Week 6…an update…The manufacture of plastics and plastic, when exposed to the elements, releases methane and ethylene – two powerful greenhouse gases that can intensify climate change.
It is little wonder that Sir David Attenborough was moved to give an update as the situation regarding Climate change is worsening by the day…
Update 2021…21st February 2021…
Sir David Attenborough joined the UK Prime Minister at the UN Security Council telling its 15 members that it is too late to avoid climate change.
Sir David Attenborough said: “There is no going back – no matter what we do now, it’s too late to avoid climate change and the poorest, the most vulnerable, those with the least security, are now certain to suffer.”
He continued: “If we bring emissions down with sufficient vigour we may yet avoid the tipping points that will make runaway climate change unstoppable. In November this year, at COP26 in Glasgow, we may have our last opportunity to make the necessary step-change.”
♦♦♦♦♦
The first thing we need to do is to stop using single-use plastic, especially products made of LDPE (for example, grocery bags, 6-pack rings, sandwich and snack bags, strawberry containers, and plastic wrap).
We already know that greenhouse gases are released during the production of these materials, and now we have learned that greenhouse gases continue to be released while in use and as they degrade. We need to begin to phase them out entirely. In addition, we need better laws and policies to guide consumers to make better choices. If single-use plastics are banned, consumers will adapt and find alternative ways of bagging their groceries or filling a bottle, these being reusable items rather than items used for a few minutes and then discarded.
Update 2021.
Single-use plastic is still being produced and if it is still being produced it WILL be used…
Government Policies can help make a difference globally…
However, we have seen how many governments are either paying lip service or blatantly doing nothing…
People Power has spoken...Well and truly in the UK over the last week…I am immensely proud of each and every one of those protesters and it was a peaceful protest which caused much inconvenience as from Monday 15th April: Extinction Rebellion blocked Marble Arch, Oxford Circus, Waterloo Bridge and Parliament Square…The aim was to man these sites around the clock until the government acts on Climate Emergency…
The London actions are part of a wider rebellion taking place across the Uk and around the world…Extinction Rebellion has 331 groups in 49 different countries…
Update 2021…
Reading the latest news reports on the demonstrations in London…is this the right way to protest? Red Paint, super glue has been used over the last 3 years to make a statement…is it working? The latest news shows the police are stepping up their actions and cracking down…Are these actions working for the man in the street the man who has to get to work…Three years on are the demonstrations working ? Has XR lost momentum? Numbers on protests are fewer, The press is more critical… I don’t profess to know what the answer is…What are your thoughts?
Dr Rowan Williams…joined fellow worshipers and others as St Pauls Cathedral People of all faiths, everyday people, eminence church figures, celebrities are all concerned enough to take a public stance…
Update 2021…
Dr Rowan Williams has spoken again…good for him…I, unfortunately, missed this broadcast yesterday…Did anybody watch it? If so what are your views?
Children from around the world are responding to young Greta Thornburg and her calls for action…
Update 2021…
Young and full of hope…Having returned to school after a year out leading young people in school strikes for climate change, Ms Thunberg said the conference falls in her school holidays, and if she does attend she plans to travel by train.
https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/greta-thunberg-cop26-host-scotland-b1911599.html
My conclusion… we need action and after what will be the 26th COP meeting I tend to agree with Greta when she said “We know that change will not come from the Cop, from within these negotiations. The change will come when there are enough people outside on the streets demanding change.”
I think Raj Patel was correct when he said…”If governments won’t hear you, If corporations won’t hear you, if the philanthropists do not return your calls or do not think you deserve the dignity of a response then the theory of change won’t get off the ground”
Throwing facts at people rarely changes minds…it’s talk that changes people and creates changes that work…
Thank you for reading this post and please if you are concerned about the future of our world and the effect of Climate change …Action is needed now….xx
Retired? No one told me! 