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<font size="+1"><i>June 11, 2017</i></font><br>
<br>
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<h2 class="esc-lead-article-title" style="font-size: 16px;
line-height: 18px; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; font-weight:
bold;"><a target="_blank" class="article
usg-AFQjCNFFzWZ2ak7XRXGvgOYQ7P7tJwBDsg
sig2-cyWSEDUT79d5RtVxARCZeQ did-4845822338198891102"
href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/trump-wages-battle-regulations-climate-change-47957221"
id="MAA4DEgAUABgAWoCdXM" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);
text-decoration: underline;"><span class="titletext"
style="font-weight: bold;">Trump wages battle against
regulations, not<b style="font-weight: bold;"> climate
change</b></span></a></h2>
</div>
While President Donald Trump's beliefs about global warming remain
something of a mystery, his actions make one thing clear: He doesn't
consider it a problem for the federal government to solve.<br>
Trump's recent decision to pull out of the Paris climate deal was
just his latest rapid-fire move to weaken or dismantle federal
initiatives to reduce carbon emissions, which scientists say are
heating the planet to levels that could have disastrous
consequences.<br>
Trump is waging war against efforts to curb U.S. dependence on
fossil fuels. He's done that through executive orders targeting
climate change programs and regulations, massive proposed spending
cuts and key appointments such as Scott Pruitt as chief of the
Environmental Protection Agency.<br>
To what degree Trump will succeed remains to be seen. Despite the
fanfare of his Paris announcement, including a pledge that his
administration will halt all work on it, formally removing the U.S.
from the accord could take more than three years.<br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/trump-wages-battle-regulations-climate-change-47957221">http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/trump-wages-battle-regulations-climate-change-47957221</a></font><br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-data-suggest-future-may-be-rainier-than-expected"><br>
<font color="#000099"><b>NASA Data Suggest Future May Be Rainier
Than Expected</b></font></a><br>
A new study suggests that most global climate models may
underestimate the amount of rain that will fall in Earth's tropical
regions as our planet continues to warm. That's because these models
underestimate decreases in high clouds over the tropics seen in
recent NASA observations, according to research led by scientist Hui
Su of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.<br>
... High-altitude tropical clouds trap heat in the atmosphere. If
there are fewer of these clouds in the future, the tropical
atmosphere will cool. Judging from observed changes in clouds over
recent decades, it appears that the atmosphere would create fewer
high clouds in response to surface warming. It would also increase
tropical rainfall, which would warm the air to balance the cooling
from the high cloud shrinkage. <br>
Rainfall warming the air also sounds counterintuitive <font
size="-1">-</font> people are used to rain cooling the air around
them, not warming it. Several miles up in the atmosphere, however, a
different process prevails. When water evaporates into water vapor
here on Earth's surface and rises into the atmosphere, it carries
with it the heat energy that made it evaporate. In the cold upper
atmosphere, when the water vapor condenses into liquid droplets or
ice particles, it releases its heat and warms the atmosphere.<br>
The new study is published in the journal Nature Communications. It
puts the decrease in high tropical cloud cover in context as one
result of a planet-wide shift in large-scale air flows that is
occurring as Earth's surface temperature warms. These large-scale
flows are called the atmospheric general circulation, and they
include a wide zone of rising air centered on the equator.
