Climate 411

New Report Blows Lid Off Climate Deniers

By Keith Gaby / Published: April 24, 2009

Today’s New York Times features a story that may not shock you, but should concern us all:

According to internal reports dating back to 1995, scientists working for the Global Climate Coalition, an industry-sponsored group set up to wage a lobbying and public relations war against global warming action, were telling their bosses that human-caused global warming could not be refuted. But, that didn’t stop industry lobbyists from waging a cynical campaign to undermine the science and cloud the debate.

Read the full story here.

Americans were outraged a decade ago when cigarette makers made similar claims about the evidence linking smoking and lung cancer. And then we discovered reams of damning research hidden away in tobacco company vaults.

The only real difference between then and now is that global warming stands to threaten more than just people — millions of species face extinction, entire ecosystems altered beyond recognition, the natural world as we know it today irreparably diminished.

Also posted in Basic Science of Global Warming, News / Read 13 Responses

Geo-Engineering: Methadone for Carbon Addiction

By Lisa Moore / Published: October 8, 2008

Lisa Moore's profileWhat if, instead of reducing the greenhouse gas concentrations that hold excess heat in our atmosphere, we injected something in the atmosphere to reflect sunlight back into space? That’s the idea behind sulfate geo-engineering. As Bill wrote in his post "Can we engineer our way out?", there are a plethora of problems with geo-engineering, but scientists still study it as an option of last resort.

The idea of injecting sulfates into the atmosphere is based on the observation that large volcanic eruptions can cause short-term global cooling. But in addition to the usual problems with geo-engineering (for example, it does nothing to stop ocean acidification from excess CO2), scientists have found a new one. Sulfate geo-engineering could endanger food and water supplies for billions of people in Africa and Asia, according to a recent paper in the Journal of Geophysical Research [PDF].

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Also posted in Geoengineering / Read 3 Responses

Time-Lapse Video of Alaska’s Eroding Coastline

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 30, 2008

Sheryl CanterLast week, the New York Times Dot Earth blog posted a sobering video of coastline erosion in Alaska. This is no simulation – it’s a time-lapse video made from pictures taken two hours apart from late June to late July of this year.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/mv5udkIacBw" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

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Also posted in Arctic & Antarctic / Read 1 Response

Old-Growth Forests Still Taking Up Carbon

By Lisa Moore / Published: September 19, 2008

Lisa Moore's profileOld Growth ForestOld-growth forests hold vast amounts of carbon from centuries of growth, and this carbon would be released into the atmosphere if the trees were cut down. That much has been known for a long time, which is why Environmental Defense Fund so strongly advocates a plan to reduce deforestation in developing countries.

But new research shows that old-growth forests are even more important than previously thought. According to a new study in Nature, old-growth forests aren’t just standing there maintaining the status quo. They still actively take up CO2 from the atmosphere.

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Also posted in International, Plants & Animals / Comments are closed

Are Hurricanes Connected to Global Warming?

By Sheryl Canter / Published: September 5, 2008

Sheryl CanterHurricane Gustav - August 31, 2008Have Hurricanes Gustav and Hanna gotten you thinking about the possible link between hurricanes and climate change?

Check out our hurricane and clilmate change overview for the straight facts from EDF climate scientists. And Peter Black shares eye-opening maps over on ClimateAtlas.

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Also posted in Extreme Weather / Read 3 Responses

Bad Science in Public School Classrooms

By Lisa Moore / Published: August 21, 2008

Lisa MooreThis post is by Lisa Moore, Ph.D., a scientist in the Climate and Air program at Environmental Defense Fund.

Just when we’re finally having the kind of national conversation we need about global warming, those who are ignoring scientific evidence are making a last-gasp effort to divert our attention: They’re sneaking myths and deceptions into America’s science classrooms.

In Louisiana’s recent “Science Education Act”, they joined forces with advocates of teaching creationism under the guise of promoting “critical thinking” on select scientific topics, including climate change. Signed into law by Governor Bobby Jindal, the law actually provides cover for teachers who want to promote perspectives not founded in science.

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Posted in Science / Read 4 Responses