SPEND TO CUT GREENHOUSE GASES, NOT WORSEN THE CRISIS

SPEND TO CUT GREENHOUSE GASES, NOT WORSEN THE CRISIS

It is urgent that we spend NOW on those many projects to reduce greenhouse gases in the medium to long term.  Constructing HS2 and Metro tram extensions is spending NOW to increase greenhouse gases that turn earth into venus with its intense greenhouse effect, say, scientists.  The more we spend the quicker we get to fossil fuel shortages and a similarly intense greenhouse effect as venus.

It is because of its intense greenhouse effect, says Wikipedia that venus, although further away from the sun than mercury, is hotter than mercury.  Venus is called our twin or sister planet.

Be alarmed.  Be very alarmed and act.

M6 Jct 10, M5 Jct 4 and Brum inner ring road broken

It seems to be acceptable and orthodox conventional economic wisdom; both a deficit of £1 bn and spending £78 m on Jct 10; spending over £1.5 billion on five tram projects to replace bus routes and to destroy our second and even more important urban railway line; and spending over £300 m to replace Platinum diesel buses with Sprint diesel buses.  For me, Metro and Sprint are complete idiocy and neither are wise spending of public funds.  However, widening Jct 10 is understandable and follows on from their widening of Jct 4, Lydiate Ash on the M5, earlier this decade.  I would have preferred a flyover at Jct 10 for traffic crossing M6.  I opposed the destruction of flyovers and underpasses on Brum's inner ring road - at Masshouse Circus and St Martin's Circus.

If we put trains back on train lines, scrapped tram extensions and brought in fareless for all, electric buses across the West Midlands with traffic light priority, we would have less road congestion and less train overcrowding.

I am wanting a greener and more sustainable understanding and practice of economics and spending based on finite resources, finite planet, not enhancing the natural greenhouse effect and, living in harmony with natural systems.

Thanks again for letting me hold forth last Friday.  I am now attending my own, local Pensioners' meetings at Shenstone Theatre in Halesowen.

The Brexit brickwall = the tram rut = we Brits are going nowhere fast.

The Brexit brickwall = the tram rut = we Brits are going nowhere fast.  As well as by tram, train, bus or car!

"The link between Brexit and the increase in fossil fuel use" comes from the billions already spent over these last three years of referendum and, all the to-ing and fro-ing with meetings galore and documents.  The more we spend the more we use up our fossil fuel reserves. At the same time, as we burn them up, we tighten the grip of the runaway greenhouse effect to cause the collapse of the planet's life support systems.  We are all druggies addicted to fossil fuels. They have given us unheard of comfort and wealth but also a nasty and deadly downside that will continue to roll out this century, methinks.

With the over £60,000 per metre extension to Grand Central, the annual passenger journey figures have gone up to over 6 million.  This is still well short of what they said in the 1990s, in order to get the money out of government. Putting the trains back on the same 20 Kms mainline railway would have cost about £3,000 to £4,000 per metre in the 1990s.  Probably, less than that. And, of course, there would now be no need for the expensive Metro extension to Wolverhampton railway station. The nation has more money than sense. And every penny we spend tightens the screw on future devastating consequences for all life on earth from human climate change.

I was trying to be clever in making use of Donald Tusk's statement about "I have been wondering what the special place in hell looks like for those who promoted Brexit without even a sketch of a plan how to carry it safely".  I was comparing it with all those in Transport HQ, since 1981, giving top priority to trams rather than reinstating trains and stations. In addition, our councillors and officers are not at all bothered about their colleagues, in our district councils, giving planning permission for roads, but mainly buildings, obliterating 100 Kms of urban railway lines in the Black Country and Brum.  However, there is still 106 Kms that survive as freight only and mothballed, double track lines. All this destruction of transport infrastructure and refusal to countenance the return of commuter and regional trains on the 106 Kms, as railway passenger numbers have more than doubled since the mid 1990s with overcrowding on our commuter trains and longer traffic jams on our roads. Only trams are allowed.  Installing trams and tram stops is working out at about ten times more expensive per Km than simply rebuilding the stations and putting the commuter/regional trains back!!

We cannot afford to go on wasting, or misusing, perfectly good railway infrastructure, in my opinion.

Do you want our railway lines for trams or trains, Kevin?  You once said, so correctly, "We have to pay twice to get the trains back!"

Do read these writings of mine to understand what has been going so wrong:

THE TRAGEDY OF TRAMS WRECKING OUR RAILWAY NETWORK

FAKE NEWS, MISLEADING STATEMENTS AND LIES

Transport costs per kilometre

TUSK'S QUOTE:

"We will not gamble with peace or put a sell by date on reconciliation.  (Self: The Troubles in N Ireland may restart with any difficulty between or, distancing of, N Ireland from the Republic)  This is why we insist on the backstop. I have been wondering what the special place in hell looks like for those who promoted Brexit without even a sketch of a plan how to carry it (out) safely.  The EU 27 is not making any new offer. Let me recall that the December European Council decided that the withdrawal agreement is not open for renegotiation." The European Council President, Donald Tusk.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2019/feb/06/brexit-latest-news-developments-pmqs-theresa-may-faces-further-backlash-after-backstop-comments-in-belfast-speech-politics-live

All the best

Planet Earth turning into Planet Venus

D Poulton wrote about planet venus in your issue dated 1 November.  It is not producing heat that puts all life on earth in danger but producing greenhouses gases in the process of keeping ourselves warm and travelling, frequently, far and fast.  It is our prodigious burning of fossil fuels that puts us in danger.  All fossil fuels give off carbon dioxide that enhances the earth's natural protective greenhouse effect and is endangering all life on earth.  Venus is hotter than mars, even though it is nearly twice mercury's distance from the sun, because of its strong greenhouse effect.  Exactly what we humans are doing to planet earth; foolishly giving ourselves a runaway greenhouse effect and passing all tipping points!  Hence, the urgency of going low carbon in our life styles and, living sustainably.  But we are nowhere near doing that.

Tim Weller

​SOURCE is Wikipedia:

​"​The CO2-rich atmosphere generates the strongest greenhouse effect in the Solar System, creating surface temperatures of at least 735 K (462 °C; 864 °F).^[12][58] This makes Venus's surface hotter than Mercury's, ​​which has a minimum surface temperature of 53 K (−220 °C; −364 °F) and maximum surface temperature of 700 K (427 °C; 801 °F),^[59][60] even though Venus is nearly twice Mercury's distance from the Sun and thus receives only 25% of Mercury's solar irradiance.​​"  Wikipedia​

DO SOLAR and be a humanitarian, a philanthropist!

I've had a short chat this evening with Mike, my father in law.  He's against investing in solar panels because it takes far too long to get the investment back.  Certainly, that is true for him at 86 but I see solar renewables as avoiding fossil fuels that are finite and limited and, all enhance the natural greenhouse effect.  Why think only of putting your money where it will make the most money in the shortest possible time?  Can we not think of future generations and their energy needs?  Can we not think of slowing the exhaustion of non-renewable resources?  Of slowing climate change.  How about investing in solar for humanitarian reasons?  Not for self advancement but to play one's own very small part but, essential part, in improving the prospects for humanity.  Do it for others!

As you said Becky (Roseff), every single roof should have solar panels.  New builds should have them on the roof pitch that is south facing.  I will now make enquiries over the feasibility of E/W facing pitches having solar.  Both those pitches get the sun for half the day each if they are not shaded by trees or higher buildings.  Will any company do it for me?  I will see.