[TheClimate.Vote] August 1, 2019 - Daily Global Warming News Digest

Thu Aug 1 08:50:59 EDT 2019

/August 1, 2019/

[Second Democratic Debaters spoke 18 minutes on climate ]
*Joe Biden's Climate Plan Melted During the Debate*
"Mr. Vice President, your argument is not with me, it’s with science."
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/08/joe-bidens-climate-plan-melted-during-the-debate/

[wonder why]
*Audiences are (finally) paying more attention to climate stories*
David Gelber,.. a producer at CBS's 60 Minutes, says..."It baffles me. 
This is such a dramatic story. When they write the history of 
journalism, this is going to be a very long chapter, the refusal to look 
at this issue."...
- - -
Los Angeles Times, where, over the past year, the average climate story 
has outperformed average stories in other news sections, in terms of 
total audience, subscriber audience, and conversions from reader to 
subscriber. ..
https://www.cjr.org/covering_climate_now/climate-change-stories-readers.php

[responsible action]
*Russia's Putin orders troops to help fight Siberia wildfires*
Russia's military will join the combat against wildfires raging in 
Siberia as they rip through several remote regions, Kremlin officials 
said. The fires are affecting Arctic snow, a climate expert told DW.
https://www.dw.com/en/russias-putin-orders-troops-to-help-fight-siberia-wildfires/a-49832130?maca=en-newsletter_en_bulletin-2097-html-newsletter
- - -
[it's Smogist now]
*Siberian Wildfires Prompt Russia to Declare a State of Emergency*
Temperatures that have been soaring with climate change combined with 
lightning and winds to burn vast areas of forest and send smoke hundreds 
of miles into cities.
By HENRY FOY & NASTASSIA ASTRASHEUSKAYA, FINANCIAL TIMES
Russia has declared a state of emergency in five Siberian regions after 
wildfires engulfed an area of forest almost the size of Belgium amid 
record high temperatures as a result of climate change.
Officials said 2.7 million hectares of forest (about 10,400 square 
miles) were ablaze on Tuesday as soaring temperatures, lightning storms 
and strong winds combined, sending smoke hundreds of miles to reach some 
of Russia's biggest regional cities.

The fires, which began earlier this month, and the Russian government's 
lacklustre response have raised concerns over Moscow's commitment to 
addressing climate change. The country relies heavily on the oil and gas 
industry and has a poor record of enforcing green initiatives.

The decision to declare the states of emergency on Wednesday came after 
two petitions attracted more than 1 million signatures demanding the 
government take action against the wildfires, which authorities 
previously dismissed as a natural occurrence, saying putting them out 
was not economically viable.
- - -
Rising Temperatures Put Forests at Risk
Environmental groups worry that in addition to the destruction of 
carbon-absorbing forest, the carbon dioxide, smoke and soot released 
will accelerate temperature increases that are already melting 
permafrost in northern Russia. An estimated 12 million hectares of 
Russian forest has burned this year.

Temperatures in Siberia last month were as much as 8 degrees Celsius 
(14F) above long-term averages and hit all-time records in some areas, 
according to data from Russia's state meteorological agency.

"This is a common natural phenomenon, to fight with it is meaningless, 
and indeed sometimes, perhaps even harmful," Alexander Uss, governor of 
the Krasnoyarsk region, said Monday. "Now, if a snowstorm occurs in 
winter... it does not occur to anyone to drown icebergs so that we have 
a warmer weather."..
- - -
"Smoke going north-east, as it normally does, is very dangerous as it 
leads to ice melting, permafrost shrinking and those areas emitting 
methane," said Kuksin.

