Dear Sir,

 

Warmer, wetter, windier

 

Warmer, wetter and windier winters, that seems to be the way that climate change is affecting Southampton.  As climate change starts to accelerate the question is whether we are heading for a ‘tipping point’ into a drastically hotter world.  Glaciers are disappearing, permafrost is melting and massive volumes of methane, a very strong greenhouse gas, are being emitted.  We rely on the heat sink of the oceans; except they are heating up too.

 

So, what are we doing to stop this potentially disastrous sequence of events?  The answer is very little, certainly nowhere near enough.  We still have a city dominated by polluting cars and lorries.  We still may have an expanded airport when we should not be flying unless we have to.  We still have inadequate insulation in buildings.

 

We need the individual and the political will both locally and nationally to mobilise as much as we can to reverse our carbon emitting habits.  However I see no evidence of that happening, despite much talk about it.  Until we have a major change in who gets elected, I fear that we will not do nearly enough until the danger is so glaringly obvious that it is too late.

 

We need government (local and national) to change yet people seem to be complacent and still vote in the same old political parties.  Some may do so because they like the extra warmth, but maybe not the extra wetness and windiness.  And this is just the start.  For all our sakes, please change your voting habits at the very least.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

John Spottiswoode
Coordinator
Southampton and District Green Party