Climate Emergency A National Tall Order!

Chief Minister Announces Play and Display Climate Emergency Practical Action

The motion was tabled by Dr John Cortes, ‘who made a call to action’ to engage the whole community alongside practical actions that the government might also take.

This week the Chief Minister in a broadcast interview announced one of those actions, when he advised us all, the community will need to mature and do things differently to allow Gibraltar to move from an economy in development to an economy in maturity. But also, to deal with the climate emergency, starting on the climate front, with the further extension of the pay and display parking scheme.

How effective will this climate initiative be, apart from making more money for the Gibraltar car parks people! Parking controls have been used for many years as a means of influencing travel demand and managing traffic. However, little is known about the changes in parking activity associated with different parking controls and the resulting effects on vehicle emissions and ambient air pollution.

We know Gibraltar also has a responsibility to contribute to a reduction in carbon emissions to ensure that the 1.5° C of the Paris agreement barrier is not breached. The switching of energy generation from one dependent on heavy fuel oil to gas was a hugely positive step. However, in the long term, this is not enough, as gas is considered a transition fuel: a step on the path to energy generation completely dependent on renewable sources.

More in Panorama print edition.

17-01-2020 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR.