Talking points

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Talking points headlinesTeachers notes
In this activity, students are presented with a
series of news headlines relating to climate
change. Each headline is accompanied by some
information explaining the issue. Ask students to
discuss the information on each slide in groups
and, where possible, to decide what action could
be taken to deal with the problems or concerns
raised. One student from each group could then
report back to the class. You may wish to print
this presentation so you can hand out the
information slides to your students, for group
discussion. Use this activity as an opportunity
to explain the link between energy use and
climate change.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
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Talking points headlines
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
3
Talking points - headlines

• Read the information on the slides and discuss it
  with your group
• Decide how you would deal with the problems
  raised or what you think about the things that
  are reported
• Nominate a member of your group to tell the rest
  of the class

Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
4
New protection for Scottish bogs
Apart from providing havens for wildlife, the
bogs also help slow down global warming by
trapping carbon from the atmosphere.Across the
UK, the amount of lowland peat land has decreased
from 95,000 hectares to 6,000 hectares since the
start of the 19th century.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
5
Rising sea temperatures kill coral reefs
Rising sea temperatures kill the algae that the
coral polyps live on.Research indicates that
parts of the Indian Ocean could see all the coral
die within 20 years.A recent study in Australia
predicted that most of its Great Barrier Reef
could be devoid of live coral by 2050.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
6
Increase in emission of greenhouse gases in Wales
Carbon emissions have risen in Wales since 1990
by 0.2 England, Scotland and Northern Ireland
have all seen a decrease. Blame has been put on
Wales booming economy and its rural nature,
which means people rely greatly on private
transport.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
7
Three Gorges Dam progresses
When its 26 turbines become operational in 2009,
the dam will have a capacity of more than 18,000
megawatts and will reduce Chinas oil dependency
(China is the 2nd largest oil user in the
world).Over a million people have been moved
from their homes to make way for the dam and more
than 1,200 towns and villages will disappear
under its rising waters.The water behind the
dam is already heavily polluted.China says the
whole project will cost about 25bn (13bn), but
the environmentalists estimate the cost will be
several times higher.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
8
Pipeline spill
A corroded transit pipeline in the Prudhoe Bay
oilfield, Alaska, leaked 267,000 gallons (one
million litres) of crude oil over the ice this
was discovered on 2nd March 2006.The spill
covered about two acres of the snow-covered
tundra.Many see drilling in Alaska as an
alternative source of energy to the Middle East
that improves international security. Oil
spills harm this pristine wilderness and endanger
a key habitat for migratory birds, polar bears,
caribou and other animals.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
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Two decades left for tropical ice field
There are only four tropical ice fields left
outside the Andes.Glaciers in the Rwenzori
Mountains in East Africa are often referred to
as the Mountains of the Moon and are on the
border between the democratic Republic of Conga
and Uganda.An analysis of the data from field
surveys and images from satellites shows the
combined area of the Rwenzori glaciers has halved
from around 2 sq km to just under 1 sq km since
1987.The cause of the decline seems to be an
air temperature rise of roughly half a degree
Celsius per decade since the 1960s without any
real change in annual rainfall.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
10
Climate change a deadly threat
The charity Christian Aid has warned that 182
million people in Africa alone could die as a
result of climate change before the end of the
century. The effects of global warming, such as
increased floods and droughts and the growth of
areas infested by malaria-carrying mosquitoes
could cause a huge rise in deaths.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
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Oil tanker ran aground in Alaska
An oil tanker ran aground at a port in south-west
Alaska on 2nd February 2006. It was carrying
more than 100,000 barrels of different oil
products the Coast Guard said some oil leaked
into the sea.An oil spill from the Exxon Valdez
in Alaska in 1989 devastated wildlife and took
four years to clean up.A spokesman for the
Tesco refinery, which had chartered the vessel,
said the Seabulk Pride broke free after being hit
by an ice floe.
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009
12
Carbon Footprint Toolkit
www.bp.com/bpes/cft2009