[TheClimate.Vote] April 17, 2018 - Daily Global Warming News Digest

Richard Pauli richard at theclimate.vote
Tue Apr 17 09:53:08 EDT 2018


/April 17, 2018/

[Climate Justice steps forward ]
*Florida Kids Sue Gov. Scott Over Climate Change: You Have 'Moral 
Obligation' to Protect Us 
<https://insideclimatenews.org/news/16042018/florida-climate-change-children-lawsuit-sea-level-rise-flooding-extreme-weather-rick-scott-fossil-fuel>*
The case, connected to the federal Our Children's Trust climate lawsuit, 
is one of nine pressuring states to take action on global warming and 
fossil fuels.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/16042018/florida-climate-change-children-lawsuit-sea-level-rise-flooding-extreme-weather-rick-scott-fossil-fuel
- - - - -
[Another climate lawsuit]
*In Florida, a New Youth Climate Lawsuit Targets Government Policies 
<https://www.climateliabilitynews.org/2018/04/16/youth-climate-lawsuit-florida-rick-scott/>*
By Karen Savage
Eight young people have filed a lawsuit against the state of Florida for 
violating their Constitutional right to a safe climate.
In a suit filed Monday in Leon County Court, the young plaintiffs allege 
that Florida officials are contributing to climate change by permitting 
and licensing fossil fuel activities. The young people are asking the 
court to order the state to create a science-based plan to curb climate 
change. It's the same demand being made in the youth climate case 
against the federal government, Juliana v. United States 
<https://www.ourchildrenstrust.org/us/federal-lawsuit/>, and in several 
other state-level cases 
<https://www.climateliabilitynews.org/2017/11/10/alaska-climate-change-lawsuit-state-courts/>, 
all supported by the same legal advocacy group, Our Children's Trust 
<https://www.ourchildrenstrust.org/>.
Because Florida's constitution recognizes the public trust doctrine, the 
suit says, state officials are legally obligated to protect the state's 
natural resources. Public trust doctrine is a legal principle in which 
air, water and land must be protected for the enjoyment and use of 
current and future generations.
"It is the responsibility of the state to uphold the constitution, and 
these young people have a fundamental right to a stable climate system," 
said Guy Burns, lead counsel for the plaintiffs.
The suit names as defendants the state of Florida, through Governor Rick 
Scott; the Florida Department of Environmental Protection; the Florida 
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; the Florida Board of 
Trustees of Internal Improvement Trust Fund; and the Public Service 
Commission.
Plaintiffs do not allege the defendants have failed to act against 
climate change, but instead say the state has exacerbated the problem by 
with policies that perpetuate an energy system based on greenhouse 
gas-emitting fossil fuels.
It was widely reported in 2015 that Governor Rick Scott had an unspoken 
policy forbidding the use of the words "climate change." Scott has 
denied such a policy ever existed...
- - - -
Levi Draheim, a 10-year old plaintiff from Satellite Beach, is also one 
of the youngest plaintiffs in the Juliana 
<https://www.climateliabilitynews.org/2018/04/12/youth-climate-case-juliana-v-us-ann-aiken/>case.
"We can't delay anymore because climate change is a huge problem," said 
Draheim, who was forced to change schools after flooding from Hurricane 
Irma closed his previous school. "We must deal with it right now and 
start reducing the emissions that are causing it. We need to fix the 
problem not just talk about it."
https://www.climateliabilitynews.org/2018/04/16/youth-climate-lawsuit-florida-rick-scott/
- - - -
[suit filed in Leon County Court 
<https://static1.squarespace.com/static/571d109b04426270152febe0/t/5ad4a4d48a922d44a48ee956/1523885272502/2018.04.15.FL+Complaint.FINAL.pdf>]
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/571d109b04426270152febe0/t/5ad4a4d48a922d44a48ee956/1523885272502/2018.04.15.FL+Complaint.FINAL.pdf


[Communicating climate change]
 From the journal Nature Climate Change
*"Experimental effects of climate messages vary geographically" 
<https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-018-0122-0.epdf?shared_access_token=-GeRaNAVHB9CdB6-HiwsO9RgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0N5WwPGasFZrgr7HqhaxWAMCQzmGmU-gCpWYWNbk_TTuyP8QYKOvKkq3Oo2VhG7L1Srb4LRAK_UYG4MItSHiWh4c9Xx_EWeTUGPhpG0K8PXv58WMIrmo5bYZ2BUm5uFOoQ%3D>*
In this study, we demonstrate that a message about climate change can 
have different effects depending on geographical location. The research 
integrates two of our recent scientific advances: the importance of 
public understanding of the scientific consensus on climate change and 
new techniques that can estimate public opinion at state and local levels.
  Using a large national message experiment (N = 6,301), we found:
     Experimental subjects' perception of the degree of scientific 
consensus about climate change increased by about 16 percentage points 
nationally when presented with a simple, clear message: "97% of climate 
scientists have concluded that human-caused global warming is happening."
     When this message treatment effect was downscaled to state and 
local levels, we found that several fossil fuel-producing parts of the 
country exhibited the strongest positive response (see map below), 
especially West Virginia, North Dakota, and Wyoming.
     The consensus message led to a convergence of perceptions about the 
scientific consensus among conservatives and liberals.
more at: 
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-018-0122-0.epdf?shared_access_token=-GeRaNAVHB9CdB6-HiwsO9RgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0N5WwPGasFZrgr7HqhaxWAMCQzmGmU-gCpWYWNbk_TTuyP8QYKOvKkq3Oo2VhG7L1Srb4LRAK_UYG4MItSHiWh4c9Xx_EWeTUGPhpG0K8PXv58WMIrmo5bYZ2BUm5uFOoQ%3D


