By Gideon Polya

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Stop greenhouse gas pollution!

Corporate polluters have not completely disempowered humanity. Thus 24 September 2011 is “Moving Planet Day” in which hundreds of thousands of people around the world will be demanding effective action against man-made climate change. A key sponsor is 350.org  which wants atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration to be no more than 350 parts per million (ppm).  300org, which demands that atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) be returned ASAP to 300 parts per million (ppm) from the current 394 ppm (increasing at 2.4 ppm per year), also endorses “Moving Planet Day”.

According to key sponsor 350.org: “On September 24, more than 150 countries are expected to take part in a global day events called “Moving Planet” dedicated to the goal of solving the climate crisis by ending the world’s dependence on fossil-fuel energy. From Pacific islands to European capitols, hundreds of thousands will join creative rallies to show that people around the world are ready for clean energy and climate solutions”.

All kinds of actions are possible and, by way oif example, here is  a great bit of news for this 24 September “Moving Planet Day” of climate change action backed by 350.org, 300org and others around the World: Germany’s upper house of parliament, the Bundesrat, has rejected a proposal to start storing the greenhouse gas (GHG) carbon dioxide (CO2) underground in a bid to reduce emissions (see “Germany rejects carbon dioxide storage plans”, The Local, 23 September 2011)

This has been a  great decision by Germany to prohibit as yet commercially unproven Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). The solution to greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution is to stop GENERATING GHGs, mainly carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and man-made GHGs such as hydrofluoro hydrocarbons (HFCs), nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6). This can be achieved by 100% renewable energy ASAP coupled with re-afforestation and  biochar production coupled with cessation of population increase, fossil fuel burning, deforestation and methanogenic livestock production (for an up to date, well referenced climate change course).

The need for REAL action on GHG pollution is acute, In 2009 the German Advisory Council on Climate Change (WBGU; Wissenshaftlicher Beirat der Bundesregierung Globale Umweltveränderungen) determined that for a 75% chance of avoiding a 2 degree C temperature rise (EU policy), the World must pollute less than a 600 Gt CO2 "global GHG pollution budget" between 2010 and essentially zero emissions in 2050.  Analysis of this country by country reveals that  at current rates of GHG pollution Germany has merely 5.9 years to cease all GHG pollution (i.e. no industry, transport, livestock etc) whereas climate criminal Apartheid Australia, a world leader in annual per capita GHG pollution and fossil fuel exports  has already used up its "fair share" of this terminal GHG pollution budget and is now stealing the entitlement of all other countries (e.g. Somalia and Bangladesh).

The World is running out of time to tackle man-made climate change and dishonest, ineffective approaches such as the CCS, ETS and "coal to gas transition" (gas is dirty and can be dirtier than coal GHG-wise) will simply delay requisite climate change action. Supported by 350.org (back to 350 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere ASAP) and 300org (back to 300 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere ASAP ), on September 24, more than 150 countries are expected to take part in a global day events called “Moving Planet” dedicated to the goal of solving the climate crisis by ending the world’s dependence on fossil-fuel energy.

Both Dr James Lovelock FRS (Gaia hypothesis) and Professor Kevin Anderson ( Director, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Manchester, UK) have recently estimated that only about 0.5 billion people will survive this century due to unaddressed, man-made global warming. Noting that the world population is expected to reach 9.5 billion by 2050 (UN Population Division) , these estimates translate to a climate genocide involving deaths of 10 billion people this century, this including roughly twice the present population of particular mainly non-European groups, specifically 6 billion under-5 year old infants, 3 billion Muslims in a terminal Muslim Holocaust, 2 billion Indians, 1.3 billion non-Arab Africans, 0.5 billion Bengalis, 0.3 billion Pakistanis and 0.3 billion Bangladeshis (for numerous expert opinions Google  “Climate genocide”).

What can decent people do? Decent folk who care for their children, their grandchildren and intergenerational equity must (a) inform everyone they can about the worsening climate emergency and (b) urge and apply sanctions against all those people, politicians, corporations and countries complicit in the worsening climate emergency.

We mostly live in the prevalent pseudo-democratic Murdochracies (Big Money buys truth and votes) and Lobbyocracies (Big Money buys politicians and policy). However decent folk can be empowered by a simple ABC protocol that has been highly successful in all kinds of other movements and which people can apply individually and collectively to tackling climate change:

(A) Accountability – hold corporations, countries, products, politicians and polluters accountable for increasing greenhouse gas pollution;

(B)  Badge  - wear a pro-Planet badge e.g.  bear witness with a “300 ppm CO2” badge to the need to reduce atmospheric CO2 to the level it had not exceeded in the 800,000 years prior to the Industrial Revolution; and

(C) Credo – transmit a simple, fundamental core statement e.g. “Return atmospheric CO2 to 300 ppm for a safe planet for all peoples and all species”