"This time the smoke went westward, affecting large cities," he added. 
"[But] still no one was going to put them out, and that led to public 
outcry at the injustice because whenever there is even a small fire near 
Moscow, it gets put out immediately not to allow any trace of smoke to 
reach the capital."
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/31072019/siberia-arctic-wildfires-russia-state-emergency-climate-change-global-warming

[Spectacular photography in this documentary film from DW German 
broadcast TV]
*Climate change: Europe's melting glaciers*
DW Documentary
Published on Jul 31, 2019
It is far too late to save the Alpine glaciers. And now, the dangers 
caused by tons of melting ice are rising sharply. Every year, climate 
change is destroying two of the currently 70 square kilometers of 
glaciers left in the Alps.

The permafrost in the Alps is thawing, and transforming what used to be 
sturdy slopes into loose screes. In addition, climate change is leading 
to significantly more extreme weather conditions every year, while heavy 
rainfall causes serious erosion. The result: avalanches and landslides 
like those in Bondo, Switzerland, or Valsertal in Austria.
In Switzerland, residential areas are shrinking as people are forced to 
leave their homes forever. The disappearance of glaciers as water 
reservoirs is already posing a major problem. Farmers in Engadine, who 
have been using meltwater for irrigation for centuries, are already 
facing water shortages. Last summer, they had to rely on helicopters to 
transport water to their herds in the Grison Alps. Above all, alpine 
villages depend on winter tourism to survive. Yet experts are 
forecasting that by mid-century, there will only be enough natural snow 
left to ski above 2,000 meters, which will spell out the end for about 
70 percent of the ski resorts in the Eastern Alps. But instead of 
developing alternatives, lots of money is still being invested in ski 
tourism. Snow cannon are used to defy climate change, and artificial 
snow systems are under construction at ever higher altitudes. As usual, 
it's the environment that is set to lose as the unique alpine landscape 
is further destroyed by soil compaction and erosion. Some municipalities 
are now working on new models of alpine tourism for the future. As 
global temperatures continue to rise, the cooler mountain regions will 
become increasingly attractive for tourists, especially in the summer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9MaGf-Su9I

[Faster than thought]
*Oceans Are Melting Glaciers from Below Much Faster than Predicted, 
Study Finds*
Tidewater glaciers are being 'eaten away on both ends' as global warming 
worsens, suggesting faster sea level rise and ice melt that can alter 
ocean ecosystems.
BY NINA PULLANO
Beneath the ocean's surface, glaciers may be melting 10 to 100 times 
faster than previously believed, new research shows.

Until now, scientists had a limited understanding of what happens under 
the water at the point where land-based glaciers meet the sea. Using a 
combination of radar, sonar and time-lapse photography, a team of 
researchers has now provided the first detailed measurements of the 
underwater changes over time. Their findings suggest that the theories 
currently used to gauge glacier change are underestimating glaciers' ice 
loss.

"The overall trend of glacier retreat around the world is due to both 
warming air and warming oceans," said David Sutherland, an oceanographer 
at the University of Oregon and lead author of the new study, published 
July 25 in the journal Science.

"They're getting eaten away on both ends," he said...
- - -
Over two years, a group of glaciologists, oceanographers and engineers 
measured melting of the LeConte Glacier in Southeast Alaska. Their study 
is the first to directly measure underwater melt rates of tidewater 
glaciers: Previously, scientists relied on estimates of how water and 
air temperature and ocean currents influence melting.

The researchers found that those theories oversimplify tidewater glacier 
melting patterns. For example, the theories assume that ice will melt 
more quickly in places where water is flowing faster. But that's not 
always the case, the new findings show.

"The theory we've been relying on for these melt rates is wrong," said 
Rebecca Jackson, an oceanographer at Rutgers University and co-author of 
the study. "We should be able to predict melt rates based on ocean 
conditions ... [but] they're not at all related in the way we expected."...
- - -
The study's findings suggest that as the planet warms, sea level could 
rise faster than currently estimated.

"Even if we know how much the ocean was going to warm, the paper shows 
that we don't have the ability to predict how that would translate into 
melt rate of the ice," said Jonathan Kingslake, a researcher at Columbia 
University who models the flow of ice and water in glaciers and was not 
involved in the study.

