Greenpeace New Zealand Weblog

Population: The real inconvenient truth

In 1972, Ben and Dorothy Metcalfe from the budding Greenpeace Foundation in Canada attended the world’s first UN Conference on the Human Environment, in Stockholm, where they succeeded in putting nuclear bomb tests on the agenda with the help of Australia and Japan. However, one critical issue failed to make the agenda of this historic meeting: human population.

Paul Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb, urged the delegates to discuss ways to mitigate human population growth as a driving force of ecological destruction. Barry Commoner, the scientist who first detected radioactive Strontium-90 in children’s teeth, argued against Ehrlich, insisting that human population growth did not pose a critical environmental threat. Technology, he believed, would allow us to feed billions more people, and the real issue is wasteful consumption by the rich.

Ehrlich agreed about excessive consumption, but maintained that sheer population growth would degrade the planetary ecosystems and lead to humanitarian and ecological catastrophes. He urged environmentalists to advocate a global contraception drive to reduce unwanted pregnancies and the human fertility rate. Ehrlich’s proposals, however, collided with cultural, political, and religious resistance. The Stockholm conference avoided discussing population, and the environmental movement since 1972 has almost entirely ignored human population growth. Nevertheless, the nagging issue remains, 36 years and three billion people later. Read more »

On Wednesday, 20 August, about 200 Greenpeace supporters packed into the Rialto cinema in Newmarket, Auckland to watch Earth; an amazing journey through the richness of life on our planet.

It is 8.15 pm, and the 190 seat movie theater of Rialto cinema is full of Greenpeace supporters and staff. The atmosphere is friendly, chatty and, in a word: very Greenpeace. Before the movie started, Bunny, Greenpeace NZ executive director, gave a little speech to introduce the film. After thanking everyone for coming, she highlighted the importance of Greenpeace supporters’ contribution to the organisation’s campaigns. Then, she gave the microphone to Simon, our Senior Climate Campaigner. He shared his opinion on climate change, saying that although progress sometimes felt slow within the campaign, it was absolutely not too late to do something about it. If we act properly, we can preserve our biodiversity for our children.
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Greenpeace activists protesting against EPR in Flamanville, Northern west France.

Several accidents happened in French nuclear plants in July. Greenpeace France has subsequently filed two complaints against Areva, the French state-controlled nuclear giant.

Tough month for French nuclear plants… On July 8, the Areva nuclear site of Tricastin (southeastern France) leaked about 30 cubic meters of uranium-rich water. Result: 30,000 liters of this uranium solution trickled into the ground and polluted small rivers around the plant area. The local authority said there wasn’t any danger for the environment but “by way of precaution” fishing, sailing and swimming in the affected area are banned.
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MACKAY AUSTRALIA - Greenpeace activists in inflatables targeted a queue of almost 50 coal ships at Hay Point port in Queensland and are currently painting them with climate change protest messages such as: ‘RUDD EXPORTING CO2′, ‘BARRIER REEF GONE’, ‘ICE CAPS GONE’ and ‘STOP COAL EXPANSION’. The peaceful action is to highlight the Rudd Government’s plans to rapidly expand coal exports, when the world is trying to cut global emissions (c) Greenpeace 2008

Greenpeace activists are currently painting queued coal ships at Hay Point port in Queensland with messages for the Rudd Government to make a serious commitment to a renewable energy future for Australia.

The activists came from the Greenpeace ship the Esperanza and drove up to the coal ships in inflatable boats while they were anchored in the queue, painting the messages along the sides.

The action highlights the Rudd Government’s plans to rapidly expand Australia’s coal exports when the world is trying to cut global emissions.

Update: Police have arrived on the scene and have boarded one of the inflatables.

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Culture jamming the Eiffel Tower (C) Greenpeace / Xavier Pardessus

French state nuclear company Areva sponsored a nice ring of EU stars for the Eiffel Tower - probably to kiss up to President Sarkozy (who also serves as a kind of “nuclear power salesman in chief”). Some Greenpeace France activists decided it would be nice to complete the picture with a nuclear hazard symbol. (you might remember AREVA from the Americas Cup race in New Zealand a few years back)

From the International Herald Tribune:

About 15 environmental activists climbed the Eiffel Tower on Sunday to unfurl a banner protesting against France’s nuclear energy policies, on the day when it hosts a major summit of heads of state.

Campaign group Greenpeace said the banner showing the nuclear logo was placed in the middle of a circle of stars representing the European Union displayed on the tower to mark France’s six-month term as EU president.

“Since he was elected, President Nicolas Sarkozy has done everything he could to sell nuclear energy,” said Frederic Marillier of the French section of Greenpeace in a statement.

“At the U.N., as head of the European council, or just recently at the G8, he has behaved like a travelling salesman for Areva and has used political platforms to promote French nuclear power,” Marillier said, referring to the French nuclear energy producer Areva.

More on the Greenpeace International website, and a Guardian article about last weeks nuclear spill (in case you missed it).

Target Climate

It struck me on a number of occasions in recent weeks that I perhaps I was mad. Perhaps I was completely crazy to have agreed to give two, hour-long school presentations to 600 primary school kids. As I sat late into the evenings, deskbound and furrow-browed over how to communicate global warming to 5 year olds (and could I really show that video clip of a seal pup getting clubbed?) I vowed never to put my hand up for such certain crucifixion again. The day dawned. Luckily, I had roped in Greenpeace Communications Manager Suzette and our French communications intern Francois as trusty side kicks. Also, I hasten to add, we had a polar bear suit (the best weapon in the fight against fidgeting).
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Going Deeper

Since the late Pleistocene, 100,000 years ago, when a few thousand Homo sapiens poked around Africa, Asia, and the Mediterranean, human population has doubled 22 times. We have one more such doubling left, and that’s it. Human population will likely level off at 10 to 14 billion sometime around 2100, exceeding the Earth’s carrying capacity. Mass human starvations are already underway in degraded environments.

Economists imagine that average consumption is going to increase, so we must also consider a projected annual world economic growth of approximately 1.5% in wealthy nations and 10% in China and other developing nations. Economists consider anything below 3% world economic growth to signal a global “recession.” Read more »

This year’s Budget - just presented by Finance Minister Michael Cullen - does not read like the Budget of a Government committed to solving climate change.

Here’s a couple of new initiatives contained therein:

• $1 million over four years will assist communities and local government to adapt to the physical impacts of climate change.
• Transport Minister Annette King also announced the government will provide $4.8 million over four years to enhance weather forecasting for severe weather events.

How ambulance at the bottom of the cliff is that?! “Hold on to your hats New Zealanders, we know climate change is coming, but don’t worry we’ll let you know in good time and we’ll help fix a drainpipe in the aftermath.”

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In asking himself the question, “what do I and a bumblebee have in common?” Michael Pollan, author of the Omnivore’s Dilemma, hit upon a new way of looking at man’s relationship with nature that could not only revolutionise the way modern food production is handled, but also vastly improve soil quality and the general sustainability of many farms.

Filmed at TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design - an annual meeting of thinkers and innovators from around the globe) in 2007, and made available for free online this year, Pollan urges a re-think of our relationship with nature, arguing that Darwin’s evolutionary ideas need to be taken to heart if we are to increase production in any sustainable fashion. Read more »

Written&directed by Johannes Kuemmel
Produced by Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg
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