Carbon Neutral

"Last minute panic"

2010-05-05T12:03:00.004+01:00

I received an email this morning from Friends of the Earth, which shows that none of the main parties in Exeter have signed the FOE climate pledge.

Hundreds of MPs nationally are serious about the environment - see if your prospective candidate is one of them here:

http://election.foe.co.uk/FinalTally

Of course, I emailed each of the candidates again using FOE's online form: http://election.foe.co.uk/FollowUp - each candidate has receive an email titles "Last minute panic" asking why they have not signed this important pledge.

The Green Party candidate has signed the pledge.

Here are the messages I've sent to the other candidates...

Conservative: I received an email this morning from Friends of the Earth -- only 4 conservative candidates nationally have signed the FOE climate pledge - compared to 109 Labour, and 211 Liberal democrats. Please drop me a quick email explaining this and why you have chosen not to sign the pledge as climate is a very important issue for me.

Labour: I received an email this morning from Friends of the Earth -- and discovered that you have not signed the climate pledge - only 109 Labour candidates have signed the pledge nationally compared to 211 Liberal democrats (twice as many!). Please drop me a quick email explaining this and why you have chosen not to sign the pledge as climate is a very important issue for me.

Liberal democrat: I received an email this morning from Friends of the Earth -- and discovered that you have not signed the climate pledge - Please drop me a quick email explaining why you do not support FOE's pledge when many other Liberal democrats nationally have committed their support. I see that the Green party candidate for Exeter has committed to this very important pledge.

I wonder if I will get any responses this close to the election - it will also be very interesting to see if any of the candidates respond after the results are known.

Note: They can sign up to the pledges here

http://election.foe.co.uk/SignThePledge

I PLEDGE TO SUPPORT

* Policy 1: A local carbon budget for every local authority: that caps CO2 in the local area in line with the scientific demands for emissions cuts and local circumstances; and enough money and technical support to enable councils to do their bit to tackle climate change.

* Policy 2: Sufficient investment in switching to a low carbon economy to: achieve a reduction in UK greenhouse gas emission of 42 per cent by 2020; create jobs and boost the recovery; and eliminate fuel poverty.

* Policy 3: An international deal on cutting emissions where those responsible make the deepest cuts first, and developing countries are supported to grow in a low carbon way.

* Policy 4: A new law which will tackle the major greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation caused by the UK’s dependence on imported feeds for livestock - and which will support better UK farming and domestic feed production.

-- I removed comments as I'm getting a lot of junk, but if in the unlikely event you would like to comment then just email me!

Vote for policies, not personalities!

2010-04-12T10:54:00.006+01:00

'Vote for Policies' makes it easy to compare what the political parties are promising to do. It helps you make an informed, unbiased decision about who to vote for. Find out which party you really support... (click below)

I think that voting by personality is certainly the preferred choice for the general public. If the public had their way, Stephen Fry would be Prime Minister...

What is your candidate promising on climate change?

2010-04-07T14:42:00.002+01:00

Send a quick letter to all your prospective parlimentary candidates here, and find out what their plans are regarding climate change.

http://election.foe.co.uk/page/speakout/theirpromises

Check to see whether there is a Green Party candidate running in your area. You can join the Green Party here.

Dear Exeter City PPC,

Since the election date was announced yesterday I have received flyers from both the Labour and Conservative parties -- but neither mention the environment or climate change, despite this being one of the most important issues for whichever party forms the next government.

Most observers recognise that greenhouse gas emissions must peak and begin to drop within the next FIVE years – the maximum length of the next parliament.

We need committed and enthusiastic MPs who will put environmental issues at the TOP of their agendas.

Please show your support by signing the Friends of the Earth Election pledge:

http://election.foe.co.uk/sign-our-pledge

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely

*Don't forget to include your name and address*

Masdar: Abu Dhabi's carbon-neutral city

2010-03-28T21:57:00.002+01:00

There is a very interesting and inspiring article on the BBC News Website of a new carbon neutral city being constructed in UAE.

A (quick?) summary of the difference between the two top players...

2010-03-04T11:31:00.003Z

Having spent part of the morning assisting the Exeter city Conservative candidate to choose the most suitable home green-energy tariff, I thought I'd share my 'essay' here.

"I think they are both great suppliers, but there is a fundamental difference to be aware of if you need to discuss your choice politically.

The argument (fueled mostly by Ecotricity) is that Good Energy encourages and secures only EXISTING renewable sources (although they encourage a climate of investment by paying a premium rate to producers and they directly invest in many small scale generation start ups). The company operates primarily as a distributor of existing green supplies.

