[TheClimate.Vote] June 21, 2018 - Daily Global Warming News Digest
Richard Pauli
richard at theclimate.vote
Thu Jun 21 09:44:11 EDT 2018
/June 21, 2018/
[Summer solstice for TV]
*Global warming, now brought to you by your local TV weathercaster
<https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/global-warming-now-brought-you-your-local-tv-weathercaster-n884831>*
Local weathercasters have become one of the primary conduits for news on
global warming. One nonprofit helped push the change.
Steve LaPointe has been a television weatherman for nearly three
decades, and for most of his career, he didn't focus much on global
warming. He was skeptical about the science behind it, particularly the
notion that human behavior was heating the planet.
But the issue wouldn't go away. So LaPointe began to do "a lot of
homework," he said, reading research papers and consulting fellow
meteorologists, who connected him with a nonprofit, Climate Central
<http://www.climatecentral.org/>, that spreads information on climate
change.
LaPointe increasingly came to realize he was wrong - that the evidence
that greenhouse gases are warming the Earth is "irrefutable." Now,
LaPointe routinely reports on the effects of climate change - from the
escalated growth of poison ivy to a jump in the number of high-pollen
days - alongside his usual seven-day nightly forecasts on CBS affiliate
WRGB in Albany, New York.
"It's just scientific fact. And the more it gets talked about, the more
it's normalized," LaPointe said. "It gets into people's heads and it's
not this political albatross that it could be."
- - - - -
While 70 percent of Americans now accept that global warming is
occurring, and 58 percent agree that it is mostly caused by human
activities, most people still don't express urgency about the problem.
It's not listed as a pressing issue by most voters and just 39 percent
believe that climate change is causing harm right now, according to a
March George Mason
<http://www.unkochmycampus.org/george-mason-university-media/> survey of
1,278 adults.
"To most people this is distant in time, distant in space, distant in
species," said Susan Hassol, who has been working in climate
communications for three decades. "We say, 'No, it's about us, and it's
local, and it's happening right now.'"
- - - -
LaPointe said he has run into no opposition as he has increasingly
folded climate reporting into his weather forecasts, including from the
Sinclair Broadcast Group, the conservative-leaning company that owns his
upstate New York station. "There is zero pushback. Nobody has said 'You
can't do this.' Nobody has said 'You cannot say this,'" LaPointe said.
"This is all based on science and on fact," LaPointe added, "and on the
idea that it can help us to make better decisions and elect better
people and implement the policy changes we need to turn this thing around."
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/global-warming-now-brought-you-your-local-tv-weathercaster-n884831
- - - -
[Thank you George Mason - and earlier this year, AP told of skeleton in
the closet]
*Documents show ties between university, conservative donors
<https://apnews.com/0c87e4318bcc4eb9b8e69f9f54c7b889/Documents-show-ties-between-university,-conservative-donors>*
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) - Virginia's largest public university granted the
conservative Charles Koch Foundation a say in the hiring and firing of
professors in exchange for millions of dollars in donations, according
to newly released documents.
The release of donor agreements between George Mason University and the
foundation follows years of denials by university administrators that
Koch foundation donations inhibit academic freedom.
University President Angel Cabrera wrote a note to faculty Friday night
saying the agreements "fall short of the standards of academic
independence I expect any gift to meet." The admission came three days
after a judge scrutinized the university's earlier refusal to release
any documents.
https://apnews.com/0c87e4318bcc4eb9b8e69f9f54c7b889/Documents-show-ties-between-university,-conservative-donors
- - - -
[Zombie on campus]
*George Mason University - UnKoch My Campus
<http://www.unkochmycampus.org/george-mason-university-media/>*
www.unkochmycampus.org/george-mason-university-media/
George Mason University in Virginia, just 20 miles from Washington D.C.,
is ground zero for Koch influence in higher education...
- - - -
Since August of 2014, students have been requesting access to the gift
agreements, grand agreements, and MOUs that George Mason University has
with the Charles Koch Foundation, but they have been repeatedly denied.
