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The first New Deal inspires the Living New Deal Project

THE FIRST “NEW DEAL” CAN HELP US AGAIN, Radio Ecoshock ,  October 30, 2019, 

Huge crowds of young people are rebelling against climate extinction. They have been promised a “Green New Deal” for 11 years. Opponents say a Green New Deal isn’t possible and government planning is always evil. This is partly what caused Gray Brechin to create the Living New Deal Project. But he was also looking for good news in our past ability to act together – to help his own sanity in the face of our rush toward catastrophe.

I think we need citizens to document their surroundings, so we can remember changes. Things change so fast we lose our memory. Or is it because the machine and the media compete to replace our memory with something that benefits the oligarchy?

Gray Brechin chronicles, literally from the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper “the murder of the public sector” – which is going on every day. There are signs and victims of that war against the public good. We privatize things and then make them too expensive for the common person.

Brechin is creating a new memory bank, with maps of what can be done when a government and a people are ready to be doers. His map of New Deal accomplishments shows the basis of American highways, power systems, public buildings, refurbished National Parks and so much more. Maybe President Roosevelt’s New Deal from 90 years ago can help America with the Green New Deal she needs so badly now.

I encourage people to visit the interactive map of more than 15,000 sites across America built by the New Deal. Find it at livingnewdeal.org. And check out Gray’s master work “Imperial San Francisco: Urban Power, Earthly Ruin”.

November 4, 2019 Posted by | climate change, USA | Leave a comment

Greta Thunberg and Leonardo Di Caprio join forces in climate crusade

November 4, 2019 Posted by | climate change, USA | Leave a comment

UK launches review of net zero emissions

Treasury 2nd Nov 2019, The Net Zero Review, the first of its kind, will assess how the UK can maximise economic growth opportunities from its transformation to a green  economy. At its heart is a priority to ensure a fair balance of contributions from all those that will benefit, including considering how to reduce costs for low income households. This review is a major step
towards the UK achieving net zero emissions by 2050, after becoming the
world’s first major economy to legislate to do so earlier this year.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/net-zero-review-launched-to-support-uks-world-leading-climate-commitment

November 4, 2019 Posted by | climate change, UK | Leave a comment

UN climate talks to take place in Madrid December 2-13.

UN climate talks to take place in Madrid  https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/un-climate-talks-to-take-place-in-madrid/news-story/49630507277946754406e42af4685d2c, Australian Associated Press

November 2, 2019, The United Nations has confirmed Spain will host the organisation’s annual climate conference after Chile pulled out following weeks of violent unrest.

UN Climate Change head Patricia Espinosa said in a statement that the conference, known as COP25, will now take place in Madrid on the same dates – December 2-13.

Weeks of violent unrest led Chile to cancel the COP25 and its hosting of the APEC trade talks that Prime Minister Scott Morrison was due to attend in mid-November.

The high-profile climate summit is slated to finalise negotiations around rules for the Paris emissions reduction targets – to which Australia has agreed.

Countries were going to be encouraged to improve their pollution reduction goals.

November 2, 2019 Posted by | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

Climate change – more costly than we expected

Climate Change Will Cost Us Even More Than We Think, Economists greatly underestimate the price tag on harsher weather and higher seas. Why is that? By Naomi Oreskes and Nicholas Stern Dr. Oreskes is a professor of the history of science at Harvard. Professor Stern is chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment. NYT, Oct. 23, 2019 For some time now it has been clear that the effects of climate change are appearing faster than scientists anticipated. Now it turns out that there is another form of underestimation as bad or worse than the scientific one: the underestimating by economists of the costs.

The result of this failure by economists is that world leaders understand neither the magnitude of the risks to lives and livelihoods, nor the urgency of action.  How and why this has occurred is explained in a recent report by scientists and economists at the London School of Economics and Political Science, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the Earth Institute at Columbia University.    One reason is obvious: Since climate scientists have been underestimating the rate of climate change and the severity of its effects, then economists will necessarily underestimate their costs.

    But it’s worse than that. A set of assumptions and practices in economics has led economists both to underestimate the economic impact of many climate risks and to miss some of them entirely. That is a problem because, as the report notes, these “missing risks” could have “drastic and potentially catastrophic impacts on citizens, communities and companies.”One problem involves the nature of risk in a climate-altered world. Right now, carbon dioxide is at its highest concentration in the atmosphere in three million years (and still climbing). The last time levels were this high, the world was about five degrees Fahrenheit warmer and sea level 32 to 65 feet higher. Humans have no experience weathering sustained conditions of this type……..

A second difficulty involves parameters that scientists do not feel they can adequately quantify, like the value of biodiversity or the costs of ocean acidification. Research shows that when scientists lack good data for a variable, even if they know it to be salient, they are loath to assign a value out of a fear that they would be “making it up.”……A third and terrifying problem involves cascading effects. One reason the harms of climate change are hard to fathom is that they will not occur in isolation, but will reinforce one another in damaging ways. In some cases, they may produce a sequence of serious, and perhaps irreversible, damage…….

