Weekly Climate and Energy News Roundup

Quote of the Week:

“If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinize it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it. If, on the other hand, he is offered something which affords a reason for acting in accordance to his instincts, he will accept it even on the slightest evidence.” — Bertrand Russell [H/t Gordon Fulks]

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Number of the Week: 2

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THIS WEEK:

By Ken Haapala, Executive Vice President, Science and Environmental Policy Project (SEPP)

IPCC Uncertainty? On Friday a special report on extreme weather was released by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) stating that the world can expect more extreme weather events, but perhaps not as much warming as previously predicted. The change appears prompted by the realization that nature is not obeying IPCC climate models, so why should humans? The pause in warming for about the last ten years cannot be explained by the IPCC doctrine as expressed in the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4), especially the Summary for Policymakers (SPM). Will this mean that the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5), scheduled for 2013 – 2014, will be more realistic than the past reports, especially in the describing consequences of realistic global warming / climate change? Or is it merely an effort to rationalize the failure of the models?

That is impossible to determine at this time, but it appears unlikely that the attribution studies will become realistic. In an interview, IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri said that the glaciers of the Himalayan Mountains may not melt until 2040 or 2050, rather than the previously stated 2035 in AR4. The new prediction is only slightly less absurd than the prior one. As reported in the TWTW (e.g. November 13, 2010) the government of India discovered the IPCC knows little about the science of the Himalayan glaciers.

Ben Santer, of the Lawerence Livermore Laboratory, an author in all four IPCC reports, has taken an aggressive position as to the failure of nature – so what? Ten years is not a sufficient time for a trend, which may be true. Santer now states that at least 17 years is needed. Where this period came from is not determined. In previous papers, Santer stretches the error bounds of observations to claim that the observations fit the models. The act is a reversal of traditional scientific practice, to continue to refine the models to assure their error bounds are within the observations.

Interestingly, in his statements before members of Congress on Monday, Santer failed to mention the pause in warming. Also, after making disparaging remarks concerning the work of the University of Alabama, Huntsville, on satellite measurements, Santer presented the data from the work with a straight line from the start point to an end point indicating a trend that is not present in the data. The data is better interpreted as no trend from 1979 to 1997, a jump in temperatures with the super El Niño of 1998, then little or no trend thereafter. Please see Articles # 1, #2 and links under “Defending the Orthodoxy,” and “Measurement Issues.”

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Number of the Week: 2. Billed as the Congressional Climate Briefing to Push “End of Climate Change Skepticism” by Representatives Edward Markey and Harry Waxman, the press conference was held in the House Natural Resources Committee room, which is designed to comfortably seat the 48 members of the committee plus staffers, witnesses, etc.

The witnesses were: Richard Muller of BEST, Ben Santer, and William Chameides of Duke.

The only member of the committee who attended was Markey, accompanied by Harry Waxman who is not a member of the committee, bringing the total members of Congress attending to 2.

For a contrast in reporting the event, please see the impressions of Ken Haapala, The Empty Chamber, and the report from a news service from links under “Measurement Issues.”

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Durban Conference: From November 28 to December 9, Durban, South Africa, will host the 17th Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). At the 2009 conference in Copenhagen some 24,000 delegates attended and 11,800 attended last year’s conference in Cancun. These conferences gave birth to the Kyoto Protocol that is due to expire at the end of 2012. No doubt the mood will be somber, there appears to be little enthusiasm to continue or expand the Protocol. Please see Article # 2 and the links under “Problems within the Orthodoxy.”

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IPCC and NIPCC in China: Last week’s TWTW referenced a review of a balanced, straightforward paper from five esteemed scientists at the distinguished Key Laboratory, the University of Peking, in Beijing. The paper, Global Warming: The View from China, summarizes well the differences between the findings of the IPCC and the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC). TWTW failed to give the link to the paper:

http://climategate.nl/wp-content/uploads/2011…

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California Agriculture: Shortly after he became Secretary of Energy, Steven Chu announced in a press conference in Southern California that global warming threatens agriculture in California. As pointed out in the April 2, 2011 TWTW, Secretary Chu was poorly informed on the sources of water for California’s agriculture. However, in a perverse way, the fearful response to the false threat of dangerous global warming may threaten agriculture in California, or at least make agricultural products far more expensive.

