Warwickshire Climate Alliance
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Climate and Nature Bill
Warwickshire Climate Alliance has written to the other local MPs – Jodie Gosling, John Slinger, Rachel Taylor, Matt Western, and Sir Jeremy Wright – to urge them both to support the Bill and, importantly, to pledge to be in Parliament to vote for it on January 24th. Please, if you are one of these MPs’ constituents, take the time to write to them to urge them to back the Bill. You can use the Zero Hour website to do this.
Current Actions and Issues
Letter to MPs on the Climate and Nature Bill
We are delighted to see that the Climate and Nature Bill will now advance to a Second Reading in the House of Commons on January 24th, having been picked to do so by the new MP for the South Cotswolds constituency, Dr Roz Savage. As a Warwickshire MP, we would like to ask you to join 227 MPs and Peers across the political parties in pledging your support for the Bill, and to ensure that you are available to vote in favour of it on January 24th.
Like the 2008 Climate Change Act, the CAN Bill is non-party political. It links the climate and nature crises to give us the best chance of limiting emissions to 1.5°C, if that is still possible, and to reverse (rather than merely halt) the decline of nature. It would improve on existing legislation, including the Climate Change Act and the Environment Act, in several key ways:
It would unambiguously require the phasing out of fossil fuels as quickly as possible, ending the culture of delay and greenwashing promoted by the fossil fuel industry and their allies in the media.
By linking the climate crisis and the decline of natural biodiversity, the Bill ensures decarbonisation will not take place at the expense of the natural environment.
By requiring visible reversal of the decline of nature by 2030, it opens opportunities for carbon sequestration from the restoration of woodlands and hedgerows, rivers, peatlands and wetlands.
The Bill would mandate a just transition, by ensuring financial support and retraining for workers in fossil fuel and other affected industries.
In order to secure as broad a social consent as possible for a green transition that will impact the lives of everyone, the Bill would ensure involvement of ordinary people in planning the transition through a Climate and Nature Assembly.
It will ensure emissions reductions at home are not achieved by simply offshoring them, by requiring that the UK take action to reduce its carbon emissions and ecological impacts overseas, as existing legislation does not. Carbon emissions will harm the life chances of future generations wherever they are released. We cannot solve the problem with an ‘island mentality’.
You can learn more about the Bill, and find lists of supporting politicians and organisations here. The Bill itself can be read here.
We believe this is a vital opportunity to ensure that we are doing everything we can to try to limit global heating. As the planet heats beyond 1.5°C over pre-industrial temperatures, scientists consider it ‘likely’ we will trigger irreversible transformations, such as the undermining of the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets, and the transition of the Amazon rainforest to grassland. These transformations will have a devastating impact on human societies and the natural world. According to the latest State of the Climate Report, written by leading climate scientists, “Climate change has already displaced millions of people, with the potential to displace hundreds of millions or even billions. That would likely lead to greater geopolitical instability, possibly even partial societal collapse.”
Since entering government, both Keir Starmer and his Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, have spoken of the existential threat of climate change in speeches to the UN. At the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, the UK joined other nations in adopting a Declaration for Future Generations, in recognition of the impact our inaction will have on future generations. Passing the Climate and Nature Bill would help restore hope to the young, demonstrate world leadership, and uphold these commitments we have made to the United Nations and the world.
Please commit to supporting the Climate and Nature Bill and to turning up to vote for it at its Second Reading on the 24th January.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Pension Fund Divestment
Response to WCC Sustainable Futures
Sewage Pollution on the River Avon
Cemex
Beechwood Farm Battery Energy
Landmark decisions, controversy and disappointment
If COP27 seemed low on the UK’s agenda after some interest the previous year when UK hosted in Glasgow, COP28 coverage was almost subliminal in the year of the highest post-industrial global temperature on record. Held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, it was a summit with some apparently ‘ground breaking’ agreements as well as controversy and disappointment and was also the largest attended climate COP in history. There were 97,000 delegates in attendance, with more than 150 heads of state, including King Charles III who had been told by Rishi Sunak not to attend last year.
The host nation
Critics questioned the suitability of the host and the presidency. The United Arab Emirates is one of the word’s major fossil fuel producing nations and the designated president of the summit, Sultan Al Jaber, is also the head of the UAE’s national oil and gas company, Adnoc. He has previously been on record as saying that there is no evidence that the phasing-out of fossil fuels is going to achieve 1.5C.
Fossil fuels
The Global Stock Take was a review of countries’ efforts in following the 2015 Paris Agreement (keeping temperatures below 2°C and even targeting 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels). COP called for a list of goals from all countries, pushing for faster action in the next ten years through tripling of renewable energy, curbing methane and phasing out some fossil fuel subsidies.
Nearly every country has agreed to ‘transition away from fossil fuels’ - the first time an agreement specifically focussed on fossil fuel has been reached in 28 years of international climate negotiations. This was called a ‘landmark’ decision but was also widely criticised for watering down the language (previously, ‘phase out’) and allowing for countries (like the UK) to claim a role for fossil fuels in their supposed net zero goals.
The stock take revealed that countries were already falling far short of their goals.
The Alliance of Small Island States (AoSIS) was dismayed that the final agreement was approved when they were out of the room, and with the content of the agreement which was tantamount to signing their ‘death certificate’.
Climate fund
The fund for ‘loss and damage’ which was agreed at COP27 was launched. This is a way for industrial powers to transfer aid to developing nations hit by disasters caused by climate change and was a hard-won, overdue acknowledgment of the responsibility of the nations that produce the most emissions. Unfortunately, the amounts pledged so far fall well short of the £320 billion a year estimate of what is necessary. Campaigners also pointed out that the UK’s pledge of £60 million was taken from an existing and recently downgraded climate finance pledge.
Food, agriculture and environment
Approximately 160 nations committed to a pledge concerning food and agriculture. The Global Stock Take underscored the crucial role of halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030 in achieving the objectives of the Paris Agreement. This marks the first instance of formal recognition for such a commitment but critics were disappointed that the final text omitted food system transformation and agriculture emissions.
Lobbying
Cop28 was characterised by the large number and significant increase of delegates from industries linked to climate change, including fossil fuel companies, meat and dairy producers and organisations pushing for carbon capture solutions.
Protests
In contrast to previous U.N. climate conferences, such as the massive protest gatherings at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021 and COP21 in Paris in 2015, COP28 experienced subdued demonstrations, reflecting the limited freedom of expression in the host country. Environmental, youth, and indigenous groups were among the activists at the demonstration, advocating for the fulfillment of commitments and the cessation of ecocide. The protesters voiced opposition to the influence of polluting industries' lobbying efforts and criticized the involvement of the industrial-military complex. Calls were also made for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The future
Finance is anticipated to take centre stage at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, next year.
Photo courtesy of https://www.flickr.com/photos/unfccc/53385552248/in/album-72177720313231325/