Ecotricity argues that existing green supplies would be used anyway on the open grid, and that now other 'brown-tariff' customers have decreased their use of this green supply - thus the net use of renewable energy has remained the same?
But, this argument assumes that only Ecotricity are interested in creating new renewable supplies, and that the premiums offered by schemes like Good Energy's are not sufficient to encourage the necessary growth in the renewables market. If all customers demanded a green tariff from Good Energy (and paid the premium) then we would only have renewable energy (but it would be built and managed by the most efficient third-parties).

Ecotricity invests "all profits" in NEW renewable sources, which they feed back to Ecotricity customers.

Ecotricity is much more aggressive in its pursuit of green power to the masses. They want to move things along faster. It puts less faith in the public to make the switch and therefore doesn't ask them to pay any more. Ecotricity price matches the ordinary electricity tariff in the customers region (not their current deal). However, some [or most?] (the percentage is not advertised) of the energy that standard customers buy is brown (nuclear/coal) and the profits from selling these build new renewable sources for Ecotricity to sell.

I've just seen that Ecotricity has a "New Energy Plus" scheme - it costs around £20 a year more and has the best of both worlds - 100% of profits invested in new renewable sources (owned by Ecotricity), and 100% is green (coming from Ecotricity and other renewable providers) - I wonder if this increases the amount of non-renewable power going to standard Ecotricity customers...

I read both companies blogs, Good Energy is doing a lot of great work for micro generation with ordinary customers (i.e. transition cities, and individuals)

http://good-energy.typepad.com/greenenergyrepublic/2010/02/transition-town-marlow-teams-up-with-good-energy-on-huge-solar-power-initiative.html

I'm very encouraged by the emerging partnership Good Energy has with the EST, and I will stick with Good Energy because their support for customers generating renewable electricity at home seems more comprehensive at this stage..

If everyone changed to 100% renewable with companies like Good Energy then the problem would be solved. But who is to say that the Ecotricity approach will not work better/faster? Both models should succeed. My only criticism of Ecotricity is that they introduce a lot of distrust into the market and constantly criticise their top competitors. Many confused customers decided the green industry can not be trusted and therefore they do nothing...

http://www.ecotricity.co.uk/for-your-home/how-green-is-your-electricity-company

GAS

Both companies can supply gas - The Ecotricity model sells mostly regular gas and invests in NEW cleaner gas production... http://www.ecotricity.co.uk/about/our-green-gas

The Good Energy gas model is a bit like the Ecotricity electricity model! they supply regular gas and invest all profits in NEW renewable heat generation in homes
http://www.goodenergy.co.uk/switch-now/gas "

Carbon confusion

2010-01-29T10:00:00.014Z

It's been quiet for some time since my last post on 'Carbon Neutral'.

The aim of the blog is to chart our personal progress towards being carbon neutral. Our plans are to install solar heating and electricity, minimise car journeys (close to zero, and do a small amount of offsetting for the essential travel we do take) and other initiatives that I won't bore you with here. It's becoming a long road, we're delayed by our basic renovations to the house and commitments to work.

Why is it important? Because I strongly believe that those that understand the gravity of a problem (in this case climate change) have the responsibility to personally do something about it. Whether climate change is really a problem is still debated in the media, but the science stands up for itself, and the key fact is that we expect large-scale irreversible damage to the Earth's ecosystems if we remain above 350 ppm of CO2 in the atmosphere. The expected consequences for mankind are severe.

Yesterday was depressing for two reasons. The first: my boss told me about his attendance at the house of commons to provide expert witness on climate change. The minister asked for a show of hands of who in the room believed that CO2 could be reduced below 350 ppm, and none of our elected representatives raised their hands. We are currently at 387 ppm, and politicians think levelling off at 450 ppm is too ambitious. The science gives a very clear story for what happens when we reach 500 ppm, and it's not just coral reefs that will disappear.

The second thing that got to me yesterday made me question whether I can continue working in my job. My research is on climate change and coral reefs and I feel that an essential part of this is communicating the science to public and policy makers. But the job requires air travel, and later in the year I will have to fly to Brisbane, Bali and possibly the Bahamas as well as back home to England. We're also considering personal flights for holidays, and some long car journeys.

I can not claim that the work I do on climate change is anywhere near sufficient to justify my carbon lifestyle. I'm aware of other people, such as our neighbours, who take mutliple long-haul flights a year for non-work reasons; but I can accept this as they do not understand what the trajectories show- the only way to reduce their carbon footprint is through changes in governmental policy and social attitudes which are not possible without guidance from the science.

But what depressed me most yesterday was the action of scientists who do understand the problem and yet do no take personal responsibility, nor encourage others to do so. They think that they are exempt, because they work on the fringes of the problem of climate change. Maybe my boss does need to fly to San Francisco, Japan, Barbados, then Australia (twice around the world?!) in the next month-and-a-half. But he is deliberately, and massively, increasing the distances he travels in order to collect more "free" air miles. Describing this to our research group everyone encourages the practice and thinks that it is impressive...

