This is my last post for Community Care, and I'd like to thank all readers, especially the few who have written interesting comments, and my employers at Community Care who have been so good to me.
Coal's in the news a bit recently. The G20 protests, some of which were about the lack of action to combat climate change, and the disgusting response from some of the police has put images of last year's Kingsnorth policing back on our screens. And then there is the pre-emptive policing of a proposed protest on Ratcliffe on Soar power station... another coal-burning electricity generator.
But this blog isn't about policing, however interesting that is. It's about Coal. Coal is fossilised plant remains from millions of years ago, and as such, is carbon which was sucked out of the atmosphere by those plants. When we mine coal, and burn it, that carbon is released right back into today's atmosphere. Whilst coal is underground, it is in an oxygen-free environment. When we dig it up, the methane (natural gas or 'firedamp') which is in the coal also gets into our atmosphere, and this gas is even more powerful than carbon dioxide for the global greenhouse. When the coal comes in contact with the air, reactions take place on the surfaces oxidising the carbon, so releasing carbon dioxide even before the coal is burnt, which of course releases ALL of the carbon it contains.
Supporters of he coal industry talk about 'carbon capture and storage', an experimental technology in it's early infancy. The theory might look good... take the carbon dioxide out of the gas leaving the chimney, pressurise it into liquid and pump this into empty gas fields, oil wells and aquifers... But large scale CCS is years if not decades away, and we really don't have that kind of time scale to continue trashing this planet. We have existing technology which would stem our carbon haemorrhage... insulation, switching things off, A-rated appliances, renewable generation... and I believe that some of the investment in CCS could (should) be spent on these proven technologies. I think that CCS does have it's part to play in a sustainable future, but I despair about disinvestment in renewables (for instance, what happened to Pelamis).
So, I want to invite you to participate in the Coal Caravan, a cycle trip from Nottingham to Blyth, starting on 24th April and finishing on 5th May, and taking in some of the biggest of the UK's coal mining communities. There's cycling during the day, and nature walks, visits to open cast coal mines, and then meetings with discussion or film showings in the evening. I hope to join them as they pass near to York, just for part of the day, to support the riders.
If some of you think that I'm being alarmist about climate change, then read what experts say in this website, 100 months. Some of the so-called' tipping points' seem to have already started... for instance there are disturbing reports of permafrost melting and raised methane levels in the arctic.... So, time is short. What are YOU doing to be a responsible ancestor?
There are two things which have led me to email my MP and ask him to support a motion (EDM 1082) which proposes the development of a Post Office Bank. Firstly, with many 'High Street' banks having financial difficulties and some having to be bailed out by the Government, it would make sense to have a bank entirely supported by the Government, with no shareholders looking for a profit. Secondly, Post Offices are still closing down partly as a result of decisions to increase the online or electronic transfer of pensions and other benefits.
I see Post Offices as an essential cornerstone of local communities, and their closure has meant that people who used to walk less than a mile to get to their local Post Office might now have to go by car. Their loss isn't just the Post Office facilities, but the other things the shop sells... newspapers, sweets, basic groceries (our local one sells milk, sugar, teabags, basic stationery and birthday cards etc). The weekly trip to the Post Office, for some, used to be an important part of their social lives, as some people living alone don't have a lot of human contact and their weekly pension collection is the contact they need to feel part of society. If a Post Office closes, other shops nearby might lose trade too, so putting them at risk.
The House of Commons Business and Enterprise Select Committee is conducting an inquiry into the future of the Post Office, and this includes suggestions about a Post Office Bank, able to offer cheques, credit/debit cards, overdrafts and other financial services. My MP, Hugh Bayley, suggested a number of other possible services (after consulting with sub postmasters and the City of York Council) including allowing branches to process some other financial products such as council tax and rent payments, insurance etc, and issuing things like bus passes. Some Post Offices could have internet terminals to allow access to services currently being promoted as easily accessible on the web, like TV licences and car tax. Many people still don't have domestic access to the 'net and access at a post office might be one way of keeping the local offices open. Hugh Bayley also suggested a Post Office Travel Agency... something I'm less keen on, but my suggestion would be being able to link with the local Credit Union so payments could be made easily, instead of the current arangement (in York at least) of the CU having a room in the Council Treasury Building twice a week. And, of course the main (perceived) reason that Post Office use has declined, being able to issue pensions and benefits.
So, I look forward to hearing more about the future of the Post Office, and to knowing that their future is assured. I will also make more use of the Write to Them website, as it enables you to contact your MP, MEP, local councillor and other representatives very easily. I also pledge to use my local Post Office more often, to play my part in it's continued success.
Earlier this week I took the train up to Middlesborough to do some filming wih the BBC, for the programme 'Inside Out' which has local editions for the different regions. I'd been asked to go and help a radio presenter, John Foster, start a week of living on a pound a day. This was inspired by a book by Kath Kelly called How I Lived a Year On Just a Pound A Day.
