter to Canon urging them to join the cause

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Cuba ends turtle hunt

Climate Change leaves

UK in hot water

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Greenwash

David Cameron's green credentials are under scrutiny, after it was revealed that he took no less than 29 flights in private planes and helicopters provided by wealthy businessmen last year, taking his total to more than 70 since he became party leader in 2005.

An aide to Mr Cameron said all his flights were "offset" through a company called Climate Care and added: "He tries to fly as little as possible." Mr. Cameron has made repeated attempts to portray the Conservative Party as the party of the environment.

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Melting Planet

Antarctica is losing billions of tons of ice and contributing to rising sea levels, according to a researcher Eric Rignot, writing about the phenomenon in the journal "Nature Geoscience".

He used satellite measurements to monitor the coastline and concludes that West Antarctica lost 132 billion tons of ice in 2006, compared to about 83 billion tons in 1996. The Antarctic Peninsula, which stretches toward South America, lost about 60 billion tons in 2006.

"In some regions the ice sheet is close to warm sources of water. ... The parts of Antarctica we are seeing change right now are closest to these heat sources," said Rignot.

These findings are in line with what is happening to the Greenland ice sheet, which melted at a record rate last year, and with studies of Arctic sea ice, which receded to its lowest level ever measured in 2007.

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Boris branches out

Bumbling Boris Johnson, Tory candidate to be mayor of London, has pledged to plant a tree in every street if elected. The £3 million cost would come from canceling publication of "The Londoner", the mayor's newsletter, which he described as pointless propaganda.

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Bulb Headache

Green campaigners have a headache on their hands after reports that low energy light-bulbs are causing migraines and even possibly triggering epileptic fits. The Migraine Action Association report that members have contacted them about the issue.

Concerns have already been raised by epilepsy charities about an increased risk of seizures from energy-saving bulbs.

Some bulbs use similar technology to fluorescent strip lights, and some users have complained that there can be a "flickering" effect. In September 2007, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said that a voluntary agreement with retailers would remove all conventional bulbs from the shops by December 2011; some are now pressing for conventional bulbs to remain on sale for those with health problems. However, the Lighting Association, which represents bulb manufacturers, said that the latest energy-saving bulbs did not produce a flicker.

A spokesman said: "A small number of cases have been reported by people who suffer from reactions to certain types of linear fluorescent lamps.

"These were almost certainly triggered by old technology."

To make matters worse, it has also been reported that some people are getting painful skin reactions. Health conditions which can involve some form of light sensitivity, include the auto-immune disease lupus, the genetic disorder Xeroderma Pigmentosum (XP), certain forms of eczema and dermatitis, photosensitivity, and porphyria.

Several groups including the British Association of Dermatologists called for exemptions to allow those affected to continue using traditional bulbs.

Concerns have also been raised about the small mercury content of the low energy bulbs, which might present a hazard if the bulb is broken indoors and the vapours accidentally inhaled, or if the bulbs go to landfill sites and leach mercury into the water table. The Environment Agency has called for more information to be made available.

Official advice states that if a low-energy bulb is smashed, the room needs to be vacated for at least 15 minutes. A vacuum cleaner should not be used to clear up the debris, and care should be taken not to inhale the dust.

Instead, rubber gloves should be used, and the broken bulb put into a sealed plastic bag - which should be taken to the local council for disposal. However a prominent toxicologist stated that five bulbs would have to be smashed for the level of mercury to present a significant health risk.