Weekly Climate and Energy News Roundup #175

The Week That Was: 2015-04-04 (April 4, 2015) Brought to You by SEPP (www.SEPP.org) The Science and Environmental Policy Project

THIS WEEK: By Ken Haapala, President, Science and Environmental Policy Project (SEPP)

On to Paris: To keep pledges made at meetings (multiple Conference of Parties (COP)) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), an international treaty agreed to in 1992 by the first president Bush and which went into force in 1994, 33 out of 195 countries submitted their pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (particularly carbon dioxide (CO2)). These are to be agreed upon at the December COP in Paris. These pledges are called Intended National Determined Contribution (INDC). The countries that submitted pledges by March 31 included those in the European Union, the US, Russia, and Mexico.

The Obama administration submitted a US intended national determined contribution, without Congressional approval. It pledged to reduce US emissions by 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2025, and to make best efforts to reduce by 28%. Mr Obama’s term in office, his last term, expires on January 20, 2017 – long before the pledge is accountable. It is unlikely that the current Senate would approve a binding agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28%. The time-gap between the pledge and accountability creates speculation as to the President’s future actions to avoid a need to seek Senate approval for a binding treaty.

Fanning speculation are comments by White House press secretary Josh Earnest, who said that politicians who are skeptical of climate change science are not qualified to judge the matter. According to an article in The Hill newspaper:

“These are individuals who — many of whom, at least, deny the fact that climate change even exists, so I’m not sure they would be in the best position to decide whether or not a climate-change agreement is one that is worth entering into,” Earnest told reporters Tuesday.

His comments were directed at lawmakers, such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), who have all insisted that the international agreement the U.N. is working on is a treaty and cannot be enforced without Senate approval.

“Those lawmakers, along with most Republicans, also doubt the scientific consensus that human activity is significantly contributing to climate change.”

Of course, these statements grossly misrepresent the issue. The so-called consensus does not exist – it comes from highly manipulated surveys that should be retracted by the journals that published them. (The latest, by Cook et al., was discussed in the March 21 and March 28 TWTWs). Further, for the press secretary to state the individuals in question “deny the fact that climate change even exists” is false. For example, Senator Inhofe has clearly stated he believes that climate change exists.

The primary [issues] are the natural influences on climate. The Summary for Policymakers in recent reports by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), formed by UNFCCC, ignores the existence of climate change long before the existence of humanity. Reports by the US Climate Change Research Program demonstrate similar ignorance. A recent study of marine sediments off the coast of north China shows that climate change has been occurring for at least 1.4 billion years (TWTW, Mar 14, 2015)

Strangely, the claims of the press secretary did not produce a response, thus far, from many of the news organizations that, in the past, defended Congress against undue expansion of executive powers. See links under Censorship, On to Paris!, and http://unfccc.int/essential_background/items/6031.php

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Censorship: The March 28, 2015 TWTW discussed Intellectual Freedom and Censorship and how 54 individuals, who described themselves as “members of the scientific community”, use the web site “The Natural History Museum.org” and objected to museums receiving funds from “those who profit from fossil fuels or fund lobby groups that misrepresent climate science.” The group includes James Hansen, Kevin Trenberth, and Michael Mann. A letter sent to museums specifically discusses David Koch, who “is a major donor, exhibit sponsor and trustee on the Board of Directors at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, and the American Museum of Natural History.”

Several TWTW readers remarked on the identification of David Koch and found it is amusing to note the anti-David Koch group complains about his “tainted” money given to the Smithsonian. “David Koch bankrolled the “Hall of Human Origins”, which occupies a modest chunk of the first floor of the Natural History museum on Constitution Avenue. It is an excellent exhibit. It tells how human-like beings first appeared about 6 million years ago. Since it gives no comfort to ‘creationists,’ one would think these ‘members of the scientific community’ would be pleased. One would also think they’d be pleased with the many ‘Nova’ shows on PBS [Public Broadcasting System] that David Koch sponsors. But it seems that David Koch is one of those names you can bash with impunity, never fearing that he’ll take his money and go home, leaving others stranded to pay for things themselves.”

It is amusing to think that these “members of the scientific community” often label as “anti-science” those skeptical of the official IPCC view, expressed with great certainty, that humans are primarily responsible for global warming/climate change. Is the Koch exhibit anti-science?

Thanks to this effort, and similar ones, TWTW will now have a subheading titled Censorship and will endeavor to identify it under the concepts of Intellectual Freedom and Censorship as defined on the web site of the American Library Association. Of course, TWTW will emphasize inconsistencies between empirical science and government policies.

