UK green economy grew £5.4bn in 2011

Record growth over the last year pushed the UK green goods and services market past the £122bn mark, according to new government figures that reveal the low carbon economy now employs almost one million people.

The sector grew 4.7 per cent against the 2009/10 figure of £116.8bn, providing an additional £5.4bn of economic activity as green industries continued to defy the sluggish progress made by the rest of the economy.

The new report, released earlier this week by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, also confirms that the UK comfortably outperformed the worldwide Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services (LCEGS) market, which expanded by 3.7 per cent to £3.3tr. Low carbon sales activities accounted from £1.6tr of this, around 48 per cent, with renewable energy clocking up £1tr, and environmental goods and services accounting for £700bn.

As such the UK secured a 3.7 per cent share of the global market and also retained its place as the sixth largest LCEGS sector in the world, behind the US with £645bn, China on £435bn, Japan with £205bn, India at just under £205bn, and Germany at £140bn.

Guardian  2012 May 25

International Day for Biological Diversity-22 May, Theme 2012: Marine Biodiversity

The United Nations General Assembly, by its resolution 55/201 of 20 December 2000, proclaimed 22 May as The International Day for Biological Diversity, to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. The date designated for the day was chosen to commemorate the adoption of the text of the Convention on 22 May 1992 by the Nairobi Final Act of the Conference for the Adoption of the Agreed Text of the Convention on 22 Biological Diversity.

"Despite its importance, marine biodiversity — the theme of this year's International Day for Biological Diversity — has not fared well at human hands. Commercial over-exploitation of the world’s fish stocks is severe. Many species have been hunted to fractions of their original populations"

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (2012)

Carbon-Offsetting And Conservation Can Both Be Winners In Rainforest

Logged rain forests can support as much plant, animal and insect life as virgin forest within 15 years if properly managed, research at the University of Leeds has found.


Because trees in tropical climates soak up large amounts of carbon dioxide, restoring logged forest through planting new trees could also be used in carbon trading, according to Dr David Edwards, from University's Faculty of Biological Sciences.


Dr Edwards is calling for the inclusion of biodiversity-friendly strategies in carbon trading schemes to ensure that carbon off-setting projects support, rather than undermine, rainforest conservation.


Currently, large plantations of one type of tree, such as Eucalpytus, are popular as carbon off-setting or sequestration projects in the tropics because they also provide commercial benefits, but they do not support tropical biodiversity.

But Dr Edwards has shown that managed restoration of logged forest -- which can also be used for carbon off-setting -- brings biodiversity virtually back to pre-logging levels within 15 years, much quicker than forest left to regenerate naturally.


"Our research shows that it is possible to have both carbon sequestration and biodiversity benefits within the same scheme," he said.


"This could act as a strong incentive to protect logged forests under threat of deforestation for oil palm and other such crops. Selectively logged rainforests are often vulnerable because they're seen as degraded, but we've shown they can support similar levels of biodiversity to unlogged forests."

The research compared biodiversity of birds in three adjoining areas of tropical forest in the north-east of Borneo. One is the oldest and largest area of rehabilitated forest in the tropics, logged around 20 years ago and with over 10,000 ha actively rehabilitated for the past fifteen; another is a naturally regenerating area of forest, logged at the same time; and the third, a conservation area of unlogged forest.


The findings showed that the number and range of species of birds in rehabilitated tropical forest recovered to levels very close to those found in unlogged forest after just 15 years. Forest that was left to regenerate naturally after selective logging showed less diversity.

"There are now suggestions that carbon crediting and 'biodiversity banking' should be combined, enabling extra credits for projects that offer a biodiversity benefit," said Dr Edwards. "We believe this should be introduced as soon as possible, to ensure maximum support for rehabilitation schemes in the tropical rainforest."


The research is published in Conservation Biology and was funded by the Leverhulme Trust


ScienceDaily (Oct. 20, 2009)
Tags: rain forests,  virgin forest, carbon dioxide, biodiversity-friendly strategies

 Tags: bilateral,environment, climate, solar, wind power, clean energy, clean tech, climate, india, india initiative, solar, solar power, environmental compliance,, solar thermal, wind power, greenparty, greenparty India

“In the run-up to the U.N. climate change summit to be held at Durban this December, India is once again emphasizing the importance of the Kyoto Protocol. In a meeting with the U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern on Tuesday, Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan “brought out the Indian perspective about the balanced outcome on both the LCA and KP tracks.” Mr. Stern shared his views on what legal form the LCA process should result in — while some nations want a legally-binding treaty which would force all signatories to fulfill their commitment targets, others do not. Both sides agreed that the operationalisation of the decisions taken at the last major U.N. summit at Cancun in December 2010 should be the goal for the year-end meeting in Durban.”

(The Hindu, 7/20/11)


December 2011, January 2012, .....................this is May 2012. 

 Tags: environment, nuclear power, anti nuclear movement, nuclear free world 

 greenparty, greenparty 

India

We The Green Party of India Invite your Attention to this letter from Smt.Janet Alty (previously national spokes person  Warwick & Leamington Green Party)

Dear GPI
I visit India twice a year to work on our charity school in Fatehabad District, Haryana : www.buwankothi.org.uk with a link towww.gmmcs.in (needs updating).  I’ve been looking for the budding of a GreenParty of India for all the years I’ve been visiting (since 2005) ;-))

I am urgently seeking help to support the campaign of the farmers and landless peasants who are about to be taken over for a new nuclear power station.  Do you have any members in Fatehabad District?  The campaign against this power station is lead by “Comrade” Harpal Singh and other members of the Communist Party of India.  By now he is used to me telling him that he really needs to take on the Green Agenda, not just the socialist / communist agenda.  But be that as it may, the important job just now is to help the campaign.  I’m doing what I can now that I’m back in the UK, but it wd be really really helpful if there was someone who is internet savvy in Haryana and willing to help the communication.  Below is an email I’ve been circulating to those who might help.

I very much look forward to hearing from you...

Good wishes for all your endeavours.
Janet Alty
Warwick & Leamington Green Party (previously national spokes person...)

.................I visited the site of the Gurakhpur proposed nuclear power station with some of the campaigners and their leader, Comrade Harpal Singh who is a personal friend of Mota’s.  If you want to put the UK new nuclear situation into perspective, have a quick canter throhttp://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf53.html about the development of nuclear power in India.  It is grim indeed.
...........

The one I am interested in is on their list as :Kumharia or Gorakhpur in Haryana is earmarked for four indigenous 700 MWe PHWR units and the AEC had approved the state's proposal for a 2800 MWe nuclear power plant. The inland northern state of Haryana is one of the country's most industrialized and has a demand of 8900 MWe, but currently generates less than 2000 MWe and imports 4000 MWe. The village of Kumharia is in Fatehabad district and the plant may be paid for by the state government or the Haryana Power Generation Corp. NPCIL says it has initiated pre-project activities here, with groundbreaking planned for 2012.
..........

I have good photos of both the land, the Himalayan melt water supply from the Bhakra Dam (and we all know that Himalayan glacial melt water has a very limited future) and the farmers and the landless peasants whose livelihoods will be destroyed by this venture.  And India needs all the rich crop growing farm land it can keep in production otherwise yet more millions will be on the starvation list...

Cd you put it about that I am urgently seeking help for those farmers and landless peasants whose farmland is going to be destroyed for this new nuclear power station 3 km of land in diameter, and probably more.  Offers if assistance will be very gratefully received.  If anyone can suggest where I might get this published : Guardian Comment is Free, perhaps??