Ben James

Colleagues on active travel and what is necessary to substitute for car trips. Key thoughts? There needs to be policy STICKS for cars alongside carrots for active travel. There needs to be travel reduction and destination shifting to reduce the number of car-dependent trips in people's lives. There needs to be multi-modality (ability to use bikes/e-bikes/e-cargo bikes/scooters with/on buses and trains, for example). There needs to be better storage infrastructure and bike paths.

2

This was the vision of our 2021 XPRIZE Carbon Removal project that was rejected by XPRIZE in 2022...

1

2 Comments

Today's autumn Budget certainly wasn't a 'green' budget. But UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves nonetheless outlined the governments commitment to clean energy announcing £125mn in the 2025-26 financial year for public energy company Great British Energy. Carbon capture, green hydrogen and decarbonising home heating also got mentions. Big polluters will see tax increases with a rise to the Energy Profits Levy for North Sea oil and gas and a 50% increase to Air Passenger Duty for private jets (with time for a quick joke at the former PM's expense ...) Meanwhile, nature and biodiversity were hardly mentioned in the final text. You can read my analysis on Sustainable Views.

29

New maps show how the climate is changing in each UK constituency. You can look up the climate changes for your own constituency and see how they compare to the local actions promised in election leaflets coming through your door. https://lnkd.in/eArS__5i

5

And the UK's largest emitters are... Ember's latest annual review of sources of emissions lists Drax as the largest single source of CO2 in the UK. Ember's analysis says that by "Emitting 11.5 million tonnes (Mt) of CO2 in 2023, Drax is by far the largest single CO2 emitter in the UK, responsible for the equivalent of 2.9% of total UK territorial emissions." Ember adds that "Although it is the recipient of public funding earmarked for low-carbon projects, Drax remains the largest single source of CO2 in the country." Drax is followed by various heavy industrial plants, refineries and works plus airlines - see graph and list below. On Drax’s claims that its burning of imported wood pellets is sustainable and carbon neutral, Ember states: “Carbon savings not guaranteed from burning biomass” and that: “Serious concerns remain about the overall emissions of using biomass for power generation. The EU and UK emissions trading schemes (ETS) do not require wood-burning power plants to report their emissions, assuming the emissions are offset by forest regrowth. However, direct emissions are reported by Drax itself. This assumption provides biomass power plants in the UK with a sustainability classification meaning that they are eligible for public subsidies, even though the carbon savings are in doubt. From 2002 to 2023, Drax has received £6.5 billion in public funding. “Unfortunately, the assumed carbon savings from biomass is far from guaranteed. There is a mounting body of evidence and expert opinion that this assumption is critically flawed and must be overturned. The European Academies Sciences Advisory Council states that using woody biomass for power “is not effective in mitigating climate change and may even increase the risk of dangerous climate change”. Furthermore, BBC investigations have shown examples of rare old growth forests being cut down and turned into wood pellets, increasing the potential ecological harm inflicted. It is therefore likely that burning biomass to generate power is failing to deliver any carbon savings and is in fact a contributor to climate change. Continuing to subsidise this practice is a very risky gamble that comes at a high cost to consumers.” Port Talbot Steelworks, Pembroke Gas, Scunthorpe Iron and Steel, Ratcliffe Coal, Staythorpe, Esso Petroleum, Pembroke Refinery, West Burton B, Stanlow Refinery, Immingham, Humber Refinery, Ryanair, Grain, Saltend, Didcot B, Easy Jet UK, EP SHB, Seabank, Keady, Spalding, Lindsey Oil Refinery, Carrington, Marchwood, Hope Cement, British Airways, Little Barford, Enfield, Cottam Centre, Connahs Quay. https://lnkd.in/epw63dMw

