Britain risks falling behind in the race for clean energy

Big business is right to be concerned about the chancellor’s equivocal strategy

Walney offshore windfarm, 10 miles west of Cumbria in the Irish Sea . Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

As the coalition prepares to introduce its energy bill into Parliament in the next few weeks, it must demonstrate political leadership and ensure that its policy is based on robust economic analysis, recognising and addressing failures of the market.

The most obvious market failure is created by the fact that, without policy, the price of products and services that involve emissions of greenhouse gases does not reflect the costs of damage caused by climate change.

A strong and stable carbon price corrects this market failure and helps to produce a level playing field on which new low-carbon technologies, such as wind, solar and carbon capture and storage, can compete against fossil fuels. However, it is not the only market failure that holds back these new technologies.

A failure arises as well from the inability of capital markets to manage the risks associated with investments in new technologies properly.

And other failures are associated with the limitations of networks, particularly concerning public transport and grids. Most consumers and many firms do not yet fully understand the technological opportunities that are available.

At a time when the public finances are under strain, it would be better to deal with these market failures through the tax system to disincentivise high-carbon activities or even regulate against them.

But it takes time to design and implement such policies and delaying action is dangerous because it can lock in high-carbon infrastructure, such as fossil fuel power stations with unabated greenhouse gas emissions.

So, in the meantime, while these market failures are inadequately tackled and there is not yet a strong and stable carbon price, low-carbon technologies need government assistance through direct subsidies.

These subsidies should be reduced and eliminated as the costs of development and deployment fall over time, as carbon markets become stronger and as other market failures are tackled.

But it is crucial that the reductions in subsidies for low-carbon energy are carried out according to a predictable rule-based system. Sudden and unexpected cuts undermine the confidence of the private sector and hold back badly needed investment in the UK power sector.

Those who argue against subsidies for low-carbon technologies are implicitly adopting an anti-market approach. Those who want markets to be harnessed to deliver greater prosperity and wellbeing, on the other hand, recognise a role for public policy in ensuring that markets can do their job in providing incentives and promoting entrepreneurship.

Removing subsidies for low-carbon technologies too quickly and erratically would undermine efforts to reduce the UK’s emissions of greenhouse gases in an efficient and effective way and delay progress towards our ultimate target of a cut of at least 80% by 2050 compared with 1990.

Such delay would risk relegating the UK to also-rans in the global low-carbon race and could mean that we are shut out of the developing markets for cleaner goods and services.

But most dangerous of all, delay would mean higher concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and huge risks across the world from climate change.

The coalition must demonstrate leadership through its energy and climate policies, supporting creativity and innovation in the power sector, and boosting the UK’s prospects for sustainable economic growth.

Anything less would damage the prospects of future prosperity and wellbeing, for us, our children and future generations.

Author: Nicholas Stern – The Observer
Source: The Guardian
Original: http://goo.gl/Zj7uD

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Plan to build UK’s first building entirely out of waste

Grand Designs’ model ecohouse to be rebuilt in Brighton city centre using local construction and industrial waste

The UK’s first building to be made onsite entirely out of waste is to be built in Brighton this autumn.

Designed by Brighton-based architect Duncan Baker-Brown, it will be built on the University of Brighton’s campus in the city centre from waste and surplus material from local building sites and other local industries.

The walls will be made of waste timber products. Ply “cassettes” containing waste material will be slotted in between the timber structure. These cassettes will be removable so that new building technologies can be added easily.

The design team will set up a production line near the Grand Parade site so that students, apprentices, local builders and school children can get involved with the making of the structure.

“There is a huge pile of construction waste that’s building up in this country and to ignore is quite frankly sinful,” said Baker-Brown, co-founder of BBM Sustainable Design and a senior lecturer at the arts faculty. “Through this project we are going to show that there is no such thing as waste.”

The building will feature the latest eco technologies such as fully integrated solar panels, whole-house ventilation and a heat recovery system. It will be used throughout its lifespan as a pilot for prototype construction systems, components and technologies.

Once completed, it will contain an exhibition and workshop space for use by local community groups. Upstairs will be the university’s headquarters for sustainable design.

The building is known as The house that Kevin built and is named after Europe’s first prefabricated house made entirely out of waste and organic material, also designed by Baker-Brown. It was built in 2008 in London and was filmed by Channel Four for Grand Designs live with Kevin McCloud as the presenter.

Work on the new building will begin onsite in November and should be completed by May 2013, with McCloud at the opening.