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Quote of the Week: “Half a truth is often a great lie.”― Benjamin Franklin

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Number of the Week: 16.2%

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SEPP’S APRIL FOOLS AWARD

THE JACKSON

SEPP is conducting its annual vote for the recipient of the coveted trophy, The Jackson, a lump of coal. Readers are asked to nominate and vote for who they think is most deserving, following these criteria:

· The nominee has advanced, or proposes to advance, significant expansion of governmental power, regulation, or control over the public or significant sections of the general economy.

· The nominee does so by declaring such measures are necessary to protect public health, welfare, or the environment.

· The nominee declares that physical science supports such measures.

· The physical science supporting the measures is flimsy at best, and possibly non-existent.

The three past recipients, Lisa Jackson, Barrack Obama, and John Kerry, are not candidates. Generally, the committee that makes the selection prefers a candidate with a national or international presence. The voting will close on May 1. Please send your nominee and a brief reason why the person is qualified for the honor to Ken@SEPP.org. Thank you.

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Fear of Geology? Geologist Ian Plimer, who wrote heaven + earth: Global Warming: The Missing Science, was asked to write a less complex book suitable for students. In 2012, How to Get Expelled from School: A Guide to Climate Change for Pupils, Parents and Punters was published. In it, Plimer discusses the importance of geology and knowledge of climate is for oil and mineral geologists.

“Oil geology depends on knowing what sea level and climate were doing at the time of sediment disposition. Some 40 years ago an Esso [now Exxon] research geologist created graphical sea level curves (Vail Curves). These are still used as the benchmark for sea level changes. Coal deposits form close to the shoreline in cold climates and drill holes are used to determine the migration of the sea backwards and forwards across the land. Minerals geologists also determine ancient climate and sea levels, especially those exploring for heavy mineral sand deposits that formed in storms at maximum sea levels. Some of these mineral sand deposits occur hundreds of kilometers inland and over a hundred meters above the current sea level and hence knowledge of climate, sea levels and land level changes are required for successful exploration”

 

“Many other geologists chase rocks that have naturally sequestered carbon dioxide, as these too can contain valuable resources that we all use. Geologists are the only scientists who have practical use for past climates and sea levels. They must get it right and the only way to get it right is to understand climate and sea level changes. If they get it wrong, they are out of a job because there are no research grants to keep them alive.

 

“The story of the history of climate changes is preserved in marine and lake sediments, ice sheets and all rocks. For example, cores drilled though the ice sheets yield a record of polar temperatures and atmospheric composition ranging back to 120,000 years in Greenland and 800,000 years in Antarctica. Oceanic sediments preserve a record reaching back tens of millions of years and sedimentary rocks preserve records of billions of years of the Earth’s climate history. Fossils of corals, coral and algal reefs and plants all tell stories about past climate, as do stalagmites, tree rings, land shapes and soils. Throughout time, carbon dioxide has been emitted by natural processes and almost all of the world’s carbon dioxide that was ever in the atmosphere is now sequestered in rocks”. (location numbers 494 to 515 of 3411 in kindle)

The Vail Curves Plimer presents estimate sea levels over 500 million years and are course measurements. When using current sea levels as a base, they show a variation from roughly 100 meters below current sea levels to roughly 300 meters above current levels over the last 500 million years. Some geologists object to using Vail Curves because they are based on proprietary data. Yet, efforts to replicate them produce similar results. No doubt, some of these objecting individuals would object to the science of plate tectonics, which was initially based on the work of petroleum geologists.

No wonder The Natural History Museum.org group objects to funding from those who profited from fossil fuels. Their success depended upon knowledge of geology and climate history that goes far beyond the scope expressed by the IPCC and its adherents. After all, an innocent child may ask: Why did the climate change before there were humans?

How to Get Expelled From School – A guide to climate change for pupils, parents and punters [Kindle Edition] by Ian Plimer http://www.amazon.com/How-Get-Expelled-School-climate-ebook/dp/B00B1NNK02/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1428247289&sr=1-6&keywords=ian+plimer

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25 Years: On March 29, 1990, Roy Spencer and John Christy announced a method of calculating atmospheric temperatures using data obtained by satellites. The data dates back to November 1978 and are the most comprehensive data of the earth’s temperatures, covering virtually all regions of the earth. Subsequently, the calculations have been independently verified by data from weather balloons. The reports of the Earth System Science Center at the University of Alabama in Huntsville are archived to 2006. The data are publically available to scientists in the U.S. and abroad. There is no other data set that is comparable. See links under Challenging the Orthodoxy and http://nsstc.uah.edu/climate/archives.html

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On Thin Ice: Earlier, the US National Snow and Ice Data Center claimed that the Arctic sea ice had reached its maximum extent and was less than maximum extents ever observed by satellites. The claim was premature, at best. March 26 data place the current Arctic ice extend greater than 2005, 06, and 07 and slightly greater than 2011.

