Posts Tagged ‘human-caused global warming’

Fred Singer, President of the Science and Environmental Policy Project and Professor Emeritus of Environmental Science at the University of Virginia, spoke at CSU (Colorado State University) in Ft. Collins on July 18th.  Unfortunately the room was not set up to allow Fred to present his visual aids, so Fred made his presentation without his many interesting charts. I was fortunate enough to also attend Fred’s presentation at NIST Boulder Laboratories in Boulder the following day, so was able to see the charts he referred to at the CSU presentation.

Fred’s presentation was based mainly on his report published in 2008 titled “Nature, Not Human Activity, Rules the Climate” (See Reference section below for link)

Fred highlighted the following major questions at the NIST presentation:

1. Is warming due to natural causes or anthropogenic (ie, due to human causes)? He described why this is both a Science issue and a Policy Issue.

2. Why is there a disparity between models? Using the data from 2007 IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change) report  there is a clear discrepancy between the Model results and “fingerprints” (observed patterns of warming).

3. What causes Climate Variability?   In addition to greenhouse gasses, other factors like internal oscillations of the atmosphere-ocean system,  influence of clouds and solar activity need to be considered.

Fred also commented on evidence of abuses of the peer review process at IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) and the Michael Mann Hockey Stick Chart as examples that clearly calls for an assessment by the scientific community to evaluate their behavior.  We suggest you view the presentations at the recent International Conference on Climate Change hosted by Heartland Institute. The theme of the conference was “Restoring the Scientific Method”. (See Reference section below for link)

At both presentations Fred commented on the global warming trend… yes, we are in a warming trend, however the current cycle is not unusual (for example: it was warmer during the Medieval Warm Period).

Chart from Roy Spencer’s Global Warming Website.

Also, this chart of global satellite-based temperatures shows a warming trend from 1910 thru 1940, then a cooling trend, increase beginning in 1975 with a “spike” in 1997… if CO2 was is a major contributor to warming then one would expect a steady increase in temperature over the last 100 years.  Chart from page 5, “Nature, Not Human Activity, Rules the Climate” paper by Fred Singer dated 2008

One more interesting chart, Global averaged satellite-based Temperature Chart for 1979 thru current year.
From Roy Spencer’s Global Warming Website

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We agree with Fred’s conclusion stated in his 2008 report,

Our imperfect understanding of the causes and consequences of climate change means the science is far from settled.  This, in turn, means proposed efforts to mitigate climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions are premature and misguided.  Any attempt to influence global temperatures by reducing such emissions would be both futile and expensive.

Reference:

“Nature, Not Human Activity, Rules the Climate”, report by S. Fred Singer, dated 2008

Report of the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change (MIPCC), “Climate Change Reconsidered”, released June 2009.

Roy Spencer’s Global Warming Website ( www.drroyspencer.com)

Sixth International Conference on Climate Change hosted by Heartland Institute in Washington, D.C. on June 30 to July 1, 2011. The scientists who spoke at this conference are committed to restoring the scientific method.  The conference theme was “Restoring the Scientific Method”.

http://climateconference.heartland.org/

Article in Colorodoan about Fred Singer’s presentation at CSU on July 18th, dated July 19, 2011.

How to Lie with Statistics by Darrell Huff – great book to inform you how numbers can be used to fool you rather than inform.

It seems the AGW (anthropogenic global warming ie human-caused) crowd still doesn’t “get it”. Using “global warming pollution” and calling coal a “dirty source of energy” presupposes some assumptions that have … for about 3 years now … and especially in the last year … been proved to be false. We call on the AGW crowd to do their homework and stop attacking “carbon”. We call on business to get some backbone and stop pandering to the “Green” folks … and defend the use of coal as a American-sourced low-cost fuel that makes sense to support the energy needs of America.

Some references about this attack by Greenpeace

Greenpeace International (Facebook page) calling for Facebook to use 100% renewable energy, click here to read article

Fox News Article dated Aug 2, 2010 “Greenpeace De-friends Facebook”, click here to read article.

