The Ministry for the Environment has shut down a web page detailing an emissions projection tool following an error where it posted the words “Blah Blah Blah” three times.
A screenshot of the Ministry for the Environment website showed a page originally said: “Here are some the actions currently being taken by New Zealand to mitigate against climate change.”
This was followed by bullet points which said “Blah Blah Blah” three times.
By 2030, 122million will be driven into extreme poverty as direct result of climate change.
By 2030, 100million will die as a direct consequence of climate change.
By 2030, even if the Paris Agreement is actually implemented, we will see a planet warm to 3.4 degrees by the end of this century
By 2030, the global annual cost of global warming will be $3trillion.
By 2030, the number of extremely hot days — classified as maximum temperatures of more than 35C that can kill— are tipped to climb in all capital cities.
To appreciate how weak the Government’s proposals are, National and BusinessNZ have already signalled their support, which begs the question, if James Shaw yawns in a carbon sink forest, did the climate notice?
If you think being carbon neutral by 2050 is the solution, you are part of the problem.
There are 10million cows in NZ, a cow produces 14times faecal load as a human, that’s equivalent to 140million people shitting into our waterways – where’s the realisation of that in this emissions plan?
We are not looking at true energy self sustainability utilising solar, wind or tidal technology.
We are not funding community resilience or decentralised food supply chains.
We are doing very, very, very little to combat the true scale and danger of the climate crisis.
And the crisis is happening now.
Before Putin invaded the Ukraine, global grain production had already plummeted in 2022 due to massive climate crisis global droughts impacting harvests and interrupting the agricultural calendar.
Russia & Ukraine produce 12% of all globally traded calories and the shut down of exports and war damage to farms has devastated food and fertilizer production which will trigger food riots throughout the Middle East and South America.
I’ve been arguing that our inflation will hit double digits by December because we are grossly underestimating the Apocalyptic impact of global War, Famine, Pestilence and Death.
There is an amalgamation of crises that are rushing together pushing the planet into a steep economic recession. Since 2008 the central banks have printed 25 Trillion to keep the Ponzi scheme from collapsing and that has artificially created the lowest interest rate in 5000 years.
The unwinding of that kind of pressure surely is going to be the event horizon of a Debt Black Hole?
A climate crisis that exacerbates an economic crisis that exacerbates a war crisis that exacerbates a pandemic crisis.
That’s a lot of Black Swans all ubering home.
In the light of the threats to us in the here and now, this document trying to determine the future seems hopelessly compromised.
If this is our ‘Nuclear Moment’, Lange is weeping.
Increasingly having independent opinion in a mainstream media environment which mostly echo one another has become more important than ever, so if you value having an independent voice – please donate here.
If you can’t contribute but want to help, please always feel free to share our blogs on social media
On transport I awaited the announcement that only a government can make. Starting next month the government intends all intercity freight and passengers is to be carried on rail by 2030, and as commitment we are electrifying the entire existing network and adding to it and improving it.
We are building new electrified commuter lines in all the main centres, in addition to those already in existence.
We are providing funding and buying power for every council in the main centres firstly, to fully electrifying their bus fleets to connect to these new commuter lines using grid connected electrification, not toxic batteries using precious metals that destroy the planet.
We will also provide parking at stations in the extreme fringes to assist where bus based PT is inefficient.
And once we have provided these real alternatives to cars and trucks we will toll everything that moves. But not until then.
Why, because we are serious and this will reduce emissions, hugely.
What did we get? Some sort of Soviet central planned car leasing thingy, subsidies to buy a lesser polluting car, if the person who can’t afford to trade theirs in anyway suddenly wins lotto. A deeply misguided belief that the little man in a coal powered factory China will just magic up all these E cars from his arse to satisfy our needs and that the climate change they create in production and their magic beans toxic precious metals batteries can be ignored. Oh, and some cycleways.
And we know this severe halfed arseness will be eroded by National and ACT anyway after 2023.
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry at the inept totally impractical morons we have as MP’s. Much less this government!
