Reading “For every living creature” (Mark Dowd, 13 June) and “Hostile climate” (Michael Sean Winters, 13 June) brings to mind, but not necessarily in chronological order, a number of recent events.
Firstly the G7 meeting in Germany made it an objective to end the use of hydrocarbon fuels by the end of this century, which forms a sharp contrast with the urgency demanded elsewhere. The UK plans to phase out our remaining coal-fired power stations (21 Gigawatts, GW) by 2030, whilst China and India currently have almost 300 GW in construction with both Germany and Poland also building new units.
So, is burning coal really that bad? The US has switched from coal to shale-gas (Methane) and has reduced CO2 emissions to 1993 levels, and some 30% below the trend line of 1998. The NGOs who want to reduce CO2 levels oppose the use of shale-gas! Methane is the most energy-rich of all the hydrocarbons, and according to the astronomers, “abundant in our solar system”. It is the raw material for low-cost firm energy and underpins the food supply for the poorest. It is a brilliant halfway house, if decarbonisation is the plan.
Regarding the hungry, the BBC documentary “GM food – cultivating fear”, shown on the 8 June, presented an unflattering picture of the role of NGOs in their opposition to this now well established technology. Anne Glover, former UK Scientific Adviser to the EU, almost suggested that they told lies.
This is of double concern not just in regard to food security but also bearing in mind how much impact they have on the deliberations of the IPCC. The photograph of Pope Francis blessing a sample of Golden Rice which appeared shortly after his installation was never widely circulated. The growing prosperity of so many of the poorest is being built upon the vastly improved food supply that has come from the green revolution.
Also on the 8th June a new group who call themselves the “Ecomodernists” became known in the UK. This organisation of 18 prominent greens recognises that it would be a folly to try and wind the clock back on technology. It is in getting wealthier that we are able to afford the best care of our environment.
On 5 June the upgraded Large Hadron Collider went back into business, with the objective of finding what the majority of our universe is made from. So called dark-matter makes up 85 per cent of the mass. Given that the G7 seem to have given the hydrocarbons 85 years to be replaced, it is perhaps not too optimistic to imagine that we may find something better?
Dr Michael Hughes, Newbury
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