In a worst-case scenario, climate impacts could set off a feedback loop in which climate change leads to economic losses, which lead to social and political disruption, which undermines both democracy and our capacity to prevent further climate damage. These sorts of cascading effects are rarely captured in economic models of climate impacts.And this set of known omissions does not, of course, include additional risks that we may have failed to have identified.

The urgency and potential irreversibility of climate effects mean we cannot wait for the results of research to deepen our understanding and reduce the uncertainty about these risks. This is particularly so because the study suggests that if we are missing something in our assessments, it is likely something that makes the problem worse.

This is yet another reason it’s urgent to pursue a new, greener economic path for growth and development. If we do that, a happy ending is still possible. But if we wait to be more certain, the only certainty is that we will regret it. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/23/opinion/climate-change-costs.html

October 29, 2019 Posted by | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

Bushfires rage in California- 940.000 without power

Power shut off to 940,000 Californians as major bushfires rage,  SBS, 27 Oct 19,Nearly a million people in California will be blacked out as powerful winds threaten to knock down electric wires and spark further fires.

A California power company says it will shut off power to around 940,000 customers across the north of the US state as powerful winds threatened to knock down electric wires and spark further fires.

“Predictive data models indicate the weather event could be the most powerful in California in decades,” Pacific Gas & Electric said in a Friday news release, adding that winds were predicted to gust over 113km/h.

“Winds of this magnitude pose a higher risk of damage and sparks on the electric system and rapid wildfire spread.”

The utility said it would shut off power in phases across 36 counties, starting at 2 pm on Saturday (0900 AEDT). The blackouts could last until midday on Monday.

California Governor Gavin Newsom said the outages were “unacceptable.”

“We are going to do our best to get through these high-wind events and work through Saturday, Sunday into Monday and get these lights back on and do everything in our power to make sure PG&E is never in a position where they’re doing this to us again,” Newsom said in a video posted on Twitter.

The largest wildfire is currently raging in northern California’s Sonoma County, where 50,000 residents were ordered to evacuate on Saturday.

Fire officials said the evacuation orders may be the largest in the region’s history, the Los Angeles Times reported.

‘Story about greed’

A number of bushfires are also raging in the northern part of the state. The most serious – the Kincade Fire – broke out late Wednesday in the Sonoma wine region, also prompting evacuations.

The high risk of fires has led to pre-emptive power cuts to thousands of customers and prompted Governor Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency in Sonoma and Los Angeles counties………

The state’s largest utility, Pacific Gas & Electric Co., warned that millions of people in northern and central parts of the state could have their power cut off during the weekend given the high risk of fire.

The company has come under intense scrutiny after it reported Thursday that even though power to nearly 28,000 customers in Sonoma County had been shut down on Wednesday, some of the high-voltage transmission lines were still operating when the fire broke out.

The same type of equipment was responsible for the state’s deadliest bushfire ever – the Camp Fire in 2018 which killed 86 people.

PG&E, which filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, has been blamed for several other fires in the state in recent years……. https://www.sbs.com.au/news/power-shut-off-to-940-000-californians-as-major-bushfires-rage

October 28, 2019 Posted by | climate change, USA | 1 Comment

Extinction Rebellion: One Year On


Extinction Rebellion: One Year On,
As their one-year anniversary approaches, Felicity Graham reviews the successes and failures of Extinction Rebellion. Cherwell, By Felicity Victoria Graham, 27th October 2019

“…………..Extinction Rebellion remains a force for good and will do so until the global climate emergency is miraculously resolved. XR have managed to keep the issue of the climate crisis within the media spotlight, which has previously been unachievable for climate activists, as the issue is not technically ‘breaking news.’ This in itself is an invaluable achievement, as the climate crisis is now mentioned in everyday politics just as much as Brexit and Boris
 The XR activists’ most substantial success is that they have completely revolutionised the language surrounding climate change; words such as ‘extinction’, ‘crisis’, ‘emergency’ and ‘breakdown’ are now an integral part of environmental discourse. The world now appears to truly understand the existential threat posed to humanity, and more people than ever before are actively changing their lifestyle choices on account of climate change. Whilst Extinction Rebellion may have scored numerous own-goals, as admitted by spokesperson Fergal McEntee, I believe it is imperative that their controversial work continues. The question now is whether global authorities are prepared to act and whether Extinction Rebellion can regain public trust, in order to force them to do so. https://cherwell.org/2019/10/27/extinction-rebellion-one-year-on/

October 28, 2019 Posted by | 2 WORLD, climate change | Leave a comment

For the climate’s sake, the $multibillion nuclear industry bailouts must stop

October 26, 2019 Posted by | business and costs, climate change, politics, USA | Leave a comment

Desertification and Drought – Sahara

October 26, 2019 Posted by | AFRICA, climate change | 1 Comment

No such thing as a zero- or close to zero-emission nuclear power plant.