As reported in previous TWTWs (e.g. October 2, 2010) environmental zealotry has caused the sudden turn off of water during the growing season to western San Joaquin Valley, resulting in turning hundreds of thousands of acres of farm land, including tens of thousands of acres of tree orchards, into scrub land and desert. Environmental zealots claimed that the water needed for agriculture was needed by the delta smelt, even though the smelt has survived for decades of the diversion of water for agriculture.

The new threat will be the cost of transporting water for human uses. Much of the water used in Southern California comes from Northern California and from the Colorado River, to the east. Water from the north requires a lift in one location, alone, of 1926 feet, and water from the Colorado requires a total lift of 1617 feet. The electricity costs for the pumps are enormous.

California has instituted strict renewable energy mandates, necessitating electricity from unreliable solar and wind sources that will be very expensive to build and maintain and will require expensive back-up. No doubt, electricity costs will increase dramatically, which will significantly increase the cost of water. Increasing cost of water will intensify the existing conflict between water for agriculture uses and for urban uses.

In the conflict between water for fish vs. water for human agriculture, the advocates of the fish won. Probably everyone will lose in the conflict between water from human urban areas vs. human agriculture. Please see links under “California Dreaming.”

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Moore’s Law: A number of commentators have noticed that some high-tech companies from the Silicon Valley are investing in solar and wind power, stating that these entrepreneurs understand Moore’s Law. Often, these commentators have misstated Moore’s Law as predicting ever lowering prices. The law actually applies to ever-shrinking electronic circuitry, or stated differently, the increasing density of circuitry that can be placed on a chip of a particular size. This capital-intense minimization has led to declining prices.

Conversely, the size of the facilities for generating electricity from solar and wind are expanding significantly. Except for efficiencies in manufacturing, as demonstrated 100 years ago by Henry Ford, how Moore’s Law applies to solar and wind is unclear. Several commentators who correctly state Moore’s Law predict ever-lowering costs in solar and wind energy from increasing efficiencies of manufacturing. Yet, they avoid one issue. Nature, which is erratic, does not obey Moore’s Law or any other law of man. Please see links under “Alternative Clean (Green) Energy.”

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James Hansen: NASA’s James Hansen is back in the news for two reasons. He has a new paper claiming that the Moscow heat wave during 2010 and the Texas heat wave during 2011 provide a form of statistical proof of global warming. The pause in warming must be justified somehow! The study was quickly refuted by several commentators, most devastatingly by Lubos Motl.

The second reason Hansen is in the news is that he failed to report some $1,600,000 of outside income over several years as required by his contract for government employment. Normally, TWTW would not bother with such, but this is an exception for a number of reasons. One, in 1988 with great publicity, Hansen announced with great certainty that global warming threatens humanity. Two, with great publicity, Hansen declared that President Bush was trying to muzzle him. And, three, he was cited as the scientific advisor of Al Gore’s scientifically disgraceful film. Apparently, Hansen believes that his celebrity status exempts him from the regulations that govern other government scientists. Please see links under “Defending the Orthodoxy” and “Other News.”

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Zbigniew Jaworowski M.D., Ph.D., D.Sc: Dr. Zbigniew Jaworowski has passed away. Tim Ball wrote a fitting personal tribute. It was Jaworowski who suggested the first report of NIPCC (2008) be entitled Nature, Not Human Activity, Rules the Climate. Please see the link under “Other Scientific News.”

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ARTICLES:

For the numbered articles below please see this week’s TWTW at:

http://www.sepp.org…

The articles are at the end of the pdf.

1. Why BEST Will Not Settle the Climate Debate

By S. Fred Singer, American Thinker, Nov 17, 2011

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/11/why_be…

2. Kyoto died long ago: RIP and good riddance

By S. Fred Singer, Nature Magazine, Nov 16, 2011

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v479/n73…

3. Obama’s Oil Abdication

Cuba, Mexico, the Bahamas, Canada and Russia are all moving ahead on projects adjacent to our borders.

By Lisa Murkowski, WSJ, Nov 13, 2011

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297…

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NEWS YOU CAN USE:

Climategate Continued

The EPA and Upside-Down Mann

By Steve McIntyre, Climate Audit, Nov 13, 2011

http://climateaudit.org/2011/11/13/the-epa-an…

[SEPP Comment: EPA’s improperly used Mann’s faulty reconstruction of temperature history to reject petitions for reconsideration of the Endangerment Finding.]

Misrepresenting hide the decline

By Andrew Montford, Bishop Hill, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.bishop-hill.net/blog/2011/11/14/mi…

Challenging the Orthodoxy

The chemistry of ocean pH and “acidification”

By Brice Bosnich, Joannenova.com, Nov 17, 2011

http://joannenova.com.au/2011/11/the-chemistr…

Comment by Jo Nova: The ocean acidification threat is a big can of worms

Defending the Orthodoxy

Mann to receive Hans Oeschger Medal from European Geosciences Union

Press Release, Penn State, Nov 16, 2011 [H/t Paul Chesser]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-1…

GuardianEco loses the plot

By Andrew Montford, Bishop Hill, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.bishop-hill.net/blog/2011/11/18/gu…

Deconstructing GOP’s climate contradictions

By Rep. Henry Waxman, Politico, Nov 13, 2011

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1111/682…

Global warming speaker deservedly gets cool reception at energy summit

By Courtney Edelhart, ICECAP, Nov 17, 2011

http://icecap.us/index.php/go/in-the-news/glo…

U.N. Panel Finds Climate Change Behind Some Extreme Weather Events

By Justin Gillis, NYT, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/19/science/ear…

Only a totalitarian New World Order can save us now says Naomi Klein

By James Delingpole, Telegraph, UK, Nov 14, 2011

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/jamesdeling…

Pull together on climate issues, academics urged

By Kristen Van Schie, The Star, Nov 14, 2011 [H/t Hans Schreuder]

http://www.iol.co.za/the-star/pull-together-o…

Europe: Climate Protection Takes the Back Seat

By Staff Writers, Natural Gas Europe, Nov 15, 2011 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.naturalgaseurope.com/europe-unconv…

Icon of the Movement

James Hansen and 3-sigma “proofs”

By Lubos Motl, Reference Frame, Nov 16, 2011

http://motls.blogspot.com/2011/11/james-hanse…

[SEPP Comment: A technical explanation of why all three of Hansen’s critical assumptions are wrong.]

Hansen ignores his long list of failed predictions – finds solace in heat waves

By Art Horn, ICECAP, Nov 16, 2011

http://icecap.us/index.php/go/new-and-cool/ha…

Questioning the Orthodoxy

Polar Bears: Reports of their demise have been greatly exaggerated

By Roger Helmer, Member of the European Parliament, Nov 12, 2011

http://rogerhelmermep.wordpress.com/2011/11/1…

The Latest Report From The IPCC Is Seeking To Rationalize The Failure Of Global Multi-Decadal Climate Models To Skillfully Predict Extreme Events In The Next Few Decades

By Roger Pielke, Sr, Pielke Climate Science, Nov 18, 2011

http://pielkeclimatesci.wordpress.com/2011/11…

A Few Comments on the IPCC SREX Report

By Roger Pielke, Jr, His Blog, Nov 18, 2011

http://rogerpielkejr.blogspot.com/2011/11/few…

What Does CO2 Have To Do With Climate?

By John Hinderaker, PowerLine, Nov 13, 2011

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/11…

[SEPP Comment: Continuing a controversy.]

Questioning European Green

Germany’s Green Energy Revolution Falters

Translated by Philipp Mueller, GWPF, Nov 16, 2011

http://www.thegwpf.org/international-news/436…

German Proposal to Cut Solar Target Would ‘Starve’ Industry

By Stefan Nicola, Bloomberg, Nov 17, 2011 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-17/germ…

[SEPP Comment: If it dies without government support, is it not an economic bubble?]

Dutch fall out of love with windmills

By Ivana Sekularac, Reuters, Nov 16, 2011

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/16/us-…

Energy Bills to Rocket by 60%

By Dana Gloger, Express, UK, Nov 16, 2011 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/283979/EN…

Britain’s Green Suicide Gathering Pace

By Chris Tighe, Financial Times, Nov 16, 2011

http://www.thegwpf.org/uk-news/4353-britains-…

Good riddance to the great solar scam

Britain’s plunge into this grotesque subsidy has come at a time when other countries have pulled back

By Dominic Lawson, The Independent, Nov 15, 2011

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commenta…

Expanding the Orthodoxy

Act now – or be locked in

Messages from the IEA’s Energy World Energy Outlook 2011

By Alex Forbes, European Energy Review, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.europeanenergyreview.eu/site/pagin…

Climate Change: A Threat to US Security

By Tim Wall, Discovery News, Nov 17, 2011

http://news.discovery.com/earth/defense-scien…

‘Climate vulnerable’ countries meet in Bangladesh

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Climate_vul…

[SEPP Comment: Need the $100 Billion per year the UN promised from developed countries.]

Climate change threatens Nile, Limpopo rivers: study

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Climate_cha…

[SEPP Comment: Same as above.]

Problems within the Orthodoxy

Climate Change

Negotiations in Durban over greenhouse-gas emissions should not try to revive Kyoto.

Editorial, Nature, Nov 16, 2011

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v479/n73…

Seeking a Common Ground

Global Warming, Human-Induced Carbon Emissions, and Their Uncertainties

By Fang J Y, Zhu J L, Wang S P, et al. Sci China Earth Sci, Oct. 2011, 54: 1458-1468,

doi: 10.1007/s11430-011-4292-0

http://climategate.nl/wp-content/uploads/2011…

[SEPP Comment: References NIPCC reports.]

Natural Variability To Dominate Weather Events Over Coming 20-30 Years

Press Release, GWPF, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.thegwpf.org/press-releases/4369-na…

Debate in the Economist

Motion: This house believes that subsidizing renewable energy is a good way to wean the world off fossil fuels.

For: Matthias Fripp: Research fellow, Environmental Change Institute and Exeter College, Oxford University

Against: Robert Bradley: Founder and chief executive officer, Institute for Energy Research

Final Vote: 48% yes; 52% no. The motion is defeated.

http://www.economist.com/debate/debates/overv…

Communicating Better to the Public – Exaggerate?

IPCC Special Report on Extreme Events

By Judith Curry, Climate, Etc, Nov 18, 2011

http://judithcurry.com/2011/11/18/ipcc-specia…

Warmists say 10 years of non-warming proves nothing. Give them another seven years

By Andrew Bolt, Herald Sun, AU, Nov 18, 2011 [H/t Marc Morano, Climate Depot]

http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/andrewbolt…

[SEPP Comment: It made no difference when the alarmists proclaimed that the hot year of 1998 “proved” global warming.]

Communicating Better to the Public – Make things up.

Climate Change Weather Effects Unknown: IPCC Report

The Australian, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.thegwpf.org/the-observatory/4370-c…

Regions must brace for weather extremes: UN climate panel

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 13, 2011

http://news.yahoo.com/regions-must-brace-weat…

More Nonsense From The Guardian On Climate Change

By Tim Worstall, GWPF, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.thegwpf.org/best-of-blogs/4364-mor…

Santer: 17 year-temp records needed to separate human from natural contributions

By Steve Milloy, ICECAP, Nov 17, 2011

http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joes-blog/sante…

When The BEST Ain’t Good Enough, Make Stuff Up

By Ben Pile, Climate Resistance, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.thegwpf.org/the-climate-record/436…

[SEPP Comment: Goes more to the interpreters of the results than the researchers.]

Measurement Issues

Ex-skeptic tells US Congress climate change is real

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Ex-skeptic_…

[SEPP Comment: See link below.]

The Empty Chamber

By Ken Haapala, WUWT, Nov 17, 2011

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/11/17/the-emp…

[SEPP Comment: See link above.]

Changing Weather

Atlantic Hurricanes: Fewer, Worse .. Less Menacing

By Patrick Michaels, World Climate Report, Nov 16, 2011

http://www.worldclimatereport.com/index.php/2…

La Nina returns, but weaker impact seen: UN weather agency

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 17, 2011

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/La_Nina_ret…

The Political Games Continue

The Deletion Of NOAA’s Climate Service As A Separate Group Within NOAA In The Federal Budget

By Roger Pielke, Sr, Pielke Climate Science, Nov 18, 2011

http://pielkeclimatesci.wordpress.com/2011/11…

This decision by the House of Representatives and the Conference Committee (which reconciles House and Senate bills) is a good one.

Cap-and-Trade and Carbon Taxes

The truth will out on Labor’s carbon scam

By Miranda Devine, Telegraph, AU, Nov 17, 2011 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/opinion…

…the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which this week issued warnings to businesses that they will face whopping fines of up to $1.1m if they blame the carbon tax for price rises.

Subsidies and Mandates Forever

Direct Federal Financial Interventions and Subsidies in Energy in Fiscal Year 2010

By Staff Writers, Executive Summary, EIA, Aug 1, 2011 [H/t Timothy Wise]

http://www.eia.gov/analysis/requests/subsidy/…

Energy Subsidies vs. Energy Sense: What Have We Learned in the Past 3 Years?

By Donald Hertzmark, Master Resource, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.masterresource.org/2011/11/energy-…

[SEPP Comment: The link to the EIA did not work. The July, 2011 EIA report can be found at:

http://www.eia.gov/analysis/requests/subsidy/…

EPA and other Regulators on the March

Administration announces tighter vehicle fuel-economy standards

By Andrew Restuccia, The Hill, Nov 16, 2011

http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/1939…

The EPA’s Reliability Cover-Up

Why did the agency erase its own doubts about the U.S. electrical grid?

Editorial, WSJ, Nov 14, 2011

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297…

[SEPP Comment: May be behind a pay wall.]

Energy Issues

Canadian urges quick decision on new pipeline route

By Rob Gilles, AP, Nov 15, 2011

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/nov/…

FP Letters to the Editor: Cleaning up a natural disaster

Re: “Keystone XL put on hold: Nov 11

By Patrick Robinson, Tom Harris, Letters, Financial Post, Nov 14, 2011

http://opinion.financialpost.com/2011/11/14/f…

Oil and Natural Gas – the Future or the Past?

Natural Gas Is Boosting U.S. Regional Economies

By Mark Perry, Carpe Diem, Nov 12, 2011

http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2011/11/nat-gas-b…

US Government Confirms Link Between Earthquakes and Hydraulic Fracturing

By John C.K. Daly, SPX, Nov 15, 2011

http://www.energy-daily.com/reports/US_Govern…

[SEPP Comment: Questionable conclusions, there is big difference between an area with faults and areas without faults.]

Administration’s Control of Oil and Gas

Obama’s Indefensible Pipeline Punt

By Vaclav Smil, The American, Nov 15, 2011

http://american.com/archive/2011/november/oba…

TransCanada backs new route for stalled US pipeline

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.energy-daily.com/reports/TransCana…

The Keystone Debacle

Was Obama’s decision to delay the Canadian oil pipeline shrewd politics? Maybe not.

By Lucian Pugliaresi, WSJ, Nov 16, 2011

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297…

Offshore industry hopes for grace period on new rules

By Jennifer Dlouhy, Houston Chronicle, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.chron.com/business/article/Offshor…

Oil Spills & Consequences

Chevron Brazil says it will seal errant oil well

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 15, 2011

http://www.energy-daily.com/reports/Chevron_B…

[SEPP Comment: Apparently the leak is calculated to be 400 bbls per day.]

Nuclear Energy and Fears

UN atomic agency praises Fukushima clean-up

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 15, 2011

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/UN_atomic_a…

EON to sue Germany over nuclear exit

By Staff Writers, AFP, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/EON_…

Restart begins at North Anna

By Staff Writers, WNN, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS-Restart_…

[SEPP Comment: The plant was shut down after the August 23 earthquake that hit Virginia.]

