SPEECH DELIVERED AT THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF PRICE FOR POLLUTION CAMPAIGN IN GHANA.

“We do not inherit the land from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” American  Proverb

Honorable minister, invited guests, fellow activists. You have all been invited here for the official launch of price for pollution campaign and the unveiling our mascot.

One may ask what is price for pollution?

Price for pollution is simply a cost that is placed on activities that pollute the environment. We propose the cost to be in a form of a tax that is levied by an authority with enough vested power s to ensure compliance. We at GYEM believe price for pollution is the best form of regulation to prevent further environmental degradation.

Everybody pollutes; individuals industries, mining companies, fossil fuel companies etc. But it is also true that some groups pollute more than the others. Therefore we are singling out mining companies, plastic manufacturers and fossil fuel companies to prevent misrepresentation of the basic principles that  underlie our campaign.

When individuals go to dump-sites to dump refuse, they are charged for it. So it is immoral to allow industry to pump out tons and tons of carbon into the atmosphere without paying. It is immoral to allow mining companies pump mercury into the atmosphere and spill cyanide into our rivers without paying. Indeed it is wrong to benefit from wrecking our planet without paying.

Why we need a price for pollution?

A price for pollution is the most efficient way to reduce pollution. It will lower activities that pollute the environment as it will become very costly to pollute. Industries will look for greener alternatives. In fact, it will kickstart the transition into clean energy by providing a powerful incentive for companies to cut pollution. A fee for pollution will mean that plastic producers will chase every ounce of plastic they release into the environment and remove them back. With a 15 cent plastic tax, Ireland was able to reduce plastic bag use by 90% in just one year.

It will provide more jobs. When a price for pollution is implemented, recycling will dominate and that will create more jobs. There are thousands and millions of jobs that exist only in recycling! The fact is government knows that going green is good but their excuse to cover up for the lack of political will as always been the fact that there is no budget for it. And so we are saying that charge a price for pollution and us that money to set up recycling plants in the communities.

Price for pollution will lead to massive investments and research into renewable and clean energy. A price for pollution will make renewables competitive with cheaper dirty fuel in terms of cost. Also, the money raised by the tax can used to subsidize the cost of alternative energy such as solar and wind.

Moreover, if we do not act to curtail the massive pollution going on in our environment, our children and grandchildren will be overwhelmed with finding solutions for climate change. A price for pollution will therefore help to achieve a sustainable society as the costs of slowing down  will be distributed among generations. It will be very wicked on our part to pollute the environment, die and go, and leave for our children the task of dealing with climate change. That will be a bad legacy.

Furthermore, a price for pollution will prevent a country from being used as a safe haven by multinational companies running away from jurisdictions with strict pollution controls. It is pertinent here, for me remind everybody seated, that our beloved Ghana is now the leading destination for the dumping of e waste.

I will like to conclude my speech by quoting the final words of the immediate past US secretary of energy Steven Chu in his final memo:

 

Ultimately we have a moral responsibility to the most innocent victims of adverse climate change. Those who will suffer the most are the people who are the most innocent: the world’s poorest citizens and those yet to be born. There is an ancient Native American saying: “We do not inherit the land from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” A few short decades later, we don’t want our children to ask, “What were our parents thinking? Didn’t they care about us?”

Hipocratus Joshua Quaye

Research & Policy Team

Ghana Youth Environmental Movement.

TOP 5 ACTIVITIES THAT TRIGGERS CRISIS.

CRISIS!!! We all dread that six letter word.  And though crisis can strike any moment without fore warning or any signals, I have come to realise that there are certain activities that spark crisis. From my interaction with fellow sickle cell warriors, there are five precipitators that have repeatedly been mentioned.

•  Walking In Rain. Avoid walking in the rain at all times. This seemingly harmless act can stir up crisis within minutes. My earliest memories of having crisis during the day have always been preceded by walking in the rain. I vividly recall one of such incidents when I was in JSS 1. School has just closed and together with my friends we were playing “chaskele” on our way home. All of a sudden the weather changed from sunny and bright to cloudy threatening heavy downpour. Before we could say jack, showers were pouring from the skies. I straddled my bag across my back and made a dash to my house which was about seven minutes walk away. I reached home in about five minutes drenched in rain all over. Within 15 minutes of reaching home, I had one of the most agonizing pain episodes of my life. Similar stories like this have been recounted to me by many Sickle Cell sufferers. So next time you are in town and it is raining take cover under a shelter. It is better to arrive late at your destination than to arrive in bad health.

 

• Swimming. Another seemingly harmless act that can take you to the emergency room. Swimming during a hot afternoon give a sweet relief from the piercing heat of the African sun, but hey! Think twice before you jump into the pool or sea. Swimming cools your body temperature, slows down your blood flow and reduces oxygen distribution in your body. Also, swimming causes the constriction of blood vessels due to the decrease in blood flow, which does trigger crisis. Over the past couple of years, I have learnt rather bitterly from experience never to swim especially for extended periods. Between 2005 and 2007, most of my visits to the ER was caused by love for swimming. After resolving not to swim in cold water, my numerous visits to the ER has substantially reduced.

 

• Dehydration. I bet by now already how bad dehydration can be for your health. We all know! But fact is most of us fail to drink adequate amount of fluids to keep us hydrated all day long. Dehydration makes the blood thicker causing sickled cells to stick together and block blood circulation. I battle dehydration by carrying bottle filled with water around and sipping intermittently

 

• Exposure To Tobacco Smoke. We all know how bad tobacco is and research suggests that tobacco smoke impacts even worse on the health SCD sufferers. Passive or second hand smoke increases the likelihood of crisis in children by 90%.  It also increases the risk of Acute Chest Syndrome.

 

• Physical Exhaustion. Overworking and stress are also top crisis triggers. Fellow SCD patient must find a balance between work and rest.  Physical exhaustion can take you to the ER quickly.  If you don’t take breaks your schedule can BREAK you!! Have enough REST!