The lack of transparency at GMU makes students believe their university
is more interested in hiding their relationship with the Charles Koch
Foundation than being held responsible to their students and the
university community.
Students started researching Koch influence on campus in 2012...
http://www.unkochmycampus.org/george-mason-university-media/
[NPR video]
*Ben Strauss on Antarctic Ice Melt with PBS NewsHour
<https://youtu.be/u5_zreSBgZc>*
Published on Jun 18, 2018
Our CEO and chief scientist Ben Strauss went on air with Hari
Sreenivasen of PBS NewsHour to talk through a new study on Antarctic ice
melt and what that may mean for coastal cities in the U.S. -
particularly on the East Coast. "South Florida is severely at risk
particularly because their bedrock is porous. So even if you built
levees or protected walls, water would push underneath them come up
through the ground. So there are really high stakes here."
Antarctica, a continent of snow and ice, is now losing ice three times
faster than it was in 2007. In a new study published last week in the
journal Nature, more than 80 scientists from multiple countries use
satellite data to examine the Antarctic's vast ice sheets, and their
prediction is that if the current rate of ice melt continues, sea levels
could rise six inches by the year 2100.
https://youtu.be/u5_zreSBgZc
*
Explainer: How scientists estimate 'climate sensitivity'
<https://www.carbonbrief.org/explainer-how-scientists-estimate-climate-sensitivity>*
CLIMATE SENSITIVITY - 19 June 2018
Climate sensitivity is an important scientific uncertainty, and
narrowing the range could have significant consequences. One economic
study <http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/373/2054/20140429>
by Dr Chris Hope
<https://www.jbs.cam.ac.uk/faculty-research/faculty-a-z/chris-hope/> at
the University of Cambridge suggests that the value of halving the
uncertainty may be in the trillions of dollars, as it would allow the
amount and speed of emissions reductions needed to be better determined.
Yet the world would still need to decarbonise to meet the goals of the
Paris Agreement
<https://www.carbonbrief.org/interactive-the-paris-agreement-on-climate-change>,
even if sensitivity is better understood or even at the low end of
current estimates. An ECS of closer to 2C would only extend the deadline
for reaching net-zero emissions by a decade or so, according to a study
<http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/9/3/031003/meta> by
IIASA's Dr Joeri Rogelj
<http://www.iiasa.ac.at/staff/staff.php?type=auto&visibility=visible&search=true&login=rogelj>
and colleagues.
The uncertainty also cuts both ways; there are just as many new studies
being published today suggesting that sensitivity might be on the high
end of the 1.5C to 4.5C range as there on the low end. Knutti and
colleagues <https://www.nature.com/articles/ngeo3017> suggest that the
uncertainty in climate sensitivity should not be seen as a roadblock for
action today. Dessler tells Carbon Brief:
"Unless climate sensitivity falls outside the IPCC's range, I don't
see that refinements to the range have a huge impact on what we
should be doing from a policy perspective. We should be trying to
reduce emissions as fast as we can – but slow enough not to be too
disruptive to the economy."
Ultimately, just how warm the world will be in 2100 depends as much or
more on the amount of CO2 and other greenhouse gases emitted into the
atmosphere than on the precise value for climate sensitivity.
https://www.carbonbrief.org/climate-sensitivity-is-unlikely-to-be-less-than-2c-say-scientists
[letter to Chicago Tribune]
*Letter: The Midwest's rude awakening: It isn't immune from climate
change.
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/letters/ct-letters-flooding-michigan-wisconsin-climate-change-20180620-story.html>*
Minnesota and Northern Wisconsin and Michigan are getting most of the
press, but it looks as if a hurricane struck much of the Upper Midwest.
I drove to Chicago last week, passing mile after mile of flooded farm
fields and stunted corn and wondering how farmers will get through this.
