Stepping into a low carbon world

15th November, 2009 8:54pmENVIRONMENT CHIEF SETS OUT VISION FOR LOW CARBON REVOLUTION WITHIN OUR LIFETIME

Lord Smith, head of the Environment Agency, speaking at the Environment 09 conference on November 9th & 10th, called for ‘more engineers’ and a ‘Climate Challenge Fund’ as part of the sort of measures that Britain must take in the next 20 years to achieve a dramatic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.


Lord Smith said that the Copenhagen Summit should be seen as “the crucial start to a process, not the end” and that it must achieve political agreement on cap and trade schemes across the world.

He urged Britain to lead a Green New Deal, creating more green jobs and technology to develop:

Carbon-free energy production – a mixture of renewables, nuclear and carbon-capture and storage (CCS) for coal and gas.
All cars, buses, lorries and trains running on electricity rather than petrol or diesel, supported by a recharging network.
High-speed rail links across the UK and into Europe, to reduce the need for air travel.
Minimal waste going to landfill, with emissions-free energy from waste in every area.
Work to reduce emissions for high CO2-emitting industries, such as steel.
High energy efficiency targets for all buildings and all major organisations.
Personal carbon allowances for individuals.

Lord Smith said:
“We have to be realistic about Copenhagen. It won’t solve all the issues. We have therefore to see it as the crucial start to a process, not the end. We need an agreement of principles and commitments that will at least give us a chance of beating the worst that climate change will bring.

Posted by Nick, under: EPIC-Lincolnshire News (Source: www.environment09.com)