Protestors put world on red alert

Thousands of people marched the streets from Barangaroo to Parliament House last Saturday to urge the Rudd Government to act quickly on climate change.
Wearing red for urgency, protestors at the National Climate Emergency Rally cried that the effects of climate change were already evident.
“Today we stand with tens of thousands of people around Australia with a very clear message for Prime Minister Rudd, the world is on red alert is and urgent action needed to rein in runaway climate change now,” boomed Greens MP Lee Rhiannon against the backdrop of the harbour.
“The pm needs to recognise that baby steps is not what is needed. We need giant leaps to a zero emissions future.”
Rhiannon renamed the Federal Government’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, which gives major firms incentives to reduce their emissions, the “Continuous Polluting Regardless Scheme”, while emcee Simon Butler likened it to a tax on cigarettes that exempted smokers.
“The green senators have made our party’s position clear. We think the scheme should be scrapped. If it comes before the senate we will vote against it,” said Ms Rhiannon. The Coalition say they will also block the bill.
Staged in cities all over Australia, the rally was the first of four major events leading up to the United Nations Cimate Change Conference in Copenhagen in early December.
City of Sydney Councillor Chris Harris was handing out placards for the Greens, who were strongly represented at the event.
“We need to make massive investments in renewable energy and reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. We need to do that now instead of in 10 years time,” he said.
“I just want to be part of the voice this morning that says that to him (Kevid Rudd).”
Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Unions NSW and the Australian Services Union all took part in the rally, as well as families, teenagers and elderly activists.
On Thursday New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin congratulated Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore on the City’s Sustainable Sydney 2030 plan at a free conference hosted by the Council.
“You should be very proud of the plan that you have for sustainability for the year 2030,” he said.
New Orleans is rebuilding itself as North America’s greenest city, now in its fourth year of recovery after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005.
“I just hope that the people…do not have to have a crisis like Katrina to really push them…to help this 2030 plan that the Lord Mayor has put up.”