Jonathon Porritt yesterday called for "radical action to prevent a
climate catastrophe" and then endorses BP's hew scheme ["TargetNeutral"
see below].
Joined by other Green Luvlies Ed Mayo et al, JP endorses BP's scheme
into which motorists can now pay £20/year [to BP's 'charity'] for
motoring and consciences cleansed of emissions and impact. Jonathon's
comment is, this will make people 'carbon-literate' [sic].
As Eliza Doolittle said; "Words Words Words, I am so sick of Words!!"
It gets worse . . . then comes the clearest and crassest example of [is
it?] 'involuntary dishonesty' [I have no way of knowing] in the climate
change policy debate.
The new title of the "Stop Climate Chaos" lobby is [hold your breath . .
. .!] "I Count" [sic - Don't wet your pants] . . . If only that were true.
http://www.brandrepublic.com/bulletins/digital/article/588948/climate-change-campaign-drive-recruit-supporters/
It is 'carbon-numeracy' that is needed. "I count" should promise so much
but its authors have a history of delivering so little. The trouble is
that the opposite is true - they <don't count> and they <won't count>
i.e. emissions:concentrations build-up per unit time and the C&C rates
needed to avoid a climate catastrophe.
http://www.gci.org.uk/briefings/rising_risk.pdf
And it is precisely because the leadership of this campaign [Greenpeace
WWF etc al] <don't> count [and indeed refuse to numerate or to be
accountable about that], that the policy debate flounders from bad to
worse and the commercial sector goes deeper and deeper into dither and
drift [see FT below].
Read the history of this here: -
http://www.gci.org.uk/briefings/RSA_Occasional_Paper.pdf
The White Coats won't take the consequences of their insights, so the
government blesses the 'no-focus-groups' and public resources are
marshalled all over again again into creating the problem faster than we
even contemplate [let alone count] trying to solve it . . . . e.g. yet
more cut-price air-travel - you can just see Ryan Air offering to
fart-in-a-jar to reduce impact.
The climate camp should read the riot act . . .
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/08/349015.html
Pentcho, Walt - The crisis is immediate; it is not whether the speed of
light is constant or not, the crisis is our passivity in the face of the
collapse of common sense.
Aubrey
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BP Launches targetneutral^TM
UK's first mainstream scheme to "neutralise" the CO2 emissions caused by
driving
UK drivers can now neutralise the CO2 emissions caused by their driving
through targetneutral, a non-profit making partnership initiative from
BP that launches today.
Road transport accounts for 22 per cent of UK CO2 emissions. The
straight-forward scheme, available at www.targetneutral.com
<http://email.bpglobal.com/re?l=1hlqxsIezxzp2Ia>, enables all drivers to
take direct action to reduce their individual impact on climate change
by funding CO2 reductions generated from environmental projects.
www.targetneutral.com <http://email.bpglobal.com/re?l=1hlqxsIezxzp2Ib>
allows a driver to calculate the cost of the annual CO2 reduction
required to make their vehicle CO2 neutral. An average car, driven
10,000 miles in a year, generates approximately four tonnes of CO2. To
neutralise this amount of carbon emissions via www.targetneutral.com
<http://email.bpglobal.com/re?l=1hlqxsIezxzp2Ic> will cost around £20 a
year.
Four tonnes is the equivalent of filling a medium sized hot air balloon
with pure CO2. A huge amount of CO2 could be neutralised if all 40
million drivers in the UK signed up to targetneutral.
The scheme has been developed in consultation with leading NGOs and will
be advised and monitored by an independent Advisory and Assurance Panel
chaired by Jonathon Porritt, Founder Director of Forum for the Future
www.forumforthefuture.org.uk
<http://email.bpglobal.com/re?l=1hlqxsIezxzp2Id>. The Panel comprises
Professor David Begg, Chairman of Tube Lines; Rita Clifton, Chairman of
Interbrand; Steve Koonin, BP's Chief Scientist; Peter Mather, BP's Head
of Country, UK; Ed Mayo, CEO National Consumer Council; Charles Secrett,
Independent Advisor and former Director Friends of the Earth; Tim Smit,
CEO The Eden Project; Professor Kathy Sykes, Professor of Public
Engagement in Science & Engineering, Bristol University.
Peter Mather, BP's Head of Country, UK said: "targetneutral is a
practical and straightforward step that BP is taking to enable drivers
to help the environment. BP is taking the lead because our extensive
research shows that there is a huge consumer demand for such a scheme,
but a general feeling from customers that they 'don't know where to
start'. "
Jonathon Porritt, Founder Director, Forum for the Future and Chairman of
the targetneutral Advisory and Assurance Panel said: "The scientific
consensus on climate change is overwhelming: we need to take radical
action now if we are to avoid catastrophic consequences. We all have a
responsibility to take up that challenge in our own lives, at home, work
or as motorists. For this reason, Forum for the Future is very
supportive of what BP is doing through targetneutral. The scheme should
help raise awareness of the links between driving and climate change.
