By the way, is the PES somehow preparing a common action with the US in tackling climate change (should Democrats win)?

However, I am a bit in doubt with respect to over-population. I recognize that it's a challenge, but what should we do about it? I would be interested to hear proposals for a solution. 

Désolé, d'avoir mis du temps à répondre. Je suis actuellement au Bénin et trouver une connexion n'est pas toujours évident.

 Je suis bien sur pour le dévellopement des énergies propres. En étant vigilant pour certaines. Pour les biocarburants j'essaye de mettre le texte que j'ai écrit à ce propos il y a peu. En résumé, je pense qu'ils peuvent être au mieux une petite aide. Au pire, en fonction de l'usage qu'on en fera, une menace. Une menace grave pour l'alimentation des pays pauvres et pour leurs milieux naturels. J'ai aussi des réserves sur l'hydrogène qui est une forme de stockage de l'énergie et pas une énergie disponible.

Par contre, je ne suis pas pour que la régulation se fasse par les prix car c'est les plus pauvres qui vont souffrir. L'augmentation des prix risques de provoquer des conflits.

Salut.

            Cependant, le meilleur rendement énergétique est obtenu avec les huiles brutes et de loin. Elles peuvent être ajoutées au gazole et diesel sans modification des moteurs. Par contre pour les remplacer il faudra changer les moteurs. Avec les huiles brutes, 1 litre de carburant consommé permet de produire plus de 3 litres de biocarburant, jusqu'à 5,5 litre pour l'huile de tournesol selon l’association facteur 3. Un hectare de culture de tournesol en culture biologique produit environ 600 litres d’huile brute. Avec un rendement de 5,5 pour un ça fait une demie tonne à l'hectare Comme on consomme annuellement en France environ 52Mt en carburants pour les transports d'après le ministère de l'industrie, il faudrait cultiver 104 millions ha en tournesol, or les terres agricoles représentent au total 30 millions ha. Donc pour obtenir 20 % d'agrocaburant dans les transports il faut utiliser près de 70 %des surfaces cultivées. Quelqu'un au ministère de l'agriculture a-t-il fait le calcul ?

Höga matpriser beror bara lite på biobränsleodling och bristen som det handlar om löses genom att öka produktionen, framför allt genom att bönder i Tredje världen äntligen få bättre betalt för sitt slit! Det finns en stor jordbrukspotential i delar av Afrika och Sydamerika.

Problemet är ju fortfarande att Europa drivit en politik för att slå ut och utarma jordbruk i Tredje världen, som i allmänhet är mycket mer klimatvänligt förutom att det är första fronten i kampen mot fattigdomen.

Däremot viktigt att inte subventionera eller på annat sätt skydda produktion av biobränslen som inte är klimatsmarta. Det ansvaret måste USA och Europa ta!

Och inga jordbruksprodukter ska produceras under vidriga arbetsförhållanden, men det gäller väl inte bara energigrödor utan också mat?

Faut-il encadrer les prix ou tout du moins les flcutuations ? Des salaires garantis aux producteurs devraient aussi limiter les spéculations... Mais au-delà des céréales, l'argent fait sur l'argent est un réel souci.

Je suis pour ma part partisante des systèmes de l'économie sociale, des coopératives de producteurs qui ont permis la structuration de l'agriculture notamment en France. Mais le monopole de la production entre les vendeurs de graine et les producteurs est un réel souci.

Dans "we feed the world", les logiques sont particulièrement bien présentées... le diagnostic est juste, il nous faut travailler les solutions.

Une proposition de ta part ?

We need to renew and revitalise Agenda 21, which aims to involve local communities to create change towards sustainable development.

It seems there are four areas of our lives that generate most of our overall impact on our environment - the food we at, our holidays, our transport and our homes.

We can start by switching to eating foods that are in season, turning off lights, or walking rather than driving.

The elephant in the room, is how do we influence behaviour of our fellow citizens and create the political spaces. We need to rethink our understanding of self-interest. Many of the important pleasures in life are being lost because of the negative aspects of our high speed, work dominated, materialistic life-style. Our affluent consumption has been compromised by its unpleasurable by-products – noise, pollution, danger, stress, health risks, excessive waste, and the aesthetic impact on the environment.

There are social movements that are influencing a change in this understanding, such as the Slow Food movement. It tries to preserve local food cultures, promote good living and the pleasure of eating, and challenge the power and influence of multinational food
producers.