Link to this video

Author: Flemmich Webb
Source: The Guardian
Original: http://goo.gl/FRJVV

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Blackfriars station, the world’s largest solar bridge – big picture

The new Blackfriars station, which is being built on a bridge spanning the River Thames, is on its way to becoming the world’s largest solar bridge after Solarcentury begun the installation of over 4,400 solar photovoltaic panels

The solar panels will generate an estimated 900,000kWh of electricity every year, providing 50% of the station’s energy and reducing CO2 emissions by an estimated 511 tonnes per year. In addition to solar panels, other energy saving measures at the new station will include rain harvesting systems and sun pipes for natural lighting. Photograph: Ralph Hodgson/Solar Century
Ralph Hodgson

Source: The Guardian
Original: http://goo.gl/fJ8Ww

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UK carbon targets ‘at risk over local authority funding cuts’

Committee on Climate Change has called for local authorities to have national funding to cut carbon emissions

The Committee on Climate Change, the statutory body set up to advise ministers on how to meet the government’s carbon targets, called for local authorities to be ordered do develop and implement plans to cut carbon emissions. Photograph: Chris Radburn/PA

Funding cuts to squeezed local authorities are putting the UK’s carbon targets at risk, the government’s climate advisers warned in a report published on Thursday.

The Committee on Climate Change, the statutory body set up to advise ministers on how to meet the government’s carbon targets, called for local authorities to be ordered do develop and implement plans to cut carbon emissions, with national funding to do so.

Prof Julia King, a member of the committee, told the Guardian that local authorities’ climate change initiatives had been badly affected by austerity measures, with climate efforts often one of the first services to go during budget cuts.

But she said: “Local authorities have the potential to significantly impact the UK’s scale and speed of emissions reductions. There is a wealth of good work being done already at local and regional levels, but many opportunities remain untapped. It is essential that these opportunities are delivered if we are to meet our national carbon targets.”

Placing such a statutory duty on councils would ensure that the UK could meet its national carbon targets, and lead to a wide range of new schemes that could also benefit local residents. For instance, energy efficiency would be the cheapest way to cut emissions, and programmes to improve insulation and cut energy use could help to lift people out of fuel poverty.

But without adequate funding, it may be impossible for councils to put such plans in place. King said: “Local authorities need to show leadership and recognise their wider role in supporting local emissions reductions, [but] the government needs to strengthen incentives for action by providing national funding where required.”

Andy Atkins, Friends of the Earth’s executive director, welcomed the report: “This is a stark warning the government can’t afford to ignore – UK climate targets won’t be met unless ministers ensure every council plays its part in slashing emissions, and has the funds to do so. The government has failed to support local action on climate change – and only a few council leaders are currently championing action on the scale required.”

Plugging the leaks in Britain’s draughty homes will be one of the most important ways in which local authorities could cut carbon, according to the report. The government’s “green deal”, which has come under fire from within government as well as outside experts, is supposed to provide the financial incentives for insulation, but local authorities have the power to supplement the scheme with their own initiatives, such as improvements to social housing.

But local authorities can make a substantial difference over a range of areas, the report found – buildings, surface transport and waste make up 40% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions, and if the right actions are taken, these emissions could be cut by 30% from 1990 levels.

Some of the other key ways in which local councils can cut emissions and improve the lives of residents include improvements to public transport and other sustainable travel options such as cycle routes and making pedestrian routes more accessible, as well as developing advanced recycling programmes and giving planning permission to local renewable energy projects. All of these steps can create jobs and improve the quality of life, and some can cut energy bills both for households and the council.

Other options councils should look into, according to the report, include better town planning, in order to make towns and cities more “liveable”, for instance by ensuring that amenities such as schools, hospitals and commercial services such as shops and banks are near enough to where people live, to reduce car journeys.

Plans to generate energy from waste should also be considered, the committee said – this could include decomposing food waste into biogas, and incinerating the residue of waste left over from recycling to generate electricity and heat.

District heating schemes – for instance, using waste heat from power stations – could also be a key part of local low-carbon strategies, the report found. To date, few such schemes have got off the ground, in part because of a lack of coordination and incentives, and because some potential schemes may fall between different local authorities to implement. Better cooperation among local organisations will be a key factor in realising low-carbon strategies, the report said.

Author: Fiona Harvey
Source: The Guardian
Original: http://goo.gl/8eWQL

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Autarcas de Kent não se entendem sobre primeiro depósito nuclear no Reino Unido

Os dois reactores da central de Dungeness preparam-se para ser desactivados. (Foto: Toby Melville/Reuters)

Os ânimos estão exaltados na cidade de Romney Marsh, em Kent, por causa de uma proposta que começou a ser debatida para aí ser criado o primeiro depósito nuclear do Reino Unido. Para uns autarcas é uma oportunidade económica, para outros um plano “horrível”.

O Governo britânico está à procura de comunidades voluntárias que queiram albergar o futuro depósito subterrâneo que vai armazenar todos os resíduos radioactivos do país. As autoridades de Shepway avançaram com a proposta da cidade de Romney Marsh, para aí ser construído um complexo a uma profundidade entre os 200 e os 1000 metros. Estes autarcas pretendem assim criar emprego, contrariando a perda de 1000 postos de trabalho, agora que os dois reactores nucleares de Dungeness, na região, se preparam para ser desactivados, em 2018 ou 2023.