Observations over the last 30 to 40 years have shown that this zone
is narrowing as the climate warms, causing the decrease in high
clouds.<br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-data-suggest-future-may-be-rainier-than-expected">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-data-suggest-future-may-be-rainier-than-expected</a></font><br>
<br>
<a target="_blank" class="article
usg-AFQjCNEDGjYledGoL0xfcFHhEYh5KdYotw sig2-fMkIIU9D2ryD3UyL6BChtw
did-4940057438868353861"
href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/10/opinion/the-politics-of-climate-change.html"
id="MAA4DEgBUABgAWoCdXM" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);
text-decoration: none;"><span class="titletext"
style="font-weight: bold;">(letters) The Politics of<span
class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b style="font-weight:
bold;">Climate Change</b></span></a>
<div class="esc-lead-article-title-wrapper" style="margin: 0px 32px
1px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: arial, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.44px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures:
normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal;
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initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"> </div>
<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/03/us/politics/republican-leaders-climate-change.html">"How
G.O.P. Shifted on Climate Science"</a> ("Trump Rules" series,
front page, June 4) described how the Koch brothers (and other
moneyed and oil interests) were able to transform the Republican
Party's position on climate change to an ideology of denial and
inaction. Faced with Republican intransigence in Congress, President
Barack Obama chose to confront the climate threat through executive
action during his second term.<br>
Rather than what your subheadline calls "Democratic hubris," his
course of action was a strategy of last resort. It's the
Republicans, not the Democrats, who are guilty of hubris, in their
denial of climate change in the face of overwhelming scientific
evidence. Unfortunately, their hubris and arrogance may lead not
only to their downfall, but may doom the rest of humankind, too.<br>
BETSY MARTIN ALEXANDRIA, VA.<br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/10/opinion/the-politics-of-climate-change.html">https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/10/opinion/the-politics-of-climate-change.html</a></font><br>
<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://climatecrocks.com/2017/06/09/algae-on-ice-directors-cut/">(video)
Algae on Ice: Director's Cut</a></b><br>
Made a few minor adjustments on this one.<br>
Still worth a look if you have not seen.<br>
Positive feedback is great from your boss.<br>
Not so great from an Ice Sheet.<br>
This is the kind of communication you get for your contributions to
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://darksnow.org/support/">Dark
Snow Project.</a><br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://climatecrocks.com/2017/06/09/algae-on-ice-directors-cut/">https://climatecrocks.com/2017/06/09/algae-on-ice-directors-cut/</a></font><br>
<br>
<b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/06/oppenheimer-interview/529083/">Avoiding
Two Degrees of Warming 'Is Now Totally Unrealistic'</a></b><br>
Michael Oppenheimer, a Princeton scientist and longtime observer of
UN climate talks, says that the world has lost its last shot at
staving off dangerous global warming.<br>
Michael Oppenheimer has been thinking about climate change about as
long as most Americans have been alive. For almost four decades, he
has worked on answering the phenomenon's two most pressing
questions: How dangerous will climate change get? And what can
humanity do about it? So after President Donald Trump announced his
decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on Thursday,
Oppenheimer was one of the experts I most wanted to hear from.<br>
... It's a fascinating problem intellectually, and if we had all the
time in the world, it would be terrific: Today's setback would just
lead to tomorrow's advance. The trouble is the clock has been
ticking, and we're running out of time to avoid very serious
consequences, some of which have already started to occur....<br>
So when you see someone come along and sort of cavalierly, with a
mouthful of lies, just sort of blow off the latest incarnation of
progress on this issue, it can be temporarily discouraging, very
discouraging. But look: I'm sure humanity is going to muddle
through. I'm sure that relatively well off countries, and relatively
well off people, will muddle through. I'm very worried about people
who have less resources, countries that are poor, and the whole
natural world. All those are the ones that suffer first. Of course,
all of us, eventually, are going to suffer if we don't bring this
under control.<br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/06/oppenheimer-interview/529083/">https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/06/oppenheimer-interview/529083/</a></font><br>
<br>
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1px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: arial, sans-serif;
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<h2 class="esc-lead-article-title" style="font-size: 16px;
line-height: 18px; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; font-weight:
