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Climate Change Policy
I support more funding for research and development of alternative energy sources, particularly wind and solar. The Government should remove the means test for the domestic photovoltaic electricity systems.
Clean coal and sequestration systems cannot be long-term solutions and money should not be wasted on trying to develop these techniques. However, reforestation to reverse loss of trees from land clearing and as a sequestration method is one thing I would support as long as the plantation developments are not that extensive they are likely to have a detrimental effect on local water stocks.
We cannot afford to be complacent. The consequences of inaction if global warming is really caused by human activity and not a natural event are dire. It will take hundreds of times longer to reduce the level of carbon dioxide in the air than it took to produce it and many changes will be permanent
On the other hand if we take action and global warming is not real, the consequence will be a minor hickup in the economy from which we will recover with no permanent damage done. We have hickups in the economy all the time for a variety of reasons. The current hickup is the consequence of a credit crisis caused by banks in the USA being more interested in make a few more dollars than worrying about the ability of people to repay loans.