A consulta pública está a decorrer até 20 de Julho e Shepway garantiu que não irá apresentar nenhuma proposta oficial e definitiva ao Governo antes de ouvir os moradores. “Achamos que os habitantes devem ter a oportunidade de decidir se vale a pena levar esta ideia adiante”, disse David Godfrey, conselheiro de Shepway, à BBC. “Não estamos a dizer que Romney Marsh deve ter um depósito nuclear. Apenas estamos a perguntar às pessoas se querem avaliar essa possibilidade. Se disserem que não, não se fala mais nisso”, comentou nesta sexta-feira ao jornal The Guardian.

O conselho regional de Kent já disse que vai usar todas as suas ferramentas para se opor ao depósito nuclear, noticia a BBC. “Somos totalmente contra o início de qualquer processo que sequer refira a possibilidade de construir um depósito nuclear em Kent”, disse Paul Carter, do conselho regional. “Não tenho dúvidas de que os moradores de Kent partilham o meu horror e estou completamente empenhado em garantir que sejam ouvidos.” Ao jornal The Guardian, Paul Carter disse que o local escolhido para a construção do depósito subterrâneo situa-se numa zona sensível do ponto de vista sísmico e está perto de uma das mais frequentadas rotas de navios do mundo.

O Governo britânico, através do seu Departamento de Energia e Alterações Climáticas, quer escolher um local para guardar no subsolo os resíduos nucleares produzidos nas suas centrais, numa altura em que pretende avançar para a construção de um novo parque de reactores que forneçam electricidade ao país sem emissões de dióxido de carbono. Para isso está a convidar as comunidades a descobrirem mais sobre o projecto e a expressarem interesse, sem qualquer compromisso. O único local, para além de Kent, que está a debater a questão é a região de Cumbria.

Autor: Helena Geraldes
Fonte: Ecosfera – Público
Original: http://bit.ly/JscR2p

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Air pollution is killing Londoners and Boris is ignoring it, warns Jenny Jones

Green candidate says mayor is ‘burying problem’ by using suppressant vehicles to glue particles near monitoring stations

Jenny Jones, the Green mayoral candidate for London, has accused mainstream political parties of lacking the political courage to tackle air pollution – despite strong evidence that it represents a major public health risk.

Jones issued a broadside against the political mainstream as she battles to get London’s poor air quality a hearing at mayoral hustings between now and polling day, amid evidence that a problem invisible to the naked eye is now the second biggest public health risk in Britain after smoking, and is linked to around one in five deaths a year in London.

Jones sought to push the environmental agenda at city hall when she served as deputy mayor to Ken Livingstone between 2003-2004. She is urging supporters to give the Labour candidate their second preference vote in the election.

In her view Livingstone “did ignore” the problem until his second mayoral term, when he introduced the low emission zone, but she reserves her strongest criticisms for the incumbent Conservative mayor Boris Johnson, who she says “has been absolutely ignoring all the evidence” despite a report landing on his desk mid-term in his tenure that revealed 4,300 Londoners were dying prematurely because of pollution, with an average 11.5 years taken off their lives.

Jones has repeatedly criticised the incumbent mayor over his use of pollution suppressant vehicles near air quality monitoring stations to deal with the problem in the run up to the 2012 Olympic Games. The trucks spray adhesive to the road surface, effectively glueing pollution to the ground. Jones said this only serves to lower the pollution measured, rather than tackling the actual problem.

She added: “He’s burying the problem and pretending it doesn’t exist. How does he square that with his role as mayor, trying to protect Londoners and make their lives better. He’s actually making their lives worse.”

Other air quality campaigners have gone further, with Birkett describing the move as “public health fraud on an industrial scale”.

Jones has outlined some of the radical measures needed to reduce harmful pollutants by cutting traffic and getting people out of their cars. This includes raising the congestion charge from £10 to £15, slapping a £40 daily charge on “gas guzzlers”, an ultra-low emission zone in central London and replacing the central congestion charge zone with a region-wide road pricing scheme after three years.

Jones, whose pledges sometimes raise eyebrows at hustings, says the Greens are not prepared to shy away from radical policies that may be seen as “politically toxic” but are the only way to clean up the problem.

“Either politicians are not recognising how serious the problem is, or they are choosing not to see it, but you can’t argue against it. The facts are there.”

She added: “Greens are not frightened to tackle politically toxic things if they feel they are important.”

Airborne pollution in the form of fine particulate matter – such as PM2.5, particles of less than 2.5 micrometres – comes mostly from combustion sources, including transport, domestic and industrial sources, and aggravates respiratory and cardiovascular conditions.

Research shows these PM2.5s are likely to be inhaled deep into the respiratory tract and with other forms of air pollution can reduce the lung capacity of children. Air quality in the capital is the worst in the UK and also ranks among the worst in Europe, with research suggesting that up to 50,000 people die early in the UK every year as a result of air pollution.

Transport for London, which Johnson chairs, insists that trials in London and abroad have shown the effectiveness of dust suppressants in reducing particulate matter (PM10) levels .