Susan Crockford reports that the sea ice is excellent for polar bears, which depend on it for feasting on seal pups that provide the bulk of their caloric intake for the year. See links under Changing Cryosphere – Land / Sea Ice

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Nature Still Mann-Handled: On Climate Audit, Steve McIntyre points out three new, distinct statistical tricks in a paper co-authored by Michael Mann with lead author Stefan Rahmstorf, of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. The paper, published by Nature Climate Change, claimed the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is slowing down. As discussed in the March 28 TWTW, The AMOC is a critical part of The Great Ocean Conveyor Belt and its slowing down was refuted in a press release by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Mr. Mann is part of The Natural History Museum.org group that objects to museums receiving funds from those profited from fossil fuel industries (above). See links under Climategate Continued.

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More Pauses? The earth’s temperatures have not risen as expected by the Climate Establishment and as forecasted by the climate models. Particularly, the forecasts in the IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report (AR-4, 2007) are not valid. This “pause” or plateau in temperatures has resulted in many explanations, often invoking natural causes not presented in the IPCC reports.

Writing in the Global Warming Policy Forum, David Whitehouse brings up a second pause – the failure of the Arctic ice sheet to melt as many claimed it would. Perhaps, there are additional pauses, such as the failure of Antarctic ice sheets to contract as claimed and atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to increase as claimed. See links under Changing Cryosphere – Land / Sea Ice

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Direct Evidence? An article in Nature Climate Change claims it has direct evidence of a positive feedback in climate change – ocean warming will produce more carbon dioxide. Who doubts outgassing from warming oceans? The issue is the timeframes – why does cooling begin when CO2 concentrations are rising? Manipulating the data with statistical techniques which produce the desired result is not direct evidence. See links under Measurement Issues

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Questioning the EPA: Members of the US Senate Committee on Environmental & Public Works: sent to US EPA Administrator questions concerning various topics that the Administrator has failed to answer satisfactorily in public hearings. For example, she could not answer a question if actual temperatures are increasing faster or slower than predicted [projected] by an average of climate models. Other topics include drought, hurricanes/cyclones, temperature data, and climate impact monitoring. The answers may be interesting.

This is different from members of Congress asking independent researchers about their funding. EPA is setting government policy with long reaching impacts based on its claimed knowledge of these issues. The Senate Committee is conducting responsible oversight of a government agency. See links under The Political Games Continue

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Criticism and Tolerance: On Climate Etc., Judith Curry has a timely post on criticism, tolerance and changing your mind. The points made may be particularly useful when beginning to discuss issues in which there may be significant disagreement among several people, particularly if they do not know one another. See link under Seeking a Common Ground.

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Number of the Week 16.2% U.S. crude production grew by 16.2% from 2013 to 2014.

“U.S. crude oil production (including lease condensate) increased during 2014 by 1.2 million barrels per day (bbl/d) to 8.7 million bbl/d, the largest volume increase since recordkeeping began in 1900. On a percentage basis, output in 2014 increased by 16.2%, the highest growth rate since 1940. Most of the increase during 2014 came from tight oil plays in North Dakota, Texas, and New Mexico where hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling were used to produce oil from shale formations.” – EIA

According to other reports, about one-half of total US oil and gas production comes from hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling of shale formations. No wonder the anti-fossil fuels groups so bitterly oppose hydraulic fracturing (fracking). These expanded activities take place on private or state-owned lands and not on land and waters controlled by the Federal government. See links under Energy Issues – US. Oil and Natural Gas – the Future or the Past?

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ARTICLES:

Please note that articles not linked or summarized here are reproduced in the Articles Section of the full TWTW that can be found on the web site under the date of the TWTW.

1. Fossil Fuel Free Is No Country for the Poor

A world forced to rely on renewable energy would be cold, dark and haunted by hunger.

By Donald Boudreaux, WSJ, Mar 27, 2015 [H/t Toshio Fujita]

http://www.wsj.com/articles/donald-j-boudreaux-fossil-fuel-free-is-no-country-for-the-poor-1427493369

[SUMMARY: Professor of Economics Boudreaux contests the arguments used of Richard Branson, major owner of Virgin Airlines, and several other business leaders who claim net-zero emissions would “drive innovation, grow jobs, build prosperity and secure a better world.”

According to Boudreaux:

“This isn’t merely impractical; it’s nonsensical. Fossil fuels are the bedrock of modernity, generating cheap energy and widespread wealth. Environmental crusaders who would do away with these fuels fail to acknowledge the stark results in a world forced to rely solely on renewable energy.

 

“Altogether, renewable energy sources—including wind, solar, hydropower, geothermal and biomass—generate one-tenth of the energy Americans demand. Without fossil fuels to fill that 90% gap, the economy would collapse, commodity supplies would dwindle, jobs would disappear, and households would remain cold, dark and haunted by hunger.

