[TheClimate.Vote] March 12, 2017 - Daily Global Warming News for All -

Sun Mar 12 09:55:56 EDT 2017

/March 12, 2017            Droughts and doubts on Pruitt/

http://climatenewsnetwork.net/scientists-track-travelling-droughts/
*Scientists track down travelling droughts 
<http://climatenewsnetwork.net/scientists-track-travelling-droughts/>*

    New analysis of how some of the severest droughts can travel
    thousands of kilometres could help save many lives in future.   By
    Alex Kirby     LONDON, 11 March, 2017
    The biggest and worst droughts may not stay fixed in one place but
    can travel thousands of kilometres from their origin, according to a
    new study...
    And that discovery, disturbing as it may sound, could shed light on
    how droughts evolve in space and time, provide new insights for
    water managers, and save huge numbers of lives...
    The UN says that drought affected more than one billion people
    between 1994 and 2013. In the 1983 Ethiopian drought, 300,000 are
    thought to have died, and three million people died in China's 1928
    drought...
    Researchers in Austria and the US report in Geophysical Research
    Letters journal that they have found that a few of the most intense
    droughts travel across continents in predictable patterns. Their
    study could help improve projections of future droughts, allowing
    for more effective planning.

http://time.com/4697551/epa-scott-pruitt-carbon-dioxide/
*(TIME) EPA Head Scott Pruitt Has Already Broken 5 of His Promises to 
Congress <http://time.com/4697551/epa-scott-pruitt-carbon-dioxide/>**
*Now that he has the job, it appears Pruitt never really meant what he 
said. He has already broken the following promises:

    *1. To recognize climate reality*
    Pruitt told Senators that EPA's conclusion that carbon dioxide and
    other greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare "needs to
    be enforced and respected" and that "there is nothing that I know
    that would cause a review at this point" of this scientific
    conclusion. But now all the sudden, Pruitt is expressing deep doubts
    about EPA's rigorously substantiated conclusion.
    *2. To stand up for science*
    Pruitt also assured Senators that "science must serve as 'the
    backbone' of EPA actions." Yet just weeks later, he's expressing
    views on carbon pollution and climate change that directly
    contradict those of scientists at NASA, the National Academy of
    Science and every major American scientific organization — all of
    which base their findings on decades of intensive, peer-review
    research and data.
    *3. To fight all forms of pollution*
    Pruitt's misleading testimony isn't limited to climate pollution. In
    Senate testimony, he suddenly claimed concern about dangerous
    pollution like mercury, smog and methane, after building his
    political career by suing the EPA 14 times to block safeguards for
    these and other types of pollution. But his change of heart seems to
    have been brief. This week, at the request of companies that want
    looser pollution rules, Pruitt withdrew an EPA request for
    information about methane pollution from oil and gas drilling
    operations. This after claiming at his confirmation hearing that he
    was "concerned" about the impact of methane pollution. How genuine
    can that concern be if he doesn't even want companies to collect the
    information?
    *4. To enforce clean air and water rules*
    Pruitt claimed to want to "restore the EPA's essential mission of
    keeping our air and our water clean and safe." But he and the White
    House are planning to recommend unprecedented cuts to the Agency's
    budget, which has already been cut by 20% in recent years. Now the
    Administration reportedly wants to cut it by another 24%, according
    to CNN. That won't save much money -- of every ten dollars the
    government spends, EPA gets two cents -- but it will severely damage
    programs that keep our air and water clean.
    *5. To be consistent on states' rights*
    In his hearings, Pruitt repeatedly claimed to favor greater
    authority for states. But he is reportedly considering whether to
    revoke California's right to have stronger clean air standards for
    cars. Mr. Pruitt apparently believes in states' rights when it suits
    his industry allies. He seems to think states have the right to
    choose more pollution, but not less.
    This is important -- beyond our desire to have public officials with
    integrity. The EPA has made America a far clean and healthier place
    since it began its work in the 1970s. The Clean Air Act alone saves
    220,000 American lives a year and prevents 2.4 million asthma
    attacks. The agency's work on clean water and toxics and other
    pollution issues save many more. A politician saying whatever gets
    him the next job is disturbing enough. But when our kids' health is
    at stake, it's unconscionable.

    Q&A: Can we keep*global warming*to 1.5C?
    <http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11816756>

New Zealand Herald 	 -‎8 hours ago‎ 	

Experts have been meeting in Brazil to discuss the UN Intergovernmental 
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on*Global Warming*of 1.5C. 
The meeting, drawing experts from 39 countries, will kick-start a major 
report assessing the impacts of a ...