Alternative, Green (“Clean”) Energy

A Gold Rush of Subsidies in the Search for Clean Energy

By Eric Lipton and Clifford Krauss, NYT, Nov 11, 2011

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/12/business/en…

[SEPP Comment: The New York Times finally gets it!]

Despite Paul Krugman’s Cheerleading, Solar Energy Has A Cloudy Future

By Larry Bell, Forbes, Nov 15, 2011

http://www.forbes.com/sites/larrybell/2011/11…

Secretary Chu’s ‘Clean Energy Race’ Blather

There simply is no green energy race with China. No one needs the product.

By Marlo Lewis, PJ Media, Nov 18, 2011

http://pjmedia.com/blog/secretary-chu%E2%80%9…

Onshore wind: Grid parity by 2016

By Staff Writers, WEU, Nov 14, 2011

http://social.windenergyupdate.com/uncategori…

[SEPP Comment: Parity without reliability.]

Paul Krugman Flunks Moore’s Law

He apparently has spent too much time in the sun.

By William Tucker, American Specator, Nov 15, 2011

http://spectator.org/archives/2011/11/15/paul…

Is There A Moore’s Law For Solar?

By Michael Kanellos, Forbes, Nov 9, 2011

http://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelkanellos/2…

Is the Photovoltaic Price Trend Sustainable?

By Geoffrey Styles, Energy Tribune, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.energytribune.com/articles.cfm/919…

Investment bubble: Is the wind energy sector about to pop?

With investment in green energy at an all-time high, wind energy developers and operators have never had it so good. But is there a risk that things are perhaps a little too good?

By Jason Deign in Barcelona, WEU, Nov 14, 2011

http://social.windenergyupdate.com/turbine-su…

Latest on Biofuels

By Donn Dears, Power For USA, Nov 18, 2011

http://dddusmma.wordpress.com/2011/11/18/late…

Carbon Schemes

CCS in Europe under serious threat

By Sonja van Renssen, Nov 17, 2011

http://www.europeanenergyreview.eu/site/pagin…

He points to what has already been achieved: an EU directive setting up a regulatory framework for storage, a 1bn investment from EU economic recovery funds, the promise of carbon market funds to come, and a strong base for knowledge sharing in the form of the CCS Network.

[SEPP Comment: How much more do they need?]

California Dreaming

The energy, and expense, of bringing water to the Southland

The twin forces of power costs and climate-change regulations are threatening Southern California’s long love affair with imported water, forcing the region to consider more mundane sources closer to home.

By Bettina Boxall, LA Times, Nov 13, 2011

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-water…

California Approves High-Priced Mojave Solar Project Over Objections

By Todd Woody, Forbes, Nov 10, 2011

http://www.forbes.com/sites/toddwoody/2011/11…

Review of Recent Scientific Articles by NIPCC

For a full list of articles see

http://www.NIPCCreport.org…

Upper Tropical Tropospheric Temperature: Simulations vs. Reality

Reference: Fu, Q., Manabe, S. and Johanson, C.M. 2011. On the warming in the tropical upper troposphere: Models versus observations. Geophysical Research Letters 38: 10.1029/2011GL048101.

http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2011/nov/…

“in view of the importance of the enhanced tropical upper tropospheric warming to the climate sensitivity and to the change of atmospheric circulations, it is critically important to understand the causes responsible for the discrepancy between the models and observations.”

Organismal Response to Ocean Acidification: The Role of Evolution

Reference: Sunday, J.M., Crim, R.N., Harley, C.D.G. and Hart, M.W. 2011. Quantifying rates of evolutionary adaptation in response to ocean acidification. PLoS ONE 6: e22881.

http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2011/nov/…

Identifying Natural Contributions to Late Holocene Climate Change

Reference: Humlum, O., Solheim, J.-K. and Stordahl, K. 2011. Identifying natural contributions to late Holocene climate change. Global and Planetary Change 79: 145-156.

http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2011/nov/…

Global Warming and the Greening of Northwest China

Reference: Zhao, X., Tan, K., Zhao, S. and Fang, J. 2011. Changing climate affects vegetation growth in the arid region of the northwestern China. Journal of Arid Environments 75: 946-952.

http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2011/nov/…

Has the Magnitude of Floods Across the USA Changed with Global CO2 Levels?

