Today the Kyoto protocol comes into effect, at least in the countries that have signed up to it. Of which ours isn’t one, so unlike most industrialised countries, we (along with the US and China) can blissfully keep pumping CO2 into the air, with no legal consequences.

A lot of the contributions to emissions come from motor vehicle emmissions, and with that in mind, here’s a kind of FAQ. The following is a conglomeration of a few conversations I’ve been having over the past couple of months, fictionalised, modified, merged, and with extra stuff added.

So you’re involved in the Public Transport Users Association? Why?

‘Cos I think it’s an important cause. It’s my particular interest among many green issues.

Green issues?

(One person I spoke to seemed particularly confused by the whole concept of green issues. Maybe the entire environmental movement passed him by.)

Well there’s air quality, land space (cities with all their land taken by roads aren’t very pleasant), noise pollution, as well as issues to do with health (not just car crashes, but also lack of fitness from being driven everywhere). And the bigger picture: global warming is said to have already started at such a rate that it will destroy the Great Barrier Reef, for instance. And economically, we’re going to be in big trouble if the Peak Oil predictions around petrol prices are anything near accurate.

So did you catch the train here tonight? heh. heh.

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