 

“In asking less-developed nations to ration carbon emissions, environmentalists are essentially demanding that they forgo the most revolutionary shift of the modern era: machines. Every day, as energy expert Alex Epstein observes in his new book “The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels,” the average American relies on machines that exert the equivalent energy of 93 physical laborers. As a result, our lives are more leisurely than our ancestors could have ever imagined.”

“It’s fashionable to bash fossil fuels. But these fuels have provided a better life for untold millions of people. And they offer the best hope for pulling billions more out of poverty.”

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2. Notable & Quotable

Americans’ worry about global warming is no higher now than when Gallup first asked about it in 1989.

From a Gallup poll report, “In U.S., Concern About Environmental Threats Eases,” March 25: WSJ, Mar 29, 2015

http://www.wsj.com/articles/notable-quotable-1427661230

[SUMMARY: Today, Americans worry more about short-term threats such as pollution than global warming. “Importantly, even as global warming has received greater attention as an environmental problem from politicians and the media in recent years, Americans’ worry about it is no higher now than when Gallup first asked about it in 1989.”

“A final factor is the politicization of environmental issues. This is exemplified by the sharp political polarization in views of global warming. And although concern about environmental issues is lower among both Republicans and Democrats since 2000, it is down more among Republicans.”]

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3. A World Remade by Fracking

With storage tanks full, panickers have no place to hoard oil in response to Middle East fears

By Holman Jenkins, WSJ, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.wsj.com/articles/holman-jenkins-a-world-remade-by-fracking-1427842374?mod=WSJ_hps_sections_opinion

[SUMMARY: Given the troubles in the mid-east and the take-over of Yemen by Houthi tribes backed by Iran, the world oil prices have not even reached $100 a barrel, where they were as recently as eight months ago. “If not for fracking, oil would probably be $200 a barrel and gasoline $6.50 in the U.S.” SEPP adds: no thanks to Washington.]

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4. Energy’s New Legal Threat: Earthquake Suits

In key test for industry, Oklahoma homeowner blames quake damages on wastewater wells

By Miguel Bustillo and Daniel Gilbert, WSJ, Mar 30, 2015

http://www.wsj.com/articles/frackings-new-legal-threat-earthquake-suits-1427736148

[SUMMARY: “Oklahoma, with a history of mild-to-moderate seismic activity, experienced 585 earthquakes of 3.0 or greater magnitude last year—big enough to be felt indoors—according to the Oklahoma Geological Survey. That’s more than the state had in the previous 30 years combined and the most of any state in the contiguous U.S.”

“Most of the focus isn’t on hydraulic fracturing, which involves shooting a slurry of water, sand and chemicals into wells to let oil and gas flow out—and which helped touch off the recent U.S. energy boom.

 

“Instead, researchers say the most serious seismic risk comes from a separate process: disposal of toxic fluids left over from fracking and drilling by putting it in wells deep underground. Geologists concluded decades ago that injecting fluid into a geologic fault can lubricate giant slabs of rock, causing them to slip. Scientists say disposal wells are sometimes bored into unmapped faults. The practice isn’t new, but has proliferated with the U.S. drilling boom.”

Other states are examining the issues involving disposal wells, a practice that has been going on for 60 years. (SEPP Comment: Perhaps not with the volume and pressure that is now occurring.)]

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NEWS YOU CAN USE:

Climategate Continued

Climategate & Investigations of IPCC and CRU: Was There a Pattern of Cover Up?

By Tim Ball, WUWT, Mar 31, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/03/31/climategate-investigations-of-ipcc-and-cru-was-there-a-patterns-of-cover-up/

Jones and Dixon Refute Conspiracy Theorist Lewandowsky

By Steve McIntyre, Climate Audit, Mar 27, 2015

http://climateaudit.org/2015/03/27/jones-and-dixon-refute-conspiracy-theorist-lewandowsky/

Rahmstorf’s First Trick

By Steve McIntyre, Climate Audit, Mar 28, 2015

http://climateaudit.org/2015/03/28/rahmstorfs-first-trick/#more-20928

Rahmstorf’s Second Trick

By Steve McIntyre, Climate Audit, Mar 29, 2015

http://climateaudit.org/2015/03/29/rahmstorfs-second-trick/#more-20944

Rahmstorf’s Third Trick

By Steve McIntyre, Climate Audit, Apr 1, 2015

http://climateaudit.org/2015/04/01/rahmstorfs-third-trick/

Censorship

White House: GOP criticism of climate pact ‘hard to take seriously’

By Timothy Cama, The Hill, Mar 31, 2015

http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/237499-white-house-hits-back-against-gop-critics-of-climate-pact

White House: Global Warming ‘Deniers’ Shouldn’t Have A Say On UN Treaty

By Michael Bastasch, Daily Caller, Apr 1, 2015

http://dailycaller.com/2015/04/01/white-house-global-warming-deniers-shouldnt-have-a-say-on-un-treaty/

U.K. government scientists hit with media restrictions

By Erik Stokstad, Science Mag, Mar 27, 2015

http://news.sciencemag.org/europe/2015/03/u-k-government-scientists-hit-media-restrictions

[SEPP Comment: Another form of censorship?]