Improving those sea level estimates is important for coastal communities 
to prepare for the effects of climate change, and the new findings are 
adding to the knowledge base for increasingly detailed analyses. Just a 
small increase in sea level can exacerbate the effects of storms, for 
example, Kingslake said. "It makes planning really difficult if you 
don't have an accurate estimate," he said.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/25072019/glacier-melting-warming-oceans-climate-change-arctic-antarctica-study
- - -
[source findings]
*Direct observations of submarine melt and subsurface geometry at a 
tidewater glacier*
https://science.sciencemag.org/content/365/6451/369/tab-article-info

- - -

[favorite climate scientist studies causes of ice shelf melt]
Dr Kaitlin Naughten is an ocean modeller at the British Antarctic Survey 
in Cambridge, UK
*How does the Weddell Polynya affect Antarctic ice shelves?*
Posted on Jul 25, 2019
The Weddell Polynya is a large hole in the sea ice of the Weddell Sea, 
near Antarctica. It occurs only very rarely in observations, but is 
extremely common in ocean models, many of which simulate a 
near-permanent polynya. My new paper published today in Journal of 
Climate finds that the Weddell Polynya increases melting beneath the 
nearby Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf. This means it's important to fix the 
polynya problems in ocean models, if we want to use them to study ice 
shelves.

The Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica is cold at the surface - often 
so cold that it freezes to form sea ice - but warmer below. The deep 
ocean is about 1C, which might not sound warm to you, but to Antarctic 
oceanographers this is positively balmy. If regions of the Southern 
Ocean start to convect, with strong top-to-bottom mixing, the warm deep 
water will come to the surface and melt the sea ice...
- - -
Stronger circulation means stronger ice shelf melting, in this case by 
up to 30% for the largest Weddell Polynyas.

For smaller ice shelves in the Eastern Weddell Sea, the nearby sea ice 
formation is weaker. So both the warm signal and the salty signal from 
the Weddell Polynya are preserved, and the ice shelf cavities are 
flooded with warmer, saltier water. Melting beneath these ice shelves 
increases by up to 80%.

The modelled changes are smaller for Weddell Polynyas which match 
observations, in terms of size as well as duration. So if the Weddell 
Polynya of the 1970s affected the FRIS cavity, it probably wasn't by 
very much. And the effect of the little 2017 polynya was probably so 
small that we'll never detect it.

However, these results should send a message to Southern Ocean 
modellers: you really need to fix your polynya problem if you want to 
model ice shelf cavities. I'm sorry.
https://climatesight.org/2019/07/25/how-does-the-weddell-polynya-affect-antarctic-ice-shelves/

[announcement for interactive data display]
*Momentum for Change 2018 Annual Report*
[T]he UN Climate Change secretariat's Momentum for Change initiative has 
just launched a new, interactive online report, showcasing shining 
examples of diverse climate solutions from around the world.  In 
particular, the report tells the stories of 15 winners of the 2018 
Global Climate Action award winners, using infographics, animations, 
photos and videos. Take a look here: http://unfccc.int/mfc2018

The report highlights the real results and growing numbers our winning 
activities are having in tackling climate change.

The annual report also comes ahead of the UN SG's Climate Action Summit 
in September, to demonstrate massive movements in the real economy to 
tackle climate change. Take a look at our report to feel inspired by the 
climate action underway around the world in the run-up to the Summit.

