P-05-869 Declare a Climate Emergency and fit all policies with zero-carbon targets
This petition was submitted by Matthew Misiak having collected 4,985 signatures online and 1,190 on paper – a total of 6,148 signatures.
Text of Petition
We
call on the National Assembly for Wales to urge the Welsh
Government to:
1. Declare a Climate Emergency.
2. Ensure all current and future policies are consistent with
averting further climate change and ecological collapse.
3. Enact legally-binding policy measures to reduce carbon emissions
to net zero by 2025 and to reduce consumption levels.
4. Implement a Citizen's Assembly of Wales to oversee the
changes.
We call upon the Welsh Government to declare a Climate Emergency
immediately, and commit to executing the remaining actions by June
2019.
WAG targets for a zero-carbon public sector must be used as a
catalyst to engineer rapid decarbonisation in the private sector
through procurement, taxation and subsidy. Across the UK, twenty
city, town and county councils have already declared a Climate
Emergency, including Powys and Machynlleth. Citizens must be
involved to ensure the necessary change is made across society, as
demonstrated in a Sortition model of participatory democracy.
Initiatives to partner with include: The Climate Mobilization;
Beyond Zero Emissions; Rapid Transition Alliance; Green New Deal
Group; One Million Climate Jobs; The Breakthrough Institute; and
Zero Carbon Britain.
Additional Information
The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has
warned that we have 12 years to make the necessary changes to limit
a rise in global temperatures by 1.5ºC. Failure to act will
see a significant and accelerating increase in sea levels and
flooding, extreme and abrupt changes to weather patterns, crop
failures, and extinctions of plant, insect and animal species. This
will inevitably lead to global economic disruption and humanitarian
crisis. It will also detrimentally impact the well-being of the
people of Wales and billions of others. Last year, Sir David
Attenborough said:
"Right now, we are facing a man-made disaster of global scale. Our
greatest threat in thousands of years. Climate change. If we don't
take action, the collapse of our civilisations and the extinction
of much of the natural world is on the horizon. The world's people
have spoken. Their message is clear. Time is running out."
The One Planet Development policy and Wellbeing of Future
Generations Act show that Wales can lead the way in progressive
policy. But they do not motivate government to act in accordance
with the urgency of the situation. The scientific consensus shows
the unprecedented scale of collective action needed to avert the
worst outcomes in the near future. We must demand no less.
People worldwide are being inspired by the Extinction Rebellion
movement to urge governments at all levels to meet the challenge
posed by accelerating climate change and ecological collapse.
Future generations will judge us on our courage to make the urgent
change we know is needed. Please act now.
Assembly Constituency and Region
· Aberconwy
· North Wales