    Humans Caused 100% of the Past Century's Global Warming
    <https://futurism.com/humans-caused-100-of-the-past-centurys-global-warming/>

Futurism 	 -‎Mar 9, 2017‎ 	

100 percent of global warming over the past century has been caused by 
humans. In 2013, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth 
Assessment ...

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/video/2017/mar/09/epa-scott-pruitt-carbon-dioxide-global-warming-video

    Head of EPA denies carbon dioxide causes*global warming*– video
    <https://www.theguardian.com/environment/video/2017/mar/09/epa-scott-pruitt-carbon-dioxide-global-warming-video>

The Guardian 	 -‎Mar 9, 2017‎ 	

Scott Pruitt, the new head of the US Environmental Protection Agency, 
gave an interview on CNBC on Thursday during which he denied carbon 
dioxide was a primary contributor to*global warming*. Pruitt also said 
that there is 'tremendous disagreement' over ...

http://www.newsweek.com/global-climate-change-battles-won-court-565942

    Global*Climate Change*Battles Increasingly Being Won in Court
    <http://www.newsweek.com/global-climate-change-battles-won-court-565942>

Newsweek 	 -‎18 hours ago‎ 	

The South African government has lost the country's first*climate 
change*lawsuit after the hight court ruled against its plans for a 
coal-fired power station, the latest in a rising tide of international 
climate litigation.

    http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/king-county-among-us-hotbeds-of-belief-in-global-warming/
    <http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/king-county-among-us-hotbeds-of-belief-in-global-warming/>

    King County among US hotbeds of belief in*global warming*
    <http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/king-county-among-us-hotbeds-of-belief-in-global-warming/>

The Seattle Times 	 -‎9 hours ago‎ 	

More than 80 percent of King County adults believe*global warming*is 
happening, a rate of sentiment 15th highest nationally.

http://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/2017/03/11/collier-brush-fire-still-7500-acres-70-percent-contained/99060800/
*Firefighters revise size of Collier brush blaze 
<http://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/2017/03/11/collier-brush-fire-still-7500-acres-70-percent-contained/99060800/>*

    The Florida Forest Service has revised downward the size of the
    brush fire that's been burning in eastern Collier County for the
    past week...
    Using more accurate GPS mapping, firefighters said Saturday
    afternoon that the fire covers 7,230 acres, less than the former
    estimate of 7,500 acres. The reduced acreage accounts for a large
    unburned area within the fire, Forest Service spokeswoman Samantha
    Quinn said.
    Quinn said firefighters have built fire lines around the entire
    fire, but it still is considered only 70 percent contained because
    it has pockets of unburned green and the potential for burned trees
    to fall and spread the fire....
    About 150 federal, state and local firefighters have been using
    bulldozers, brush trucks and aircraft to battle the blaze. They also
    have been digging fire lines by hand around structures, Quinn said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/12/opinion/dangerous-trains-aging-rails.html?ref=opinion&_r=0
/*This Day in Climate History March 12, 2015 
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/12/opinion/dangerous-trains-aging-rails.html?ref=opinion&_r=0> 
-  from D.R. Tucker*
/In the New York Times, Marcus Stern observes:

    "A CSX freight train ran off the rails last month in rural Mount
    Carbon, W.Va. One after another, exploding rail cars sent hellish
    fireballs hundreds of feet into the clear winter sky. Gov. Earl Ray
    Tomblin declared a state of emergency, and the fires burned for
    several days.
    "The Feb. 16 accident was one of a series of recent fiery
    derailments highlighting the danger of using freight trains to ship
    crude oil from wellheads in North Dakota to refineries in congested
    regions along America’s coastlines. The most recent was last week,
    when a Burlington Northern Santa Fe oil train with roughly 100 cars
    derailed, causing at least two cars, each with about 30,000 gallons
    of crude oil, to explode, burn and leak near the Mississippi River,
    south of Galena, Ill.
    "These explosions have generally been attributed to the design of
    the rail cars — they’re notoriously puncture-prone — and the
    volatility of the oil; it tends to blow up. Less attention has been
    paid to questions surrounding the safety and regulation of the
    nation’s aging network of 140,000 miles of freight rails, which
    carry their explosive cargo through urban corridors, sensitive
    ecological zones and populous suburbs."

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