I attended a York in Transition meeting last night, the first Solar Panel Buyers Club. I was planning to extol the benefits of bulk buying this type of hot water system, but news this Monday morning from another airport protest means that some of this post will be discussing that too.
Regular readers will remember that a year ago I managed to secure an appointment at The Maudsley Hospital to find out if my unusual spectrum of behaviours meant that I had ADHD. I had self-diagnosed up to 10 years previously after friends kept on mentioning it to me and I'd seen some livlely 'labelled' kids when working as Professor Fiddlesticks, whose demeanour reminded me of my own childhood. However, at that assessment, I was told that I may have had ADHD as a child but didn't have it now... but might be on the Autistic Spectrum, such as Aspergers Syndrome with hyperactivity. This was a shock, as although I'd recognised I had some Aspergery traits, I had never considered that I might actually be Autistic!
This week, 16th to 22nd September, is European Mobility Week and on Monday 22nd, many areas will have a Car Free Day, aka 'In Town Without My Car' which is co-ordinated by the Department for Transport, funnily enough. But why do I think that's odd? Thinking about it, this Government department is as aware as anyone is that we have too many cars on the road, emitting far too much pollution, killing and injuring too many people, and that these issues add up to a big problem. So they are right to be in the forefront of trying to encourage us to use a different mode of transport. Car Free Day is not just about using a different mode of transport, it's asking the question, what we actually want to use our streets for? Are they all just for the fastest throughput of traffic, or should at least some of them be spaces where we can socialise, enjoy art or street performance, shop or have some peace and quiet? Want to find your local Car Free Day? Try this funky website from the European Mobility Week.
I am very pleased to see Community Care magazine discussing the increasing costs for social workers of driving their car, and advocating alternatives (Running on Empty, p. 14, 10th July) and using my column ('Walk this Way', p. 34) on walking and cycling the same week. Transport is a big part of our carbon footprint and if we can reduce car use and replace with public transport, bike or even occasionally work from home and teleconference that all helps reduce the fossil fuels used and the pollution we are responsible for.
However, there is sometimes a need to carry items which wouldn't initially seem to be easily taken by bike, but these days there are many ways to shift bulky stuff by bike. I have a pair of Ortlieb panniers called 'Back-Roller Plus' which are waterproof and hold my laptop or childrens' rucsacks with ease. These attach to my rear rack, which can also be used to strap things onto... I use elastic 'bungees' which can be sourced at motoring or cycling shops. On my travels I often find bungees which have not been adequately fixed onto the vehicle and they've fallen off.... I pick them up and reuse them. My tip for not losing them is to put them on carefully and when you've cycled for 10 minutes or so, just check them. Sometimes things settle once you've got going and the bungees need to be re-fixed more tightly so they don't fall off... to be found by another re-user!
For bigger bulkier items including small people and pets, there are trailers. There are so many makes and styles of trailer... and mine was built specially for me to enable me to carry my circus equipment around, so as 'Professor Fiddlesticks' I can travel around by bike with full circus party stuff in tow... But a good make is a BOB Yak as it only has one wheel and is quite narrow to get down the lines of traffic jams! But Google 'bike trailers' and be amazed by the different sorts, or visit your local retailer and ask them what they have available.
What this planet and its supportive ecosystems need is for people in developed countries to change their current consumerist fossil-fuel-hungry ways and move swiftly towards a low carbon economy. But many people need a trigger to initiate that change and take action. People also easily find arguments to not take any action or just small easy ones.
One of the arguments I hear most often against the West cutting their own carbon emissions is the growth of emissions in China and other developing countries. But about a third of China's emissions are directly attributable to exports... so these should really be counted as the importer's emissions. To see the size of these exports and where they are going to, I suggest using the services of Worldmapper, who produce distorted and morphed world maps based on many different variables. For example, look at World toy exports, and you'll see that China and the Far East are by far the biggest producers. Then flick to toy imports, and Noth America and Europe are the biggest consumers. If we consumers want to help cut global carbon emissions, we need to buy less stuff overall, and especially imported stuff which has it's own shipping and airfreight footprints.
I find these maps fascinating, as it gives us a whole new perspective on the world. One of my early triggers which changed my life for the greener was travelling around Zimbabwe in 1990. I saw the inequalities first hand; the poverty, pollution, misgovenance, differing values about human life, and other hugely positive differences such as generosity, the importance of celebration and music, creativity and much more. Travelling to a developing country might be one way of understanding some of the problems the World has, but it has it's downside too, mainly air travel, so my second best bet is to watch documentaries, read books and magazines and visit websites.
Most people think that there are too many cars on the road, including many drivers, who, as drivers, are part of the problem. So are there any solutions? Well public transport, road tolls, home working and supermarket deliveries may all be part of a solution, but there is another way in which the number of cars could be (slightly) reduced. This is the car-club/car sharing concept.