Leon Daniels, the managing director of surface transport at TfL, said: “Transport for London has always been clear that the use of dust suppressants across London is in combination with other measures to reduce harmful PM10 levels at a range of locations where we know there are higher levels of this pollutant. This is in addition to a range of longer terms, sustainable measures aiming to reduce pollution levels at source across the capital.”

Britain is still facing fines of up to £300m over a repeated failure to meet key EU air quality directives since 2005, when Labour was in government and Livingstone was installed at city hall. Under the coalition government, however, there is little sign that concerted action os planned. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs recently claimed that the costs of meeting EU pollution targets may not match the benefits.

But Jones warns politicians need to introduce the radical measures needed amid signs that the problem is worsening. Last month, pollution in London hit record levels due to a mix of weather conditions and traffic fumes, in particular from diesel cars, vans and lorries.

Jones says part of the problem is that the public don’t realise the scale of the public health risks attached.

“It’s not like the smog of the 1950s that was really tangible. Now, the air looks quite clean but actually it’s not, but people aren’t seeing it. Though if you go to a high building, you can see an orange haze across the horizon and that’s the pollution.”

The Green party has made a six minute film to highlight the threat to people’s health from poor air quality, drawing on the expertise of air quality expert, Professor Frank Kelly, of King’s College London, and Simon Birkett, founder for the Campaign for Clean Air in London.

Jones believes if parents understand the damage to public health, the public will be more willing to accept that a change in behaviour is necessary.

Research by the Campaign for Clean Air in London has found that 1,148 schools in London are within 150 metres of roads carrying 10,000 or more vehicles per day, putting children going to these schools, and living near them, at increased risk of developing asthma, and their parents of developing heart problems.

The Green mayoral candidate, who polled just 2% in the latest survey of voting intention on May 3, wants more Green party members to be elected to the London assembly to pressure the next elected mayor to show political leadership on the issue. Jones, currently one of two Green assembly members, will also defend her assembly seat in May.

She says that one of the measures that needs to be considered by the next elected mayor is simply to close roads from traffic, but admits it is tough getting the message across.

“That’s why it’s incredibly important to have a strong assembly team because then we can speak much more loudly and get the mayor, even if it’s not me, to do the right thing.”

Jones is taking part in an event organised by eco-activist group Climate Rush on Thursday evening in protest at the capital’s dirty air.

The event will begin outside the offices of Defra and protesters will then take over a road, calling it London’s “first true clean air zone”, and holding a picnic and street party.

Author: Hélène Mulholland
Source: The Guardian
Original: http://bit.ly/I6Kr1y

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New UK attempt to capture carbon

The aim of carbon capture is to is to prevent CO2 escaping into the atmosphere

A renewed attempt to develop ways of making power stations greener has been unveiled by the UK government.

For the second time in five years, £1bn will be offered for schemes to trap and bury carbon dioxide.

An earlier competition collapsed after all nine entrants pulled out, most citing cost as the main problem.

The last to withdraw was a project run by Scottish Power at its Longannet station in Fife, and the prize money was not awarded.

Known as “carbon capture and storage” (CCS), the idea is to prevent CO2 escaping into the atmosphere.

A major part of the government’s low-carbon strategy, CCS has been plagued by delays and uncertainty.

Launching the renewed competition and a roadmap towards commercialising CCS, Ed Davey, Energy and Climate Change Secretary, said the industry could be worth £6.5bn a year to the economy by the late 2020s.

“What we are looking to achieve, in partnership with industry, is a new world-leading CCS industry, rather than just simply projects in isolation,” he said.

“The potential rewards from carbon capture and storage are immense: a technology that can de-carbonise coal and gas-fired power stations and large industrial emitters, allowing them to play a crucial part in the UK’s low carbon future.”

Its attraction is that existing fossil fuels including coal and gas can be burned without releasing the usual quantities of CO2, the key greenhouse gas.

Instead of being vented into the air, the gas would be trapped and then piped into long-term storage in old oil fields under the North Sea.

The concept divides environmentalists. Some argue that it makes sense to find cleaner ways of using fossil fuels, while others fear it gives coal and gas another lease of life, which would be counterproductive in the long-term campaign against climate change.

The original hope was for British firms to design systems that could be fitted to the soaring numbers of coal plants in China and India to reduce their emissions.

However, the research has proved costlier and more complicated than many expected, and the timescale keeps slipping.

Tom Greatrex, Labour’s Shadow Energy Minister, said in a statement: “The UK has the potential to be a world leader in this vital low-carbon technology, and therefore the launch of the roadmap and competition are welcome.

“But there are still important questions that the government failed to answer today. The commercialisation programme contained no detail about the impact of Danny Alexander’s raid on the £1bn CCS budget last year. Investors need to know exactly how much money will be available, and when.”

Revised rules

Only last month, the National Audit Office criticised the government for taking “too long to get to grips” with the commercial and technical risks involved.

