Eco Blog - St. George's Berlin

  Join the Protest against Plastic Waste!   On the 24 August, 3 members of St.George's joined the Protest Picnic in front of the Bundeskanzleramt organised by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The aim of this protest was to encourage the federal government to show courage, determination and a commitment to the environment by supporting the United Nations plastics treaty which is currently in negotiations.   Plastic waste is not just a problem, it is major environmental crisis. *Every three seconds over a tonne of plastic ends up in our oceans. Marine animals and seabirds are dying from our plastic waste and entire marine ecosystems are in danger of collapsing.   And we humans are not spared either - microplastics can be detected in each and every one of us, because we eat, drink and breathe them every day.* The time to act is now, we need to raise our voices, each and every one of us. The final session of the negotiations will be in November.   We must urgently sig...

  Felicity Hughes wrote an article in the Guardian on 15 August, 2024 entitled “Madrid’s summers can be brutally hot. So why are so many of our trees being chopped down?”   ( LINK ) The problem is serious and potentially life-threatening:_ “… we know tree coverage saves lives. EU research indicates that increasing the tree canopy in urban areas could save hundreds of lives each summer, especially in countries such as Italy, Croatia, Romania and Spain. It’s a relatively inexpensive but effective measure – and with heat deaths in Madrid having risen to 1,308 during the brutally hot summer of 2022, it feels particularly pertinent.” Spain is not the only country where corporations want to cut down trees:   “ But in a move reminiscent of the recent decision in Sheffield to deploy chainsaw-wielding workers to remove trees in the early hours, Almeida’s administration seems to be banking on locals being away to strip Santa Ana of 85% of its tree coverage.The fight to preserve urb...

WWF Protest Picnic against Plastic Waste St.George's will be joining the Protest Picnic organised by WWF on   Saturday 24 August at 11.00   in front of the Reichstag.  According to the WWF website ( https://mitmachen.wwf.de/protestpicknick ) translated with DeepL: Every three seconds, over a tonne of plastic waste ends up in our oceans. 70 per cent of this waste is single-use plastic. This has fatal consequences: Marine animals and seabirds are dying from our plastic waste and entire marine ecosystems are in danger of collapsing. And we humans are not spared either - microplastics can be detected in each and every one of us, because we eat, drink and breathe them every day. But there is hope: the United Nations is currently negotiating a UN plastics treaty, however the negotiations are stalling, as they are being blocked by those with vested interests.   We need the entire federal government to show courage and determination to drive the negotiations forward.   ...

Insects play an important role in the environment, and some ordinary household products are putting them in danger. Here is information about these products from Helena Horton, Environment reporter for the Guardian. "Insect numbers are in freefall and most people know that pesticide use in agriculture is partly to blame. But many domestic products including topical flea treatments for dogs, ant killer applications, washing-up liquid and herbicides can also contribute to the problem. ... In fact, some substances that are banned for use in agriculture in the UK and other countries are routinely used in the home. Products containing fipronil and imidacloprid, the main domestic products in use for flea treatments and ant traps, have been found to be highly toxic to bees, triggering agitation, seizures, tremors and paralysis."  We need to read labels carefully in order to sustain God's creation.

Much of the ecological news is depressing but there is good news too. The Guardian reports that “The number of plastic bags washed up on UK beaches has fallen by 80% over a decade, since a mandatory fee was imposed on shoppers who opt to pick up single-use carrier bags at the checkout.” (Karen McVeigh, Guardian, 2024) (LINK) This is a sign that governments can take action to protect God’s creation. For that reason it is important for people to make their voices heard. The Eco-Church group wants to publicise two events: one is a picnic on the lawn in front of the Reichstag building ( LINK ), and the other is a climate strike protest in cooperation with Fridays for the Future ( LINK ).   Both have legal approval.