There is no shortage of evidence that humanity is in a very serious place environmentally. Data from a global catalogue of recent extreme weather events demonstrates we are in a climate emergency. But is there evidence for optimism? Paul Allen, project leader for the Zero Carbon Britain initiative, says yes. In the largest survey yet of the delivery potential from rising renewable energy supplies, a new report from the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) shows that clean energy could now meet all our electricity needs, at all times of the day, and all year round.
Dr Alan Cottey gives a brief account of Martin Ryle’s intense and complex relations with war and peace. This article is part of the marking of the centenary of Sir Martin Ryle (1918 – 1984). It complements an earlier one on Ryle and energy. [1] Martin Ryle is best known for his pioneering contributions to the techniques and use of radio astronomy. For this he is justly celebrated and was chosen as one of ten eminent Britons in a set of Royal Mail stamps.
Significant progress on measures to protect the world’s oceans has been made over the past couple of years - but there is more to be done. SGR's Dr Stuart Parkinson and Dr Louisa Reynolds explain.
Article from SGR Newsletter no.46; published online with an update: 17 July 2018
Today a coalition of science and peace organisations has launched the European initiative Researchers for Peace. Over 700 scientists and academics, most from 19 EU countries, have signed an online statement which calls on the EU to stop funding military research. They invite their colleagues in the research community to add their support.
Climate change can increase the risk of violent conflict, so why don't we redirect some of the funding for military technologies to help tackle climate insecurity? Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, assesses the potential based on the latest international data on military and climate spending.
Article from Laboratory News; republished: 22 June 2018
With nuclear issues leading the global political agenda, in an exclusive piece for the Responsible Science blog, based on his new book 'Fallout: A Journey Through the Nuclear Age, From the Atom Bomb to Radioactive Waste,' science writer Fred Pearce exposes the toxic and security risks of the UK’s growing 'Mt Plutonium' – 130 tons and rising of plutonium dioxide left behind by an energy technology that never took-off and is no longer wanted.
As the UK government chooses World Environment Day to announce plans for a third, polluting runway at Heathrow Airport, and new reports point to air quality worsening internationally, May van Schalkwyk and Emer O’Connell look at the global public health crisis of air pollution, and the key steps needed to tackle it.
Article from SGR Newsletter no.46; published online with an update: 5 June 2018
In the first of two articles marking the centenary of former Astronomer Royal, Martin Ryle (1918 – 1984), Dr Alan Cottey describes how, early on, he saw the flaws in nuclear and fossil fuel energy and how renewables were the answer.
North Sea oil began flowing into the UK economy in 1975 and production peaked in 1999. Ever since, the industry has faced inevitable decline. Now, writes Andrew Simms, a new report [1] reveals how decommissioning its infrastructure is raising questions of cost, contradictions in climate and energy policy, and the prospect of a huge bill being passed on to the next generation.
Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un have reminded many of the risks of nuclear conflict, but have we forgotten the dangers of simply owning the weapons? David Cullen and Peter Burt, Nuclear Information Service, summarise a recent report on the frightening scale of accidents within Britain’s military nuclear complex - and the shocking reality that the full extent of the problem can’t be known because no central record has been kept.
Article from SGR Newsletter no.46; published online: 23 April 2018
Significant progress on measures to protect the world’s oceans has been made over the past couple of years - but there is more to be done. SGR's Dr Stuart Parkinson and Dr Louisa Reynolds explain.
Climate change can increase the risk of violent conflict, so why don't we redirect some of the funding for military technologies to help tackle climate insecurity? Dr Stuart Parkinson, SGR, assesses the potential based on the latest international data on military and climate spending.
