Speed is of the essence – Prime Minister!
I think an element of caution in relation to political decisions – because of economic implications – has been impressed too firmly into the ALP.
We are now in a situation where wasting time in terms of climate change decisions is the worst possible error.
Anyone who understands exponential growth will appreciate that, not only are many parts of the world now experiencing climate change to an unprecedented extent, as far as human history in concerned, but indicators point to the rate and frequency increasing inexorably, UNLESS we take really intense and increasing efforts to slow and reduce the rising temperatures produced by climate change.
We do NOT need a gas-led program.
We need to stop using gas, oil and coal – ASAP.
It is our only hope.
We have got to stop manufacturing plastics, unless they are recyclable and recycling is genuinely practised.
We have been persuaded of the conveniences of modern machinery, yet those of my generation who lived through WWII in Europe will vouch for the fact that preservation through re-use and recycling is actually quite acceptable when it increases the likelihood of surviving a catastrophe!
So – PLEASE, Prime Minister – give strong support to rejecting fossil fuels as a danger to survival, rapidly encourage the use of electricity in all forms of transport, ensure that solar, storage batteries and all other readily available forms of renewable energy are installed as standard and as widely as possible.
We do not have rime for failing experiments like carbon capture and storage or nuclear power. We need to have made substantial changes before 2030 if we have even a faint hope of improving the hopes for our children.
I moved to Darwin at the beginning of 1971.
I know that temperatures are now significantly higher than when I arrived – not just 1˚C, either!
This is not an issue we can waste time discussing.
We have a multitude of scientists who are more than capable of developing plans that can be introduced as soon as possible.
We are surrounded by oceans, and any sailor will vouch for the power every wave can transmit.
Much of Australia enjoys many hours of sunshine.
Winds blow over the oceans as well as the land so, all told, we have an abundance of energy to harness.
And did we not want to create more jobs?
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4 comments
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margcal
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King 1394
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Roswell
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Clakka
Return to home pageSpeed is definitely of the essence when it comes to climate change. That is also true of our other existential challenge which barely rates more than an occasional mention – the next US provoked war, looking to be with China. It won’t be pretty.
In these and other cases – tax reform and reform of school funding, especially to support public education, to mention merely two – Labor has a golden opportunity to act. The government has no viable opposition for the foreseeable future. But not forever. So every day ‘not’ taking daring decisions for the good of the Commonwealth and the world is a day wasted.
The new Labor Government has moved quickly on lots of issues, eg abolishing the cashless debit card, returning the Biloela family home, bringing down a cautious budget that reflects real conditions.
Climate change might take a bit longer but actions such as the review of 18 major fossil fuel projects to take account of climate change impacts seems to me to be important.
Labor has a history of making decisions quickly which then haunt them for the rest of their time -an example would be the banning of the live sheep exports without a transition plan. They need to be careful in making major changes or they face the full force of the rich and powerful interests that control the media and the Lib/Nat parties
Rosemary, your opening two sentences pack a good punch. Well said.
Investment in networking the connectivity and expansion of renewals is easy to say, even if $100bn is hard to swallow. However the actual implementation on the ground will take at least 8-10 years. And I say ‘at least’ referring to the hold-out of the land-owning luddites from Sydenham to Ballarat (and beyond), as an example of emergent impediments.
In the meantime we are reliant on old power, and being done with it demonstrably does not come without gouging and blood-letting by the usurers and the tangled web they weave. This too must be done via the application of belts and braces.