Animal Rebellion: #WithdrawTheCap@EU-Kommission

It was already the third time within 2 months that Animal Rebellion Munich demonstrated in front of the regional representation of the EU Commission in Munich. Only the EU Commission can stop the disastrous CAP reform including Amendment 171.
Except for a short conversation at the first demo, in which the main statement was that one does not want to disturb the CAP process in order not to fall back to the old CAP state, the EU Commission did not respond to our requests for further talks and an exchange of arguments.
 
We will not stop drawing the attention of the EU Commission to its responsibility and continue to document its (in-) actions relentlessly.

This is the content of the email from us to the EU Commission a few days before the demonstration. It remained unanswered. Also, no one from the EU Commission was willing to have a conversation with us at the demonstration.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

to be quite honest, we are incredibly disappointed and appalled by the EU Commission's lack of responsibility and action regarding the climate and biodiversity crisis.

With the CAP reform in its current form, compliance with the Paris climate targets is not achievable [1]. This means that tipping points in the climate system are passed [2] and the climate catastrophe can no longer be averted [3]. This is equivalent to indescribable suffering and many deaths among humans and animals.

It can already be assumed that certain self-reinforcing processes (positive feedback loops) have been activated. Thus, the methane concentration in the atmosphere increases exponentially [4], indicating thawing of permafrost or methane from thawing ice.

The Amazon has now gone from being a climate saver to a climate killer due to human activities. The main cause is deforestation for animal husbandry, especially for soy feed imports to Europe. Moreover: from a deforestation rate of 20-25%, the Amazon can irreversibly turn into a savannah even without further human intervention. This would lead to forest fires releasing hundreds of gigatons of CO2. Currently, the deforestation rate is 17% with a strong upward trend [5].

According to the Stockolm Resilience Centre, a CO2 concentration in the atmosphere that is safe for human survival is 350 ppm [6]. In 2020, the concentration was 413 ppm. Technical solutions for the necessary sequestration are lacking, so the only option is renaturation. Enormous areas are needed for this. However, 76% of the land can be freed up by switching to a purely plant-based food system [7].

The drought of recent summers is unprecedented for Central Europe in 2,100 years [8] and will also lead to crop failures and water shortages in this country.

Perhaps even more serious than climate change is the collapse of biodiversity. We are currently in the sixth mass extinction in the history of the Earth. This mass extinction is due to humans and significantly to the way we farm [9].

It is absolutely necessary to get out of the extremely resource-intensive and environmentally damaging animal husbandry. This sounds radical, but is without alternative. An IPCC report from 2018 already called for unprecedented systemic changes ("rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society") [10]. The days of baby steps are long gone.

We urge you, not only as citizens full of fear for the future, but also as people who care and are concerned about other people and living beings, to take a deep look at the problems. Pretended solutions often come from financially strong and influential lobby groups and in most cases contradict the recommendations of science.

Talk to us and our experts (and/or other conservation organizations). It may not yet be too late to avert or at least mitigate the disaster.

We will be back in front of your office on Thursday, March 25 from 4:30pm to 6pm.

It is about life on this planet. Together, as humanity, we must do everything we can to protect and preserve it against all odds.

Sincerely yours,

Animal Rebellion Munich

References:

[1] https://science.sciencemag.org/content/370/6517/705

[2] https://www.pik-potsdam.de/en/output/infodesk/tipping-elements/kippelemente?set_language=en 

[3] https://www.pnas.org/content/115/33/8252

[4] https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends_ch4/

[5] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/amazon-rainforest-now-appears-to-be-contributing-to-climate-change

[6] https://doi.org/10.1038/461472a

[7] https://science.sciencemag.org/content/360/6392/987

[8] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-021-00698-0

[9] https://ipbes.net/global-assessment

[10] https://www.ipcc.ch/2018/10/08/summary-for-policymakers-of-ipcc-special-report-on-global-warming-of-1-5c-approved-by-governments/

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