Colin Hines and I have this letter in The Guardian today:
There is no better example of what Larry Elliott perceptively terms “capitalism for dummies”, whereby our political systems self-destructively fail to tackle the climate and biodiversity crisis, than the unspent 95% of the green homes programme (We're on a collision course with the planet. But with public support, that can change, 10 February).
To reverse this trend, and overcome the social and employment effects of the Covid pandemic, will require a new form of growth — one which only supports an increase in economic activity that improves social conditions, creates secure, adequately paid jobs and seriously addresses the environmental crisis.
Just as it appears that the government is beginning to take back control of the NHS from inefficient aspects of private-sector involvement, so the same kind of “smart, activist state” is required to decarbonise and make energy-efficient the UK's 30m buildings. Such a massive programme providing jobs in every constituency could be paid for by offering green Isas at an interest rate of, say, 1% to attract huge swathes of the £70bn invested in this annually. This programme could be underwritten by green quantitative easing, whereby the Bank of England electronically creates the money involved and no government debt is incurred.
Such a multibillion-pound programme could be rolled out in time to act as a global exemplar for Cop26 in Glasgow this November. “Saving for the planet” is also likely to be extremely popular politically, given the growing public support for tackling the climate crisis.
Richard Murphy Visiting professor of accounting, Sheffield University Management School
Colin Hines Convenor, UK Green New Deal Group
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I attended a presentation ‘Killer Fungi’ last week – I’d hoped for more on the effects of climate change, but it was useful nonetheless, and of course the study of fungi is extraordinarily underfunded, so tying down cause and effect is difficult from the lack of studies.
My point here is to highlight some additional (?) considerations in any environmental policies and economical models. Globalisation hasn’t just been bad for increasing our carbon output, it’s one of the biggest causes of the severe reduction in biodiversity. It’s not just political land borders that matter, we need to take into consideration different ecological regions, and what transportation of biological matter between places means.
I’m focusing on fungi here mainly because it’s so under-researched and barely understood, and it is a serious emerging problem, and also that fungi can be part of some solutions. Fungi are ubiquitous throughout our environment, very adaptable, and mostly beneficial, and classically mostly benign to humans and animals. Most fungal pathogens are plant pathogens – which is why crops are sprayed with fungicides, unfortunately that also kills all the good fungi, those that can benefit growth, at the same time.
I’ve been aware for some time about the devastating impact of transporting plant and soil samples between countries without proper checks – Dutch elm disease, for example. Introducing agressive non-native plant species can have a devastating impact (as anyone trying to clear out rhododendrons from choked-out forests knows). These are known, on-going issues; what is more recent is that there is an increasing incident of fungi becoming pathogenic in humans and animals.
I say ‘become’ pathogenic, because fungi are adaptable, and while benign in one environment, could become pathogenic in another. Pathogenic means it can kill you, in case it’s not clear.
Since the 1950’s there has been a large increase in deaths due to a few few fungi – these fungi are ubiquitous in our environment (including a normal part of what lives on our skin), but can be problematic when they become systemic (get into the bloodstream). A healthy immune system easily deals with it, we’ve evolved alongside these fungi, but the increased deaths are attributed to the use of immunosuppressant drugs which started in the 1950’s. There are more deaths from systemic Candida albicans infections than breast cancer, per annum, now.
There are only a few limited antifungals to treat infections, and they become less effective as the fungi adapt – in part because of the fungicides used on crops too.
There is now a species emerging that has become heat-tolerant (thought to be an adaption to climate change), Candida auris, that has simultaneously appeared over several continents (first recorded infection was in Japan) – it’s a plant saprophyte (benign) in its normal environment – but can now survive in the human body, and cause disease and can kill. It appears to be resistant to the few antifungals treatments we have. I know this is a bit vague – not enough money goes into research, as I said above.
The biodiversity in amphibians is threatened because of the transportation of animals around the world – a benign fungus in one population where they evolved alongside each other, can be a killer in a new population.
