Normally, I would do a headline like “Surprise! #COP20Lima Has a Massive Carbon Footprint”, but, hey, It’s not really a surprise in the least, and the sarcasm of using “Surprise!” would be redundant
Lima Climate Talks Set for Record Carbon Footprint
The current U.N. climate talks will be the first to neutralize all the greenhouse gas pollution they generate, offset by host country Peru’s protection of forest at three different reserves, organizers say.
Wow. They aren’t even pretending to pay the speeding ticket with this one and plant new trees.
Now the bad news: The Lima conference is expected to have the biggest carbon footprint of any U.N. climate meeting measured to date.
At more than 50,000 metric tons of carfb/phbon (I’m assuming that was just bad spelling for carbon) dioxide, the negotiations’ burden on global warming will be about 1 1/2 times the norm, said Jorge Alvarez, project coordinator for the U.N. Development Program.
What’s the problem? Well, everything had to be built. Concrete, wood, plumbing, components flow in from as far away as France.
Solar panels were not used because….wait for it….the sun is unreliable in Lima. Which is strange, considering how little it rains there. Instead, they are relying quite a bit on…wait for it…diesel generators. They wanted to rely quite a bit on hydroelectric, but weren’t able to make it happen.
Then you get this
- Construction, nearly 20 percent of the footprint.
- Jet fuel burned by the estimated 11,000 delegates and observers who flew in from abroad. About 30 percent.
- Local transportation. Organizers hired more than 300 buses since there are no public transit services to the venue. All burn fossil fuels. About 15-20 percent.
- Electricity, solid waste treatment, water, paper, food, disposable plates and cups, keeping 40,000 police on high alert. The balance.
Attendees are mostly forgoing the use of bicycles. Japan shipped 121 hybrid cars (what’s the footprint in putting them on fossil fueled boats?), but most didn’t arrive. As a sidebar, the article ends thusly
On Monday, U.N. organizers announced that, “in view of the high temperatures expected to continue and intensify,” delegates were invited to adjust “by wearing business casual attire” to most events.
No wonder Warmists are so worried about a tiny rise in temps. The next 3 days are going to be 73, 73, and 71 (all slightly below average). These weenies think that is “high temperatures?” And 73, 73, 71 is not intensifying. It’s no wonder their science is so unscientific.