In Madison, trees are down and streets are flooded. A torrent of water
carried large rocks against the underground parking garage where I live,
smashing the door, flooding the garage above hub-cap level, and shorting
out the elevators...
- - - -
We broke the climate and everyone must do all they can to stop making
things worse. We can no longer afford complacency, denial, or our
fossil-fuel habit. Many businesses and state and local governments are
climate heroes, but they can't carry the burden for all of us. As
individuals, we can reduce our own carbon footprint. We can become
active in one or more of the groups addressing various aspects of
climate change or energy policy. We can thank and do business with
companies that are "going green" and deny our business and investments
to companies that aren't. We can prioritize climate when we vote and let
candidates know we expect effective climate action from them, such as a
price on carbon pollution commensurate with its long-deferred social,
environmental, and economic costs. We can talk about the existential
threat of climate change to anyone who will listen. There's a role for
each of us, no matter what our strengths or weaknesses.
It's time to be scared - but scared into serious action, not into paralysis.
- Carol Steinhart, Madison, Wis.
email letters at chicagotribune.com
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/letters/ct-letters-flooding-michigan-wisconsin-climate-change-20180620-story.html
[Miami: The Invading Sea project]
*Climate change puts South Floridians' health at risk
<http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article213562579.html>*
BY JULIO FRENK - June 20, 2018 07:52 PM
Today is the first day of summer, and in South Florida that means warmer
temperatures, rain and mosquitoes. Just two years ago, mosquitoes
carrying the Zika virus were first identified in Wynwood before
spreading across Florida.
Vector-borne diseases such as Zika, dengue and chikungunya are
re-emerging because temperatures are rising. As the planet warms,
habitats that support mosquito vectors expand, allowing these diseases
to spread faster and further beyond neighborhood, state and national
borders.
Climate change has also sparked extreme weather events, which can spur a
rise in illnesses. Hurricane Harvey showed us that standing water and
flooding from slower and wetter storms can create breeding grounds for
water-borne diseases. As we know all too well, hurricanes can also cause
damage to vital infrastructure, making it more difficult to contain
outbreaks.
Droughts, disruptions in seasons and extreme temperatures put pressure
on food production and can cause food insecurity for entire communities.
The risk of famine and illness brought by malnutrition increases.
Malnourishment makes it more difficult to recover from infections that
are otherwise easily treatable, like lower respiratory tract infections
and diarrhea.
Similarly, rising seas threaten our supply of drinking water. This is
especially true in South Florida, as we get much of our water from
underground aquifers that are at risk of salt-water intrusion.
Contaminated water can result in severe illness, and salt-water
intrusion in the aquifers threatens a most fundamental element needed to
maintain a healthy population and a thriving economy.
The findings are clear: Climate change poses a direct and grave risk to
our health. This is why we must act. The need for water and food does
not ascribe to a particular ideology. Mosquitoes carrying disease do not
differentiate between political parties. That is why The Invading Sea
<https://www.theinvadingsea.com/>project by the Miami Herald, South
Florida Sun Sentinel, Palm Beach Post, and WLRN is so impressive. This
unique media collaboration is shining a bright light on sea level rise
in our communities and is fostering conversation and debate that
otherwise would not occur...
http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article213562579.html
- - - - -
[Media organizing]
*The Invading Sea <https://www.theinvadingsea.com/>* is a collaboration
by the editorial boards of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, Miami Herald
and Palm Beach Post - with reporting by WLRN Public Media - to address
the threat South Florida faces from sea-level rise
We plan to use our collective voice to communicate in drumbeat fashion
the undeniable and unrelenting threat we face, help people see what's at
stake and engage experts, citizens, businesses and political leaders on
the tough choices ahead.
The time is right for our project because this is a big election year in
Florida - for the U.S. Senate, for the Governor's Mansion, all four
seats on the Florida Cabinet and the Florida Legislature.
Our three editorial boards plan to ask all the candidates about sea
level rise: What are we going to do? Who's going to decide? And who's
going to pay?
