Halt import of cheap goods from China and India to avert climate crisis – Yorkshire Post Letters

I AM writing to reply to some of Dr Charles Wardrop’s points, made in his letter (The Yorkshire Post, December 17) responding to mine on behalf of South Yorkshire Climate Alliance.

Firstly, he quotes a figure of 0.00845 per cent as the UK’s share of global carbon emissions. He appears to have mistakenly included the term “per cent” 
(or added a couple of extra noughts).

The UK has nearly one per cent of the world’s population and contributes nearly one per cent of emissions.

The argument that this is insignificant could apply to any small country and is very unfair to anyone living in one with a larger population.

Regarding “non-decarbonising Eastern nations”, hardly any countries are doing enough to decarbonise.

This is despite basic climate science being clear, if derided, for decades.

A lack of attention to long-term issues appears to be a weakness in human nature but we can only hope our belief in science will overcome this.

Some countries, especially in Eastern Asia, have developed their economies largely by providing cheap goods to 
much wealthier western consumers.

We have been very happy with this arrangement until recent years, when we have started blaming them for our declining manufacturing bases – and now climate change.

China and India have now set net zero target dates and the UK has actually been quite good at persuading other countries to set these. Further progress will depend on further leadership by wealthy nations, especially through our actions at home.

From: Clark Cross, Springfield Road, Linlithgow.

OVER 50 MPs are meeting with Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng to point out that burning wood pellets at the Drax power plant emits 18 per cent more carbon dioxide than burning coal.

Drax has already been given £4bn in subsidies which increased UK energy bills. Chopping down trees in America and the journey to Drax involves diesel machinery, diesel ships and diesel transport.

Drax is burning 25 million trees a year to produce its “not so green” electricity.

Planting trees in place of those felled to absorb CO2 has been discounted since it takes minutes to burn a tree but 44 to 104 years for new ones to re-absorb the CO2 released by burning.

Claims by Drax that biomass comes from waste products from “sustainable forests” are substantially incorrect since over half of the wood pellets come not from waste timber but from mature trees.

From: Neil Richardson, Kirkheaton.

ISN’T Justine Greening (The Yorkshire Post, December 18) a little worried that the phrase ‘levelling up’ might be misunderstood by voters as a reference to the millions of trees levelled yearly before their transport across the Atlantic and incineration via Drax?

People are fed up with PM

From: Chris Lancaster, Woodlesford.

PRIME Minister, the people of this country are getting fed up of you and your party! The North Shropshire by-election result has shown that. Too many broken promises, too many u-turns and one rule for you and one rule for others! Something has to change and – yes – I’m a Conservative voter.

From: Peter Hyde, Driffield.

WATCHING PMQs and reading the press, it strikes me that the whole purpose of those in power and those in opposition is to heckle and score points off each other. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they would work together to make our country great again instead of trying to cut the feet from under both Boris Johnson and Sir Keir Starmer?

From: Sheila Smith, Dewsbury.

I WAS reminded of my old school motto when I read part of your editorial (The Yorkshire Post, December 20). It was Res Non Verba – deeds not words. Very apt for today’s government.

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