(Keywords: Brexit/ Viewpoint/ Climate Protest / Environmental lobbying / Air Pollution, Monitoring and) (Complaints / Onshore power connections / Data / Traffic Issues / Health Impacts from pollution / DPC)
It has been a few weeks since our last newsletter. Clearly Brexit developments continue to dominate many people’s priorities and concerns, and rightly so; it could be a big game changer for Gibraltar, although yesterday’s votes in the UK Parliament may have bought more time and allow common sense and a better outcome to prevail all round.
Tonight sees a Viewpoint at the Leisure Centre with a ‘What If’ scenario on Brexit being debated – should be interesting – look out for it live on GBC at 9.30pm. Hopefully environmental issues post Brexit such as waste, environmental protection and enforcement will come up.
9am this Friday morning will see a protest on climate change at Casemates Square by some Gibraltar students, being held in solidarity with similar protests taking place throughout the world each month. Given the urgency of the most pressing issue facing humanity and the planet with the greater impacts more likely to affect the next generations, it is positive and emboldening to see young people taking such a stand.
The ESG lobbies for action on climate change year round with our monitoring of the development of renewable energy programme in Gibraltar as well as polluting sources and activity, commonly linked to production of greenhouse gasses and we shall be at the protest in support of its message. For anyone unaware of our core aims and objectives we invite you to visit our website at esg-gib.net and click on objectives documents.
We continue to receive complaints and concerns about noise and air pollution in the south district and are taking this up with relevant agencies. With progress being made at the new LNG Power Station we hope to see this followed by the installation of onshore power connections at key points throughout the port and south mole. This will make the skids currently in use, redundant, and provide vessels with plug in shore power, thus eliminating the need to run engines while berthed. Onshore power is fast becoming a key component of a “Green Port” and Gibraltar should incorporate this as soon as possible.
We also await publication of the data being gathered by the mobile monitoring units around Gibraltar so we can learn more about pollution levels at various hotspots, not presently covered by the major monitoring stations – this data, is extremely important to provide a broader and more accurate picture of the air quality we live in.
Traffic congestion, activity and pollution is also a major factor. We are hoping to meet with Minister Balban in a week’s time where we shall raise various concerns and ask for information in areas of particular interest to us.
Various points in this newsletter refer to pollution of some kind and it is a preoccupation of ours. A report in the global press this week suggests that air pollution has overtaken smoking as the main cause of premature death. This should ring alarm bells everywhere and press societies, governments and policy makers to rapidly clean up the environment as fast as possible.
Look out also for the next DPC meeting in March, which will take place on the 26th March at 9.30am.
With special talks, clean ups and more coming up it looks like a busy spring – for more information you can email us at esg@gibtelecom.net.
Thanks for listening.
