Above: Al’s high five on ice caps (gone in five years)
Guest post by Steven Goddard
Gore says he has also detected a shift in the view of many business leaders. “They’re seeing the writing on every wall they look at. They’re seeing the complete disappearance of the polar ice caps right before their eyes in just a few years,” .
Responding to James Lovelock, the originator of the Gaia theory, who said the European trading system for carbon was “disastrous”, Gore says: “James Lovelock has forgotten more about science than I will ever learn. “
“Recent headlines have proclaimed that Arctic summer sea ice has decreased so much in the past few years that it has reached a tipping point and will disappear very quickly. The truth is that there is little evidence to support this. Indeed, the record-breaking losses in the past couple of years could easily be due to natural fluctuations in the weather, with summer sea ice increasing again over the next few years.
In a WUWT reader’s poll earlier this month, 91% of respondents forecast that 2009 minimum ice extent will be greater than 2008 – apparently agreeing with Dr. Pope’s comment above. Perhaps Al Gore should swap his Nobel Prize with people who have a better aptitude for learning science.
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@beng — re renewable energy
Also, did I mention the 20 percent renewables is only for 2010? By 2020, the state law mandates 33 percent of all electric power sold in California shall be generated by renewables. This is, of course, to reduce the carbon emissions from the electric power generating sector.
We had better develop a lot of geothermal, is all I can say. Or solar with some serious storage. We have the same issues with wind that you mentioned. Our bio-mass and bio-gass and SWC potential is very small.
One more I forgot about earlier, and that is wave power. We have some experimental systems in the works, but at this point no power generated. Given the California Coastal Commission’s stance against anything mucking up the coastline, it is doubtful that much power will ever be generated from waves offshore California.
I recently heard with my own ears the CCC chair, Lt. Governor John Garamendi, say on the record that the California coastline is a world treasure, and it will not ever be compromised. This was in the context of denial of an oil drilling permit to PXP off the coast of Santa Barbara.
Roger,
I don’t suppose you have a lot of tidal power potential in CA. I seem to remember a low tidal range. Marine currents (tidal streams) are likely to be significant to UK/Ireland.
By the way what is SWC? I can’t think.
Oh, and best wishes on St Patrick’s Day!
Well it is the 17th here already.
They could get there quicker if the wind changes and blows the ice their sitting on closer to the pole. Talk about sailing on the ship of fools.
On the other hand they might get closer in the summer and have to swim their way there. I’m sure that even if they fail it will in their eyes be a success.
In their Orwellian world, failure is success.
……….
Rather, “In their GoreOwellian world, failure is success.”
If they “fail” (to reach the pole by walking they “win” -> because they will have “proved” that the polar ice cap HAS MELTED. The visuals of open water are their target. Their chosen lie. even Perry faced open water that he had to cross, or wait or the ridges to drift shut.
—-
And theya re lying if they claim near-24 hour darkness: The sun rises halfway in its path on March 22 at the pole, same as everywhere in the world: 12 hours of sun, 12 hours of “darkness”. Not much change in daylight hours in the weeks right before, and right after March 22.
But the twilight (near darkness after suunset) is much, miuch longer the farther you go north because teh angle of interception between the sun’s path and the horizon is much shallower the further you go north. It is only near the equator that the twilight is short. Late February, March, April, May – all have long hours of sunshine.
Roger Sowell (12:16:40) :
If I read the numbers correctly California imports 92216 of it’s 3.2757 energy needs. So the free loader state is deficient by 30.5 percent of it’s energy.
Of the imported energy only 7081 of the 92216 is renewable which is 7.67 percent.
Total production by California of 181393 is by non-renewables. Total imports are 85135 of non-renewables. So 41 percent of California’s non renewable needs are imported. So California is exporting 41 percent of it’s pollution.
Gore said: “They’re seeing the writing on every wall they look at.”
Anybody want to trust the opinionifcation (to borrow from George Bush comedy fodder)….
….but anybody want to trust someone’s opinion…..especially someone who has a master’s degree (MDiv I believe)…who can’t remember to not leave a preposition on the end of a sentence??
“THEY LOOK AT….”
HUH???
Ellie in Belfast (you lucky lass!)
Top o’ the mornin’ to you, and Happy St. Patrick’s Day to everyone!
(btw, a good read for today is How the Irish Saved Civilization)…
SWC (sorry for not defining my acronyms earlier, very bad of me!) is the California abbreviation for Solid Waste Conversion plants; these consume land-fill material and convert the carbonaceous material to synthetic gas, a mix of methane, hydrogen, and carbon monoxide. The syn-gas can then be burned as fuel in a gas-fired power plant.
MartinGAtkins (19:42:40) :
Exactly! California has no shame about its hypocrisy: no nuclear power plants may be built, but it is OK to import nuclear power from neighboring Arizona, the Palo Verde triple-header plant. No coal-fired power plants may operate or be built, but it is OK to import coal-based power from Utah, which we do. New laws will cause that to cease within about 20 years. Would not want to rush things, you see.
And, we also import some renewable, as in wind power from Oregon, or at least a project is underway up there. We also import hydro-electric power from Washington state, and Nevada via the Hoover Dam.
Not all bad, really, as many states import or export goods according to what makes economic sense for them (beef, oil, cotton, cars, etc.). But the pollution issues cause environmental justice issues.
No wonder the other U.S. states care so little for California!
Roger Sowell (06:57:22) :
The answer is for all the other states to levy a pollution tax on all the non-renewable energy imported by California. They should also pay the full production cost for any renewable energy they import.
Roger Sowell, thanks for sentiments and the definition – familiar with the technology, but not the acronym. Slainte (cheers!)