So it's official. Climate
change is in. Global warming is hip. Pop stars
are urging action. It seems not a day passes
without another big business making a green
pronouncement. The scale of the problem is
clear but there are still very few big companies
walking their climate talk.
Live Earth was great for raising awareness
on climate change and promoting ways everyone
can help. To see global megastars urging action
on climate change to an audience of billions
warms the heart of many a hardened Greenpeace
climate campaigner. Today is certainly light
years away from when we first started campaigning
nearly 20 years ago on what was then a little
known issue.
Awareness raised, but where's the corporate
action?
This year has seen the science debate (artificially
prolonged by dirty energy funded front groups)
settled. And Live Earth helped raise awareness
of the problem in many countries to an unprecedented
level. But even a quick scan of the Live Earth
sponsors reveals many companies who, while
spending millions on appearing to be concerned
about climate change, are profiting from climate
changing business as usual.
Nuon ad campaign. It should read 'climate
change powered by Nuon' if the company proceeds
with plans for new dirty coal plants.
Just down the road from our international
office in Amsterdam is a major Dutch energy
company called Nuon, which sponsored the Dutch
Live Earth event. But what Nuon isn't so keen
to highlight is that it's one of the companies
pushing ahead with the building of five new
coal power plants in the Netherlands. If built
these will guarantee the Dutch government's
30 percent CO2 reduction by 2020 target will
not be met. Dirty, polluting business as usual.
As coal power stations are one of the biggest
single causes of climate change no new ones
should be being built. That's the sort of
serious action required. Yet most big power
companies are trying to forge ahead with plans
for massive new coal plants in Europe, Asia
and the Americas. The very same companies
you pay your energy bill to are telling you
they care, but spending that money like they
never knew coal was a bad idea.
Many big oil companies (now marketing themselves
as 'energy' companies) like BP, Shell and
even Exxon are throwing the odd million or
several at websites and ad campaigns to say
they are looking for solutions to climate
change. But in fact they are spending billions
finding and extracting more oil. Exxon even
still funds the climate skeptic front groups
that exist to attempt to muddy the water and
stall action on climate change.
Green cars?
General Motors (owner of Chevy) and DaimlerChrysler
(owner of the Smart car brand) were two massive
car makers hoping for some positive association
with Live Earth. However, what you won't see
on DaimlerChrysler's website is the fact that
their (and other big German car makers) lobbying
was crucial in preventing the European Union
from imposing tough new efficiency regulations
on cars in 2006. Car manufactures had eight
years to comply with previous voluntary targets
(that they mostly failed miserably to meet),
hence the EU proposal for new strict legally
binding rules. Yet, European car manufactures
(supported by US car firms, like General Motors)
lobbied successfully that there should be
significantly weaker efficiency regulations,
as car companies should be free to sell lots
of big, inefficient and polluting cars. (Report
on car industry EU lobbying).
That's the real sign of how companies like
DaimlerChrysler have failed to change in response
to the climate challenge.
The lights are on, but there's no climate
champion home
One big area where a simple and significant
win for the climate can be made is lighting.
Old style incandescent bulbs are so inefficient
that by just switching from old to new efficient
lighting technology in the EU we could close
down 25 medium sized power plants, and possibly
save Europe 3-5 billion euros.
Right now major lighting manufactures like
Phillips, GE and Osram have mumbled about
a possible incandescent phase out in maybe
10 years time. But being the makers of most
of the inefficient lightbulbs on the global
market it's time they were more ambitious.
Why not a bold climate move now - stop making
incandescent bulbs to focus solely on selling
more efficient lighting. As the companies
obviously need some pressure to take this
step you can write to them now.
"Business as usual is no longer an option"
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
That was the UN head talking about the need
for a new political agreement on climate change,
but he could just have easily been addressing
business leaders.
New coal plants are not an option if we are
to avoid dangerous climate change.
If we are to have any chance to meeting the
necessary carbon emission reductions required
to prevent a climate crisis there must to
be major changes now. No new coal plants should
be approved. Old inefficient lighting must
be made a thing of the past. Gas guzzling
cars belong on the scrap heap.
While we can all do our bit individually
to combat climate change it's companies taking
real action that can massively magnify our
individual actions and be themselves ahead
of the competition when government regulation
on climate is enforced.
To date the signs have not been promising.
Examples of real action are few. Some power
companies have dropped plans for a handful
of coal plants in places like the US and New
Zealand. A handful of retailers, like Currys
in the UK, have stopped selling wasteful incandescent
bulbs.
But given the scale of the climate crisis
facing us all it's high time big companies
stopped just talking green and took action
to make their business climate friendly. Anything
less just results in more hot air.