I would like the PES to promote the introduction of healthy meals and sustainable, and where possible organic, foods into schools and hospitals, this would link in environmentally-friendly choices to public health.

Inspired by the Slow Food principles,the PES could be inspired to draft policies that mean the planning system can be used to ensure equitable access to fresh fruit and vegetables. To promote investment in organic agriculture and in developing sustainable rural economies. To promote food cooperatives which can provide good quality food at lower prices for people on low incomes.

Let's also tackle the debate on cutting carbon emissions on air travel. Many people say that if we tax carbon emissions on air travel, it will deprive the poorest of opportunity for a holiday abroad. In fact, at least in the UK, the poorest quarter of society took only 10 per cent of the flights in 2005. Maybe we could incentivise air companies to introduce good quality carbon offsetting on an opt-out basis. How does this compare to the rest of Europe?

I am sure that we as Europeans can do more when it comes to ecological initiatives, we can do better and we can do it as we promote economic growth. I want us all to strive towards a New Social and Ecological European Union. REACH is one way, but we also have to stimulate research and promote environmentally friendly technology within in European industries. I want a Pan-European initiative to reduce the air pollution due to transport of goods by road. What economical motivational instruments could help us pursue such a goal? Maybe an EU-sponsored extension plan for a European Union railroad along with tax legislation that cut costs for railroad freight goods in comparison to transport by road or by plane?

I am a firm believer in ceasing agricultural subsidies to EU-farmers and I wish that some of that money could be redistributed to an advanced research and investment program to promote a "Green EU".

Sincerely,

Jonas Ek, Västerås, Sweden

+46 70 232 95 00 

Trolley Buses have the advantage of requiring less infrastructure modifications, namely you don't have to dig up the roads to implement them, which makes them greener. And as there is less construction, there is less disturbance to communities.

Furthermore, as Trolley Buses can run on normal roads and if equipped with dual power - electric motor and diesel engine - they can run between rural communities where there isn't always the necessary power cables.

no problem, I will try to answer in english too.

What I mean is: it's a good idea to spend some money, but it's no good idea to think, now I've spent some money, so it's out of my responsibility. We should do more than this.

Of course, it's impossible to say "fly no more", but as you've already suggested, supporting the development of e.g. energy efficient flight technology is a good starting point.

Thank you for your post, it made me think! I fly a lot, really a lot. Not only for my job, but also for holiday - or for a weekend somewhere in another European city. I completely agree with your that it's 'too easy' to buy your way out of your polluting habits - 20 Euros to Atmosfair once in a while is just NOT good enough to compensate for a unsustainable lifestyle. But at the same time: What should we do? Fair air fares are, in my view, significant to global trade and to dialogue and meetings between cultures (meeting on the internet is nice, but it can never fully compensate for an IRL meeting, can it?). With relatively low prices people with low incomes also have the chance to travel, meet other cultures and experience the 'good sides' of globalization. From my point-of-view it's a dilemma. Maybe we should support more investment in research in flight technologies?? 

The new proposals for the congestion charge to be increased for those cars who pollute the most and reduced for those cars who pollute the least gives car drivers great influence over choosing to save money and pollute less or pay more to pollute more. When the congestion charge was introduced, 60% of London citizens were against and yet now London is the only major city in the world in which travel by public transport, cycling and walking has been growing more rapidly than car use.

But this does goes further, the money from the extra congestion charge will go into extra investment for public transport, particularly cycling, with a central London bike hire scheme with 6,000 bikes vailable every 300 metres and free to use for the first half hour and a network of new cycling corridors into central London, similar to that used to great success in Paris.

This shows that at a local level, there is a great opportunity for adapting other progressive city council's initiatives and approaches, particularly on transport and the environment.

I'm no lawyer, but how can we use the principle of subsidiarity to ensure this can be made even easier - i.e. that local initiatives can be scaled up to European policy without constraining flexibility, i.e. enabling policy to be adapted back to local contexts?

P.S. Porsche don't want their drivers to pay the CO2 charge and have decided to sue in the courts to stop it. Instead of trying to stop voters from deciding on this issue, they should produce cars with lower emissions. Stand up here to the polluters by joining Ken in telling Porsche withdraw their legal challenge.

http://compassyouth.blogspot.com/2008/03/red-green-coalition-citizens-united.html