SOUNDING OFF: Parents for Future Scotland member on climate concern and the west of Shetland Rosebank development
Becoming a parent brought the expected: sleepless nights, clothes always covered in snot or porridge, and a new found knowledge of Bluey.
What was less expected was that creating a small human would exacerbate my concern and fear about the future of the planet exponentially. The sudden and deep realisation that during my son’s lifetime the climate crisis would have a profound impact on the state of the world has brought a level of grief and fear I was not prepared for.
This, combined with the need to find community as a new mother, led me to Parents for Future Scotland.
This group of parents who are concerned about climate change, the cost of living crisis and social justice offer mutual support and take action to change things for the better - both in local communities and more broadly.
We are not alone - research shows over 80 per cent of people worldwide are climate concerned and feel we should be doing more to mitigate the effects of climate change.
Heartbreakingly, a Unicef report found 95 per cent of children are concerned about climate change and 89 per cent feel not enough is being done, with almost as many saying they are not being listened to.
Parents for Future Scotland is campaigning against the drilling of new oil and gas like the proposed Rosebank oilfield in the Atlantic Ocean, west of Shetland.
The UK government is currently deciding whether to allow this new project to go ahead. To permit this would betray our children and future generations, as it would be incompatible with current UK climate goals and would release a staggering amount of CO2.
Equinor has itself admitted that Rosebank would produce 249 million tonnes of CO2 in its 25 year lifetime, which is more than the combined annual emissions of Ireland, Greece and Belgium. Economically, Rosebank also fails to stack up to industry claims that it will lower energy bills and create thousands of jobs. It won’t.
Estimates are that Rosebank will create only 255 jobs over its entire lifespan, with 80 per cent of the oil exported.
Amid a cost of living crisis, and with over six million people in this country unable to afford to heat their homes, it is of great consequence that this oilfield would not lower energy bills for UK taxpayers, despite it being those very same taxpayers footing the bill for the project, or create significant job opportunities.
The profits of Rosebank would flow to Norwegian state-owned oil giant, Equinor and its partner, Ithaca Energy, owned by Delek - a company that is blacklisted by the UN for activities that raise “human rights concerns” in the illegally occupied Palestinian territories.
We often imagine that the term “climate crisis” refers to the future, and it is easy to believe that it won't affect us here in Scotland.
But the reality is that it’s happening right here, right now.
While climate breakdown disproportionately affects people in the Global South, Europe and the UK are also affected. Just this month, a report confirmed that we are much closer to climate “tipping points” than previously expected. The widespread death of warm water coral reefs is one devastating example of this.
Here, in the North East of Scotland, a wee coastal town and beach - Inverbervie - is being lost to the sea by seven metres every year. This crisis is real, it’s happening as I write and it will affect all of us.
Oil-reliant communities are suffering too, as they pay the price of a boom and bust economy that creates job insecurity and fails to protect workers’ rights. According to a survey by Friends of the Earth Scotland (2021), over 74 per cent of jobs in the UK oil and gas industry are ad-hoc contracts, with the industry predicting that four out of five oil and gas jobs will be phased out or transferred to other industries by 2035.
No wonder then that over 90 per cent of oil and gas workers surveyed by Platform and Friends of the Earth (2023), support a range of measures to help the industry transition to renewables, which if done properly, could result in better job security and working standards - protecting and reinvigorating entire communities.
The good news is: we have made progress.
The UK now sources over 50 per cent of its electricity renewably, and emissions have dropped to 50 per cent of 1990 levels.
Yet this is a race against time and one that we cannot afford to lose. We must ensure we meet all climate targets, set stricter targets and continue to transition away from fossil fuels. The children of this country are our future, and I want to be able to look my son in the eye and say “I tried my best”. Will this UK government be able to say the same?
If you have feedback, the UK government’s public consultation on the Rosebank oilfield is open, so please raise your voice for your children too.
More information can be found at stopcambo.org.uk, along with a letter template to email Keir Starmer and show your opposition to the oil field.
By Becky Baird