UK must set a climate example to world

IN discussing measures to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide in order to ameliorate ongoing climate change, letters to this newspaper often argue or imply there is little point in the UK doing so because it only currently produces ca. 1% of the global total compared with China which is responsible for ca. 30%.

This argument, however, overlooks the fact that UK emissions of carbon dioxide are substantial and, in fact, rank the 17th highest of countries of the world. Furthermore, carbon dioxide once emitted into the atmosphere is retained for hundreds of years, so that historical emissions of the gas are also relevant.

In this context, the cumulative emissions from the UK since the middle of 18th century are the fifth largest, and in per capita terms the greatest, of any country in the world. On this basis, the UK should do all it can to reduce its contribution to the atmosphere of the most important non-condensing greenhouse gas.

The argument that other countries are causing more pollution than ours, so it is alright for the UK to do nothing to reduce UK emissions, seems a morally moribund one. Let’s imagine fly tippers have left a large quantity of waste that despoils a beautiful Devon lane. Would it then be justified for local residents to empty their dustbins in the same place because the volume of rubbish involved would be smaller than that which was fly tipped?

Professor Bruce Webb Exeter, Devon