David Lowry, Guardian 21st Oct 2019: in the analysis of MPs’ voting record on bills to combat climate change (Tories five times more likely than other MPs to vote against bills to tackle climate crisis, 12 October), both Jeremy Corbyn and Caroline Lucas are marked as 92% supportive on the basis they voted to
“keep nuclear power subsidies relatively low”.
This clearly implies that voting for higher nuclear subsidies would increase their score on lowering carbon emissions. Nadhim Zahawi, the business and  energy minister, compounded this view, telling parliament in a written statement on 17October: “Nuclear … will continue to play an important role as we transition to a carbon neutral economy.”
But it is a demonstrably false viewpoint. A recent assessment of greenhouse gas emissions from differing power generation technologies by Prof Mark Jacobson indicates that nuclear CO2 emissions are between 10 to 18 times greater than those from renewables.
In a newly completed chapter, Evaluation of Nuclear Power as a
Proposed Solution to Global Warming, Air Pollution, and Energy Security, in
his forthcoming book, 100% Clean, Renewable Energy and Storage for
Everything, Jacobson argues: “There is no such thing as a zero- or close to
zero-emission nuclear power plant. Even existing plants emit due to the
continuous mining and refining of uranium needed for the plant. Overall
emissions from new nuclear are 78 to 178g of CO2/kWH, not close to 0.”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/21/tory-boasts-on-climate-action-are-full-of-hot-air

October 24, 2019 Posted by | climate change, UK | Leave a comment

Climate change: Permafrost is now becoming a carbon emitter

October 24, 2019 Posted by | ARCTIC, climate change | Leave a comment

The “water footprint”of solar and wind power is far less than for coal and nuclear

October 24, 2019 Posted by | climate change, EUROPE, water | Leave a comment

David Attenborough says humans have made ‘tragic, desperate mess’ of planet

David Attenborough says humans have made ‘tragic, desperate mess’ of planet, Broadcaster urges people to look after natural world as he launches new series with conservation ‘at its heart’ , Independent UK, Chris Baynes 21 Oct 19, Humanity has made a “tragic, desperate mess” of the planet, Sir David Attenborough has said.

The veteran broadcaster urged people to “look after the natural world” and waste nothing, as he prepared for his latest series to air this week.

Seven Worlds, One Planet, breaks with the tradition of previous BBC Natural History Unit programmes by putting a conservation message “at its heart”, instead of being tagged on at the end of each episode.

The series, which has been four years in the making, features wildlife firsts and has already been bought by broadcasters around the world.

Producers took drones over “volcanoes, waterfalls, icebergs and underground into caves” to shoot heart-wrenching “animal dramas” in all seven continents, the BBC said.

Dramatic scenes include a lone, grey-headed albatross chick in Antarctica being blown off its nest as a result of increasingly intense storms in the region.

Speaking at the launch, Sir David, who presents the programme, said: “We are now universal, our influence is everywhere. We have it in our hands, and we made a tragic, desperate mess of it so far. But, at last, nations are coming together and recognising that we all live on the same planet … and we are dependent on it for every mouthful of food we eat and every breath of air we take.”

Asked what we can do to save the planet, Sir David, 93, said: “The best motto … is not to waste things.

“Don’t waste electricity, don’t waste paper, don’t waste food – live the way you want to live, but just don’t waste.”

The broadcaster added: “Look after the natural world, the animals in it and the plants in it too. This is their planet as well as ours. Don’t waste.”

The seven-part series will reveal “new species and behaviours,” producers said……..

Antarctica, North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia will feature over different episodes in the seven-part series.

Seven Worlds, One Planet begins on Sunday 27 October at 6.15pm on BBC One. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/david-attenborough-new-series-seven-worlds-one-planet-climate-change-a9161866.html?fbclid=IwAR1hZAJJwhms9zcQNCCcn-PP4-D3vAjhHLZxHL9lFGUTmL1I1IWN5q3u4KE

October 22, 2019 Posted by | climate change, media | Leave a comment

Jane Fonda arrested with Sam Waterston in climate change protest

Jane Fonda arrested with Sam Waterston in climate change protest, msn, 19 Oct 19Sophie Lewis, Jane Fonda was arrested again on Friday for protesting climate change in front of the U.S. Capitol. This time, she was joined by her “Grace and Frankie” costar Sam Waterston, who was also arrested.

“We can do this!” Waterston, 78, said during the protest. “We need something to push for that’s as big as the problem.”

“This is an ongoing action to draw attention and a sense of urgency to the climate crisis,” Fonda said before her arrest. “Make no mistake, change is coming, whether we like it or not. Change is coming by disaster, or change is coming by design.”

The actors were seen with zip ties around their wrists by police following a demonstration in Washington, D.C, in front of the Library of Congress.

“We can do this!” Waterston, 78, said during the protest. “We need something to push for that’s as big as the problem.”

“This is an ongoing action to draw attention and a sense of urgency to the climate crisis,” Fonda said before her arrest. “Make no mistake, change is coming, whether we like it or not. Change is coming by disaster, or change is coming by design.”

The actors were seen with zip ties around their wrists by police following a demonstration in Washington, D.C, in front of the Library of Congress. …… https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/world/jane-fonda-arrested-with-sam-waterston-in-climate-change-protest/ar-AAIZPb1?ocid=spartandhp

October 19, 2019 Posted by | climate change, USA | Leave a comment

Climate and nuclear threats join in Japan’s multibillion-dollar typhoon disaster.

October 15, 2019 Posted by | climate change, Japan | Leave a comment