Note: Below I show "externalities", these are a measure the true economic (not environmental) cost of air travel which the flyer is not paying. The amount of externalities shown below is the extra amount the flight would cost, if aviation fuel had the same tax as road transport fuel in the EU.

Here is the problem:
My boss wants to fly from Japan to Barbados, a distance of approximately 8,000 miles (east). The only cost incurred is financial.

Direct, this is 8,000 miles out and 4,210 miles back to London = 12,210 miles
2.18 tonnes + 1.15 tones = 3.33 tones of carbon (not offset)
£622 fuel tax + £311 = £933 of externalities not paid (see end of post)

He already has a return flight booked from Japan-London, so he could fly:
Japan - London - Barbados - London = 14,357 miles
3.9 tonnes of carbon (not offset)
£1,117 of externalities not paid

But, instead he finds a ticket for the same price... which will result in more free air miles in his pocket: Japan - London - Toronto - Barbados

Total = 17,863 miles

4.8 tonnes of carbon (not offset)

£1,390 of externalities not paid

If aviation fuel was taxed equally to other fuel, the ticket prices would reflect distance travelled (making us choose efficient routes) and also discourage excessive/non-essential travel (by increasing the ticket price). But if people who understand the stakes (i.e. me, and my boss) are not prepared to travel responsibly (let alone, reduce our personal consumption) then it is difficult to imagine a world where anyone else will change.

I know not to give up the fight, but I do feel at a loss as to how I personally should proceed.

Links

http://www.mapcrow.info

http://www.dontfly.org/

(note - distance EAST from Japan to Barbados was estimated on google maps)

Five days left: save the Copenhagen talks

2009-12-17T09:28:00.002Z

President Obama is joining the Copenhagen talks today. But he needs a push in the right direction.

Send him a message, and tell him to get the talks on track.

Dear President Obama,

The world is looking to you to secure a ambitious, fair and binding deal at the global climate change summit.

Please make sure the deal includes real carbon cuts in rich countries (including the USA & UK) of 40% by 2020 and guarantees adequate funding for clean development and adaptation in developing countries.

In research, we appreciate better than most the implications of our changing climate, I can not overstate the importance of achieving ambitious and binding targets at the Copenhagen talks.

Yours sincerely

Ian Elliott
Research Associate
University of Exeter, UK

This will make a real difference

2009-12-08T18:01:00.002Z

Emailing your MP today will make a real difference to the Climate talks in Copenhagen this week.

Follow this link to find your MP's details, and a sample email, which asks them to put pressure on Gordon Brown to negotiate a 30% decrease in carbon emissions globally.

Here is a copy of my email to Ben Bradshaw MP

Dear Ben, Could you please contact Gordon Brown urgently on behalf of all your Exeter voters, and ask him to ensure that he secures a carbon emissions cut of at least 30% at the EU heads of government talks on Thursday and Friday this week. Without taking a strong position on our own carbon cuts, our influence at the rest of the talks in Copenhagen will be reduced and we stand less chance of getting a global deal. Yours sincerely,

** DON'T FORGET TO INCLUDE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS **

A politically binding agreement to do something, sometime...

2009-12-01T10:22:00.000Z

The NY Times is reporting that leaders are delaying a climate change agreement in favour of a less specific, but still politically binding, agreement to do something about the climate problem at a later date.

Many people, including climate scientists worldwide, see the Copenhagen climate talks as our last chance to get on track with reducing emissions and I have to admit that I see the talks as crucial.

Now more than ever it is important to keep up the pressure on our leaders to act in our best interest. This weekend will be The Wave. See the full details here. Also, in the middle of the Copenhagen summit there will be candlelight vigils held around the world. I'll blog more details in the future.

Working in the field of climate science I get to see first hand the concerns of scientists and also the onset of climate induced disease and species loss. Let's do everything we can to reduce the problems we are set to face in the future.

Stoke-on-Trent becomes first 10:10 City

2009-11-24T16:30:00.001Z

(article received via email from the 10:10 campaign)

The Conservatives have pledged to sign up central Government to 10% cuts in 2010 if elected. Our very own Eugenie Harvey says: “Today's announcement from the Tories is truly remarkable. This would mean that all central Government buildings, from Big Ben to Belmarsh Prison will follow the inspiring example set by families, businesses, schools, and faith groups across the country in making an ambitious 10% emissions reduction in 2010. In less than 100 days, the 50,000 strong 10:10 community has shown what real climate leadership looks like.”