XRAY I think you can only cry.
Did they say anything abut the half price public transport? that should run out any day now?
Problem is to get all the infrastructure such as locomotives (which we don’t make here), we have to trade. And what do we have to trade if we get rid of the cows. We could run the printing presses (made overseas) to print more money which sort of devalues it to the extent of whether anyone overseas would accept it in exchange for goods….
Well I suppose a government could direct that no-one could travel between cities except by rail. The only problem is that at the next election they would lose office.
Policy in this area has to be sustainable, that is, be able to survive changes of government. It not progress at the rate of lowest ambition, but you can’t get out too far ahead. Your opponents (Labour and National) have to be at least able to tolerate what the other side is doing, even if they are not singing your praises. The policies can’t be anathema to other side.
I actually thought the overall initiatives were not too bad. Although I was surprised there was no ban on imports of pure ICE cars and light vehicles after 2035. Most European countries have such bans. Most manufacturers will be fully electric or Plug-in Hybrids before then.
It is respectable start, which will be built upon.
What they’re proposing won’t work but will waste unprecedented money.
The entire car industry is a complex but very intertwined ecosystem and a huge employer, from the new car buyer down to the wreckers yard, very much market driven and very much anti bureaucracy by nature. The volk may not necessarily trade their car that they like for many reasons for a Prius or an E bike. And E car prices will hit the afterburners, they already are from the last intervention by government. Battery prices are causing big price hikes with Tesla’s for example owing to shortages of raw materials and that doesn’t cover off the profiteering that car sales enjoy when a type is in short supply and in demand.
And to show just how much this announcement is a charade is, is that the alternatives the government offers aside from the non realistic E car option is the same old same old number 9 bus scenario, not even close to a match for the freedom and flexibility of the private vehicle that currently in Auckland 97% of citizens use. And yes I know the likes of the Heralds Simon Wilson by virtue of their address and position in life think buses are the answer, but they simply aren’t.
And they know if they bring out the stick option of congestion charges, car bans, and road closures for bike lanes, they as a government are gone.
Hence I thought if government were serious about change there would be a demonstrable lead taken by them rather than throw random cash around in an awkward Wellington based government dept bureaucracy thing at a micro level trying to interfere in the market.
And we all know this announcement was poor as James Shaw is already blaming Labour’s “red hue” for it.
More facile meaninglessness from the most transparent government ever.
They just don’t Know what to do about anything.
Look at their promises look at their achievements?
We won’t do anything meaningful till we absolutely have to do something and then it will be too late to do anything. I’m 67 and I am going to start taking better care of my health. I want to see the end of the world.
Similar thoughts here.
When I’m dead I’ll probably not be missing much……..SADLY for the next generation…..hey ho, the most importnat point is…………..that for a brief moment (in gelogical terms) we made maximised profits for the few elites that own/control the stock market.
@Kevin brings a tear to my eye, thinking of the delicate and intricate beauty of those financial indicies, sniff
” I want to see the end of the world.”
Even if it means attending the funerals of your own grand children?
Hahahahaha hahahahahaha you have to laugh at this T T Tr Tra Transformational Govt. By 8pm the ERP was already down to item 6 or 7 on the new sites below the woman who fell pregnant. Shaw on the radio sounded like he won a Bonus Ticket, that’s all. Let me put it this way – this will not save the election for Labour. On the contrary it just shows why they have to go.
Agree SK they quite simply don’t know what to do.
They have to go because National will do so much better on climate change – right? And that’s despite the evidence that they would actually do less about it and be noticeably worse?
So there are two possibilities:
a.) you genuinely care about climate change but have lapsed into irrational self-destructive thinking
b.) you are actually a CC denier trying to hijack the thread
Neither of these is pretty: the first deserves sympathy, the second condemnation. Let us know which one it is.
AB
I am more A. Let’s I agree with the intention, although hardly ambitious, why don’t you lay out for all of us in detail, why Jacinda and her Labour govt are the right and competent folks to see this half baked short on detail plan through to the end? Yes…I thought that might stump you.