Greenpeace International – article dated Aug 2 “Fox News takes a look at Facebook and Coal (Video)

For those who still think carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are causing unprecedented global warming and if we don’t switch to renewable energy (regardless of the cost), disaster is ahead … we recommend the following reading in addition to other articles on this web site.

Is the current global warming unusual?

This chart tells the story, for more information click here to see article at LongRangeWeather.com “Global Temperature Trends from 2500 B.C. to 2040 A.D.

Here’s an article from the Washington Times dated May 19, 2010 “Nero was hotter than Al Gore”

To quote part of the article..
The planet has never been warmer than it is right now, if you believe what global warming alarmists have to say. Mankind’s selfishness in producing “excessive” amounts of carbon dioxide has set us on a path toward global cataclysm, they insist. The problem with this tale is that it neither fits with the historical record nor with a growing body of scientific evidence.

Does increasing CO2 cause global warming?
This article by James Peden posted on The Middlebury Community Network website is a bit long but well worth you time to read.

Here are a few quotes from the Peden article
Co2 is a non-toxic, non-polluting, earth-friendly component that really is critical to our survival.

This was the fundamental mistake that Mann, Al Gore, the Oscar boys, the Nobel Committee, the IPCC, and just about everyone else on the planet made at the beginning. They immediately assumed, noticing that CO2 levels and global temperatures had a pretty good correlation, that CO2 was the culprit, and was causing global temperatures to rise. In fact, it appears it was just the opposite: rising global temperatures caused increased CO2 level in the atmosphere.

Is the “science” settled?
Please take a look at this letter sent Dec 13, 2007 to the Secretary-General of the United Nations and signed by 100 Scientists. Numerous article point out the deficiencies in efforts to model the climate, the advice in this letter … focus on helping people adapt. “Attempts to prevent global climate change from occurring are ultimately futile, and constitute a tragic misallocation of resources that would be better spent on humanity’s real and pressing problems.”

Of course there are many more recent sources, we recommend watching the videos of presentations at the 4th Annual International Conference on Climate Change (meeting held in Chicago, IL on May 16-18, 2010) posted on the Heartland Institute website.

In addition to the fact that attacking coal has no justification based on science, environmentalists and legislators and bureaucrats are causing real harm by justifying huge subsidies and proposing unnecessary rules and regulations.

Read our article about the rule submitted by the EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) on December 15, 2009 relating to greenhouse gasses and hearing in the US Senate.

Here’s an article posted at OregonLive.com dated July 12, 2010
“Pacific Power customers face a ‘rate shock’ in 2011”

And finally, an interesting list of countries that now realize that renewable energy is a massive waste of taxpayer funds and has zero or negligible effect on CO2 emissions. Article found at The Carbon Sense Coalition (located in Australia) dated July 21, 2010 “Sunset for Subsidies” Read the rest of this entry »

Harry Reid announced yesterday, July 22 that he does not have the votes for a broad energy bill (aka climate change bill, aka legislation to curb US carbon emissions). Reid is still expected to introduce an energy bill next week that would implement offshore drilling reforms, promote natural-gas vehicles, promote energy-efficient houses and businesses, and perhaps include a target for electricity from renewable sources like wind and solar.

Meanwhile according to a New York Times article “Efforts to Block EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Regulations Back in Play” Dated July 23, 2010. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid plans to allow a vote this year on a two-year postponement of EPA action to impose regulations on carbon emissions on stationary sources.