I’ve probably not described this well – it’s difficult to cover a subject that is largely ignored. Fungi are hugely beneficial, and an integral part of our environment, and could be integral to any waste management plans for the ‘cyclic economy’ and have the potential for many other uses to help us balance our environment again – I think it’s necessary, in fact, to understand exactly how they interact/function within our environment. Rotting plant matter can introduce an awful lot of carbon into the atmosphere too, as part of the natural cycle.
Human activity has caused massive imbalances in our environment – and we need to re-balance it so it doesn’t become toxic to us. Stop planting monoculture crops, put more research into more holistic medical treatments, introduce more stringent and controlled border checks cognisant of ecological borders, more research into controlling fungal pathogens, more research into the beneficial uses of fungi.
I forgot to mention White Nose Disease in bats! Sweeping across America is a new pathogen killing bat populations – turns out it is a benign fungus when found in urine, so tourists have been traipsing it into bat caves, and it’s being spread that way (initial locus was New York). Looking at the origin, and the threat worldwide, it turns out that European and Asian bat species have evolved alongside this fungus and are not at risk. So the likelihood is that it was introduced from abroad.
Fungal pathogens of mammals are very rare – they normally don’t live in such high temperatures. This is an emerging problem, due to human activity, and may become critical very soon if we don’t rebalance the environment. It’s the ‘mix’ of environmental changes we have made, not any one thing – and fungi are critical for normal functioning, they are needed, we can’t just happily wipe them out like a virus or some bacteria (some of those are beneficial too!), we can’t just use catch-all fungicides to leave sterile environments, we just need them to stay in their ‘normal’ environment. We need to know the real effect climate change is having on all these systems, and to control the effects, until we get a rebalance.
I don’t know what level of mortality is needed in humans before enough research is done into creating more effective treatments, but it really should be getting done soon.
(For the interests of clarity, fungi are just a hobby of mine now, but I did specialise in mycology many years ago and did some reasearch into wood-rotting fungi. I have no particular medical knowledge)
Good letter, Richard. What I have written above are the things I consider when I read about the political and economic failure of our government in tackling climate change & biodiversity – things like creating greener homes is an important step for slowing climate change, and slowing carbon production – but investment and funding into the right reasearch areas that can rebalance the environment is a very important, and necessary, step too to my mind. And, obviously, I think mycology is one of the major areas that needs a big boost in funding.
Sorry it took me a while to get this – but it was well worth the read when I did
Thanks
Thanks Richard – and thank you for taking the time to read it, a can see now that it is a rather long one, even for me!
And, in case you have time to read more, just to emphasise the potential of ‘mycoremediation’, a link to the short article below covers some of the potentials – fungi may be the answer to degrading all those plastics in the environment, and they are already used to clear up some other pollutants: it gives us hope, I think, that the environment can be put back into balance (and, realistically, we all need some hope these days!)
https://www.britmycolsoc.org.uk/education/news/gift-fungi-mushrooms-yes-mushrooms-could-help-save-world
Seconded. Both fascinating and alarming. As retirement looms for this grumpy old man (60 in May 2023), and the environmental issues become more and more acute, I’m contemplating taking up studying something in the environmental field.
Perhaps an environmental studies degree. Maybe something with the politics or sociology of environmentalism, and its opponents in the mix. Probably with that great legacy of Harold Wilson, the Open University. Still going despite the damage wreaked on it by Osborne’s idiotic austerity.
Good luck
“Just as it appears that the government is beginning to take back control of the NHS from inefficient aspects of private-sector involvement”
Please, please, until there is cast iron evidence that this is actually what the Government is doing with the NHS as against setting it up to be run by American insurance companies – don’t help support the Government’s propaganda that it is taking the private out of the NHS.
Good point, given that this government is totally untrustworthy.
I’m not that technically literate, but maybe we could fund something like this.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jul/19/can-a-hydrogen-boom-fuel-a-green-recovery-for-britain
Thanks RIchard, that letter provides a succinct and constructive contribution which I really hope will have some positive influence.