Posts filed under ‘food security’
Is Moreland prepared for a mega-drought?
Drought stress on wetlands
New research from the University of Queensland suggests that Mega-droughts – droughts that last two decades or longer – are tipped to increase thanks to climate change.
Professor Hamish McGowan, the leading author of the new study, said the findings suggested climate change would lead to increased water scarcity, reduced winter snow cover, more frequent bushfires and wind erosion. The research looked at geological records from the Eemian Period – 129,000 to 116,000 years ago – when temperature were similar to or slightly higher than today.
Mega droughts will change how we use water, and also have implications for food security both locally and nationally.
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Submission to Climate Change Authority – policies necessary to achieve Australia’s commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement
Climate Action Tracker June 2019 assessment.
Climate Action Moreland prepared the following submission (PDF) to the Climate Change Authority focussing on three sectors: agriculture, energy (electricity) , and transport. These are key areas for Australia to implement climate policy to achieve reduction in emissions to meet Australia’s commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement. We appreciate the Climate Change Authority collating this information, even though the present conservative government largely ignores the independent advice of this Authority.
Under the Paris Agreement Australia needs to submit a new Nationally Determined Contribution document that outlines all targets and policies to achieve our targets, by early 2020. No backtracking is acceptable (this is written into the agreement as well) This is the ratchet (ambition) mechanism of the Paris Agreement. On current commitments the world is heading for an average temperature rise of between 2.4 degrees to 3.8 degrees Celsius by 2100, as calculated by the Climate Action Tracker website. Australia’s effort is rated as ‘Insufficient’.
100 global solutions to Global warming: Paul Hawken on Drawdown
Paul Hawken on the long term CO2 trend
Paul Hawken explained the long term CO2 trend and the need for carbon Drawdown at a presentation event at Coburg Town Hall organised by CERES, MEFL and Moreland Council.
Hawken’s book on Drawdown explains the top 100 solutions to global warming and ranks them for their capacity and importance.
Food related solutions were 8 of the top 20 solutions with the need for a plant rich diet ranked as No 4.
Energy solutions were 5 of the top 20 solutions with onshore wind listed at No 2.
The work also shows the importance of programs tackling gender-based education inequalities with Educating girls at No 6 and Family Planning at No 7.
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Time to try a Climatarian Diet?
The Climatarian Challenge
Australians are the second biggest meat-eaters in the world, with the average Aussie eating over 90kg of meat every year. And there is a lot of embedded carbon contained in the production of meat.
Our friends at Less Meat Less Heat have produced an App for your mobile phone: the Climatarian Challenge to help you understand the challenge in reducing the amount of meat in your diet to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and particularly meat production.
Just small changes in social behaviour can add up to major demand driven emissions reduction.
You might choose to implement planned behavioural changes such as ‘Meatless Mondays’ or switching from beef or lamb to pork or chicken.
The application will give you a basic understanding of the carbon footprint of each type of meat and dairy. But it leaves which meats and when you choose to eat them up to you, in a monthly carbon budget.
If in Melbourne, you can go to the global launch:
When: 12th of November from 11am to 3pm
Where: Queensbridge Square, Southbank, Melbourne, Australia
Register at Facebook Event
Make 2015 the year the world finally gets serious about Climate Action
Welcome to the February 2015 edition of the Climate Action Moreland Newsletter.
Let’s help make 2015 the year that the world finally gets serious about Climate Action
This is an important year. The UN Climate Change Conference in Paris hopes to finally achieve a legally binding universal agreement on climate change. We can all do our bit to ensure that Australia takes up the challenge!
There are lots of activities happening over the next month. (See our calendar.) This is a great time to get involved, get active and get your friends motivated too!
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February 13, 2015 at 11:34 pm morelandclimategroup Leave a comment
Fair Food Forum at Coburg Farmers Market discusses agriculture and food security
Climate Action Moreland members ventured to the Coburg Farmers Market on Saturday to shop, to chat with other Moreland residents about climate change, collect signatures on the Monster climate petition, and listen to candidates for the State Election in November 2014 speak at the Fair Food Forum.
Food security and agriculture are important subjects which we should all be aware of and asking our political representatives about.
Fair Food Week – 10 to 19 October – is organised by Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance (AFSA). Michael Croft, AFSA President, described the occasion as “Fair Food Week encourages the general community to embrace local food production, purchase and consumption.”
All candidates for the seats of Brunswick and Pascoe Vale who had so far committed to stand were invited to speak, however the Liberal candidate for Brunswick cancelled the night before, Jane Garrett, Labor MP for Brunswick refused to attend, and Lizzie Blandthorn, Labor candidate for Pascoe Vale although originally agreeing to come then reneged and instead handed out red balloons and launched the Batman market near the Batman railway station.
But the forum went ahead with the Greens candidates Liam Farelly and Tim Read, Dean O’Callaghan from Save the Planet and Sean Brocklehurst from Socialist Alliance.
I am really astounded that both major parties refused to send anyone along to this forum. Food and agriculture is so important in our lives, and yet both the Liberal and Labor parties could not bother to provide some-one to represent their party and policies in this area. Climate change is already affecting agriculture from long and intense droughts, changes to rainfall patterns, more extreme weather events, and of course rising temperatures affecting crop yield and milk production.
