Climate Pledge Campaign launched

Friends of the Earth launched a campaign today to get all 166 TDs in the Dail to sign a Climate Pledge promising Ireland will do its fair share to tackle global climate change. A new website, www.climatepledge.ie, enables the public to email their local TDs urging them to sign the pledge.

Speaking at the launch, Friends of the Earth Director, Oisin Coghlan said:
"This campaign is a wake-up call for Irish politicians and the public. We need to face up to the threat of runaway climate change. If we fail to act climate change will have catastrophic consequnces. We can take the steps needed to reduce our carbon emissions now or face unprecendented upheaval and disruption in the future."

"Otherwise this century will see ever more storms, floods, droughts and famines. And the poorest and most vulnerable communities in the world will be first and hardest hit. For them it will mean destruction of lives and livelihoods. For us it will mean flood damage, falling property values and spiralling insurance costs. But why wait for climate change to hit home, let's act before it's too late to make a difference", Mr Coghlan continued.

Front of our 2005 Climate Pledge postcard: then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern standing in floodwaters in Drumcondra, Dublin. (Photo: Colin Keegan/Collins).

The Pledge which TDs are being asked to sign acknowledges that climate change is already happening and that humanity is causing it, but states that we have the power to stop it running out of control if we do enough, soon enough. It restates the international scientific consensus that to prevent dangerous levels of climate change we need to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by 60% of 1990 levels by 2050. Crucially, it ackowledges the historical responsibility of rich countries like Ireland to lead the way as the vast bulk of past and present emissions come from rich countries. It commits each TD to doing all in their power to prevent dangerous climate change.

Friends of the Earth will be approaching each and every TD to ask them to sign the Pledge are looking to the public to play their part in supporting the campaign online at www.climatepledge.ie.