bold;"><a target="_blank" class="article
usg-AFQjCNFYENrpdAIhMKNoYQjxUCO5_oLCbQ
sig2-t0fNPnkw7uxO_b36HS7tAQ did-8057992360123623816"
href="http://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/09/exxon-calls-new-york-prosecutors-climate-change-probe-harassment.html"
id="MAA4DEgFUABgAWoCdXM" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);
text-decoration: underline;"><span class="titletext"
style="font-weight: bold;">Exxon calls NY prosecutor's<span
class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b
style="font-weight: bold;">climate change</b><span
class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>probe 'harassment'
in filing</span></a></h2>
</div>
-Exxon Mobil Corp asked a New York court on Friday to reject another
subpoena request from Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.<br>
-Exxon argued the prosecutor's recent claim to have found evidence
Exxon misled investors was false and that he was abusing his
investigative powers.<br>
-The company said Schneiderman's allegation it had neglected to
estimate the impact of future environmental regulation on new deals
was "frivolous."<br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/09/exxon-calls-new-york-prosecutors-climate-change-probe-harassment.html">http://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/09/exxon-calls-new-york-prosecutors-climate-change-probe-harassment.html</a></font><br>
<br>
<font color="#000066"><b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://climatecolab.org/contests">MIT Climate CoLab
Seeks High Impact Proposals on Addressing Climate Change</a></b></font><br>
Dear Colleagues,<br>
MIT Climate CoLab (<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated"
href="http://www.climatecolab.org">www.climatecolab.org</a>), an
online crowdsourcing platform of nearly 90,000 members, seeks
high-impact proposals on addressing climate change. Seven new
contests are now open on the platform (<a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://climatecolab.org/contests">https://climatecolab.org/contests</a>),
on a variety of climate-related sub-topics such as energy supplies,
land use change, shifting attitudes & behaviors, adaptation,
carbon pricing, and more. Entries are due September 10, 2017.<br>
Winners will be invited to MIT, join the Climate CoLab winners'
alumni, and be eligible for the $10,000 Grand Prize—to be selected
from among top proposals across contests. All award Winners and
Finalists will receive wide recognition and platform visibility from
Climate CoLab.<br>
We welcome you to spread the word about this opportunity widely
with your networks<br>
Facebook: <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated"
href="http://www.facebook.com/climatecolab">www.facebook.com/climatecolab</a><br>
LinkedIn: <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.linkedin.com/groups/5074465">https://www.linkedin.com/groups/5074465</a><br>
MIT's Climate CoLab launches 7 new climate contests. Anyone from
around the world is invited to submit proposals on how to tackle a
climate change related problem, and work collaboratively with others
on open innovation on climate. Contest topics range from climate
change adaptation, energy, land use, carbon pricing, and more!
Submit proposals by 9/10/17 at climatecolab.org.contests.<br>
Want to problem-solve on climate change? MIT's Climate CoLab
invites you to submit your proposals to one of 7 new climate
contests recently launched on the platform. Topics like energy
supply, land use change, adaptation, shifting behaviors<br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666"> <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://climatecolab.org/contests">https://climatecolab.org/contests</a></font><br>
<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="https://beyondextremeenergy.org">Future
Hope column, June 9, 2017</a><br>
<font color="#000099"><b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://tedglick.com/future-hope-columns/climate-leaders-dont-support-fracking/">Climate
Leaders Don't Support Fracking</a></b></font><br>
By Ted Glick<br>
Thanks are due to US Senators Mazie Hirono, Ron Wyden and
Bernie Sanders for their votes in the Senate Energy and Natural
Resources committee a couple days ago against Trump's two nominees
to be FERC leaders. They aligned themselves with the FERC Vacancies
Campaign, a network of 170 mainly grassroots groups which have been
fighting the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's rubber-stamping
ways when it comes to new fracked gas pipelines proposed by the gas
industry.<br>
It was painful to hear Democratic Party committee leader Maria
Cantwell talk before the committee vote about her intention to
support Trump's nominees because of the importance of getting a
quorum back at FERC so they can keep doing their thing. I worked
hard back in 2009 and 2010, when I was employed at the Chesapeake
Climate Action Network, in support of a cap-and-dividend CLEAR Act
she and Susan Collins had co-sponsored as an explicit alternative to
seriously problematic cap-and-trade legislation. But here she was 8
years later fronting for Trump's pro-fracking, pro-fossil fuel
industry nominees.<br>
So I stood up and spoke out. In words I felt were so awfully
appropriate for Senator Cantwell and so many other Democrats, I
said, as loudly and clearly as I could, "Climate leaders don't
support fracking and new fracked-gas pipelines and infrastructure.