Additional information in Reuters article dated July 23 – “Senate climate bill in peril as Democrats delay action”

On April 20, an explosion of a BP oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico resulted in a ruptured well.  The ruptured well has been gushing oil for over two months. Instead of solid support for the cleanup and getting the best proposals to control the leak we see  …

• The Obama Administration imposing a six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling. In spite of a U.S.  District Judge ruling that the edict violates the law, the administration has appealed the injunction. It is estimated that 40,000 jobs are at stake if the moratorium is imposed.
• The Obama Administration is proceeding to work on a “comprehensive energy and climate bill”.  The Obama Administration continues to attack fossil fuels and push wind and solar.
• Congress is expected to use “backroom” tactics to pass Climate legislation.  After the outrage over the procedures used to pass the Health Care Legislation (Obamacare), it appears that Harry Reid is considering similar tactics to push this Climate/Energy Legislation thru.

Select “read the rest of this entry” for links to articles supporting these statements.

Read the rest of this entry »

We liked this cartoon from “The Gentleman from Lickskillet” comic strip by Steven J. Allen and Kevin Tuma. This cartoon strip describes the adventures of Congressman Randall Dill, his family, constituents and adversaries. Click here to visit The Gentleman from Lickskillet website.

On June 10, 2010 … the US Senate debated Joint Resolution 26 – a resolution to disapprove a rule submitted by the EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) on December 15, 2009 relating to greenhouse gasses. After over 6 hours of debate the US Senate voted against the resolution 53 to 47.  You can view the entire session at CSpan Video Library


According to Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), because this (i.e., EPA action) is our worst option to reduce emissions and Congress needs time to develop a more appropriate solution, I have introduced a resolution of disapproval … I introduced this back in January … to halt the EPA’s regulations.  My resolution does not affect the science behind the endangerment finding, but it will prevent the finding from being enforced through economy-wide regulations.

 About the Opposition

Most of the comments by Senators opposing Resolution 26 were “red herrings” … about their confidence that the scientific findings were compelling, about fuel standards and about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Instead of reasoned debate, we got political theatre! Did they read the bill?… did they read the EPA rule? … or did they use Barbara Boxer’s talking points to prepare their comments? Read the rest of this entry »

For excellent information about climate change issues, we suggest you view coverage of the Heartland Institute’s 4th Annual International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC-4) – a worldwide gathering of global warming “realists” – held in Chicago, IL, on May 16-18. PJTV will offer viewers videos and analysis from each keynote speaker as well as a number of the conference events.
More than 700 people — including a good many scientists, along with economists, policy analysts, and legislators — gathered together to  discuss the once-settled but increasingly controversial proposition of an anthroprogenic global warming (AGW) crisis. There was general agreement to explore real-world facts and test the assertions of alarmists. The presenters and audience members continually asked whether the data says what the modelers say it does.
Videos of the presentations at the conference can be found at Heartland Institute Web site…get informed.

April 3, 2010 – EPA issues rules on vehicle greenhouse gas emissions  and states line up to legally challenge the new regulations. 

In the last few month various bills have been introduced (or are being drafted) by Congress … Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) asserts that greenhouse gas regulation would be better done by Congress than by an appointed agency.  House Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-North Dakota) states that the Clean Air Act was not developed for greenhouse gas emissions, and it does not work to try and shoehorn greenhouse gas emissions into this statute.

In 2007, The Supreme Court ruled that greenhouse gases are air pollutants covered by the Clean Air Act.  The EPA was directed to determine whether GHG from vehicles cause or contribute to air pollution and that this pollution may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare.

In 2007, there was consensus on human-caused global warming and associated climate change predictions.  Now significant questions have been raised. Questions about the quality of the science behind the assumptions.  Also there are many  unanswered questions regarding air quality… how to measure, what level of “pollution” is a threat to “public health and welfare”, cost/benefit issues, etc.

We are in agreement that rulings made in 2007 need to be revisited …   here are some articles to help you get informed.

• FOX News article – More States Sue EPA as Agency Issues First Climate Change Regulations
• Article at SolveClimate.com – Mar 3, 2010 – EPA’s authority to regulate Greenhouse Gases comes under fire from all angles – article supplies many links to help you get informed.
• EPA.gov – Climate Change – Regulatory Initiatives
• Article by Thomas Pyle at the DailyCaller – Energy and Climate, March Madness-style