Hello and welcome to the new edition of the Voice for Arran. July has arrived and so has Election week, and while Thursday may be a day of reckoning for politicians, it feels possibly more like one for the planet! My feeling is perhaps compounded by ongoing uncertainty as to who to vote for. Each party has some policies that resonate, each some major downsides. And very little has been said in the pre-election debates, or on the leaflets that have come through my door, about what the parties are planning to do to address, let alone prioritise, tackling the climate crisis.
There was an online hustings last week that I couldn’t attend which may have helped my indecision. However, concerning the lack of action from our government, as one anonymous contributor writes in this issue, “It is frankly a pretty stark mirror we need to hold up to ourselves if we are to understand and take in the real dangers of global warming.” And when I consider what politicians have been offering in the last few weeks, I don’t get a sense of this mirror at all.
Arran Eco Savvy has been helping to fill some of this information gap. The organisation contacted candidates standing for election in Arran and North Ayrshire to ask them what their intentions are for the environment, for reducing carbon emissions and for moving Scotland towards net zero. In Climate Change and Future Government Action, we hear some of these responses, thereby bringing matters of environment and climate change at least a little more into public awareness at this time. (Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth Scotland have also provided helpful analysis of the main parties’ climate and nature policies.)
But once again, in this issue we learn about the actions of local groups and communities that continue to make significant change. Where government is not stepping in to safeguard what needs to be protected, groups of committed individuals and campaigners are leading the way. In a very recent case, campaigners in Surrey won a landmark ruling against oil-drilling at Horse Hill. The Supreme Court declared that, “Surrey County Council acted unlawfully in granting planning permission to a developer to expand their oil-drilling operations…without considering the negative climate impacts both now and in the future.” Until now, it has been only the impacts of developing new fossil fuel operations, rather than the future (indirect) greenhouse gas emissions that result from these, that have been taken into account when assessing whether a project can go ahead. Both scientists and activists say, “This decision has the potential to completely alter the landscape for the oil and gas industry in the UK.”
Elsewhere in Survival of our Oceans, we hear about the successes of “communities fighting to save their inshore waters”. From Mexico to the Western Indian Ocean, and of course right here in Lamlash Bay, communities are demonstrating what can be done for ocean protection. And Greenpeace “is calling on governments all around the world to agree a strong Global Ocean Treaty to help support people, protect wildlife and combat climate change.”
Back in Arran a busy month is coming up. Aside from the election, there is a great array of summer activities lined up, including watery pursuits with COAST and Otter’s Tail, guided mountain adventures with the NTS and Arran Geopark, and an exciting event on Sunday 7th with the launch of the latest Corrie’s Capers children’s book. We hope you enjoy this issue and if you find yourself in a similar situation to myself, wish you well with the decision-making to come! Elsa
