All Organisations subcategories:
Committee for a Workers International
Nationalist and National Liberation
Pro capitalist and Imperialist
Left and radical keywords:
International Socialist Resistance (54)
Revolutionary Communist League (1)
Socialist Peoples Party (Denmark) (1)
Green
Highlight keywords |
Print this article
Search site for keywords: Climate change - Energy - Capitalist - Oil - Carbon - Green
2012 earth summit
Why Rio+20 will cut no ice
Pete Mason
National Snow and Ice Data Center daily image 20 June 2012 (Click to enlarge)
Every day an update of the extent of the ice in the arctic sea is posted on the National Snow and Ice Data Centre website. On 10 June, this update showed that the polar ice cap had shrunk below the previous record-setting year of 2007.
The Northern Sea Route round the ice cap (the Northeast passage), became ice-free for the first time in the satellite record in August 2005. This year it is almost ice-free already.
The earth's ice cap faces the sun and its white surface reflects back sunlight like a gigantic sunshade. That ice is thinning four times faster than the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) models predict.
Despite clear evidence of rapid warming, the forthcoming United Nations Rio+20 Earth summit, to be attended by 120 world leaders, will once again show that the capitalist nations are incapable of doing any more than fiddling while the planet burns.
Already negotiations have fallen into "disarray" in advance of the summit - this despite no legally binding commitments even being requested.
The Guardian (6 June) points out the central capitalist contradiction: "G77 [neocolonial] countries have argued that while the goal [of low carbon economies] is acceptable, they risk being at a competitive disadvantage in the race for future global markets and are suspicious that the green economy is a pretence for rich countries to erect 'green' trade barriers on developing country exports."
Competition
Climate change demonstration December 2008, photo by Paul Mattsson (Click to enlarge)
There is every reason to be suspicious. As long as the world economy's mainspring is capitalist competition, the so-called free market, a collective effort to reduce global emissions of carbon dioxide is continually undermined.
Even the International Energy Agency (IEA), formed by the OECD to defend the oil-based profits of the multinationals against the Middle East-based oil cartel OPEC, has a number of reports and statements by leading officials warning about the dangers of climate change.
"A technological transformation of the energy system is still possible, despite current trends" which are "failing to meet the deployment objectives needed," its latest Energy Technology Perspectives 2012 executive summary says: "Low-carbon electricity is at the core of a sustainable energy system. Renewable energy technologies play a crucial role in this respect."
Yet the "share of energy-related investment in public research, development and demonstration (RD&D) has fallen by two-thirds since the 1980s" painting a "bleak picture": the "window of opportunity is closing rapidly" the report says. The technology to achieve that goal is available. Natural gas is no solution. Coal use must be reduced.
Ultimately the IEA will defend its paymasters, and cannot draw the necessary conclusion: That investment in R&D has plummeted and deployment has failed because capitalist Big Oil still pulls the strings of government.
A socialist solution, which starts from the nationalisation under democratic workers' control of the energy and transport multinationals, is the only answer.
Donate to the Socialist Party
Finance appeal
The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.
The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.
The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.
- The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
- When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.
Inevitably, during the crisis we have not been able to sell the Socialist and raise funds in the ways we normally would.
We therefore urgently appeal to all our viewers to donate to our Fighting Fund.
LATEST POSTS
12 May Stop Israeli state brutality
 |
9 May Post-election meetings
15 May Birmingham Socialist Party: How can we fight for socialist change and a new workers' party?
17 May Oxfordshire & Aylesbury Socialist Party: The role of the state
18 May Bristol North Socialist Party: Liverpool - history of socialist struggle
CONTACT US
Phone our national office on 020 8988 8777
Email: [email protected]
Locate your nearest Socialist Party branch Text your name and postcode to 07761 818 206
Regional Socialist Party organisers:
Eastern: 079 8202 1969
East Mids: 077 3797 8057
London: 075 4018 9052
North East: 078 4114 4890
North West 079 5437 6096
South West: 077 5979 6478
Southern: 078 3368 1910
Wales: 079 3539 1947
West Mids: 024 7655 5620
Yorkshire: 078 0983 9793
ABOUT US
ARCHIVE
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999