Please help our winning activities get the recognition they deserve by 
sharing the report on social media. You can download our social media 
package, which contains posts in English, French and Spanish, as well as 
webcards in English, French and Spanish here: https://bit.ly/2SVqxjg
Best regards,
Sarah Marchildon
Team Lead, Momentum for Change
http://www.alexpiacentini.com/unfccc-2018/

[already]
*Climate crisis already causing deaths and childhood stunting, report 
reveals*
'Insidious' health-related impacts in Australia and Pacific include 
lowered cognitive capacity and spread of diseases
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jul/31/climate-crisis-already-causing-deaths-and-childhood-stunting-report-reveals

[What about Citizen's United?]
*Don't 'demonize' energy firms: BP boss says climate activists should 
avoid polarizing society*
PUBLISHED TUE, JUL 30 2019

    -- BP has been targeted by climate activist groups on numerous
    occasions in recent months, with demonstrators increasingly angry
    about the lack of progress toward a lower carbon future.
    -- "I don't think it helps anything to demonize companies or
    groups," BP CEO Bob Dudley told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Tuesday.
    -- Greenpeace has urged BP to immediately end exploration projects
    for new oil and gas and switch to investing only in renewable energy.

- - -
In May, the FTSE 100 giant agreed to a request from shareholders for 
greater detail and transparency on how each capital investment decision 
would align with the Paris climate agreement -- an international accord 
that seeks to limit global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius.

The initiative was adopted after a report published by InfluenceMap in 
March showed BP was outspending the other largest publicly-owned oil and 
gas majors to lobby against climate action.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/30/climate-change-bp-says-activists-should-avoid-polarizing-society.html
- - -
[Climate PR opinion manipulation]
*Big Oil's Real Agenda on Climate Change*
An InfluenceMap Report
March 2019
How the oil majors have spent $1Bn since Paris on narrative capture and 
lobbying on climate
This research finds that the five largest publicly-traded oil and gas 
majors (ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, BP and Total) have 
invested over $1Bn of shareholder funds in the three years following the 
Paris Agreement on misleading climate-related branding and lobbying. 
These efforts are overwhelmingly in conflict with the goals of this 
landmark global climate accord and designed to maintain the social and 
legal license to operate and expand fossil fuel operations.

Company disclosures of spending on climate lobbying and branding are 
very limited. To fill this transparency gap, InfluenceMap has devised a 
methodology using best-available disclosures and intensive research of 
corporate messaging to evaluate oil major spending aimed at influencing 
the climate agenda, both directly and through their key trade groups.

This research will feed into efforts by key stakeholders to bring the 
oil and gas sector into line with the urgency of action on climate 
change. These include the global investment community which in 2017 
launched the Climate Action 100+ program of engagement with some of the 
world's largest corporations on climate change.
https://influencemap.org/report/How-Big-Oil-Continues-to-Oppose-the-Paris-Agreement-38212275958aa21196dae3b76220bddc

Animosity between partisan voters has grown in recent years.
*Political polarization is about feelings, not facts*
Polarization, three ways
Start with the obvious: Polarization is the political distance 
separating partisans. But this intuitive idea is not so simple, as 
political scientists have at least three ways of measuring political 
distance.

One compares the platforms of competing parties. Polarization is the 
extent to which these are opposed.

A second assesses each party's ideological homogeneity. This definition 
of polarization concerns how many of the party's officials are 
"moderates" or bridge-builders.

A third involves neither platforms nor officials, but instead the 
emotions of ordinary citizens who affiliate with a political party. It 
tracks the extent to which citizens dislike affiliates of other parties.

Research suggests that, although the major U.S. parties are severely 
polarized along the first two dimensions, the American public is no more 
divided now over policy than it was 30 years ago. In fact, on certain 
hot-button issues such as abortion and gay rights, rank-and-file 
citizens who identify with a political party have moved closer together.

Nonetheless, Americans believe that their policy divisions are 
especially pronounced. Polarization in the third sense has skyrocketed 
with interparty animosity more intense now than it has been for the past 
25 years.
https://theconversation.com/political-polarization-is-about-feelings-not-facts-120397

*This Day in Climate History - August 1, 1988 - from D.R. Tucker*
August 1, 1988: Sacramento, California-based right-wing talk radio host 
Rush Limbaugh begins his nationally syndicated program; over the next 
three decades, Limbaugh aggressively promotes the notion that climate 
science is a "hoax."
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2007/05/wolcott200705
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