SETTLE AND AREA
Mark Robinson
Campaigns Officer CPRE – The countryside charity
Amid all the flurry of news today in parliament, it slipped out that a decision on the Cumbria coal mine has been delayed https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-61395587 . Since then, the delay has been confirmed by the planning inspector, though they haven’t given a date for when we can expect a decision. As frustrating as it is that the decision has been kicked down the road, the CPRE is not giving up now.
Scottish FOE/Barry White
A Scottish environmental campaign group has raised serious concerns about the Scottish governments use of hydrogen technologies after a new report exposed their inefficiencies, soaring costs and the threat posed to renewable energy supplies. The report, ‘Hydrogen’s role in Scotland’s climate journey’, commissioned by Friends of the Earth Scotland found that 98% of global hydrogen production is from fossil fuels, see: https://foe.scot/resource/report-hydrogens-role-in-scotlands-climate-journey/.
Continue reading “Report raises serious concerns about hydrogen”
Barry White
The government must drive down energy bills and reduce climate-warming emissions by insulating more homes, a report to parliament by the Climate Change Committee (CCC) says (https://www.theccc.org.uk/publication/2022-progress-report-to-parliament/). They report that the government’s current insulation programme is “shocking” saying that consumers are paying £40 extra a year on bills because of previous cuts to the home renovation programme. The committee also says government must harness the Ukraine fuel crisis to push ahead with renewables. To be fair to poorer families the report says that the portion of electricity bills that pays back historic renewables should be taken off bills and absorbed by the Treasury.
Continue reading “New report says that the government must do more to reach net zero target”
Ian Scoones (submitted by Melanie Fryer)
The relationship between livestock production and climate change is the subject of hot debate, with arguments for major shifts in diets and a reduction in livestock production. This Perspective examines how global assessments of livestock-derived methane emissions are framed, identifying assumptions and data gaps that influence standard life-cycle analysis approaches. These include inadequate data due to a focus on industrial not extensive systems; errors arising due to inappropriate emission factors being applied; questions of how global warming potentials are derived for different greenhouse gases and debates about what baselines are appropriate.
Continue reading “Livestock, methane, and climate change: The politics of global assessments.”