Now, ministers are hoping that by revising the rules for the competition they will have a better chance of attracting more interest.

In the last contest, entries were originally limited to designs that could only be used at power stations burning coal, not gas.

And the rules also only allowed systems that trapped carbon dioxide after the fuel was burned – so-called “post-combustion”.

By contrast, the new competition will be open to coal and gas stations, and to schemes that attempt to capture carbon before combustion.

As one official put it to me: “Lessons have been learned and we’re not closing our eyes to what industry is suggesting.”

A three-month consultation opens with selected projects expected to be running by 2016-2020.

But, as with the last competition, a key factor will be viability. Although many of the technologies have been proven at a small scale, no industrial-scale project has yet been tested.

Prof Jim Watson of the UK Energy Research Centre welcomed the new competition but warned of the uncertainties that lie ahead.

“We still don’t know when these technologies will be technically proven at full scale, and whether their costs will be competitive with other low-carbon options.

“These questions need answering urgently,” he said.

A further concern is price. With the precise designs still to be settled, estimates for future running costs are uncertain, including the price of emitting carbon and the size of low-carbon subsidy.

The question of costs was raised by the union Prospect, which welcomed the decision but called for more clarity about financing.

The union’s Head of Research, Sue Ferns, said that to ensure the success of CCS, it “must be integrated with electricity market reform.

“Market uncertainty remains a key barrier to investment across energy industries.”

And she warned against seeking to reduce the costs too prematurely before the systems were proven.

“Government is understandably keen to reduce the costs of CCS deployment, but the first priority must be to make sure it works effectively on a commercial scale,” she said.

The announcement comes amid uncertainty about the government’s energy policy, after RWE and e.ON pulled out of a major project for new nuclear power stations last week.

The policy has four key strands: new nuclear stations, a huge expansion of renewables like wind, efficiency measures to cut energy use and reducing emissions from coal and gas by using carbon capture and storage.

So the new announcement marks another important effort to revive a potentially crucial technology that has faltered so far.

The government’s CCS roadmap

– ‘CCS Commercialisation Programme’ provides £1bn in competitive capital funding
– Intended to support the design and construction of practical systems
– Projects must be in UK and operational by 2016-2020; CO2 storage to be sited offshore
– Ministers hope to spur industrial expertise that can be sold abroad
– £125m for R&D, including a new £13m UK CCS Research Centre

Author: David Shukman – Science editor
Source: BBC News
Original: http://bbc.in/Ha8SvW

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Boris Johnson, gluing pollution to the ground is no way to clean up London

Climate Rush’s message to Boris Johnson this morning, written in soot on the pavement in his street

The mayor believes in spraying adhesive to the worst pollution hotspots to catch exhaust fumes. But emissions should be tackled at source

London’s air is so toxic that it has been linked to nearly one in five deaths a year. Responsibility for the capital’s air quality lies at the door of Boris Johnson, who has responded with shocking languor to this public health emergency. The mayor’s flagship solution is to literally glue the pollution to the ground.

His specially adapted gritting lorries have been haunting our highways for the past few months, spraying adhesive up and down our worst pollution hotspots and sticking exhaust fumes to the asphalt. Rather than tackling the problem at its source, by tampering and gluing around air pollution monitors Johnson’s aim is to avoid a £300m EU fine for failing to comply with air quality standards.

The image of gluing pollution to the roads was too ridiculous for our campaign group, Climate Rush, to resist. Is this really Boris’s policy? Really? The Campaign for Clean Air in London last night posted proof of the so-called “Pollution Suppressor” rolling past an air quality monitor on Marylebone Road.

We decided to use the same technique on Boris Johnson’s street. It wasn’t hard to find soot – we scraped grime caked to the sides of roads near Bethnal Green’s Museum of Childhood, Great Ormond Street Hospital and the Charles Dickens primary school in Southwark. Early this morning we arrived in Islington with a stencil, spray glue and our bag of soot and got to work “preventing dust particles from becoming airborne”, as the Transport for London press release puts it.

It’s an issue all Londoners should be concerned about. Children and babies in pushchairs are especially vulnerable to air pollution, being closer to the exhaust pipes of polluting vehicles. Dirty air has been linked to up to 30% of childhood asthma cases, a terrifying statistic considering that in London more than a thousand schools are within 150 meters of congested roads. Air pollution is more than a public health epidemic: black soot of the kind glued outside Boris’s house contributes up to 30% of global climate change emissions.

Perhaps in future the mayor of London, be it Johnson or not, could better protect our children’s lungs by targeting the causes of air pollution, not just the air monitoring sites.

We say: implement a Berlin-style low emission zone for the most polluted areas of London, resulting in fewer vehicles and improved air quality. Reduce car traffic by giving commuters fair fares instead of pricing them off public transport with yearly price hikes. Invest in safer cycling infrastructure and tackle the culture of traffic violence – only then will the masses brave their bicycles.