[The Science Guy]
*Bill Nye takes on creationists and science deniers 
<https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/bill-nye-takes-on-creationists-and-science-deniers/2018/04/13/8191254c-3d95-11e8-974f-aacd97698cef_story.html?utm_term=.82652af69bb2>*
Washington Post
The film   "Bill Nye: Science Guy, 
<http://www.pbs.org/pov/billnyescienceguy/>" a POV documentary that 
premieres on PBS Wednesday, is packed with tense moments as Nye 
confronts figures including Joe Bastardi, a meteorologist and cable-news 
commentator who denies humans' involvement in global warming. As Nye and 
Bastardi spar over the planet's future, we see their similarities  -  
including their passion, effective use of media and worries about the 
lasting impact of their work  -  as clearly as their differences..
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/bill-nye-takes-on-creationists-and-science-deniers/2018/04/13/8191254c-3d95-11e8-974f-aacd97698cef_story.html?utm_term=.82652af69bb2
- - - -
[Watch the Trailer]
*Bill Nye: Science Guy <http://www.pbs.org/pov/billnyescienceguy/>* 
#BillNyePBS
PBS Premiere: April 18, 2018 Check local listings
Synopsis
Bill Nye is a man on a mission: to stop the spread of anti-scientific 
thinking across the world. The former star of the popular kids' show 
"Bill Nye the Science Guy" is now advocating for the importance of 
science, research and discovery in public life. With intimate and 
exclusive access - as well as plenty of wonder and whimsy - this 
behind-the-scenes portrait of Nye follows him as he takes off his 
Science Guy lab coat and takes on those who deny climate change, 
evolution and a science-based worldview. The film features Bill Nye, 
Neil deGrasse Tyson, Ann Druyan and many others. The film is a PBS 
Distribution release.
http://www.pbs.org/pov/billnyescienceguy/


[geographic change]
*100th Meridian, Which Divides the Arid West From the More Humid East, 
May Be Shifting Because of Climate Change 
<https://weather.com/science/environment/news/2018-04-12-100th-meridian-great-plains-shifting>*
By Pam Wright
The 100th meridian, which bisects the Great Plains and separates the 
arid western states from the moister eastern states, may be shifting as 
a result of climate change, new studies 
<http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/> 
say.
The imaginary line, metaphorically "drawn in the dirt" by American 
geologist and explorer John Wesley Powell in 1878, transects Texas, 
Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas in the United States, and 
continues up into Canada's Manitoba.
Powell used the line to try to convince Congress to plan water and 
land-management districts that crossed state lines based on 
environmental constraints. His suggestions were met with backlash 
because legislators feared interstate districts would limit growth. 
Considering the water issues facing western states today, perhaps 
legislators should have taken Powell's theories under consideration.
A team of researchers from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of 
Columbia University decided to take a new look at Powell's divide. In 
one study published in 2017 in the journal of the American 
Meteorological Society, the team confirmed that Powell was correct in 
his assumptions 
<https://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/abs/10.1175/EI-D-17-0011.1> based on 
population and agriculture trends that have developed on opposite sides 
of the divide.
In a second study published in March in the AMS journal, the researchers 
concluded that the line appears to be moving east 
<https://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/full/10.1175/EI-D-17-0012.1>, which 
could have big impacts on farming and other pursuits....
https://weather.com/science/environment/news/2018-04-12-100th-meridian-great-plains-shifting
- - - -
[Study]
The 100th Meridian, Where the Great Plains Begin, May Be Shifting 
<http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/>
Warming Climate May Be Moving Western Aridity Eastward
http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/


