Monday, September 22, 2008
Fired Up - By Wind
This weekend, we visited my hometown for the Fall Fair, which coincided with the Carbon "0" Missions conference at Mount Allison. I took in the keynote speaker, Lester Brown, founder of the Earth Policy Institute and author of Plan B 3.0, Mobilizing to Save Civilization. I have to admit, I was afraid his message would be doom and gloom, and he did start out by reiterating that the Greenland ice shields and Tibetan Plateau Glaciers are melting at a rate faster than anyone predicted and any of the models calculated. Should we lose these two glaciers, sea levels will rise by more than 26 feet, and the Ganges and Yellow Rivers of Asia will become seasonal, threatening the stability of the world's rice and wheat crops. It was Mr. Brown's feeling that not only would the millions of environmental refugees (i.e. the millions of us, myself included, who live within 26 feet of sea level, or my parents, who actually live BELOW sea level) create chaos, but widespread famine would cause our civilization to collapse. I have to say, despite the difficulty in comprehending the scale of this outcome, he's probably right. Look at history: all previously prosperous civilizations have fallen when they started to oursource their most important commodities: food production. Amid many other factors, this was the crux that destoyed the Roman Empire. As the mother of a 3 and 1 year old, this is a terrifying prospect.
But there is hope. Mr. Brown painted a picture of the future: oil companies, assuming that geologists are correct that we reached global peak oil in 2007 are now converting their resources to the development of huge wind farms in the central and midwestern US. Similarly with Singapore. His theory is that the green economy will fund change - with reductions in income tax and increases in "carbon tax". Our automobiles will be hybrid gasoline/electric (powered by wind), achieving up to 150 mpg. I have to say, this is fascinating, and the engineer in me tells me it might actually be feasible.
How do we make it happen? Political and social will. I have found, in recent years, that I am becoming more politically motivated. I have written and called my MP nearly monthly on issues that concern me. I have spoken with my municipal councillor on local issues, and I'm sifting through the federal platforms to make the choice that seems best for the future of my children. One thing that is painfully clear: the Conservative Party of Canada, as of today, is the ONLY MAJOR PARTY LACKING AN ENVIRONMENTAL PLATFORM. Shocking. Are Canadians ambivalent and apathetic? I have exchanged enough emails on this today with friends and colleagues to think not. Is the party so out of touch with Canadians that they haven't given a second thought as to what Canada might look like (substantially smaller, and Arctic sovereignty may be a moot point) by 2050? Though the other parties may be promising more than the country can economically pay for, don't we owe it to ourselves to try? Let's put Canada back on the world stage as a leader against climate change. It starts at home and can turn into a wonderful momentum of social change. Our kids deserve our efforts!
Just in case Lester Brown is right.
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