Helping everyone get more 'carbon literate' is something that all oil
companies will need to commit to in the very near future".
*It's simple to take direct action. Motorists need to:*
1. log on to www.targetneutral.com
<http://email.bpglobal.com/re?l=1hlqxsIezxzp2Ie>
2. follow a simple procedure that helps calculate the number of litres
of fuel used each year and the CO2 emissions generated
3. the www.targetneutral.com
<http://email.bpglobal.com/re?l=1hlqxsIezxzp2If> 'calculator' then
determines the financial contribution needed to buy the CO2 reduction to
neutralise these emissions.
4. in addition, by registering their Nectar card, they trigger a BP
contribution every time they use their card when buying fuel at a BP
forecourt
*The role of targetneutral in CO2 reduction*
targetneutral works best within the REDUCE, REPLACE, NEUTRALISE
framework. These are three practical steps that all motorists can take
to tackle their personal CO2 emissions.
REDUCE emissions as much as possible by changing attitudes and behaviour
to use less fuel and be more fuel efficient. This will save money too.
REPLACE the fuel, oil, tyres and car with more fuel efficient products
and models, specifically high efficiency diesel vehicles, when possible.
NEUTRALISE the effects of the CO2 emissions that cannot be reduced or
replaced by joining targetneutral.
*BP's role in targetneutral*
BP has initiated targetneutral, providing all set-up funding and will
meet all ongoing running costs.
All targetneutral members' money, apart from VAT and payment transaction
costs, buys CO2 emission reductions via the purchase of carbon credits.
BP takes nothing from the scheme members' contribution.
BP will make a direct contribution to targetneutral when motorists who
are signed up to the scheme register and use their Nectar Card when they
buy fuel at a BP forecourt.
The BP contribution is calculated per litre and is up to 10p per tank
for regular fuels and up to 20p per tank for lower CO2-emitting BP
Ultimate fuels. BP has 1 million customers per day in the UK.
*The projects*
The money generated by targetneutral goes to a portfolio of CO2
reduction projects including alternative and renewable energy. Replacing
traditional energy production methods with low CO2 emitting
alternatives, is one way CO2 reductions are achieved. Initially there
are five projects including a biomass energy plant in Himachal Pradesh;
a wind farm in Karnataka, India and an animal waste management and
methane capture program in Mexico. As targetneutral grows, more projects
will be added.
Strict procedures are followed to ensure the projects' integrity. These
are modelled on those created by the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change) for emissions reduction projects developed
under the Kyoto Protocol. All project activity is overseen by the
targetneutral Advisory and Assurance Panel.
For further information, please contact LAUNCH GROUP:
Electronic press kit available at:
www.launchgroup.co.uk/epk/targetneutral
<http://email.bpglobal.com/re?l=1hlqxsIezxzp2Ig>
Name: David Page
Phone: 020 7758 3907
Email: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Name: Oshy Phillips
Phone: 020 7758 3917
Email: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Name: Chris Seymour
Phone: 020 7758 3926
Email: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Name: Elodie Massol
Phone: 020 7758 3920
Email: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Name: Switchboard
Phone: 020 7758 3900
Climate-change policies 'confusing'
By Fiona Harvey
Published: July 31 2006 03:00 | Last updated: July 31 2006 03:00
Businesses are confused by the government's policies on climate change and
the lack of clarity is hampering investment decisions, a survey of FTSE
100 companies has found.
Sixty per cent of companies surveyed by Investec Asset Management said
government policy on the problem was not clear enough for them to make
important investment decisions. Among the FTSE 350, 53 per cent of
companies said government policy was not clear.
John Hildebrand, fund manager at Investec, said: "If companies don't know
what is happening [with government policy] then that creates problems.
There is no clarity, for example, on what will happen post-2012 [when the
current provisions of the Kyoto protocol expire]."
The main policy instrument used by the government to curb emissions is the
European Union's greenhouse gas emissions trading scheme, under which
energy-intensive companies are issued with tradeable permits for the
amount of carbon dioxide they can emit. The government indicated in a
recent energy review that it could extend emissions trading to other
companies but said the plans would not be set out until later this year.
Mr Hildebrand said some respondents to the survey severely criticised the
lack of indication as to the direction of the emissions trading scheme
beyond 2012. For instance, National Grid had said the short-term nature of
the emissions reduction targets under the scheme was "not consistent with
investment timescales".
However, in spite of the confusion over the government's policies, more
than nine in 10 companies said they regarded climate change as a
significant issue and seven in 10 were publicly reporting their emissions.
About seven in 10 also regarded the emissions trading scheme as a good way
of limiting emissions.
Fiona Harvey
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