Galvanising the public sector into action

Can governments be trusted to ensure the public sector acts responsibly by doing all it can to reduce CO2 emissions? What should we be expecting governments to do in this regard? Is the public sector willing to do anything or will it simply pass on higher operating costs to end-users - you and me?

The public sector and most of its many publicly owned businesses are monopolistic in character. They are not renowned for being either efficient or keenly competitive. They can and do pass on higher operating costs to their customers rather than explore and adopt ways of reducing overheads, such as energy costs.

There are a number of ways in which the public sector can - and sometimes does - act to reduce CO2 pollution and operating costs. The fact that governments refuse to tell the public what they are doing to achieve these outcomes is not conclusive evidence that they are doing little or nothing, but it is a pretty good indicator that this may be the case.

Global warming concerns as China to raise coal output

9/01/2009 - China is aiming to increase its coal production by about 30 per cent by 2015 to meet its energy needs, the government has announced, in a move likely to fuel concerns over global warming.

CSIRO develops zero-emission home for Aust families

23/09/2008 - Thirty kilometres north of Melbourne CBD, in the community of Laurimar, a new type of house – the first of its kind in Australia – is about to be constructed.

The four-bedroom, detached house, will blend with the streetscape of the new development but will embody a completely new vision – a zero-emissions house that Australian families can afford.

Local Authorities Take Up The Fight Against Climate Change

The Government today published statistics for the 2006 Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions at Local Authority and Government Office Region level. The figures represent all UK emissions allocated to Local Authority areas on an end-user basis, incorporating all business, household and transport emissions, so that they are distributed according to the location of energy consumption.