3

1 Comment

How do we ensure that whichever party gets the keys to No.10, that the new Parliament contains a majority of MPs who will deliver serious climate and nature action? We have no time for any more ill-committed, lily-livered faffing about. Well, Zero Hour have been preparing for this very moment, with a plan that's ready to go. A science-led law called the Climate and Nature Bill. If you haven't come across it yet the Bill is the ONLY proposed legislation before the UK Parliament that ensures a comprehensive and joined-up approach to the climate emergency and nature crisis. ⚡ Over 25% of Westminster candidates are already backing the Bill. And Zero Hour are making it easy for US ALL TO HELP get as many MP's as possible on board by 4 July. They've created 650 constituency action pages, so that wherever you live, your future MP knows that they have a powerful mandate to back the Bill. I clicked through to my constituency page and the Green Party MP (!) is the only one who's backed it so far. It's a Tory stronghold, but this time there is a strong possibility that the Lib Dems will take the seat 🤞🤞🤞 (voting Labour here is a lost vote). But I'm letting ALL the contenders regardless of party to know that I want them to back the bill. Takes a minute. Click through and then share. This is our chance. Let's do this. Thank you Zero Hour https://lnkd.in/g6mZMtQe #climateaction #zerohour #climateandnaturebill #thetimeisnow

7

Here is another post on climate change, this time focusing on carbon sequestration. I acknowledge that I have not written a blog post on climate change for a while. This is a small extract from the white paper I presented to climate scientists in Europe last year, which I have adapted into this blog. One reason I started the Protect Planet Foundation is to focus on areas of climate change where we can work on preventing its acceleration. Carbon sequestration is one such area where I have been dedicating time and research. I have been exploring how we can use gene editing to modify plants and viral vectors to deliver these changes. This will be one of our patents as well in the future. Now you know why I have been learning genetics for some time. Have a read of this blog, and I am sure you will find it valuable if you are new to carbon sequestration technology. Yes, I am a transhumanist, but I am also a climate change activist. I want to ensure that we all work towards protecting the very planet we love and call home, our planet Earth. https://lnkd.in/gBWxcdSu

3

Big news: The UK has cut carbon pollution by over half (52%!) since 1990! 🎉 But here's the catch: that’s only half the story. These reductions only account for our ‘territorial’ emissions—the carbon pollution released within the UK’s borders. This is the primary metric the UK (and many other countries) uses to track progress towards Net Zero. What’s missing? ❌ International flights and shipping ❌ Emissions from producing goods and services the UK imports Why does this matter? By importing more goods and producing less locally, we are essentially exporting our carbon pollution abroad. 🌍 There’s another metric that tells the full story: ‘consumption’ emissions, which includes imported goods, and international aviation & shipping. 💡 'Consumption' emissions = the UK's true carbon footprint. So, how are we doing on that front? Unfortunately, it’s less impressive. Between 1990 and 2021, we've reduced these emissions by only about 25%—far short of what the climate crisis demands. Why is this important? While reporting territorial emissions is vital, we need to create greater awareness and push for more reporting on the real measure of our carbon footprint. Otherwise, it would be a bit like saying to businesses that it's fine for them to just report their Scope 1 & 2 emissions, and to ignore their Scope 3! Want to learn more about these metrics? Check out the Office for National Statistics. (Link in the comments)

85

15 Comments

Are there any groups out there focused on businesses and organisations actually delivering circular economy or regenerative products or services? There seems to be lots of chatter but a shortage of groups linking organisations who are taking action. Input welcome!

8

3 Comments

A very clever interface for incentivising composting Well done MakeSoil for showing four metrics at once. I like round numbers, and sense that my next ‘drop off’ is going to take me up to 20kg of GHG emissions prevented. That 19.9kg just bugs me! Then it’ll be wanting to round up the food scraps diverted from landfill to say 30kg, at which point I’ll also celebrate 3kg of new soil made. 27 drop-offs in the space of a month looks intense, but some of these are just one apple core, or tea leaves from one cup of tea. The lovely thing about composting indoors is that you can put small amounts straight into the soil, and bypass that middle stage of storing them in a container till there’s a big batch. How do we scale this mentality, I wonder? The double, triple, quadruple handling is such a waste of time and energy. 🌱🌱🌱 Blue Borage: here to optimise composting systems to ensure handmade compost is something anyone can learn, even without a garden. 🌱🌱🌱