Suppressing Scientific Inquiry – The Witch Hunt – Push-Back

Response of William O’Keefe to Senators Markey, Boxer and Whitehouse on Institute Climate Research

By William O’Keefe, George C. Marshall Institute, Apr 1, 2015

http://marshall.org/climate-change/response-of-william-okeefe-to-senators-markey-boxer-and-whitehouse-on-institute-climate-research/

Challenging the Orthodoxy

7 questions with John Christy and Roy Spencer: Climate change skeptics for 25 years

By Paul Gattis, AL.com, Apr 1, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.al.com/news/huntsville/index.ssf/2015/04/7_questions_with_john_christy.html

Relative Homogeneity of the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) and The Little Ice Age (LIA).

By Tim Ball, A Different Perspective, Mar 27, 2015

http://drtimball.com/2015/relative-homogeneity-of-the-medieval-warm-period-mwp-and-the-little-ice-age-lia/

[SEPP Comment: Solving problems with messy data that contradict the hypothesis by ignoring the data.]

Atmospheric energy escaped from the Tibetan Plateau

By Staff Writers, Beijing (SPX), Apr 02, 2015

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Atmospheric_energy_escaped_from_the_Tibetan_Plateau_999.html

[SEPP Comment: Changes in cloud cover change outgoing radiation.]

Vahrenholt Blasts Der Spiegel’s Print Doomsday Article: “Extremely Poorly Researched”…”Half Truth”

By P Gosselin, No Tricks Zone, Mar 31, 2015

http://notrickszone.com/2015/03/31/vahrenholt-blasts-der-spiegels-print-doomsday-article-extremely-poorly-researched-half-truth/#sthash.VRAZ1hm3.dpbs

Climate Sensitivity: the Victimization Game

By Charles Battig, American Thinker, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2015/04/climate_sensitivity_the_victimization_game.html

Polar bear consumption of terrestrial foods – new paper misses the point

By Susan Crockford, Polar Bear Science, Apr 1, 2015

http://polarbearscience.com/2015/04/01/polar-bear-consumption-of-terrestrial-foods-new-paper-misses-the-point/

Defending the Orthodoxy

Fighting Climate Change Region by Region

By Philippe Couillard, Premier of Québec; Iñigo Urkullu, President of the Basque Country; and Jay Weatherill, Premier of South Australia, Project Syndicate, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/subnational-climate-change-fight-by-philippe-couillard-et-al-2015-04

CO2 Emissions And Ocean Flux: Long-Term CO2 Increase Due To Emissions, Not Ocean Temperature

By Ed Caryl, No Tricks Zone, Apr 1, 2015

http://notrickszone.com/2015/04/01/co2-emissions-and-ocean-flux-long-term-co2-increase-due-to-emissions-not-ocean-temperature/#sthash.3GGmXF5w.dpbs

Jerry Taylor: Old vs. New (what would Bill Niskanen say?)

By Robert Bradley, Master Resource, Apr 1, 2015

https://www.masterresource.org/niskanen-center/taylor-vs-taylor-1/

[SEPP Comment: Near the bottom of the article are seven propositions that should be considered before supporting international agreements on greenhouse gases: (1) A continued increase in the emission of greenhouse gases will increase global temperature. (2) An increase in average temperature will generate more costs than benefits. (3) Emissions controls are the most efficient means to prevent an increase in global temperature. (4) Early measures to control emissions are superior to later measures. (5) Emissions controls can be effectively monitored and enforced. (6) Governments of the treaty countries will approve the necessary control measures. (7) Controlling emissions is compatible with a modern economy.]

 

Questioning the Orthodoxy

Differences between Real Science and Man Made Global Warming Science

By Mike Herman, Australian Climate Sceptics, Mar 26, 2015

http://theclimatescepticsparty.blogspot.com/2015/03/differences-between-real-science-and.html

Grasping For Pause-ible Deniability On Climate Change

As the Earth’s temperature remains steady, believers double down on climate change.

By Greg Jones, The Federalist, Mar 30, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://thefederalist.com/2015/03/30/grasping-for-pause-ible-deniability-on-climate-change/

[SEPP Comment: Is the Climate Establishment in the final phase of the 5 stages of loss and grief?]

Global Warming And Harsh Winters Don’t Go Together

By Kerry Jackson, IBD, Mar 31, 2015

http://news.investors.com/blogs-capital-hill/033115-745989-climate-change-doesnt-cause-extreme-winters.htm

The China – US Agreement?

