Madam,

Such has been the spectacular growth in public understanding of the climate crisis over the last year that reading Phil Pugh’s lame defence (Letters, 22 August) of his “Carmageddon Ceredigion” rally is like stumbling across a gigantic fossil on a beach. Back in the day, when we had a habitable planet that we could easily have protected, that was how most of us thought.

I’ve never had much time for “motorsport”, but I don’t even see this as motorsport I see it as blokes pratting about in cars on the public highways. But much more importantly, this event is wholly inessential and so the climate damage it will inevitably create is completely unjustifiable.

I hope that Extinction Rebellion sits down en masse in each of this rally’s carefully selected scenic stages. I hope local school children will explain to rally supporters in graphic detail the link between CO2 emissions and the gathering uninhabitability of the planet. I hope they are given the roasting that they deserve.

And I hope people will scrutinise and memorise the rally’s extensive list of sponsors and partners. For example: Aberystwyth University (so much for academic rigour and climate science); Aberystwyth Arts Centre (so much for artistic sensibilities); Natural Resources Wales (so much for the idea of the atmosphere as a shared natural resource); Ceredigion Council (so much for their intention to declare a meaningful “climate emergency”); and LAS (so much for the green cred of recycling).

How these organisations can associate themselves with an event like this defies rational explanation. I wonder if any of them have even considered their responsibilities under the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015?

One name not on that supporters list is Aberystwyth Town Council, which has already made the easy gesture of declaring a climate emergency. So speak up ATC, because now is the time to do the harder part. Do you really want your town to be used as a base for this?

Yours etc, Dave Bradney, Joppa, Llanrhystud.

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