22

3 Comments

What actually is Biodiversity Net Gain? And why is it so important? At Gaia we have built the UK's largest natural exchange for BNG Units. Today I try to explain in a little more detail what this scheme is about. #BNG #biodiversity #biodiversitynetgain

37

2 Comments

NEW - I've got hold of the figures showing how much money the UK government has been using to fund nature protection in developing countries. The UK has a target of spending £3bn of its climate finance over a five-year period on nature and forests. It will have to provide 1.7bn of this over the next two years. The Labour government has said it is committed to supporting climate & nature action in developing countries, including the wider government target of £11.6bn climate finance. However, so far it has failed to re-commit to the £3bn goal set by the Conservatives. Labour ministers have made much of the “fiscal constraints” they are facing in office. Years of cuts to the foreign aid budget under the Conservatives have placed the UK’s climate finance targets under significant pressure. The pressure on the UK government is bound to ramp up in the coming weeks, as it prepares for the COP29 climate summit, where all countries have to agree on a new global climate finance target. The UK will also face scrutiny at the COP16 biodiversity summit, where finance will also be on the table. https://lnkd.in/eVzqQmZ4 #climate #climatefinance #cop29

9

Labour’s recent £1bn commitment has put Carbon Capture in the headlines - which is a pretty wide topic. Let’s dive in. 🏊‍♂️ In principle, future-facing investment into new climate technologies should 100% be welcomed… but it depends on what signal it sends to industry and the economy about what the UK thinks is important. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) offers an interim solution for tackling the carbon emissions of essential but hard-to-abate industries like steel production, concrete, biogenic CO2 sources from ethanol and biogas production, and treating water and food waste. Because of a lack of action, CCS has a place in today’s economy helping dirty, but essential industries, become as close to carbon neutral as possible. But given Labour's focus on long-term growth, investment should be about creating the UK economy of the future — not keeping the status quo and locking our economy into enduring reliance on fossil fuels. This will take bold action and long-term thinking. For instance, the UK has an opportunity to be the dominant global force in offshore wind, build a future-proofed grid, and super-charge carbon-negative technologies such as DAC to return carbon atoms from the atmosphere to the geological formations they originally came from. I’d love to see more on these fronts. Before you jump me - let’s state the obvious: we also need to insulate homes, rewild our environment and maximise biodiversity. Everyone should eventually have a heat pump and drive electric cars. There is no silver bullet to climate change. Announcements like this must not be used as an excuse for the energy sector to delay the adoption of available decarbonisation technologies, despite the challenges they may present. We risk the latter if investment and policy focuses on singular solutions that do not force our industry and economy to evolve for the better - never mind that it’s the right thing to do for our kids. Just sayin’ https://lnkd.in/eMvfp9Ez Mission Zero Technologies #dac #pointsource #decarbonisation #labour #carbon #uk #billion #climate #climatechange #CarbonCapture #ClimatePolicy #Sustainability #NetZero #DirectAirCapture #LabourConference2024

58

3 Comments

🚨 Attention Scottish Farmers and Crofters! 🌾 As the deadline for the Single Application Form rapidly approaches on May 15, it's crucial to prioritise completing your submissions. With nearly 11,000 applications already filed, the momentum is strong but many are still pending. This form is your key to accessing vital schemes like the Basic Payment and Less Favoured Area Support Scheme, injecting over £500 million annually into our agriculture. Why Act Now? Avoid Penalties: Late submissions can lead to penalties. Ensure your forms are submitted by the deadline to take full advantage of the available support without any deductions. Crucial Support: As Jonnie Hall from NFU Scotland highlighted, these payments are "critically important to the viability of most Scottish farming and crofting businesses." Additional Support Available: The Scottish Government is providing extended IT support over the weekend of May 11-12, and up to the deadline, to assist with any technical issues 📞 0300 244 6202 or email [email protected] 👉 Act Now: Ensure your application is not only started but completed and properly submitted. Remember, amendments can still be made without penalty until May 31. Let's not wait until the last minute. Secure the support that sustains our farms and shapes the future of Scottish agriculture. Read more about the key priorities addressed to First Minister John Swinney to back Scottish agriculture hashtag#ScottishFarming hashtag#Agriculture hashtag#FarmingSupport hashtag#DeadlineAlert hashtag#NFUScotland

