Powerful corporations profiting from fossil fuels are working against the Net Zero transition - Yorkshire Post Letters
From: Bob Johnson, St Davids Road, Otley.
What is Net Zero and can we afford it? Award-winning science communicator Dr Simon Clark explains that it's not about stopping oil and gas production, but rather balancing the amount of greenhouse gas released into the atmosphere with the amount removed.
Scientists (whose predictions have been accurate so far) agree that achieving Net Zero is essential to avoid catastrophic climate change, such as floods, wildfires, droughts, sea inundation and food shortages.
However, powerful corporations profiting from fossil fuels are actively working against this transition; by financially supporting populist politicians who use various deceptive tactics to exaggerate the cost of Net Zero.
One misrepresentation is quoting outdated and inflated figures for renewable energy when, in reality, costs are rapidly falling. Another claims that taxpayers will foot the entire bill, ignoring the fact that private companies are already investing heavily in profitable green businesses. In fact, more money is now invested in renewables than in fossil fuels.
Net Zero deniers also ignore the costs associated with maintaining old fossil fuel infrastructure and the high operational cost of extracting fossil fuels. They conveniently omit the massive health care costs we already pay for fossil fuel pollution. For example, air pollution is causing 30,000 UK deaths annually and heat waves in Europe alone led to 60,000 deaths in 2022. There is a financial cost for each personal tragedy. They also overlook the billions of pounds lost to floods, wildfires and crop failures - costs that insurance companies and financial institutions warn will lead to a serious decline in living standards if we don't act.
Donald Trump’s supporter Nigel Farage states, "We cannot afford net zero," but he is being selective with the facts. By opposing Net Zero, the deniers are willing to proceed down a dangerous and expensive highway toward a worsening climate emergency. While the transition won't be easy and will have costs, humanity cannot afford not to get to Net Zero.