FERC is all about the expansion of fracking. 30 years FERC has been
operating and rubber stamping all the pipeline proposals except one.
FERC has rubber stamped them. Don't support FERC. It's got to
change."<br>
That was all I could say in the time it took for Capitol
Police to grab me and move me out of the room. Minutes later Jess
Rechtschaffer and Sid Madison also spoke up along similar lines and
were removed the same way. All of us were arrested. Jess and Sid
were released later that day after paying a small fine; I was held
overnight and then released at 6 pm the following day.<br>
We had not planned for me to interrupt Cantwell, but as the
designated first speaker/disrupter, I just couldn't sit silent when
she so painfully spoke up for business-as-usual at FERC. There is
little doubt that she's aware of our movement's concerns; her top
energy staff people were met with weeks ago; I personally spoke at
length with one of them in April, and energy and climate are a
personal priority for her.<br>
Of course, President Obama was a supporter of (some kinds of
limited and incremental) climate action too, but 'til the day he
left office he was a cheerleader and open supporter of fracking
despite all of the science showing how dangerous it is because of
methane leakage and methane being 86 times more powerful as a
greenhouse gas than CO2.<br>
Part of the explanation for this state of affairs is the
wimpishness of a number of Big Green groups on the fracking issue.
Though there are few which are still outright supporters of methane
gas as a "bridge fuel" to a renewables-based energy system, there
are more than a few whose commitment to ending the current
gas-and-pipeline-and export-terminal-rush is weak to barely there.<br>
That's why it's so important that the FERC Vacancies Campaign
has emerged over the last months when FERC has been without a
quorum. Though most of the 170 groups are local grassroots groups,
there are also national, regional groups and state groups that have
signed on. <br>
Without question, the movement to stop the gas rush is getting
stronger and more connected. Most immediately, we need to flood the
Senate, all the US Senators, with calls, emails and tweets demanding
that they vote against business as usual at FERC by voting against
Trump's two FERC commissioner nominees, Robert Powelson and Neil
Chatterjee. That vote could happen as early as next week, so the
need is great for people to take action.<br>
<b>More information can be found at </b><b><a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://beyondextremeenergy.org">http://beyondextremeenergy.org</a></b><b>.</b><br>
Beyond this immediate campaign, our movement needs to step up
and be more supportive of direct action campaigns on the ground at
locations where new pipelines, compressor stations, gas-fired power
plants and export terminals are being proposed. We need to figure
out ways to keep exposing and putting the pressure on FERC. And we
need to build upon the outreach to Senators, and House members, that
has been taking place to keep the issue of fracking, fracking
infrastructure and all new fossil fuel infrastructure an on-going,
live one on Capitol Hill, in local elections, in the media and
everywhere else we can. <br>
Climate leaders don't support fracking, and those who claim to
be leaders who do need to feel the heat of our popular movement.<br>
<font size="-1" color="#666666">Ted Glick has been an organizer with
Beyond Extreme Energy since its founding three years ago. Past
writings and other information can be found at <a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://tedglick.com">http://tedglick.com</a>,
and he can be followed on Twitter at <a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://twitter.com/jtglick">http://twitter.com/jtglick</a><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://beyondextremeenergy.org">https://beyondextremeenergy.org</a><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://tedglick.com/future-hope-columns/climate-leaders-dont-support-fracking/">https://tedglick.com/future-hope-columns/climate-leaders-dont-support-fracking/</a><br>
</font> <br>
<br>
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