Vote for a realistic future

"Last week China joined the growing list of countries banning the import and construction of combustion engines. The next day a report came out on research showing NZ's gas supply will run out in ten years and consumers should reconsider buying gas appliances. This week it's Avgas supply problems and farmers protesting so-called fart tax and water tax" said Climate Justice Taranaki member Emily Bailey.

"Whoever you vote for this week at least do it with well-researched, independent facts about predictions for our future. Whether we like it or not, the future without fossil fuels is going to be very different. A continuing focus on short term gains driven by market interests, without enough thought for the next generations, will be our demise."

"The last century and a half has been dominated by an economy largely based on milking cows thanks to cheap fossil fuels. In recent decades, oil and gas boomed and now it's busting, as predicted. The huge long term costs of these industries are starting to hit home with climate change, polluted waterways and increasing social inequality, yet few seem keen to face this reality."

"So while in the short term we might want to pay less taxes and not rock the boat, the reality is the boat has run out of fuel and is sinking. We can either pay the price to fix the boat and erect a sail or sink because the lifeboats were sold off long ago."

"There are dairy farms in New Zealand that have reduced stock numbers and external inputs, substantially reducing their environmental affects while maintaining profit and improving workloads and job satisfaction. These changes are possible but they take a few years of transition and we need an industry behind it to also transition to low-energy production systems and local markets. Relying more on local markets is a huge shift for this country's economy which has one of the highest export markets in the world. And we can't all be dairy farmers. The natural environment and local markets need diversity."

"We also need to start facing the fact that the next generations will not be driving combustion engines. This transition has been made all the more urgent by government reticence to act decisively, and by a culture of denial among the peak industry bodies, still myopically focused on business as usual. How will we maintain vehicles (electric or otherwise) and roads without coal to make steel and oil to fix roads? How will we dehydrate and transport all that milk powder or other produce around the country and overseas to our markets while paying off those huge farm debts?"

"The world is changing and fast. If a sustainable future isn't your thing then at least vote for a realistic one that is not based on business as usual."

ENDS

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