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A fellow peak oil activist has created a petition that we intend take to the Vancouver City council to urge them to create a task force to begin looking at the multitude of issues that permanently declining oil supplies creates. Politicians and business folk accustomed to the growth paradigm need to wake up and realize that it’s time to plan and implement solutions that account for shrinking liquid fuel supplies every subsequent year from now. No one yet knows the rate of decline that we will collectively experience but it is this rate that should determine the scope and time line of solutions to effectively mitigate the numerous and far reaching risks. The City of Vancouver needs to perform a thorough risk assessment, facilitate scenario planning, draft a plan, circulate the plan to all stakeholders and begin implementation. Help us create a loud enough collective voice that will demand the attention of city council.

Sign the petition HERE.

Peak oil and climate change represent profound and unprecedented global challenges whose economic, environmental, and political impacts are intertwined and often divisive. On one hand, many climate activists argue that peak oil is a ‘distraction’ for local decision makers or, in some cases, an industry agenda aimed at removing barriers to oil extraction. On the converse side, many peak oil activists argue that energy-driven economic crises, and not climate targets, will be the real driving force behind the global energy transition. This presentation and panel discussion will seek to bridge these gaps by bringing together local advocates for action on peak oil and climate change to find common ground, define differences, and set priorities for action on the ground.

Bryn Davidson is a specialist in sustainable urban development whose current work in architecture and planning was preceded by several years as a mechanical engineer and environmental activist in Alaska. After graduating with a masters of Architecture in 2004 he started the design and planning practice Rao/D Cityworks , and co-founded the non-profit Dynamic Cities Project - a think tank working to help cities adapt to peak oil and climate change. Bryn’s presentations on peak oil planning have been well received globally, and have been translated into multiple languages. Locally, his current projects include a farm-integrated residential development in Ontario, a high performance home in Alaska, and sustainability consulting for local green-minded businesses.

Free admission. Co-sponsored by Necessary Voices Society.

Date: Tuesday Dec 11, 2007
Time: 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Location: Vancouver Public Library, Central Branch 350 W. Georgia St., Alice MacKay room

Contact: Necessary Voices Society
Phone: (604) 331-4044

I’m a member of Voters Taking Action on Climate Change (VTACC), a local citizens group lobbying the BC government to take action on climate change. The organization has successfully lobbied to stop the coal plants and is now campaigning for a carbon tax. In a recent budget consultation process, the government received an unexpected call for action to create a carbon tax. Here are the details:

The province’s Finance Minister, Carol Taylor, has asked her staff to report to her on the topic of a carbon tax by the end of this month, and she will likely decide before Christmas whether or not to proceed with a tax in the 2008 provincial budget. She has already indicated in front of the media that the option of a carbon tax is on the table. It is clear that Ms. Taylor has floated the idea to gauge public response, and she needs to know that there is broad public support if she is to move forward. There is no doubt that those opposed are urging her to avoid introducing a tax, or to bring forward a measure with no real substance as a nod to public concern. Please take the time today to send a message to Minister Taylor telling her that you want our province to take a leadership role on this issue. If you are on Facebook, you can join our BC Needs a Carbon Tax! group.

In both links above you’ll find all you need to know to quickly send off your message — contact information, key points to make in your letter, a sample letter for inspiration, and background information if you want to learn more.

Together, our actions are moving the carbon tax initiative forward — during its recent public consultations the finance committee received an unprecedented 500 submissions in support of a carbon tax, many of them from you. You can read the committee’s response to this input here. In a short time, citizen input in this province has shifted a tax on carbon emissions from a political non-starter to a clear possibility, and everyone who took the time to write to the committee should be congratulated. However, we’re not done yet.

Our time is short, and we are at a pivotal point in this process — please take a moment now to help deliver an important Christmas present for BC, the planet and our children’s future.

Andrea, David, Kevin, and Tom for the VTACC collective.

P.S. — We hope to see many of you at the Wired Monk next Friday night. While enjoying the music, company and holiday cheer we aim to gather 100 letters in support of the carbon tax to send in to Minister Taylor.

Resources

• Carbon Tax article in The Globe and Mail

I’m part way through a lecture called Navigate the Falling Dollar and I had to stop to post the link to it. It’s an incredibly well articulated lecture by Catherine Austin Fitts, an investment banker who seems to have a substantial grasp about what is happening economically right now.

Exxon raped Alaska and now Shell is on its way to British Columbia.

Video here: http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=V2RUhJGbjDM

Details here: http://www.dogwoodinitiative.org/

Peak Oil is when the extraction rate of petroleum reaches its maximum and can no longer meet demand.

I read a great speech on Peak Oil today by Mathew Simmons, one of the world’s leading experts on investing in the oil industry. He suggests the peak is 1 - 9 years away. Details below:

References

• Is The World Supply Of Oil & Gas Peaking
• Mathew Simmons recent speeches

[tags]Peak Oil, Mathew Simmons[/tags]

A recent gas crunch in Ontario and Quebec provides a little insight into how near capacity our oil and gas supply chain is. Any hiccups start creating an inability to meet demand. Stephen Leeb, an investment advisor and author of The Coming Economic Collapse believes that supply is currently around 102% of demand. We have very little surplus and this seems to go unnoticed by most. Oil companies seem to watch this very closely and take the opportunity to raise prices whenever possible. It seems like a good time to get off of oil as quickly as possible.

References

• http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2007/02/26/gasshortage.html
• http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2007/02/27/gasshortagequebec.html

We all pay fees to use municipal dumps and it should be no different when dumping greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. We must shift our linear systems of production into cyclic processes where nothing toxic accumulates in the biosphere, be it solid, liquid or gas. This is basic common sense and the minimum bottom line that we have to reach. No one wants garbage accumulating in their basement or backyard so lets stop creating it.

A revenue neutral, phased in carbon tax would give individuals and industry a clear fore-knowledge of future costs of business-as-usual. This tax strategy would create an incentive for everyone to adjust their consumption of energy over time. Start gradually and communicate the shift so all are aware of the timetable. Make it rapid enough to achieve a real impact in the short-term and foster a sense of urgency but not so fast that business is crippled. Such a tax will send a strong message to industry that the era of government looking the other way on environmental issues is over. It will create a climate of innovation and give consumers greater choice of options when looking for green upgrades.

Write your MP, premier, environment minister and prime minister and let them know that you are ready to see a carbon tax phased in over the next 10 - 20 years as one step toward a zero-waste society.

References

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_tax
• http://www.carbontax.org/