It is important that we understand REDD because many Western governments including that of Australia are relying on this mechanism to set-off their own emissions. There is no evidence that REDD will succeed and many feel that its supposed promise is being used to dodge the need for emission reduction at source.  This article by Chis Lang was published in REDD Monitor prior to Copenhagen. All of us need to understand REDD so read on

REDD, or reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, is one of the most controversial new issues in the climate change debate. The basic concept is simple: governments, companies or forest owners in the South should be rewarded for keeping their forests instead of cutting them down. The devil, as always, is in the details.

Perhaps climate change was a bad dream! Those expressing anxiety about its impacts and the future of humanity before the meeting in Copenhagen have awakened after the meeting and prefer not talk about their bad experience. The clamour of environmental groups has ceased like that of birds in a solar eclipse, scientists and their organisations are left reeling from fearsome attacks on their integrity, and governments are rapidly backsliding in response to polls showing that the public is increasingly disinterested in the topic.

The meagre commitments from nations in response to the Copenhagen Compact will result in a temperature rise of more than 2 degrees and if inadequately delivered will lead to a 4 degree rise. How can we be silent when emissions continue to slowly accelerate and virtually all scientific data demonstrate increasing effects on the physical and biological status of the planet?

We thank Mark Diesendorf for writing this article for us. Mark has become a well respected authority on Energy. He will advise us on policy and we are very grateful.

Mark is Deputy Director, Institute of Environmental Studies' University of New South Wales.

I draw your attention to two of Mark's books referred to in his article "Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy" reviews the energy technologies (including coal with carbon capture and storage and nuclear) that have been proposed for cutting GHG emissions. It then goes on to discuss the policies needed to implement the genuinely sustainable technologies, namely energy efficiency and renewable energy. Bookshop price is $49.95.

The second book, "Climate Action", starts from the situation where most governments have failed to implement effective policies to cut GHG emissions and then proposes strategies and tactics for the climate action movement to overcome the political barriers to change. There is pertinent advice for those visiting politicians who are challenged with statements like-renewable energy cannot provide base load power. I strongly recommend this book. Bookshop price is $34.95

Click here to read the article Energy Policy for Australia.

By Paul Roth FRACGP