Paul McCartney retter pekefinger mot klima-toppmøte i Paris: – Spar miljøet og innfør en kjøttfri dag i uka

(foto: skjermdump fra video nedenfor)

Skrevet av Knut Eirik Myhre

Paul McCartney (ex. The Beatles) har som mange andre artister i alle år vært en stor engasjert miljøaktivist. I forbindelse med klimatoppmøtet COP21 som i dag starter i Paris har han på vegne av seg selv, sin familie og foreningen Meet Free Monday sendt et åpent brev til den britiske statsministeren David Cameron.

Paul McCartney og hans familie har støttet foreningen Meet Free Monday siden 2009. I brevet det åpne brevet som er sendt til britiske statsministeren oppfordrer McCartney Cameron til å få med seg alle verdens toppledere under klimatoppmøtet og beslutte at alle FNs medlemsland innfører en kjøttfri dag i uken. 

I følge McCartney ville en slik ambisiøs global klimaavtale bidra til å holde den globale oppvarmingen godt under 2 grader. En enkel, men betydelig miljøhandling som Storbritannia og andre land kan gjennomføre og som i tillegg også gir bedre helse, sier McCartney. Han viser også til at ny forskning ved The Center For A Liable Future ved Johns Hopkins University i USA underbygger påstanden om at forslaget vil kunne redusere FN-landenes karbonutslipp med opp til 2 % per år.

Her forklarer Paul McCartney i dagens publiserte video:

Hva mener du?

Her er Paul MCartneys åpne brev til statsministeren:
 
Dear Prime Minister,
 
We are writing to you on behalf of Meat Free Monday, a campaign launched in the UK in 2009. The aim of Meat Free Monday is to condense some complicated issues into a simple and effective message: to ask people to have at least one meat free day a week to help protect the planet and our future. 

Massive meat production creates harmful greenhouse gases and depletes precious resources, including land, water and energy, to increasingly unsustainable levels. It is a major contributor towards global environmental degradation and climate change and is also a major factor in loss of species and biodiversity – if present trends continue, over the next 100 years there will be a global mass extinction of species. With increasing evidence of the growth of the global meat industry having alarming environmental consequences, meat reduction is now more important than ever.  
 
Next week you and other world leaders will meet in Paris for the COP21 to try and reach an ambitious global climate deal that keeps global warming well below 2 degrees. A simple but significant environmental action that the UK and other countries can take, with the added benefit of improved health, would be to endorse Meat Free Monday.
 
Reducing demand for meat, even by a relatively small amount, would have a significant impact on greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, according to new research by the Center for a Livable Future at Johns Hopkins University, UN member countries can reduce their carbon emissions up to 2% per year by implementing Meat Free Monday.
 
There are a number of simple ways to encourage meat reduction, many of which have already been adopted in different countries around the world:
 
– Have schools, universities and hospitals go meat free one day a week
– Serve more meat free meals at government offices and during official government functions
– Encourage restaurants to promote Meat Free Monday options on their menus
– Support businesses to get involved
 
The proposals we are making can be implemented quickly and would have almost immediate environmental and health benefits.
 
We strongly urge you to include Meat Free Monday initiatives in the UK climate action plan for Paris. One day a week can make a world of difference.
 
Yours sincerely,
 
Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney