Climate Change

Many people are opposed to the Happy Valley coal mine because of the threat of climate change.

The burning of coal creates one of humankind’s most dangerous forms of pollution. Carbon dioxide (CO2), which is given off when coal is burnt, is the worst of the greenhouse gases, contributing to global warming and other forms of climate change.

Climate change is real and it’s happening now – this can no longer be doubted. A recent report by the International Climate Change Taskforce says that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels that would trigger a rise of 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial level could be reached in only ten years.

It is estimated that a temperature rise of 2-3 degrees Celsius will put 100 million more people at risk of coastal flooding, put 50-120 million more people at risk of hunger (causing malnutrition and related diseases), and put more than 3 billion more people at risk of fresh water shortages. This is likely to mean millions of deaths. But it is quite feasible that even greater warming could occur this century if greenhouse emissions are not radically cut, meaning even worse destruction, suffering and loss of life.

Climate change is not just the global warming that is commonly talked about, but could truthfully be referred to as “climate chaos” – it means more extreme weather, bringing droughts in some areas and deluges in others.

Every dollar spent on coal extraction is a dollar not spent on real solutions to climate change - renewable energy sources, energy conservation and environmental education. Action must be taken now, before further damage is done.

Aotearoa New Zealand’s current greenhouse gas emissions are 20% above 1990 levels. This is despite the signing of the Kyoto Protocol which in itself is recognised among climate scientists as a completely inadequate response to the dangers of climate change. This 20% rise must be compared to the 60-80% cuts which the UN-formed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says is required.

Our government claims to be dealing with climate change yet they allow state-owned coal company Solid Energy not only to continue its operations but to expand them across the country. Coal simply shouldn't be an option any longer, the risks are too great.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a group of world-renowned climate scientists set up by the United Nations in 1988 to monitor and predict changes in the climate and impacts. According to the IPCC, a doubling of CO2 in the atmosphere, which will occur by 2060 if we continue to burn fossil fuels at current rates, could cause temperatures to rise between 1.5 and 4.5 degrees C. The United Nations Advisory Group on Greenhouse Gases has stated that temperature increases beyond 1 degree C “may elicit rapid, unpredictable and non-linear responses that could lead to extensive ecosystem damage.”

The Kyoto Protocol on climate change, while positive in the sense that it means people are at least thinking about climate change, is not even close to enough, requiring only a 5.2% average reduction of 1990 carbon emission levels by 2012. Not only is this not enough to stop further climate change, it also “promotes the self-interest of industrialised nations and corporations, marginalising issues of global equity and the environment” (Rising Tide International).

The IPCC has stated that we will need to reduce human production of greenhouse gases by 60-80% in order to keep global temperature within the range that plants and animals can cope with. Taking into account the greater amounts of damage caused by industrialised countries and the need for “a just transition to renewable energy sources”, the Rising Tide movement calculates that Western countries such as Aotearoa New Zealand need reductions of 90% as soon as possible.

Coal mining at this point in the history of the world is a perilous activity. If all the coal, gas and oil that are already held in reserves around the world are used, without seeking out more, global warming will exceed the 1 degree C that scientists believe would be safe. To keep within this safe margin requires us not to use three quarters of the reserves already held. Seeking new sources is suicidal - extraction of fossil fuels must come to an end.

Aotearoa New Zealand is at a pivotal point with regard to which avenue of energy generation it goes down. The proposed mine at Happy Valley, and New Zealand coal mining more generally, have recently drawn more attention in the light of increased public questioning of our energy future, sparked by the cancellation of Project Aqua, but also fuelled by the imminent depletion of the Maui gas field in 2007, New Zealand’s ratification of the Kyoto Protocol and our rapidly growing power consumption.

At present, 4% of electricity is generated by coal in New Zealand, but with the cancellation of Project Aqua and the end of the Maui gas field in sight, the coal lobby (led by Solid Energy) has called for more mining, hoping for coal to take their place.

Aotearoa New Zealand is blessed with abundant renewable energy options – Coal must be opposed whether it is for export, as in the case of Happy Valley, or for local energy generation.

We must make a stand now to stop the creation of more coal mines and coal-fired power stations in Aotearoa. We need to stop the burning of fossil fuels before it’s too late.