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Poor climate change PR is barrier to action
September 11, 2009 4:28 PM
In answer to Liberal Democrat European MEP for London Sarah Ludford, a top European Commission official has acknowledged that the EU has failed to convince the public of the seriousness of global climate change, and the economic and jobs advantages of urgent action.
At an event organised in the European Parliament by the European Forum on Renewable Energy Sources (Eufores), Sarah Ludford asked Christopher Jones, Director-General for Energy and Transport, why the public relations on energy conservation and climate change was so poor. He admitted that getting the message across is one of the biggest challenges for the new Commission. Sarah Ludford commented:
"Most people are simply not informed about the deeply alarming human and economic costs of carbon emissions and what they personally need to do. But the ham-fisted way in which traditional light bulbs have been taken off the market without preparation is not a good precedent."
"It not only makes economic sense to act now to combat climate change, but the human tragedy that will afflict people in developing countries if we do not makes it a moral imperative. Renewable energy not only lowers CO2 but also reduces dependence on oil and gas from politically dodgy parts of the world."
"There are also great opportunities for a sustainable economy and job creation. The wind industry already employs tens of thousands of people in Europe. In London there is a new South Bank project for district heating, combined heat & power and biomass and 4 new waste-to-energy plants are planned. Not only the countryside can do 'green' - big cities can do it too!"
Note to editors
Sarah Ludford does not own a car, belonging to a car club, Streetcar, for occasional use to supplement public transport. She always takes the Eurostar to Brussels and has never flown there in 10 years. Her electricity in both her office and home is from renewable sources and (after a struggle) she got Thames Water to install a water meter in her home last year.
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