Water, Carbon, Biodiversity: the Great Adventure
Dr Julian Caldecott, a member of Our Future Planet's Advisory Board, began his talk at the University of Bath by discussing about the ecological view of the world as a biosphere, a series of deeply interconnected ecosystems ranging in scale from whole oceans to the flora of the gut.
Photo by Petteri Kokkonen
While this view of the world is a scientifically accurate one, the sense of connectedness is more evident among traditional peoples than in the West. Unsustainable development, the model practised by the Developed World, doesn't recognise the interconnectedness of ecosystems: it is short term and short sighted. However, connectedness is now being reintroduced as a criterion for the evaluation of systems, for example by the Finnish Government.
Dr Caldecott acknowledged that ecosystems have begun to be recognized as having (economic) value in themselves, whether in terms of goods provided to humans or the service to maintaining the environment. But he said that it is important that biodiversity - the information provided by nature - is also understood to have value.
He focused on three interconnected aspects of the biosphere: water, biodiversity and carbon. The integrity of all three are now threatened by human behaviour and he talked in terms of them having 'off switches' for the life support system of the biosphere. He continued the metaphor warning that like nurses in a hospital room, we must watch that these life support switches are not turned off.
Dr Caldecott discussed the importance of water and biodiversity to the health of the biosphere, before concentrating on the carbon system. This was the most critical threat facing humanity: more carbon was being put into the atmosphere than the planet could reabsorb and the resulting global heating was already creating climate chaos that was changing how the biosphere worked. The stakes were high, the time very short. Yet, he pointed out, there is no mystery about what we need to do. We know how we should be behaving. There are solutions available to us:
Massive investment in renewable energy.
Carbon conservation.
Carbon capture and storage.
Low carbon economy.
However, implementation faces hostility, lack of interest, denial and an economic system based on reckless consumption (and almost designed for unsustainability). Even where there was a recognition of the problems, there was a mismatch between the scale of investment required and public willingness to pay.
So, he asked, what can we do?
Change people's habits?
Change people's beliefs?
Educate people?
Change the system?
Do all the above?
Think of some other solution?
Dr Caldecott saw no chance of changing people's habits and practices sufficiently quickly, or of governments acting with sufficient urgency. Therefore the need was to take carbon out of the atmosphere.
Here, the technology was not so much the problem as the incentive. No company is going to invest in the necessary technology unless politically pressured or given a financial incentive. As Governments show no sign of having the necessary political will, an economic incentive must be provided. But no-one knows what price of conserved carbon will be. The market cannot provide a stable price, it needs to be told what the price is. Companies need a long-term predictable carbon price. The higher the better.
So, he asked, how do we create a carbon price? He said there were two options
- A public sector guarantee of price, i.e. Governments agree to buy a certain quantity of carbon at a certain point of time in the future at a set price. But, it was futile to wait on Government initiative.
- Individuals to sign up to buy a quantity of carbon in the future at a set price. This would require millions of individuals but if successful would then pressure Governments into action. This was his suggested way forward.
In discussion, Dr Caldecott explained his suspicion of carbon taxes, again, he didn't believe that Governments had the will to act sufficiently quickly or rigorously.
So why did Dr Caldecott use the word 'Adventure'? He was referring partly to his personal adventure, from research in tropical rainforests to environmental consultancy, but also to the collective adventure of humanity in facing this unprecedented challenge the continuation of the biosphere to which we are adapted.
Dr Caldecott’s solution to the carbon crisis is intriguing. It is one that asks individuals themselves to take the initiative for saving the biosphere and as such is entirely in line with the philosophy and ethos of Our Future Planet. It would make an excellent proposal.
This article was written by Tim Powell and published by Our Future Planet.
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, Sustainable Living and Environment. Extend your knowledge by visiting the Ideas Globe, or view our Hot Topics to find more key articles to discuss. We welcome all of your thoughts, Actions, Projects and Proposals!
Not a Planetary Citizen yet? Join us and Sign up to Our Future Planet today!
This is an interesting idea, certainly the idea that we can all participate in it is intriguing and encouraging. But I don't really understand how we buy carbon? What would we be buying exactly? Obviously using some sort of financial instrument or bond, something that can be traded on the commodities market or whatever. But what carbon would that represent exactly? Carbon currently being used in industial processes? Or carbon that we would somehow be witholding from the atmosphere...would we buy up peat bogs in Siberia to prevent them being exploited...? I am probably being a bit dim,but I'd like to understand how it would work, then I can invest in it!
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