Chinese Coal Cuts

By Mark Clifford, Project Syndicate, Apr 2, 2015

http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/china-reducing-carbon-emissions-by-mark-l–clifford-2015-04

On to Paris!

Road to Paris: Tracking climate pledges

By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Apr 1, 2015

http://judithcurry.com/2015/04/01/road-to-paris-tracking-climate-pledges/#more-18279

US climate pledge promises to push for maximum ambition

By Simon Evans, The Carbon Brief, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.carbonbrief.org/blog/2015/03/us-climate-pledge-promises-to-push-for-maximum-ambition/?utm_content=buffer63168&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Ambiguous Russian climate pledge mystifies many

By Sophie Yeo & Simon Evans, The Carbon brief, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.carbonbrief.org/blog/2015/04/ambiguous-russian-climate-pledge-mystifies-many/?utm_source=Weekly+Carbon+Briefing&utm_campaign=ac57ff6591-Carbon_Brief_Weekly_260315&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3ff5ea836a-ac57ff6591-215218249

Putin’s Smoke And Mirrors

By Paul Homewood, Not a Lot of People Know That, Apr 2, 2015

https://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com/2015/04/02/putins-smoke-and-mirrors/

Mexico sets 25 pct pollution cut by 2030 for climate talks

By Mark Stevenson, AP, Mar 27, 2015

http://news.yahoo.com/mexico-sets-25-pct-pollution-cut-2030-climate-212107999.html

Climate pledges: Deadline sees slow but promising start

By Richard Ingham, Paris (AFP) March 31, 2015

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Climate_pledges_Deadline_sees_slow_but_promising_start_999.html

COP21 Paris climate conference already in trouble as countries miss submission deadline

By Eric Worrall, WUWT, Mar 30, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/03/30/cop21-paris-climate-conference-already-in-trouble-as-countries-miss-submission-deadline/

FACT SHEET: U.S. Reports its 2025 Emissions Target to the UNFCCC

State Department Submits President Obama’s Ambitious 2025 Target to Cut U.S. Climate Pollution by 26-28 Percent from 2005 Levels

By Staff Writers, White House, Mar 31, 2015

https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/03/31/fact-sheet-us-reports-its-2025-emissions-target-unfccc

Climate Madness: Obama Pledges 28% Emissions Cut To U.N.

Editorial, IBD, Mar 31, 2015 [H/t Timothy Wise]

http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/033115-745967-obama-28-cut-us-emissions-climate.htm?p=full

Obama’s UN Climate Vow Needs Court Wins, Cheap Natural Gas

By Mark Drajem, Bloomberg, Mar 31, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-31/obama-s-un-climate-vow-relies-on-court-wins-cheap-natural-gas

The Backlash Against Obama’s Committing US to International Climate Agreement

By Katie Tubb and David Kreutzer, Daily Signal, Apr 2, 2015

http://dailysignal.com/2015/04/02/the-backlash-against-obamas-committing-u-s-to-international-climate-agreement/

Social Benefits of Carbon

Forests And Fields In Record Growth Around The Planet

By John Ross, The Australian, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.thegwpf.com/forests-and-fields-in-record-growth-around-the-planet/

Despite deforestation, the world is getting greener – scientists

By Alisa Tang, Reuters, Mar 30, 2015 [H/t Clyde Spencer]

http://news.yahoo.com/despite-deforestation-world-getting-greener-scientists-150214323.html

Problems in the Orthodoxy

Equilibrium climate sensitivity in light of observations over the warming hiatus

By Johansson, et al, Nature Climate Change, Mar 30, 2015

http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate2573.html?utm_content=buffer5e8a9&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

“We also find that the hiatus is primarily attributable to El Niño/Southern Oscillation-related variability and reduced solar forcing.”

India calls for a deal for pre-2020 efforts to tackle climate change

By Urmi Goswami, Economic Times, India, Mar 30, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/india-calls-for-a-deal-for-pre-2020-efforts-to-tackle-climate-change/articleshow/46740791.cms

Obama’s New Climate Change Plan in Two Charts

The president sends the UN a list of things he wants—and Republicans don’t

By Eric Roston, Bloomberg, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-31/obama-s-new-climate-change-plan-in-two-charts

Are we tired of talking about climate change?

Interviews with Reporters, BBC, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-32131142

[SEPP Comment: Has non-stop exaggeration taken its toll?]

Climate Change Special Interests Condemn Special Interests

By Donna Laframboise, NFC, Mar 29, 2015

http://nofrakkingconsensus.com/2015/03/29/climate-change-special-interests-condemn-special-interests/

Seeking a Common Ground

Criticism, tolerance and changing your mind

By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Mar 31, 2015

http://judithcurry.com/2015/03/31/criticism-tolerance-and-changing-your-mind/#more-18238

Is climate change a ‘ruin’ problem?