Stoke-on-Trent becomes first 10:10 City

MP for Stoke-on-Trent North Joan Walley with 10:10 Campaign Director Eugenie Harvey

Dear 10:10ers,

A huge 10:10 welcome to the historic city of Stoke-on-Trent, which last night became the first city to sign up en masse to the campaign.

At an amazing launch event at St Margaret Ward school, scores of local business and organisations joined local MP Joan Walley to pledge their support for 10:10. As Head Teacher Chris Smith told the crowd, "The thing that is so compelling about 10:10 is it encourages us all to take responsibility." (read more about the Stoke signup event here).

From Port Vale and Stoke City Football Clubs to Staffordshire Police and the Fire Brigade Union, and from the British Ceramics Confederation to the little High Lane Oatcake Shop, people are working together to build a cleaner, greener future for their city. The atmosphere in Stoke used to be filled with carbon pollution from coal mines, steel mills and pottery kilns. Now it is now alive with just the kind of eco-inspiration we hope will spread across Britain over the year ahead.

Stoke-on-Trent: 10:10 salutes you. Where will be next to step up to the 10:10 challenge...?

Warmest wishes from
Eugenie, Daniel, Leo, Franny, Mal, Harriet, Tracey, Alexis, Ben, Duncan, Steven, Robin, Tamsin, Charlie, Tom, Nick and everyone else at 10:10.

Copenhagen approaches

2009-11-17T20:39:00.003Z

This week there has been some negative press coverage suggesting that the Climate talks in Copenhagen in December will fail.

Our Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Ed Milliband is in Copenhagen now, and he and Gordon Brown still believe that a comprehensive agreement is possible.

Let's back the British government in brokering a global deal for the climate. Sign up at Ed's Pledge now.

Write to your finance minister

2009-11-05T21:41:00.003Z

If we're serious about fighting climate change, then we have to commit to assisting developing nations to cut there emissions during their periods of economic growth. This can be achieved through climate financing, where our developed country directly finance new technologies and solutions in the developing world. This is a good deal for us (our technology and skills are exported abroad) and it's a good deal for the environment. For developing countries the only difference is that there energy supply will be from cleaner technologies.

This is one of the most important steps that we need to take to tackle climate change, but currently it is not sufficiently on the political agenda. You can get involved now by writing to your finance minister and making sure that they take the necessary action.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/climate_finance_emergency/

To ensure its success, the Copenhagen summit needs our help.

My message is below:

Dear Alistair, The UK electorate is ready to support climate financing and we insist that this be an important part of the agenda for your G20 meeting this Saturday. Without a global funding package of US$150 billion, a deal to stop climate catastrophe at Copenhagen will not be possible, and nor will a sustainable low-carbon recovery. The EU has made a start, but it is only a fraction of the global amount needed. I urge you to press the issue of climate financing at the G20 -- all rich countries must make serious funding pledges before Copenhagen, and new mechanisms such as a levy on aviation and shipping fuels and a financial transactions tax should also be considered. Have the courage to confront this still-solvable challenge this weekend, or this moment will be remembered as your greatest failure. Ian Elliott United Kingdom

(email and postcode included)

The Wave

2009-11-05T12:07:00.006Z

After a rather intensive one week carbon cleanse, and a gruelling battle with my local MP and the labour party who missed an important opportunity for cutting carbon emissions next year, I've been on a short hiatus from my climate blog for the past two weeks.

However, with only a month left until the international climate talks in Copenhagen I though it was time to renew everyone's awareness of the importance of the Copenhagen summit, and also to inform you of our last stand in our fight for binding targets to lower the concentration of carbon in our atmosphere to below 350 ppm. "The Wave" will be taking part in London on the 5th of December, take a look at the site for all of the options that are available for getting there.

Conclusion: No Impact Summary

2009-10-26T14:23:00.008Z

Last week was a busy week, taking part in the no impact experiment and loosing my cool with the Labour party! The conclusion from this week is that there are many things we can do to lessen our impact on the environment just by looking at our lives and asking: "Do I do this because I choose to? Or is it because it is the norm in my society, or I've just become stuck in a rut and don't really think about my actions anymore?"

I was surprised that I allowed myself to use so many disposable paper towels, just because everyone else did. I also made new discoveries during al the stages of the project.

One of the biggest changes was slowing our speed on the motorway to 55-60 mph. What a relaxing, safe and cheap journey we had on the way back for our visit. In future we can make it to see family and back on a single tank of petrol as travelling at these speeds reduces fuel usage by as much as 25%.

Also, if you are travelling, try to choose times when the roads will not be congested. Being stuck in traffic is not good for your wallet, your mood or the environment. We'll be using a company to offset the emissions from our journey. Choosing a company to off set your carbon emissions is not straight forward, some do a much better job than others and the industry is poorly regulated. See this article in the Guardian for more information.