At Climate Rush we’ve held our breath too long waiting for real solutions. On 19 April join our Spring Clean demonstration to create London’s first clean air zone. Boris needs to know that gluing pollution to the roads is not a solution. Tackling emissions at their source is.

• Siobhan Grimes and Alice Haworth-Booth are campaigners with environmental action group Climate Rush

Source: The Guardian
Original: http://bit.ly/I8RLp2

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Britânicos proibidos de usar mangueira, apesar do regresso da chuva e da neve

Depois de uma semana excepcionalmente quente, ontem o frio abateu-se sobre o Reino Unido, com neve a cair no Norte. (Foto: Scott Campbell/AFP)

As nuvens voltaram e até trouxeram neve. Mas os ingleses não se livram da proibição, a partir de amanhã, de usar mangueiras para regar jardins, lavar os carros e encher piscinas.

Depois de dois Invernos com muito pouca chuva, sete empresas britânicas de abastecimento de água tiveram de impor a interdição do uso de mangueiras, como uma das medidas para poupar água agora, de modo a tê-la no Verão. A partir de amanhã, quem for apanhado a violar esta norma incorre numa multa que pode chegar a 1000 libras esterlinas (cerca de 1200 euros).

A interdição abrange sobretudo as zonas Sul e Sudeste do Reino Unido, que mais têm sofrido com a deficiente precipitação. Na região de East Anglia, desde 1921 que nunca choveu tão pouco nos seis meses entre Setembro e Fevereiro como agora.

Em Março, a situação não se alterou muito. O relatório mais recente da Agência Ambiental britânica indica que, até à semana passada, dois terços dos rios monitorizados na Inglaterra e País de Gales estavam com um nível “excepcionalmente baixo”. Pelo menos três pontos de amostragem de água subterrânea mostravam níveis “baixos” e a maior parte dos reservatórios à superfície encontrava-se abaixo da média.

O tempo entretanto mudou. Depois de uma semana excepcionalmente quente, ontem o frio abateu-se sobre o Reino Unido, com neve a cair no Norte, em especial na Escócia. A previsão é de tempo nublado nos próximos dias, com chuva forte no Norte, porém mais fraca no Sul.

Mas a chuva vem tarde. O Reino Unido já experimentara um Inverno seco em 2011, com pouca recarga das suas reservas de água. Após um segundo Inverno com pouca precipitação, a Agência Ambiental estimava, numa avaliação feita há um mês, que seria necessário “chuva muito acima da média em Março e Abril para garantir uma recuperação total” da situação. Março falhou a meta. Resta agora Abril.

As autoridades britânicas estão a apostar num cenário pouco desfavorável. Segundo a Agência Ambiental, não é provável que os aquíferos subterrâneos sejam recarregados significativamente nos próximos meses. “Estamos por isso a antecipar uma seca severa na Primavera e Verão de 2012”, conclui a agência.

Até ao fim do Verão

As empresas de abastecimento de água parecem estar de acordo. Na passada segunda-feira, a South East Water – que abastece 2,1 milhões de consumidores nas áreas de Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire e Berkshire – admitiu, num comunicado, que “se a situação não melhorar significativamente” será preciso “introduzir restrições ainda mais amplas” do que a proibição do uso de mangueiras. Outras empresas falam em manter a proibição das mangueiras até ao fim do Verão.

As restrições no abastecimento colocam a situação do Reino Unido um degrau acima na escala de gravidade, em relação a outros países europeus que também passaram por um Inverno seco.

De Dezembro a Fevereiro, a Península Ibérica e o Sul de França foram as regiões onde menos choveu em relação ao normal, segundo o Global Precipitation Climatology Centre – um centro de dados de precipitação, operado pela agência alemã de meteorologia, sob os auspícios da Organização Mundial de Meteorologia (ver infografia).

Mas nem todos vêm de um ano anterior seco. Portugal, por exemplo, teve um Inverno chuvoso em 2011 e a seca deste ano apanhou as barragens ainda razoavelmente cheias.

Autor: Ricardo Garcia
Fonte: Ecosfera – Público
Original: http://bit.ly/Hgd9z9

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Os 10 países mais verdes do mundo em 2012

Ranking realizado pelas Universidades americanas de Columbia e Yale, o Environmental Performance Index (EPI) lista as regiões com o melhor desempenho ambiental em 22 indicadores entre 132 países avaliados

Desempenho exemplar

Quais são os países do mundo que cuidam bem de seu meio ambiente e que fazem uso sustentável de seus recursos naturais, garantindo a vitalidade dos ecossistemas além de saúde e bem estar para a população? A resposta está no Environmental Performance Index (EPI), ranking elaborado por uma equipe de especialistas das universidades americanas de Yale e de Columbia.