By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Mar 30, 2015

http://judithcurry.com/2015/03/30/is-climate-change-a-ruin-problem/

“The more uncertain or skeptical one is of “scientific” models and projections, the higher the risk of ruin, which flies in the face of the argument of the style “skeptical of climate models”.  Hence skepticim about climate models should lead to more precautionary policies.”

[SEPP Comment: The assumption in the quote is that the models have scientific validity. None have been validated, and they give a wide range of results with a given increase in CO2. Taking an average of bad estimates does not produce a good estimate, so the ensemble mean is of little value for projecting what will happen.]

Review of Recent Scientific Articles by CO2 Science

On the Impact of ‘Blue Carbon’ Disturbance Within Seagrass Beds

Macreadie, P.I., York, P.H., Sherman, C.D.H., Keough, M.J., Ross, D.J., Ricart, A.M. and Smith, T.M. 2014. No detectable impact of small-scale disturbances on ‘blue carbon’ within seagrass beds. Marine Biology 161: 2939-2944., Apr 1, 2015

http://www.co2science.org/articles/V18/apr/a1.php

[SEPP Comment: Assumptions about carbon release fail when tested.]

No Growth Stimulation of Tropical Trees Due to Atmospheric CO2 Enrichment???

van der Sleen, P., Groenendijk, P., Vlam, M., Anten, N.P.R., Boom, A., Bongers, F., Pons, T.L., Terburg, G. and Zuidema, P.A. 2014. No growth stimulation of tropical trees by 150 years of CO2 fertilization but water-use efficiency increased. Nature Geoscience 10.1038/NGEO2313. Mar 31, 2015

http://www.co2science.org/articles/V18/mar/a31.php

“How could a paper published in Nature Geoscience be so wrong???…”

4000 Years of Climate Change Based on Taiwan Bog and Lake Data

Liew, P.-M., Wu, M.-H., Lee, C.-Y., Chang, C.-L. and Lee, T.-Q. 2014. Recent 4000 years of climatic trends based on pollen records from lakes and a bog in Taiwan. Quaternary International 349: 105-112. Mar 30, 2015

http://www.co2science.org/articles/V18/mar/a30.php

“The result of this effort was a temperature history that compares well with trends that previously had been developed for China and Europe. And again, very briefly, it revealed the occurrence of a relatively long cold period from approximately 1920 BC to 30 AD, which was followed by the Roman Warm Period (about 30-360 AD), which was followed by the Dark Ages Cold Period (about 360-760 AD), which was followed by the Medieval Warm Period (about 760-1300 AD), which was followed by the Little Ice Age (about 1300-1850 AD). Then, last of all, the record depicts the gradual development of the Current Warm Period, which at this point in time appears to be at its peak, having not risen further than where it is now over the past couple of decades.

“Therefore, in light of these and other well-documented findings that are reported and analyzed in the Medieval Warm Period Project portion of the Data section of our website (co2science.org) – it can clearly be seen that there is nothing unusual, unnatural or unprecedented about the current state of earth’s warmth, which was clearly eclipsed by the Medieval Warm Period at various locations around the globe.”

A Comparison of Modeled and Observed Sea Surface Temperatures

Laepple, T. and Huybers, P. 2014b. Ocean surface temperature variability: Large model-data differences at decadal and longer periods. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 111: 16,682-16,687. Mar 30, 2015

http://www.co2science.org/articles/V18/mar/a28.php

“So just how big is substantially larger? Quoting Laepple and Huybers, the “discrepancies in variability are largest at low latitudes … reaching two orders of magnitude for tropical variability at millennial timescales.” And because a discrepancy of two orders of magnitude is difficult to ignore, they say their result “implies major deficiencies in observational estimates or model simulations, or both, and has implications for the attribution of past variations and prediction of future change.”

Models v. Observations

Satellite view of quasi-equilibrium states in tropical convection and precipitation microphysics

By Matsui, et al, Geophysical Research Letters, Mar 27, 2015 [H/t Climate Etc.]

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2015GL063261/references

PDF: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/80419501/Publication/Matsui_2015_GRL_MQE.pdf

[SEPP Comment: No Trend where the hot spot should be]]

Ocean pH Accuracy Arguments Challenged with 80 Years of Instrumental Data

Testimony before Congress was based on model hindcast, actual data ignored

By Michael Wallace, WUWT, Mar 31, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/03/31/ocean-ph-accuracy-arguments-challenged-with-80-years-of-instrumental-data/

US biologists used same flawed models for listing walrus and polar bears as ‘threatened’

By Susan Crockfrod, Polar Bear Science, Mar 30, 2015

http://polarbearscience.com/2015/03/30/us-biologists-used-same-flawed-models-for-listing-walrus-and-polar-bears-as-threatened/

“That IUCN condemnation means the USGS model was never “the best available science” for evaluating the status of polar bears ̶ it was (and still is) substandard, inadequate science that makes a mockery of serious conservation efforts.”