I may posting less frequently now the experiment is over, but over the next few weeks you can expect the results of my home energy survey and also a blog to explain our plans to be Carbon Neural by 2012.

Day's five and six: No Impact

2009-10-24T10:38:00.000+01:00

Energy: I failed to make any change to my energy habitats this week - but it is something I'm going to tackle next week for the whole week. Our local library has kWh energy meters that you can borrow to see which appliances are using the most energy. It will be useful to see how much energy everything uses. We feel more comfortable about our energy usage now that we are with a renewable energy supplier (Good Energy)

Water: We've been experimenting with ways to reduce our water consumption over at 'the experiment'. I'm trying the every-other-day approach to showering, with a good old fashioned wash in the basin on no shower days. Grandad will be proud. It's not proving easy, I like a quick shower at work after cycling to freshen up for the day. The sink I use to wash at work only has cold water! We'll see how it goes! There's also been a lot of conversation about possible alternatives to shampoo to prevent all the chemicals that we release into environment.

My biggest energy and water consumption problems are at work. Unlike at home, the university is not with a renewable energy supplier, so my energy requirements are met by burning fossil fuels. The university is also very behind with water consumption. All of the toilets have 13 litre tanks - it's a lot of water to be flushing away. Despite sharing facilities with Greenpeace research, no one has ever considered installing a water saver, so it is something that I will look into.

Lack of ambitious leadership from Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change

2009-10-24T10:32:00.001+01:00

Sent to Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change

Dear Ed

I commend you on your action that resulted in Ken Clarke retracting his statement about onshore wind farms.

I write to you now about Wednesday's vote on 10:10, which was heavily supported by all parties except Labour. The truth is that this vote was an important opportunity to receive global news coverage that shows that countries are ready to show leadership and act boldly at the Copenhagen talks in December. Instead, the opposite message is being sent.

Labour's action was not FAIR

----------------------------

We are personally committing to 10% cuts in 2010. Council, schools and business are all signing up, but the government that represents us with on match our commitment.

Labour’s action was not AMBITIOUS

----------------------------

The Labour party has already committed to a 12.5% cut by 2010-11. A 10% cut in 2010 would have been achievable and would have sent the message that the UK is being ambitious: an inspiration to the global community.

Labour’s action was not BINDING

--------------------------

The alternative motion that Labour proposed contained no binding targets. Only by continually demonstrating that we are not afraid to commit to binding targets that are necessary to fight climate change can we collectively make the progress that we need.

I have been following you on Twitter and at Edspledge.com for some time, and I was reaching the conclusion that you would make a good future leader of the Labour party. However, the negative result from Wednesday's 10:10 opportunity has made me look much deeper, and I now find that you only have a moderate voting record on climate change.

http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/edward_miliband/doncaster_north

Moderate is not ambitious. The world needs leaders who can free themselves from the perceived constraints of politics and economics to find new solutions to entrenched problems.

I have read your explanation of Labour's none-support for the 10:10 motion over at the Labour List site.

http://www.labourlist.org/government-votes-against-1010-campaign-ed-miliband

I feel that your response misses the critical objectives of the 10:10 motion, and that your response does not adequately explain your party’s position on this. I am now circulating messages widely to support the Liberal Democrats (http://tinyurl.com/1010exeter) who spearheaded this motion, unanimously supported it, and have a very strong position on climate change.

Yours sincerely

Ian Elliott

Labour's 10:10 failure

2009-10-22T16:41:00.010+01:00

Sent to: Exeter University Green Society

Exeter MP,Mr Ben Bradshaw

Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Mr Ed Miliband

Action: Please circulate this message to people who will be interested

http://tinyurl.com/1010exeter

At the beginning of the month the Exeter Labour MP, Ben Bradshaw, told me in writing that he supported the 10:10 campaign's ambition to cut emissions by 10% in 2010.

Yesterday the motion was put to the house of commons, and was overwhelming blocked by Labour, including a negative vote from my MP. The motion received strong support from the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives, but was rejected at 297:225.

A heavily watered down version passed the house without a further vote, and it does commit £20 million to assist central government to reduce their emissions.

The main aim of the 10:10 campaign is to send a strong message to the world that we are ready to commit to ambitious and binding targets in Copenhagen this December. What is most baffling is that the 10% cut is completely in line with the Labour government's existing commitment of a 12.5% reduction by 2010-11.

The Liberal Democrats want the UK to take the lead on the issue of climate change, they proposed this bold motion, they unanimously supported it, and of all the parties they have the highest turn out to vote. Maybe it's time we all vote Liberal in Exeter? Does the Green Society actively support a political party?

See the full break down of votes on this motion here.

