If you could bottle the hot air being generated in the row about gas, even George Osborne would probably admit defeat: the energy-from-waste produced would obviate the need for any other source completely. On Thursday the Committee on Climate Change published a letter to Ed Davey, the Secretary of State at DECC, expressing concern at a statement regarding the role of gas in future energy generation. In particular, it pointed out that there is a statutory requirement to meet carbon targets by 2030. The letter was pointedly copied to the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and the Chancellor himself, who is widely suspected of favouring shifting the goalposts on gas.

Ed Davey's response was cagey, to say the least, talking of gas being used "increasingly" as a back-up if carbon capture systems were not in place (or Carbon Capture and Storage, as it actually says in the statement published by DECC – where do all these capitals come from?). We all thought the legislation called for it to be absolutely a back-up if the capture and storage technology was not available; but there you are, to a politician nothing is as it says in the legislation.

In the Arctic the waterjetting appears to have died down, but the protests over plans to drill for oil continue. As Greenpeace's Save The Arctic campaign points out, the irony couldn't be sharper: at a time when the ice is melting at an unprecedented rate, we humans are looking there to provide more fossil fuels to burn, which will then accelerate the melting...you know the rest.

Meanwhile, we can all help save the rainforest while enjoying a cuppa. Honest! The Rainforest Alliance has declared next week Follow The Frog Week. As well as offering discounts on trekking and exploration holidays to rainforest destinations, there are tempting special offers on tea and coffee from Rainforest Alliance-certified producers and even free chocolate frogs at wine tastings. Find out more at www.rainforest-alliance.org/followthefrog.

Chris Stokes