This blog may help people explore some of the 'hidden' issues involved in certain media treatments of environmental and scientific issues. Using personal digital images, it's also intended to emphasise seasonal (and other) changes in natural history of the Swansea (South Wales) area. The material should help participants in field-based modules and people generally interested in the natural world. The views are wholly those of the author.
Sunday, 20 February 2022
Humanity Financing Its Own Extinction?
Finance experts estimate that the world's governments are annually spending circa $1.8tn on subsidies, that drive the destruction of wildlife and intensify global heating. Both, if they continue, could make this planet uninhabitable for humans (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/feb/17/world-spends-18tn-a-year-on-subsidies-that-harm-environment-study-finds-aoe). The subsidies are equivalent to 2% of global GDP. The experts based their figure on damaging subsidies for fossil fuel industries ($620bn); agriculture ($520bn); water ($320bn) and forestry ($155bn). They were unable to make an estimate for mining. This activity, however, is believed to cause billions of dollars of damage to ecosystems. Governmemts are currently rarely open to their populations about their subsidy targets. Explicit subsidies are,however, currently effectively countering both the Paris climate accord agreement, as well as draft targets, intended to reverse biodiversity loss. The subsidy specialists believe that most of the $1.8tn could easily be repurposed to limit both global heating and biodiversity loss.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Too Greedy To Change Course?
George Monbiot suggests an 'all-seeing eye' (a god?), looking at the Earth, might be intrigued to spot 'A species that knows it...
-
Garden plants in France, The Netherlands, The UK and Sikkim (NE India).
-
Common toadflax ( Linaria vulgaris ) contains a moderately toxic glucoside.
-
The UK's Deputy Prime Minister has been advising Brits on how to 'better prepare for future pandemics, disasters and cyber attacks&...
No comments:
Post a Comment