Em sua mais recente edição, o ranking de desempenho ambiental classificou 132 países utilizando 22 indicadores distribuídos por 10 categorias: critérios de saúde ambiental; poluição do ar; recursos de água; biodiversidade e habitat; recursos naturais; florestas; alterações climáticas, entre outros. E cada categoria possui pesos diferentes. Confira nos slides a seguir, os 10 países mais verdes do mundo em 2012

1 – Suíça (76.69 pontos)

(Fotografia: Wilimedia Commons)

População: 7,825,243
Área: 41,271 km²
PIB per capita: $ 37,441

O empenho em reduzir progressivamente o uso de combustíveis fósseis e nuclear, por meio de uma política nacional sólida, coloca a Suíça na liderança do ranking de Yale. Recordista mundial em usinas geotérmicas, cuja energia é quase totalmente vertida para aquecer casas, escritórios, hotéis e estufas durante os meses de inverno, o país se destaca nos quesitos emissão de dióxido de carbono, qualidade do ar e políticas ambientais.

Há 20 anos, a Suíça foi um dos primeiros países da Europa a exigir o uso de catalisador e o controle do gás de escapamento dos carros. Também vale menção a invejável pontuação (98,1) no quesito conservação da biodiversidade e proteção de habitats naturais. Em geral, os suíços são adeptos fervorosos da mobilidade sustentável, principalmente da bicicleta. Ao menos 10 ciclovias nacionais cortam o país de ponta a ponta. Lá, taxas para serviços de água e gestão de resíduos, bem como impostos ambientais que promovam a responsabilidade social são comuns.

2 – Letônia (70.37 pontos)

(Fotografia: Wilimedia Commons)

População: 2,242,916
Área: 64,385 km²
PIB per capita: $12,938

Um lugar de beleza natural quase intocada pela civilização. A frase um tanto quando piegas se aplica bem à paisagem letã. Muitos turistas e especialistas em meio ambiente costumam dizer que o país inteiro é um parque natural enorme. A vitalidade de seus ecossistemas e a proteção às florestas, que ocupam 44% do território, lhe rendem pontuações altas no EPI.

Mesmo as áreas dedicadas ao cultivo agrícola e à criação de gado são cuidadosamente delimitadas e tendem a seguir as práticas mais sustentáveis. Dados oficiais indicam que o uso de pesticidas caiu 12 vezes desde 1990 e que, atualmente, pelo menos 200 fazendas adotam práticas ecológicas, que dispensam agrotóxicos e outros produtos químicos industrializados, usando apenas compostos naturais. A redução de emissões é uma meta importante para o país, que desde 1990 reduziu a poluição por fontes fixas (fábricas, casas e caldeiras) em 46%.

3 – Noruega (69.92 pontos)

(Fotografia: Wilimedia Commons)

População: 4,885,240
Área: 325,602 km²
PIB per capita: $46,926

Terceira colocada no ranking de países mais verdes, a Noruega pretende se tornar carbono neutra até 2030, ou seja, todas as suas emissões devem ser compensadas. Pelo menos 2/3 delas serão reduzidas com ações ambientais internas e para dar conta do restante as autoridades norueguesas financiarão projetos sustentáveis em países em desenvolvimento, como geração de bioenergia e proteção de florestas.

Uma meta ambiciosa para uma nação que é ao mesmo tempo progressista sobre as alterações climáticas – com impostos sobre combustíveis fósseis e uma matriz energética dominada pela hidroeletricidade – mas também emissora por causa de suas exportações volumosas de óleo e gás natural. Felizmente, o que não falta é potencial e tecnologia para cumprir o objetivo. Em 2009, a Noruega inaugurou a primeira estrada com rede integrada de postos de abastecimento a hidrogênio em todo o mundo. Na avaliação do EPI, o país leva nota máxima no quesito saúde ambiental e na conservação de suas reservas naturais.

4 – Luxemburgo (69.2 pontos)

(Fotografia: Creative Commons / Eoghan OLionnain)

População: 505,831
Área: 2,592 km²
PIB per capita: $71,161

A presença deste pequeno país europeu no ranking das nações mais verdes justifica-se por seu empenho, mesmo em tempos de crise econômica, em garantir um crescimento “verde” e sustentável. Em 2009, Luxemburgo adotou programas de incentivo à população para compra de carros ecológicos e eletrodomésticos mais eficientes em energia.

Antes, entre 2001 e 2008, o país investiu mais de 70 milhões de euros na expansão do setor de energia solar fotovoltaica. Luxemburgo também leva pontuação máxima em saúde ambiental e proteção à biodiversidade e habitats naturais.

5 – Costa Rica (69.03 pontos)

(Fotografia: Wikimedia Commons)

População: 4,658,887
Área: 51,452 km²
PIB per capita: $10,258

Fortemente empenhado em seguir o exemplo dos seus antecessores na lista do EPI, o governo costa-riquenho estabeleceu a meta de tornar a região carbono neutra até 2021. Esse pequeno país da América Central sofreu com o desmatamento durante anos, mas agora um dos seus principais objetivos é reflorestar as regiões devastadas.