Day 4 - Food

2009-10-22T11:51:00.006+01:00

It's becoming clear over at the No Impact Experiment that the primary cause of waste for most of us is food packaging. On top of this, there is also the issue of food miles- the distance that foodstuffs travel to make it to our plate.

Currently it is impossible to find local, unpackaged replacements for the majority of foodstuffs, although it is possible to bulk out our meals with lots of local vegetables.

We are however beginning to grow some of our own food, whether it is on the window sill, or outside. This year we had a runaway success with butternut squash. We did not plant 'the crop', we merely used compost from the compost bin, and it seems that the hollowed out seeds from a shop-bought butternut squash that had been composted enjoyed coming out into the Devon sunshine...

Unfortunately we're moving rapidly towards winter. My second water melon didn't grow to full size...!

Day 3. No Impact Week

2009-10-20T11:09:00.002+01:00

A quick post about yesterday's 'Transportation' day on the No Impact Experiment. On Tuesday we each addressed the transportation that we used, and looked for ways to cut our impact. Usually we travel very little, although I do clock up 5 miles a day on my bike getting to work and back, but this week is a bit different as we're visiting family on Friday, and we'll be travelling 260 miles by car.

To directly combat this, we'll be limiting our speed to 60 mph (and following the lorries up the motorway), a quick search on the web suggests that it can cost up to 25% less in fuel to drive at 50mph compared to 70mph. In fact travelling at less than 15mph creates the most pollution, and this decreases up to the most efficient speed: 60mph.

We'll also be observing the Energy Saving Trust's Smarter Driving tips, and offsetting our journey with a carbon offsetting company. More details later in the week.

Energy Saving Week

2009-10-20T10:43:00.005+01:00

This week is also Energy Saving Week, an annual event held by the Energy Saving Trust.

It's an important week for "both our pockets and the planet"!

The theme this year is waste, and the EST wants to help us to stop wasting Time, Money and Energy. Their web site is packed full of useful advice.

Next week I will be writing about one aspect of energy waste: electricity consumption, so tune in daily to find out the results as I go around the house with a kWh electricity meter and see which appliances are the most hungry!

Day 2

2009-10-19T12:59:00.009+01:00

I've set myself a very specific goal for Day 2 of the No Impact Experiment. I'm aiming to generate no waste at all whilst I am at work. We'll also be addressing waste at home as the project continues, but the focus for today is doing everything possible to prevent making waste that goes into the bin.

A look at last Friday's rubbish (above, which has yet to be emptied..!), most of the waste is use-once-throw-away paper towels, a few pealing and a tea bag that should have gone home to be composted, and a fruit net that some satsumas came in - a reminder that I'm currently eating none local, out of season fruit! Apparently, 80% of the products that we buy are designed to be used once and then thrown away (See No Impact Man).

I'm now using a towel from home, and wondering whether I can do anything to convince my colleagues that they don't want to be generating all this 'used once' waste every day:

I'm also wondering when exactly I developed a reliance on chewing gum after meals instead of brushing. I'm sure this is the result of some successful television marketing. I'm switching over to celery sticks which I once read are good for the teeth, and the fibre also last a long time so they are good for generating natural teeth-cleansing saliva!

Taking Action

2009-10-19T10:17:00.004+01:00

One part of the No Impact Week is to take action on an environmental issue. There are many suggestions of how you could achieve this. See the No Impact Manual for some ideas, and also look at the discussion of what is going on over at the No Impact Experiment message boards.

One way you could get involved now is by encouraging your MP support the 10:10 campaign. Parliament is voting on Wednesday this week on whether to go for a 10% cut in emissions in 2010. This is exactly the kind of action that is needed if we are serious about meeting our goals for emission reductions. Contact you MP here, and let them know you want them to support this motion.

My message is below

Dear Ben,

We've just heard that this Wednesday parliament will vote collectively on joining the 10:10 campaign to achieve a 10% reduction in public sector emissions by the end of 2010. We highly commend this initiative, and as members of the Exeter constituency we hope you will represent our wishes by voting in support of this motion.

Please let me know that you are able to attend the debate on Wednesday and that you are representing us on this issue.

Best wishes,

** REMEMBER TO INCLUDE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS **

** so that your MP knows you live in their constituency **

Day 1

2009-10-18T19:27:00.008+01:00

Day One. The No Impact Experiment, which is an off shoot of the No Impact Man year of environmetal consciousness, has started, and it appears that I am the only person from the UK taking part. The first day is all about our consumption and is basically making us aware of the principals of economic growth and how the western world has gone crazy by becoming very materialistic and over consuming. I believe that I am already a lower consumer that most people I know, but I'm using this week to catalogue my spending and question whether I really want to make all the purchases. I've never had an unpaid credit card debit, if I don't have enough money then I just don't spend. Today I'd like to share one of our major successes for avoiding over spending and over consumption: freecycle.