Reference: Hirsch, R.M. and Ryberg, K.R. 2011. Has the magnitude of floods across the USA changed with global CO2 levels? Hydrological Sciences Journal DOI:10.1080/02626667.2011.621895.

http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2011/nov/…

Oh Mann!

Why I want Mike Mann’s Emails

By David Schnare, WUWT, Nov 14, 2011

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/11/14/why-i-w…

Other Scientific News

Zbigniew Jaworowski M.D., Ph.D., D.Sc

By Tim Ball, His Blog, Nov 14, 2011

http://drtimball.com/2011/zbigniew-jaworowski…

Deforestation causes cooling in Northern US and Canada

By Staff Writers, SPX, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Deforestati…

The impact of deforestation on global warming varies with latitude, according to new research from a team of scientists representing 20 institutions from around the world.

[SEPP Comment: For those who have spent time with minimal shelter in the North Woods in the winter, this is not a surprising finding. But it should be articulated as regional finding not a global finding.]

Will this Red Planet rover send groundbreaking data over?

The Mars Science Laboratory – nicknamed Curiosity – was developed at JPL and will be the fourth rover to traverse the planet’s harsh terrain. But unlike the earlier Martian vehicles, Curiosity will do more than look for evidence of water.

By Mike Anton, Los Angeles Times, Nov 13, 2011

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-mars-…

[SEPP Comment: It does not obtain its energy from solar panels, but from PU-238. Should DOE be considering the same?]

A squid mystery in Mexican waters is unraveled by a Stanford biologist and a class of biology students

Stanford marine biologist William Gilly is studying Humboldt squid in Mexico’s Sea of Cortez, where the creatures have been spawning at a much younger age and a far smaller size than normal. El Niño is apparently to blame.

By Louis Bergeron, Stanford News, Nov 17, 2011 [H/t WUWT]

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/november/g…

Other News that May Be of Interest

Dr. James Hansen’s growing financial scandal, now over a million dollars of outside income

By Christopher Horner, Posted by Anthony Watts, WUWT, Nov 18, 2011

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/11/18/dr-jame…

[SEPP Comment: Hansen obtained great publicity when he claimed, falsely, that President Bush was attempting to muzzle him. Failure to properly report over $1,600,000 is hardly a minor oversight.]

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BELOW THE BOTTOM LINE:

Europe Bans X-Ray Body Scanners Used at U.S. Airports

By Michael Grabell, ProPublica, Nov 15, 2011

http://www.propublica.org/article/europe-bans…

Although the amount of radiation is extremely low, equivalent to the radiation a person would receive in a few minutes of flying, several research studies have concluded that a small number of cancer cases would result from scanning hundreds of millions of passengers a year.

[SEPP Comment: The linear-no threshold model at its best. Many EPA studies are as ridiculous.]

Bolivia expects huge benefits from Chinese-built satellite

By Staff Writers, XNA, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Bolivia_exp…

…the satellite will benefit Bolivia, one of Latin America’s least developed countries, in different areas such as education, medicine and communication.

Bioenergy Key to Global Growth

By Staff Writers, SPX, Nov 18, 2011

http://www.biofueldaily.com/reports/Bioenergy…

Hormonal water tied to prostate cancer?

By Staff Writers, ACSH, Nov 17, 2011

http://www.acsh.org/factsfears/newsID.3179/ne…

Groundbreaking study quantifies health costs of climate-change related disasters in the US

By Staff Writers, SPX, Nov 14, 2011

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Groundbreak…

[SEPP Comment: What nonsense! Another NRDC study, this one from 2002 to 2009. What were the costs of the great Mississippi floods of the 1920s or the great dust bowl of the 1930s?]

PLEASE NOTE: The complete TWTW, including the full text of the numbered articles, can be downloaded in an easily printable form at this web site: http://www.sepp.org/the-week-that-was.cfm…