Low Carbon Kāpiti Blog

Low Carbon Kāpiti supports the School Strike 4 Climate

There is no Planet B. There is also not much time left to save Planet A either. There is less than 12 years to avert the worst climate change scenarios according to the latest report by the IPCC. David Attenborough said of this situation: ‘the collapse of our civilisations and the extinction of much of the natural world is on the horizon.’ The stakes really could not be higher.

We are in this position because the traditional incremental approach to policy change has failed us, stymied by the malign influence of the fossil fuel industry and other vested interests, complacency and denial. Global emissions of greenhouse gases, and their concentration in the atmosphere continue to soar higher and higher. The long-predicted climate impacts of more extreme droughts, wildfires, floods, storms and heatwaves have arrived and are wreaking havoc around the world.

It is young people that will bear a greater degree of the consequences of climate change, because a greater proportion of their lives are ahead of them. This is doubly unfair, as they are not responsible for the situation. However, because the adults have not acted responsibly, and because time has almost run out, young people are stepping up to demand the changes we need to save us all.

Check out our awesome new artwork for the ‘Carbon Neutral Council 2025’ campaign!

These were created by young local artist Charlie Budd. They show the choice that is in front of us right now in a striking manner. Thanks heaps Charlie!

We’re having flyers and posters made to help get signatures for our campaign to get council to go ‘Carbon Neutral as an organisation by 2025. You can sign the petition here http://tinyurl.com/kcdc2025 and find out more about the campaign here.

Kāpiti College students call on Council to go carbon-neutral

A delegation of Kāpiti College students spoke to the Kāpiti Coast District Council on Thursday 21 Feb 2019, urging the council to go carbon-neutral by 2025. Four speakers, Ben Carson, Francesca Griggs, Lucy Owens and Bree Renwick, expressed the group’s concerns about what the future holds for their generation as a result of climate change. They were supported there by other students from the College Eco-Action group and from community group Low Carbon Kāpiti, who initiated the campaign.

Bree Renwick said this there is no economy, or indeed anything at all, without an environment, and that the situation with climate change is a global emergency.

Bree Renwick addresses council, calling on them to go carbon neutral as an organisation by 2025.

The speakers talked about how the inaction of the older generation had imperiled their future and that of all young people, and that leaders needed to act right now to avoid the worst outcomes. she quoted the words of the 16-year old climate activist Greta Thunberg, founder of the global ‘School Strike for Climate’ movement, who said to world leaders ‘I want you to act like your house is on fire, because it is’. They also emphasised the benefits of reducing emissions to both reduce climate impacts and to restore and protect Kāpiti’s precious natural environment.

They highlighted the petition for KCDC to go carbon neutral had already attracted around 1000 signatures, and that students would be back, demonstrating outside the Council Offices on Friday 15 March as part of the global School Strike for Climate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iixZ7zvQgMc

Video courtesy of Joshua Patel.

Councillors thanked the students and asked questions. Councillor John Howson said that he shared the frustration of the students, and that we needed to move far past awareness of the issue, asking for ideas how the council could actually achieve the reach the carbon neutral goal. The group responded explaining the actions that could be taken, such as using renewable power, electric vehicles, replacing boilers with heat pumps and planting native forests, previously submitted to council by Low Carbon Kāpiti as part of the 2018 Long Term Plan process.

Council has reduced their carbon footprint as an organisation by around 76% since 2009-10, but a report presented to Council at the same meeting attended by the students stated that council would fall short of its current target to reduce emissions by 80% by 2021-22 unless further action was taken.

Those wishing to sign the petition for council to become carbon neutral by 2025 can do so at tinyurl.com/kcdc2025 . Information on the school strike for climate can be found at www.schoolstrike4climatenz.com

Kapiti College Eco-Action Group and Low Carbon Kāpiti members outside the Council offices.
Back row left to right: Erin McKevert, Ben Carson, Stevie Shipman, Bree Renwick, Lucy Owen, Chad Wappes, Irene Thomas. Front row left to right: Mille Day, Pippa McCormack Wolf, Francesca Griggs, Joshua Patel, Deirdre Kent, Sarah Riegert, Levon Stone

Ōtaki Pool emissions increase – Council responds

Reacting to our news release on the increase in gas use and emissions at Ōtaki Pool, Kāpiti Coast District Council has given this response to Kapiti Independent News. Low Carbon Kāpiti is pleased the issue will be addressed, although we will continue to monitor the issue to ensure adequate funding is maintained in the 2021 Long Term Plan and that the heat pump installed is large enough to provide primary heating for the pool, thereby keeping gas use and emissions to a minimum.

Ōtaki Pool fossil fuel waste goes through roof

Local group Low Carbon Kāpiti have revealed that fossil-fuel use at Ōtaki Pool has increased by 17% as a result of changes made during refurbishment and are calling on the Council to sort it out.

Low Carbon Kāpiti Chair and former Council energy advisor Jake Roos said “Gas use at Ōtaki Pool this year through to the end of September has gone up, costing council an extra $4,000 on the pool gas bill and causing about 30 tonnes of extra carbon emissions (CO2) so far. This is compared to the three years before the pool was closed for refurbishment. For context, 32 tonnes of CO2 per year is as much as Council would save from replacing 15 petrol cars with electric ones.”

“This waste has been caused by the higher airflow rate from the larger air-supply fan installed last year.”