Memorandum submitted by Mr Geoffrey Jarvis,
Baldernock Community Council (CRED 11)
Our Community Council of Baldernock, a rural/commuting
area of about 250 houses, seven miles north of Glasgow, is very
aware of the need to take steps to try to halt Climate Change.
On two evenings in January, we are to launch a community wide
effort to reduce our carbon footprint. We will show Al Gore's
film, now on DVD, in the village hall followed by discussions,
attended by a post graduate student from Salford University, who
has volunteered his services to analyse our situation over an
eight month period with a team of local helpers. Thereafter we
hope to implement the resulting plan of action. We are aware that
other communities are doing similar exercises, such as at Ashton
Hayes in Cheshire, with DEFRA support, and Riverside in Stirling.
The observations we put to the Parliamentary
Committee are:
— Our community is fortunate in
having the gratuitous advice of this student as part of his course.
There are 1,200 such communities in Scotland, and many more in
the UK. What hope is there for them getting such assistance? Should
this type of exercise not be funded or organised through central
government? Although Local Authorities are to be involved in Scotland,
following the launch on 16 January of "Scotland's Climate
Change Declaration", it is doubtful if they will have enough
spare financial and human resources to "encourage and work
with others in our local communities to take action... etc"—to
quote from that Declaration.
— We believe that we are at war
with Climate Change, which is a more dangerous enemy than Nazi
Germany ever was. Then the country was mobilized with a total
war effort. We see little evidence that the government is giving
such a wholehearted lead, today.
— How can we persuade good people
to reduce using carbon fuels when, for example, the government
is encouraging the construction and enlargement of airports?
— Again using WW2 as an analogy,
there should be an all party War Cabinet that will lead, support
and help to fund all technical means of arresting climate change.
All other Ministries should be subservient to it and not do anything
to prejudice its efforts.
— How can we the public, be expected
to make significant sacrifices if we think the government is being
ambivalent about its intentions.
— The government must lead and
not prevaricate. The Stern Report calls for action now. Carbon
rationing, not carbon trading or carbon offsetting, should be
instituted. There is no time to lose.
— We ask that different technical
solutions are evaluated before large sums are expended by way
of grants, such as to wind farms. There are many advocates trying
to promote their products. The public needs expert guidance also
on preferred domestic products and methods.
Mr Geoffrey Jarvis
Baldernock Community Council
January 2007
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