We want to raise awareness, amplify the voice of our region and create a
call to action that can't be ignored.
WLRN, meanwhile, plans an in-depth series of reports, roundtable
discussions and other community engagement events.
*If you have comments or suggestions about "The Invading Sea," contact
one of these people:*
Project editor Tom O'Hara
thomasohara043 at gmail.com
304-704-2901
Miami Herald Editorial Page Editor Nancy Ancrum
nancrum at miamiherald.com
305-376-3517
Rosemary O'Hara
Sun Sentinel Editorial Page Editor
rohara at sun-sentinel.com
954-356-4669
Palm Beach Post Editorial Page Editor Rick Christie
rchristie at pbpost.com
561-820-4476
WLRN Vice President of News Tom Hudson
thudson at wlrnnews.org
305-995-1717
Sun Sentinel Newsroom Product Engineer Danny Sanchez
dsanchez at sun-sentinel.com
954-356-4818
https://www.theinvadingsea.com/
[Academics agree]
*Climate-induced conflict or Hospice Earth: the increasing importance of
eco-socialism
<https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14781158.2015.1019442?journalCode=cpar20>*
John Barkdull and Paul G. Harris
24 Mar 2015
Download citation https://doi.org/10.1080/14781158.2015.1019442
Abstract
What are the implications of global climate change for peace and human
welfare in the future? The answer depends on the actual effects of
climate change and how the world responds to them. Current economic and
political systems are unlikely to produce the policy and institutional
changes needed to reduce adequately the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
causing the problem, so some of the most dangerous effects of climate
change could occur this century. Some observers posit that climate
change will result in catastrophe, but specifics of this catastrophe
range widely. Does climate change mean painful but manageable social
disruption, requiring, for instance, populations to move and cities to
be rebuilt? Or does climate change portend much worse, including major
wars, the end of modern civilization or, incredibly, even the eventual
extinction of humanity? If these more severe consequences are likely or
possible, what kind of global society would be best able to survive, or
at least cope? The answer may be found in eco-socialism and a 'Hospice
Earth' that nurtures people and societies regardless of how bad the
future becomes.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14781158.2015.1019442?journalCode=cpar20
*This Day in Climate History - June 21, 2010
<June%2021,%202010:%20In%20the%20New%20Republic,%20Brad%20Plumer%20writes%20that%20if%20the%20Senate%20can%27t%20pass%20cap-and-trade,%20the%20EPA%20should%20move%20ahead%20with%20regulating%20carbon%20emissions.%20He%20further%20observes:,,%22In%20the%20long%20term,%20though,+we%27d+really+need+a+price+on+carbon+to+transform+the+country%27s+energy+sector+and+give+people+incentive+to+develop+new+clean-energy+technologies%E2%80%94having+the+EPA+just+flatly+tell+polluters+that+they+have+to+adopt+this+or+that+specific+pollution-cutting+gizmo+isn%27t+very+good+for+innovation.+But+hey,%20maybe%20a%20few%20years%20from%20now%20we%27ll%20have%20a%20Congress%20that%27s%20ready%20to%20address%20this%20problem.%20Odder%20things%20have%20happened.%22,,http://www.newrepublic.com/blog/the-vine/75723/leaving-global-warming-the-bureaucrats>
- from D.R. Tucker*
June 21, 2010: In the New Republic, Brad Plumer writes that if the
Senate can't pass cap-and-trade, the EPA should move ahead with
regulating carbon emissions. He further observes:
"In the long term, though, we'd really need a price on carbon to
transform the country's energy sector and give people incentive to
develop new clean-energy technologies—having the EPA just flatly
tell polluters that they have to adopt this or that specific
pollution-cutting gizmo isn't very good for innovation. But hey,
maybe a few years from now we'll have a Congress that's ready to
address this problem. Odder things have happened."
http://www.newrepublic.com/blog/the-vine/75723/leaving-global-warming-the-bureaucrats
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