A member of environmental group Insulate Britain (IB) has begun a hunger strike from jail to demand that the government begin insulating homes.
Emma Smart, a 44 year old biologist, has gone almost a week without eating while in HMP Bronzefield in Surrey. She was arrested for breaking the National Highways’ M25 injunction that prohibits activists from blocking major traffic.
Speaking from the prison where she will stay for four months Smart explained: “I am doing the only thing I can do. I have stopped eating in solidarity with those who will have to make the choice between heating and eating this winter because of our government’s cowardice.”
Post by: @insulatebritain
This first-of-its-kind injunction has resulted in numerous arrests and prison sentences for Insulate Britain climate protesters for who blocking traffic has become the primary weapon in their fight against climate change.
What are they doing?
Insulate Britain have caught the nation’s attention with their persistent non-violent protests. By gluing themselves to the road and blocking traffic they have been causing major disruption to London including in East London.
IB member Cameron Ford, who has been arrested four times, said that they chose to disrupt roads in London because the capital is the economic hub of the country. He described the M-25 as “the arteries to the beating heart of the machine, of Great Britain.”
A carpenter by trade, Ford thinks the government doesn’t listen to petitions, marching or ‘reason’, and only speaks the ‘language of economics.’ IB bocks roads to deliberately disrupt the economy as a way of persuading the government to meet IB’s demands. As for the pain this causes the public, Ford understands that IB imperils “…people trying to get to work, people trying to put food on the table. I hate that this has to involve them. It shouldn’t have to be like this.” But Ford argues that the tractics are necessary because the planet is more important than the individual.
However, the attention IB gets is increasingly negative, fed by videos showing the frustration and sometimes desperation of members of the public for whom IB just represents lack of consideration for the lives of normal people.
So with all of this noise around disruption, can the original aims of the group even be heard? Rico Wojtulewicz is the head of housing and planning policy for the National Federation of Builders. “They’ve literally sucked the air out of the room for any serious debate for change,” he told Rising East.
Wojtulewicz, who is directly involved in developing green policy within the construction industry, initially agreed with what IB stood for. But after seeing them disrupt traffic and failing, in his opinion, to use their platform for open discussion and practical problem-solving, he changed his mind.
“I really don’t agree with stopping traffic on major roads, because people have got lives to live,” he told Rising East, “especially those who aren’t wealthy and can’t afford to miss time and opportunities.” He continued: “I don’t think that they are helping the conversation. I think that, especially recently, it felt a little bit like anti-government, anti-system rather than pro-insulation and pro-solution.”
Rico Wojtulewicz explains why he changed his mind about Insulate Britain.
Why are they doing it?
Energy use accounts for 14 % of all CO2 emissions in the UK, and the heating of homes accounts for a lot of that. But poor insulation and fuel poverty also contributes to the fact that there are over 8500 extra deaths in the UK in the winter months caused by living in cold homes, and Ford says this figure is expected to rise as gas and fuel prices rise.
A well insulated home requires less energy to keep it warm, and so would lead to substantially less CO2 emissions.
IB adheers to the 2 degree scenario drawn up in 2015, which pledges to keep global average temperature well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, ideally at 1.5°. Supporters of this scenario hold that anything above two degrees will cause catastrophic weather events and global food insecurity. Ford’s predictions are extreme. As well as civil unrest, war and famine, he said we could look forward to “… slaughter and rape. That’s what’s coming.”
Most of the science predicts major global problems if we don’t reduce emmissions and the Earth heats up too much. But the way some people react to these threats is anything but scientific, and preaching that the world may end soon borders on fear mongering. This emotive turn is shared by the IB group who often use the word ‘genocide’ in their social media posts.
What do they want?
Ford told Rising East that IB consulted industry experts before presenting their proposals to the government, and that the civil disobedience only began when their proposals were ignored.
“We want the government to pay for the insulation of all social housing and housing association housing by 2025,” he said, “and the remaining housing by 2030. And this is because insulation is the quickest way to reduce our CO2 emissions”.
Cameron Ford explains the IB position.
Insulation, Ford points out, also requires very little in the way of lifestyle changes, unlike other solutions such as giving up either driving or eating meat.
Are their demands reasonable and could they be implemented?
According to Wojtulewicz a few basic insulation meassures can be relatively inexpensive and very effective. As well as under-floor and attic insulation, he advises one more essential measure. “…the other thing that we don’t really talk about a lot is air tightening. Just making sure that there’s not air coming in … it could be making sure your door fits properly, and it does make a big difference it really, really will.”
However Wojtulewicz says that the full retrofitting of insulation which Insulate Britain is calling for can quickly become unaffordable. “The cost, perhaps, of doing the full retrofit installation where you really get into the detail of the walls..” he said, could be as much as £80,000, “… which is so expensive and individuals can’t afford to do that.”
Wojtulewicz also doesn’t think we have enough skilled workers to implement insulation on such a large scale. This is a particular problem, he says, when it comes to what he thinks is one of the best solutions to the problem: the use of air source heat pumps. These pumps harness the heat already in the air and in the ground to reduce the need for other energy needed to heat the home. But, he explains, “there are only 3000 installers, perhaps a few of them that are actually … really good air source heat pump designers. So we want to do 1000 homes a year, plus you’ve got your old home still to retrofit. You can’t actually deliver that … for the climate ambition.”
Another suggestion is to replace gas boilers with electric ones, but Wojtulewicz explains that electric boilers are very expensive, and most electricity generation in the UK requires the burning of fossil fuels, which causes emmisions.
Conclusion:
Ford believes he is doing what has to be done to achieve climate ambitions and effectively save the planet from disaster: “I’m seeing the government just not responding to this in an anywhere near adequate level. I’m deciding to rise up, not stand by and say, ‘Not on my watch.’ I’m sorry, but who are you to condemn future generations? Who are you government to have that authority? You know, this is my life, this is our children’s lives, and I will not stand by and let it happen.”
Wojtulewicz on the other hand might agree with Ford about cimate change, but thinks IB are going about it the wrong way. For him real policy change requires political gamesmanship. “There is a little dance to be had all the time and my job is to understand that dance, and I’ve got policy through over the line for small builders that I’ve achieved by having that dance.” He also argues that if IB were willing to recognise the good that the government has done to combat climate change so far, the two groups might be able to collaboarte over their goals, which would be more effective.
Whether or not we agree with Insulate Britain’s methods, most of us can’t argue with the science. Earth is on a path down which climate change may impact humanity negatively on a large scale. However it is not the time to be divisive. Instead it is the time work together, and to invest in the imagination and innovation that, together with the best of the measures we are taking so far, will steer us away from the fate that some seem to like to predict for us.
Here is a glimpse into the often scary, day-in-the-life of a climate protester as some of them block roads and come face to face with the police and angry motorists:
