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The excuse most often provided for turning away from green measures, for expanding fossil fuel production, for ignoring the science, is pragmatism. The idea being that, yes, the climate emergency is serious, but we have to be practical – we have to consider other things too, inevitably ensuring business as usual, protecting the bottom line and keeping consumer capitalism in the fast lane. The fact is that this is dangerous drivel. Pragmatism is only possible when feasible alternatives are available. Where climate breakdown is concerned, there is no alternative. The climate doesn’t recognise pragmatism. We either slash emissions now or we are in deep, deep trouble.
In 2024, the temperature of the planet topped the 1.5C temperature-rise threshold for the first time (since preindustrial times), and according to the UK Met Office, there is a 70% chance that the average temperature rise over the next five years will be above this. A recent report by the UK Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and Exeter University forecasts that a 2C global temperature hike by 2050 would see a 25% collapse in the global economy and 2 billion people dead. This is what the end game of a “pragmatic” climate strategy looks like.
We can no longer pretend that we are sleepwalking into climate catastrophe. We are doing it consciously, with our eyes wide open, and hang the consequences. The truth is that on a rapidly heating planet, a pragmatic approach means that we are playing Russian roulette with all six barrels loaded. The only question is just how big a mess we will make when we pull the trigger.
- Bill McGuire is professor emeritus of geophysical and climate hazards at UCL and author of Hothouse Earth: an Inhabitant’s Guide
See the original article at https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/sep/30/climate-disaster-oilfields-runways-pragmatism-emissions
