Jeremy Williams's Blog, page 25

Why we need a circular economy for UK steel

Steel has been in the news in the UK recently, after the announcement of changes at Tata’s Port Talbot plant. They plan to close loss-making steel furnaces and invest instead in more sustainable electric arc furnaces that will recycle steel. The news around this has focused on the job losses in the area, and the perceived blow to Britain’s sovereignty if we make less of ‘our own steel’.

If we take a step back from that, there’s an under-reported story here about the circular economy and our ...

Coventry’s very light rail

Light rail and trams are useful options in the sustainable travel toolbox, able to move lots of people around a city cheaply and easily. But if you’ve lived in a city that’s building them, you’ll know how disruptive it can be. I remember visiting my brother in Edinburgh over the course of years and wondering when they were going to finally finish with their tram system. So did the locals, with growing resentment over the closure of roads and the remodelling of junctions, and the escalating costs...

Elite football’s flying habit

In 2015 Arsenal made the headlines for flying to an away game in Norwich. The flight took all of 14 minutes, less time than the 17 minutes it took to drive from the airport to the stadium. A couple of Arsenal players who are known for their climate action voiced their objections and it made the papers – even the Daily Mail labelled it ‘controversial’.

Flying seems far less controversial today, with a growing acceptance of private aviation among celebrities and sportspersons. Alongside the on...

It’s Okay to be Angry About Capitalism, by Bernie Sanders

If you had lined up 100 forthcoming book titles and invited me to choose which one was by Bernie Sanders, I reckon I’d have picked out It’s Okay to be Angry About Capitalism. It’s a book title that could only be more Bernie Sanders if it came with mittens, and very good it is too.

The book tells the story of Sanders’ run for the presidential nomination, and how the Democrats rallied to exclude him in favour of Hilary Clinton and then Joe Biden – despite higher numbers when polled against...

What we learned this week

Barclays has been one of the biggest funders of fossil fuels since the Paris agreement, and this month it was targeted by a new round of protests. Oxfam closed their accounts with them, among others. Two days ago Barclays announced that they would no longer finance new fossil fuels.

Following the example of France, Flight Free have set up a petition to ban domestic flights to destinations that can be reached in under four and a half hours by other means. Can you sign it?

Last week I wrote...

Where are the cheap electric cars?

If I had a pound for every time someone tells me they can’t afford an electric car, I could buy myself a very nice bike. It’s a recurring theme – EVs are all very well, but they’re too expensive for us ordinary folks. I guess I have no choice but to continue driving my diesel SUV.

There are a couple of things to say about this*. First, it’s not strictly true that electric cars are more expensive. The sticker price is often higher if you’re buying outright, but it’s a much more mixed picture ...

The extremely wealthy against extreme wealth

Yesterday I reviewed Ingrid Robeyns’ excellent new book Limitarianism, which proposes a cap to wealth accumulation and a world in which nobody ever gets to become a billionaire. One of her arguments is that this would be better for everyone, rich and poor alike, and she talks to plenty of rich people who make that argument themselves.

There are personal stories, such as Chuck Collins, an author and researcher on wealth and inequality who gave away his inheritance. Or Marlene Englehorne, the ...

Book review: Limitarianism, by Ingrid Robeyns

Whatever their political orientation, most people agree that there is such a thing as too much inequality. 84% of people in the UK think the gap between rich and poor is too large right now, even though most also underestimate how big it really is. Despite this broad agreement, there’s very little discussion of the most obvious solution, which would be to restrain incomes at the top. Productive political debate seems almost impossible, hamstrung by vested interests and failure of the imagina...

What we learned this week

Imagine 2200 is a short story writing competition from Grist. If, like me, you have an appreciation for the short story genre, there is some beautifully presented climate fiction to enjoy.

Conservation Optimism is a little agency set up to emphasise solutions and success stories in a sector that is over-reliant on bad news to motivate its audiences. Sign up to their email newsletter for positive conservation stories every monday morning.

Newly released documents show how fossil fuel compan...

Steps towards a circular shoe

Last week I wrote about Pringles cans and their more recyclable new design. The reason that Pringles cans were so notorious in the waste industry is that they are a hybrid that uses metal, plastic and cardboard. The materials can’t be separated and so they can’t be easily processed for recycling.

This is true of any complex product. Once you’ve mixed materials up, recycling is much harder. It isn’t necessarily impossible, but it requires more advanced techniques that in many cases just won’t...