Here are some of the items we've acquired in the past:

Our dining room table and four chairs (it actually extends to seat six people).

28" T.V.

Our cooker (we use it every day!)

Check out the suggestions from other 'No Impacters' at the project's World group, including a site for exchanging and sharing books and the old WWII adage: "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do with out"

Did you know that today is BAD?

2009-10-15T12:32:00.006+01:00

Here is a copy of my guest blog for today's Blog Action Day. To comment, please see the original post on "Rambles from my Chair"

Blog Action Day

Today the world’s bloggers unite to discuss an issue of global importance: Climate Change. I have invited Ian Elliott to do a guest posting on the subject. I hope you will find it as informative and useful as I did.

Blogs have become a powerful tool in modern communication. Distant family and friends can follow each other’s lives, people can interact and express themselves more, and non-geographic communities are being formed and are growing.
Blogs bring independent news from every corner of the world, freedom of speech is spreading to places where voices have been repressed and online communities are slowly bringing our leaders to account.

A cure for democracy?

A well-connected citizenry is fundamental for a healthy democracy. Al Gore concludes his book “The Assault on Reason” with the observation that “Our self-government is based on the ability of individual citizens to use reason in holding their elected representatives, senators, and presidents accountable for their actions”. Internet communities, blogs and independent news are an antidote to the propaganda and controlled spin that floods the mass media. Democracy had become a one-way communication, with information for the electorate being passed on through television news and advertising. But, the misconception that democracy is only about listening to spin and making a single vote is starting to heal and we are seeing a much stronger dialog emerging directly between our leaders and the people who hold them accountable.

No where are the results of this transformation more apparent than on the issue of Climate Change. The overwhelming outcry of the public (uniting through blogs and email groups) is winning out over the entrenched interests of the old energy lobbies and we have found our collective voice. The success of recent campaigns (Global Wakeup Call, TckTckTck campaign, 10:10
UK/Global , ... ) is paving the way for successful negations at the Copenhagen summit in December.

Making it happen

Twelve years ago (1997) the Kyoto protocol was slow to get countries onboard. Australia did not ratify the treaty until the end of 2007, and the US and Alaska never did commit to the carbon reductions, with President Obama planning to find a new agreement in Copenhagen this December.

Only continued pressure, from us all, will make committing to a binding treaty easier than not doing so. Initiatives like 10:10 (see below) are making a real impact. My member of parliament knows I will hold him accountable, and that knowledge ensures that this issue is important for receiving votes at in the next election.
Right now, there are important actions you can take to engage in our democracies and get a better deal for the environment:

USA: The Kerry-Boxer Climate Bill is a really strong bill, and it needs your help if it is going to pass the senate. Contact your senator today by phone or email and let them know you support this important piece of legislation.

Canada: Prime minster Harper is dragging his feet on Climate Change. So much so that the Climate Action Network gave him the “Colossal
Fossil" award for having done more than any other country to drag down talks at the UN climate negotiations. Contact your member of parliament and get in touch with Environment Minister Jim Prentice: get them to put pressure on Prime Minister Harper to attend Copenhagen and commit to a Fair, Ambitious and Binding deal for the climate.

UK: Has your MP signed the 10:10 pledge to cut their personal carbon emissions by 10% in 2010? Mine has! Let them know we hold them personally accountable on climate change, and that we’ll all be doing our bit too. There is now also a Global 10:10 campaign.

The next global climate campaign is on 24th October.
Take a look at what is happening over at 350.org

How can I cut my personal emissions?

Just how hard is it to save money and save the environment?! Follow me on my own project as I aim to become Carbon Neutral by 2012. Next week I’ll be conducting my own No Impact Experiment. So please follow along at www.carbonneutral.me.uk

10:10 LET'S make real progress on meeting our targets

2009-10-06T12:51:00.003+01:00

The 10:10 campaign aims to get individuals and governments to commit to a 10% reduction in carbon emissions in 2010...

To: Benjamin Bradshaw MP

Dear Ben,

Are you supporting the 10:10 campaign?

We've switched our home to renewable electricity (goodenergy.co.uk), I cycle 5 miles a day to and from work, and we'll be making sure that we cut our household emissions by at least 10% next year by monitoring our consumption and making 'green' lifestyle choices.

In fact, thousands and thousands of us across the country are pledging to cut our emissions by 10% in 2010. We want to show that it's possible and to build support for decisive action to tackle climate change, and we need to know that our local MP is getting involved.

The government has a crucial role to play in making emission cuts a reality, and at times making tough choices to make sure we reach our targets. We need MPs to show a lead, and it's bound to help if loads of MPs are taking part in 10:10.