Well I never claimed that the plan isn’t a bit underwhelming and insufficient. I just have a different theory as to why.
It’s not because this government is uniquely incompetent – there is no evidence of this. It’s a mix like every other government. A stunningly good response to every stage of the pandemic – compared to say the naivety of believing that the private sector would act against their own interests to help deliver KiwiBuild.
The insufficiency of the plan is due to the political constraints of having National/ACT as a viable alternative governing coalition. Remove this constraint and the possibilities for action become much greater. I would have no objection if you voted against Labour for someone on their left. But if you vote Nat/ACT you simply make the root cause of your irritation and despondency more powerful. That’s why I described it as “self-destructive”.
Lil ole NZ can’t fuckn stop climate change! But the northern hemisphere probably can!
The northern hemisphere is the problem and so is their consumption ffs!
Their consumption drives the factories in China and the Asian hub.
They are the largest group of settlers who are 89%-90% of the world’s population that needs to change their consumption addiction.
As for James. He probably needs to come out of the closet and identify as a mangled banana albino piccaninny pigme to survive another vote.
Hahaha what a great image of James
He could always declare that he is a woman and from now on wants to be referred to as Loretta.
From today’s Stuff: ” EVs will still be out of reach for many despite new subsidy ”
Gosh who’d have thought?
yes but they’ll be cheaper for LINOs key demographic.
The most interesting recent story was about the woman who spent less than a $1000 a year at the supermarket.
Decoupling ourselves from corporate slavery is probably the solution to many of our woes but there’s no consultancy money in that.
Was ram raiding part of her cost saving strategy?
Asking for a friend
fine if you have land to cultivate not so easy to live off a window box.
I think James Shaw did the best he could and to get Nationals buy in would have been difficult.
Nearly 500 pages with little detail and not even any way to measure the implementation that I could see.
More committees. More trials.
If we are to get serious the governing party has to lead and specifically their chariamatic leader Jacinda.
Talk of climate change being her generations nuclear free moment 4 years ago resonated with many.
“classified as maximum temperatures of more than 35C that can kill”
Srry but bad news ( its only ever more bad news these days ):
Practical Human Wet-Bulb Temperature Resilience Threshold Limit Measured to Be Much Lower than 35 C
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twwhTWEkBqY
“…I also discuss a paper looking at regions of the world that are experiencing wet bulb temperatures approaching 35 C, including parts of the Middle East near oceans with very high Sea-Surface Temperatures (SSTs). In fact, many parts of the world are starting to exceed the 31 C wet-bulb temperature which the new research shows to be the practical human threshold limit…”
This is from scientist Paul Beckwith’s channel – he is a good man:
“Well known climate system science educator; joining the dots on abrupt climate change. Occasional part-time professor (sessional/contract instructor) in Geography (on climatology, oceanography, environmental issues) at University of Ottawa. Physicist. Engineer. Master’s Degree in Science in Laser Optics, Bachelors of Engineering, in Engineering Physics. Won Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario gold medal. Also interested in climate solutions, renewable energy and energy efficiency. Avid chess player, and likes restoring old homes. Married with three sons.”
https://www.youtube.com/user/PaulHBeckwith/about
Well worth following this guy, he has regular video updates on all the latest science on Climate Catastrophe.
Cowsploitation isn’t ‘farming’. Let me, as a farmer, make that clear.
Just because a fellow has a cow on a paddock ( Cows need to eat grass, that’s a Ponsonby FYI BTW.)
doesn’t make that fellow a farmer.
The definition of farming sustainably is to farm sustainably. That means no artificial fertilisers, so no run-off, no animal remedies needed because animals aren’t crushed together in a small space. ( Paddocks, FYI.) and most of the money that farmers earn goes back to the farmer, not fat, lazy, greed swollen suits stuck in the middle of the income stream, nor their all bought and paid for politicians, which are now almost all of them, and lets spare a thought for the dreaded, and frankly quite evil bankster. So less money for the bankster crew which means we’ll all go to Hell riding a burning cow because the bankster just won’t let farmers become sustainable. There’d be no money in it for those who make the most out of farming who also do the least for it.