Nos últimos anos, mais de cinco milhões de árvores foram replantadas. Cerca de 50% da superfície total do país encontra-se coberta de bosques e selvas e 25% do território encontra-se protegido. Os investimentos em energias alternativas e índices inéditos de recuperação da mata nativa fazem da Costa Rica referência mundial. Com esse desempenho ambiental o país tem conseguido apoio internacional e financiamento para programas de Redd (Redução das Emissões por Desmatamento e Degradação).

6 – França (69.03 pontos)

(Fotografia: Wikimedia Commons)

População: 64,876,618
Área: 549,096 km²
PIB per capita: $29,647

No país de Sarkozy, a bandeira verde é hasteada principalmente por uma política agressiva de eficiência energética, que prevê a redução das emissões de gases efeito estufa em 20% até 2020 além da expansão da matriz de fontes renováveis para 25% no mesmo período. O que não será fácil, já que a França é um dos mais dependentes de energia nuclear do mundo. Cerca de 75% de toda eletricidade vem de usinas atômicas.

No EPI, a França apresentou bom desempenho em saúde ambiental, indicador que avalia a interação entre a natureza, a saúde humana e o desenvolvimento. Segundo um estudo do Proforest e do Imazon, a França também se destaca por ser um dos países que mais protegem suas florestas, com um programa forte de recuperação ambiental. Par se ter uma ideia, a área florestal total passou de 14,5 milhões de hectares em 1990 para 16 milhões de hectares em 2010, o que corresponde a 29% do território do país. O mais recente projeto verde francês de repercussão mundial é o programa de aluguel de carros elétricos Autolib, inaugurado no final de 2011 em Paris.

7 – Áustria (68.92 pontos)
(Fotografia: Wikimedia Commons)

População: 8,384,745
Área: 83,879 km²
PIB per capita: $35,266

Não é de se espantar a presença da Áustria entre os países mais verdes do mundo. Além de arquitetura, história e muita música, ela oferece à sua população e aos visitantes uma natureza incrível e, principalmente, bem conservada.

Atravessado pelo Rio Danúbio, este país montanhoso da Europa Central é destino recorrente dos amantes de esportes de inverno que têm nos Alpes seu ponto de encontro. Uma curiosidade: o país possui um programa que estimula a população a cultivar jardins com plantas e flores locais em suas casas.

8 – Itália (68.9 pontos)
(Fotografia: Wikimedia Commons)

População: 60,483,521
Área: 300,906 km²
PIB per capita: $26,753

Em ritmo de preservação, a Itália tornou-se o primeiro país da Europa a banir as sacolas de polietileno. A proibição nacional começou a valer em janeiro de 2011. Desde então, as lojas italianas, que utilizavam 20 bilhões de sacolas por ano (o maior índice europeu), só podem oferecer sacos de papel, pano ou de materiais biodegradáveis.

Palco recente de uma tragédia com riscos ambientais graves (de um possível vazamento de óleo do Costa Concordia), a Itália ocupa o nono lugar do ranking EPI. Diante do naufrágio do cruzeiro em uma ilha paradisíaca de rico ecossistema, o governo italiano resolveu enrijecer as regras de navegação na costa e limitar a aproximação de grandes embarcações da costa.

9 – Reino Unido (68.82)
(Fotografia: Wikimedia Commons)

População: 62,218,761
Área: 244,840 km²
PIB per capita: $32,187

Depois da Eco-92, no Rio de Janeiro, e da segunda Conferência Ministerial para a Proteção das Florestas na Europa, ocorrida em 1993, o governo adotou uma política para promover o uso sustentável das florestas com o objetivo de implementar o manejo sustentável e assegurar uma expansão constante da cobertura florestal.

Nos últimos anos, o Reino Unido vem oferecendo generosos incentivos para o desenvolvimento de tecnologias ambientais, que vão do tratamento de água à reciclagem, a fim de atender às rígidas metas nacionais e da União Europeia para redução de emissões. Entre o G8, o país é líder no combate às mudanças climáticas.

10 – Suécia (68.82 pontos)
(Fotografia: Wikimedia Commons)

População: 9,379,116
Área: 443,016 km²
PIB per capita: $33,686

O esforço em adotar fontes alternativas de energia é um dos pontos que garantiu a presença da Suécia entre os dez primeiros colocados do ranking. Há cidades, como Borás, que praticamente são livres de lixo porque reciclam a maior parte dos resíduos sólidos gerados pela população transformando-os em energia. A produção de bioenergia abastece casas, estabelecimentos comerciais e até mesmo frotas de ônibus, que integram o sistema de transporte público.

Mas essa geração limpa não nasceu de forma espontânea, ela foi implementada para atender uma rigorosa legislação que proíbe a existência de aterros sanitários nos países da União Europeia. A Suécia foi também um dos primeiros países onde as leis de conservação da floresta entraram em vigor, em 1886. Essas leis estipulavam que áreas desmatadas deveriam ser reflorestadas. Atualmente, a cobertura florestal corresponde a 69% do território do país.

Autor: Vanessa Barbosa
Fonte: Exame
Original: http://bit.ly/xKHq34

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