1

📢 UK's Rooftop Revolution and Decentralised Energy 📢   The Labour government's decision to aggressively push forward with the installation of three massive solar farms in east England should be a welcome move for the UK. The 'rooftop revolution', as the Energy Secretary Ed Miliband called it, should (ideally) see millions of homes fitted with solar panels in an effort to not just bring down domestic energy bills (which are significant), but also tackle the climate crisis and perhaps also reduce energy dependence on external sources. ➡ This requires a fundamental shift in thinking about decentralised energy and local energy independence. Solar power in the south of England, where energy demand is the highest, is not sufficient to address local needs and relies on long transmission from the north. These 3 solar power plans can generate power closer to where it's needed, reducing distribution costs and vulnerabilities.   ➡ Secondly, it empowers homeowners and communities to take charge of their energy consumption, reducing their carbon footprint and accelerating the energy transition to renewable sources. 🌲   ⚠ It's important, nonetheless, to balance national sustainability goals with local concerns. Concerns of communities affected by these plants should be addressed.   The path towards net-zero is necessary but requires collaboration with communities, industries, and governments to ensure that the transition works for everyone.   ❓❓ What's your take on the future of decentralised energy? Can other industries also adopt this? Let's explore how this revolution can inspire climate action from other sectors.   #RenewableEnergy #DecentralisedEnergy #Sustainability #SolarPower #EnergyTransition #NetZero #GreenRevolution #SustainableDevelopment #ClimateChange #ClimateAction #UKPolitics #EnergyDependence #LabourGovernment

12

6 Comments

What’s THE killer thing that 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗚𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗔 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗽 tells us about great climate comms? Everyone seems to love Who Gives A Crap. They’re bright, they’re witty, they’re good eggs They’ve managed the genius move of turning a not-very-glamorous subject into something aspirational. They absolutely NAIL the branding and marketing. 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 - TICK 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗸𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 - TICK 𝗔 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗯𝗲- TICK 𝗢𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 - TICK 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 - TICK But the 𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴? They’re not asking people to uncrap the world by doing something worthy or boring. They’re asking people to uncrap the world by using something they 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲. This in our opinion is 𝗶𝘁. If we just talk about saving the planet, no one will show up. But if it’s funny or cheeky, or it saves people cash, or it makes them feel cool, or it gives them something they want, or someone they like is doing it, they will. These are the levers we’re always experimenting with and trying to crack! No pun intended. What are your favourite campaigns.? _____________________________________________________________ I’m co-founder of Couch to Carbon Zero. We make smart climate action easy for busy people.  We work with organisations to engage their workforces on sustainability and to make it aspirational and fun. If you like the sound of that…follow or DM me Or visit our website to find out how we could help you (the link's in my profile)

13

9 Comments

This article, once again, raises a valid concern regarding nature based solutions (NBS) and carbon credits as a whole. If credits are issued for forests which then are burnt by destructive wildfires beyond what was set aside as a buffer, the credits will have had no effect and even worse - granted polluters the right to continue doing so without the balancing effect of carbon capture. However, maybe it is too harsh to throw the entire concept of nature based carbon credits into the greenwashing bin. I think it all is about the money, as always. For example, if the money given to a forest owner for carbon credits is used to plant new trees or to protect or improve the forest health conditions, the carbon credits will have a positive impact on climate change, even if there is a risk that the forest goes up in smoke. Without carbon credits, money for postive measures might not be available and thus would not happen. In the end, I think it's all about verification, trust and accountability - which is where the problem is. How can we know and trust that money given to carbon credit issuers will be used to improve the forest rather than for profit without having a positive impact? Do we trust that the verification mechanisms put in place are effective and not corrupt? Of course in the end, the article has a point in stating that the real solution to climate change is not carbon credits, but phasing out fossil fuels. https://lnkd.in/dSWFJwu2

13