We are voting Labour, primarily because of the dedication that is being shown on these issues my Ed Miliband

http://www.edspledge.com/

But, to ensure we continue voting labour in the local elections please let me now if you're planning to get involved, and if not please tell me why not.

You can find out more about 10:10 and sign up here: http://www.1010uk.org/

Best wishes,

** REMEMBER TO INCLUDE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS **

** so that your MP knows you live in their constituency **

Response received 7th October...

And an immediate reply from me....

Dear Ben,

Thank you for your letter dated 6^th October. I commend you on your actions to personally combat climate change, and I look forward to hearing what actions you take to achieve a further cut of 10% in your emissions next year.

I am concerned that my email communication and many others like it results in a reply being sent by post. Even on recycled paper, if this is common practice then it is a terrible waste of resources (production, printing and transport) when an electronic reply could have be made in turn.

I would like to know whether the labour party has a ‘think before you print’ policy, and also whether you could, on our behalf, contact the relevant office to ensure that email communications, by default, are replied to by email. The same letter could be sent as a pdf attachment to retain the current formatting.

I request future replies be by email, and I look forward to your response,

Best wishes,

Ian

Friend of Earth

2009-10-01T09:59:00.003+01:00

Do you have 15 minutes free today to send an email and be a friend of the Earth?

A government consultation called ‘Strengthening Local Democracy’ is (among other objectives) determining councils’ role on meeting climate change targets. I'm writting a quick email to argue that councils should cut carbon emissions in their area by at least 40 per cent by 2020. It is important that the government set a minimum standard of action on climate for all councils to meet our national targets.

Today, now, I'm sending a short and concise email to localdemocracyconsul@communities.gsi.gov.uk

It includes a personalised version of some of the following points suggested by FoE.

(1) This consultation and the Government’s commitment to local authorities have a stronger role in tackling climate change is welcome.

(2) The UK is committed to achieving CO2 emissions reductions of 34 per cent by 2020. To meet this target, and to avoid dangerous climate change, will require radical action by all sections of society and Government, including all local authorities.

(3) Under the current voluntary system, a minority of local authorities are taking real, systematic action on climate change, and most are doing very little.

(4) All councils adopting short-term emissions targets or local carbon budgets would have the effect of ensuring that all local authorities take their share of the national responsibility. Either could be a good way forward.

(5) Whichever mechanism is adopted, it should ensure that that all local authorities are required to meet a minimum standard of action. Doing nothing should no longer be an option for councils.

(6) The Government’s proposal to provide more support for councils to act on climate change, including new funding and new powers, is very welcome.

The following is needed:

- More information for councils on how to cut carbon. Friends of the Earth supports a new regional technical advice body on Climate Change to help provide the evidence base for action on climate change.

- New innovative financing enabling councils to fund positive climate solutions on renewable energy.

- A strong role for local authorities in co-coordinating funding streams - for example when deciding where to target and spend money from programs for home insulation and energy efficiency.

- That councils must be ‘challenged’ by the government to reduce carbon from transport. To achieve this we think the Department for Transport must check councils’ local transport plans for carbon – and refuse to accept plans that increase CO2.

- More community engagement in developing local climate solutions. If you can, stress the benefits you think that this would bring to people in your area. Eg. a planning system that that encourages green and efficient heating – like district heating networks for communities, or solar panels on homes, could slash people’s fuel bills, create jobs and boost the local economy.

Emails must reach the Department of Communities and Local Government today as the consultation closes 2nd of October.

70 days until Copenhagen

2009-09-27T04:00:00.000+01:00

It has been an important week for the environment.

With 70 days remaining until Copenhagen (7th Dec 2009), climate activists are demanding change. Individuals, organisations and politicians are united and demanding a Fair, Ambitious and Binding deal. World leaders are beginning to listen, and waking up to the possibility of finding lasting solutions. The Obama administration proposed rules that will increase the fuel efficiency of cars and light trucks by 40%. China has reputedly pledged to plant a forest the size of Norway and Gordon Brown published an article on the importance of the December climate talks in Newsweek.

Global Wake Up Call

As part of the Global Wake Up Call, I rang Gordon Brown on Monday, he wasn't in so I left a message on his answer phone. Then I rang Ed Milliband and reached a tired switch board operator. Ed wasn't available, and, unlike the PM, he had no answering machine. I guess it comes with the position. Thousands of other calls to heads of states were made.

So far, only Gordon Brown, Donald Tusk (Poland) and Jan Peter Balkenende (Netherlands) have said they’ll attend the Climate Summit in Copenhagen this December, other world leaders will hopefully commit soon.

A lot more needs to be done before December. The next Global Day of Action on October 24th.