[Young lawyer talks Rising Sea Levels and the Law - audio]
*You Can't Handle the Truth: Rising Sea Levels and the Law 
<http://americaadapts.org/2018/04/15/you-cant-handle-the-truth-rising-sea-levels-and-the-law/>*
A Conversation with Adaptation Lawyer Margaret Peloso
In episode 64 of America Adapts, Doug Parsons talks with Margaret 
Peloso, of the law firm Vinson and Elkins.  Margaret shares insights 
from her book Adapting to Rising Sea Levels: Legal Challenges and 
Opportunities. Doug and Margaret dig into topics such as the conversion 
of private land to public land as the oceans rise; adaptation and the 
public trust doctrine; coastal Superfund sites and corporate 
responsibility; will eminent domain drive coastal planning in the years 
ahead and much more!
The public trust and sea level rise;
Legal precedent and sea level rise;
A new definition of private property;
Sea level rise and Superfund sites;
Policy versus the law as an adaptation strategy;
The legal definition of resilience;
Adaptation law as a profession;
The advantages and perils of using eminent domain for coastal planning;
Favorite lawyer movies and favorite lawyer jokes.
http://americaadapts.org/2018/04/15/you-cant-handle-the-truth-rising-sea-levels-and-the-law/


[European scientists meet ]*
European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2018 
<https://client.cntv.at/egu2018/pc6>*
Hazards in the wake of climate change
This press conference was part of the European Geosciences Union General 
Assembly 2018, and delved into some future climatic prospects for Canada 
and many European countries, including weather, hydro logical 
potentials, and geo-morphological activities
https://client.cntv.at/egu2018/pc6


[More great science video from NASA]
*In Hot Water: Glacier Change and Sea Level Rise 
<https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/lectures_archive.php?year=2017&month=2>*
February 9 & 10 video https://youtu.be/5BfejRo37T8
Glaciers and ice sheets hold massive amounts of freshwater locked up as 
ice. The loss of glacial ice due to melting as our climate warms or from 
calving of icebergs can have large impacts on the Earth system and on 
society. These stores of freshwater feed water supplies that support 
millions of people around the world, raise global sea levels, and can 
even change the rate of Earth's rotation. It is now nearly certain that 
as Earth's atmosphere and oceans warm over the coming centuries, 
glaciers and ice sheets will continue to retreat and sea levels will 
continue to rise. The big question now is at what rate and by how much? 
With trillions of dollars in infrastructure and large populations 
located in areas vulnerable to rising seas, researchers around the world 
are analyzing a diverse collection of satellite and airborne 
measurements in an effort to learn how and why the world's ice has 
responded in complex ways to recent changes in both air and ocean 
temperatures. In this talk JPL's Alex Gardner will reveal a world of 
rapid change as seen through the eyes of a NASA glaciologist.
Alex Gardner is a research scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion 
Laboratory. He earned a degree in Engineering from the University of 
Saskatchewan, a doctorate in Earth Sciences from the University of 
Alberta and was a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of 
Canada research fellow in the Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and 
Space Sciences at the University of Michigan. Alex studies Earth's 
cryosphere (frozen Earth) with a particular focus on glaciers and their 
impacts on sea level rise and water resources. He is interested in how 
glaciers respond to natural and human-induced changes in atmosphere and 
ocean as well as how changes in the reflectivity of snow and ice modify 
Earth's climate. He has published numerous high-impact scientific papers 
on the topic, is a contributing author to the United Nations' 
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's 5th assessment report, and 
is a member of NASA's Sea Level Change and ICESat-2 Science Definition 
Teams.
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/lectures_archive.php?year=2017&month=2
https://youtu.be/5BfejRo37T8


*This Day in Climate History - April 17, 2008 
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1COYhkzEXPI>  -  from D.R. Tucker*
April 17, 2008:  Al Gore's Alliance for Climate Protection releases a 
commercial featuring House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, and former 
House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Republican, calling for a bipartisan 
effort to address human-caused climate change. Gingrich is rhetorically 
flogged by right-wing bloggers for participating in the commercial, and 
later disavows it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi6n_-wB154
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1COYhkzEXPI

/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
//Archive of Daily Global Warming News 
<https://pairlist10.pair.net/pipermail/theclimate.vote/2017-October/date.html> 
//
/https://pairlist10.pair.net/pipermail/theclimate.vote//
///
///To receive daily mailings - click to Subscribe 
<mailto:subscribe at theClimate.Vote?subject=Click%20SEND%20to%20process%20your%20request> 
/to news digest. /

        *** Privacy and Security: * This is a text-only mailing that
        carries no images which may originate from remote servers.
        Text-only messages provide greater privacy to the receiver and
        sender.
        By regulation, the .VOTE top-level domain must be used for
        democratic and election purposes and cannot be used for
        commercial purposes.
        To subscribe, email: contact at theclimate.vote with subject: 
        subscribe,  To Unsubscribe, subject: unsubscribe
        Also youmay subscribe/unsubscribe at
        https://pairlist10.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/theclimate.vote
        Links and headlines assembled and curated by Richard Paulifor
        http://TheClimate.Vote delivering succinct information for
        citizens and responsible governments of all levels.   List
        membership is confidential and records are scrupulously
        restricted to this mailing list.

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://pairlist10.pair.net/pipermail/theclimate.vote/attachments/20180417/02ddeed7/attachment.html>


More information about the TheClimate.Vote mailing list