Wee HSBC Bankster Jimmy is in here somewhere, am I right? Electric cars need electricity right?
Our electricity is now a private money spinning scam, Gee thanks roger the runt rat douglas.
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/may/16/john-oliver-us-utility-companies-last-week-tonight-recap
And while we’re all about howling at farmers because they dare to feed us, spare a thought for international shipping?
Check out the diesel fumes and particulate spewing ships out there. Robot cows of the high seas.
Just keep panning out…
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:168.337/centery:-46.591/zoom:14
There’s only one species of animal that’s taking our earth to extinction by the throat and that is we exploitative humans.
Farm animals still get sick when not crowded together like all other animals can, and need animal remedies.
Don’t make me give you a boring list.
and millions going to agritech so that we can keep mass producing food from genetically edited cows and plants, grown intensively e.g. the new vertical automated towers for growing ge food indoors. empty food. sick food. ge plants and microorganisms in our environment. what could go wrong?
If this is the response to the climate crisis it will be interesting how enlightened the budget is in fighting the financial crisis.
I think both will be as much use as a damp squid
Really really looking forward to National and Acts policies on climate change any time soon Trevor, seriously?
I hope if National do get back into power Act will only have a small voice and no real power just like Labour and Greens . I am not against calling out National if their policy goes against my thoughts and while you have every right to stand up for Labour surely there is little that grabs you to say they have created a path to true climate salvation.
Remember when we wanted to introduce a fart tax and the farmers said they needed time to research to reduce their emissions, well look, emissions have gone up, not down and farmers are again asking for time to research a solution. Times up, its just an excuse now, the rest of us are sick of paying for something your industry mostly creates. Contribute or find another method of farming that doent pollute as much!
Says the guy living in a concrete city where food comes from a supermarket.
AB
I am more A. Let’s I agree with the intention, although hardly ambitious, why don’t you lay out for all of us in detail, why Jacinda and her Labour govt are the right and competent folks to see this half baked short on detail plan through to the end? Yes…I thought that might stump you.
What it really tells us is they don’t believe in anthropogenic climate change. And nothing they do will make any difference. Hence the virtual signalling efforts, and Labourisq delivery mechanisms.
If they were remotely serious the very first thing we should be doing is building more green electricity production/capacity. If by some miracle they could deliver (and pay for) 100,000 EV’s a year, we would be effectively charging them with diesel generator’s it’s just beyond funny its some stupid.
I know there’s some limp wristed plan to deliver more green energy, but they have more chance of building light rail from the airport to the city in Auckland than delivering on that.
I know I’m a bore on the subject but HYDRO we have abundant resources and yes cement is a polluter but once a dam is built minimum 100 yrs pollution free energy….manufactured shortage in a faux market means big bucks
Relating to the Clean Car Upgrade – a scheme to shift low-income households to electric and hybrid vehicles….Shaw was asked what a middle income earner was, he didn’t know. The he was asked what a low income earner was, he didn’t know. What can one say?
Part of the problem is Kiwis tend not to talk about money or how much they earn, so people end up with some funny ideas. A work colleague told me, he was the working poor, despite owning a freehold house valued at over $600k, multiple vehicles including a newish 4×4, investments & a household income of well over $100k with the couple only working part-time, whereas other people think they are earning the big bucks with an income around $50-60k. Most people don’t have a clue about how much even their friends earn or how much debt they carry, so are unlikely to be able to understand just what those in other socio-economic groups lives are like. With this in mind, it isn’t surprising that Shaw couldn’t answer what appears to be a relatively simple question.
The other possibility is that he could answer the question, but the answer was so low to give it would be embarrassing and it likely that any vehicle they could afford wouldn’t be eligible for the subsidy & the amount paid for their existing vehicle would be similarly pathetic.
your cities will go under regardless. Your crops will wither and your economies will crash and in the end we will go extinct.
the planet is getting over a nasty case of scabies–US