Measurement Issues

Direct evidence for a positive feedback in climate change

By Staff Writers, Phys.org, Mar 30, 2015

http://phys.org/news/2015-03-evidence-positive-feedback-climate.html#jCp

Link to paper: Causal feedbacks in climate change

By van Nes, Nature Climate Change, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate2568.html

Direct Evidence for a Positive Feedback in Climate Change

Press Release, Wageningen University, Mar 30, 2015

http://www.wageningenur.nl/en/newsarticle/Direct-Evidence-for-a-Positive-Feedback-in-Climate-Change.htm

Did Antarctica really have its warmest day on record?

By Thomas Richard, Examiner.com, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.examiner.com/article/did-antarctica-really-have-its-warmest-day-on-record

[SEPP Comment: The UPI claim is based on measurements taken on the tip of the trinity Peninsula, outside the Antarctic Circle.]

Public Submissions To Be Accepted By Australian Temperature Review Panel

By Graham Lloyd, The Australian, Via GWPF, Mar 30, 2015

http://www.thegwpf.com/public-submissions-to-be-accepted-by-australian-temperature-review-panel/

Changing Weather

Increased Rainfall in Tropics Caused by More Frequent Big Storms

By Staff Writers, New York NY (SPX), Mar 30, 2015 http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Increased_Rainfall_in_Tropics_Caused_by_More_Frequent_Big_Storms_999.html

[SEPP Comment: Inconsistent with paper under models v. observations.]

Arctic scare story has frozen over

Spare a thought for the people of eastern Canada, still in the grip of their most terrifying winter for decades

By Christopher Booker, Telegraph, UK, Mar 28, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/11501234/Arctic-scare-story-has-frozen-over.html

And here we have been told it’s ‘climate disruption’ causing local weather changes, when it’s actually deforestation

By Anthony Watts, WUWT, Apr 3, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/04/03/and-here-we-have-been-told-its-climate-disruption-causing-local-weather-changes-when-its-actually-deforestation/

An Engineered Drought

Shortsighted coastal elites bear most of the blame for California’s water woes.

By Victor Davis Hanson, City Journal, Apr 2, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.city-journal.org/2015/cjc0402vdh.html

[SEPP Comment: The drought is real, made worse by government policies.]

Brown orders California’s first mandatory water restrictions: ‘It’s a different world’

By Chris Megerian, Matt Stevens and Bettina Boxall, L.A. Times, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-snowpack-20150331-story.html#page=1

[SEPP Comment: Will this create dust storms requiring EPA regulations?]

California Drought: What’s Scarce Is Wisdom, Not Water

Editorial, IBD, Apr 2, 2015

http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/040215-746349-california-governor-jerry-brown-issues-water-use-restrictions.htm?p=2

Studies conclude climate change will cause less severe winters

By Jason Samenow, Washington Post, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2015/03/31/studies-conclude-climate-change-will-cause-less-severe-winters/?postshare=4571427881186043

[SEPP Comment: Unless climate change means a new ice age?]

Changing Seas

Massive study explores ocean response to abrupt climate change

By Staff Writers, San Francisco CA (SPX) ,Mar 31, 2015

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Massive_study_is_first_to_explore_historical_ocean_response_to_abrupt_climate_change_999.html

[SEPP Comment: Claims a ‘New normal’ of rapid climate change” that is not occurring. Shows that nature adapts.]

Changing Cryosphere – Land / Sea Ice

Superb sea ice conditions for polar bears worldwide during their critical feeding period

By Susan Crockford, Polar Bear Science, Apr 3, 2015

http://polarbearscience.com/2015/04/03/superb-sea-ice-conditions-for-polar-bears-worldwide-during-their-critical-feeding-period/

Confused about ice shelf decay and sea ice increase?

Explaining Antarctic ice types and their different responses to climate changes

By Fernando S. Paolo, Helen A. Fricker, Laurie Padman,, Scripps Glaciology Group, No Date

http://glaciology.weebly.com/articles.html

Link to paper: Volume loss from Antarctic ice shelves is accelerating

By Fernando S. Paolo, Helen A. Fricker, Laurie Padman, Science, Mar 26, 2015

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/early/2015/03/31/science.aaa0940.abstract

Arctic Ice Decline: A New “Pause?”

By David Whitehouse, NWPF, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.thegwpf.com/arctic-ice-decline-a-new-pause/

Arctic Ice Extent Currently Higher Than 2005

By Paul Homewood, Not a Lot of People Know That, Mar 28, 2015

https://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com/2015/03/28/arctic-ice-extent-currently-higher-than-2005/

Antarctic Sea Ice Close To Record High In March

By Paul Homewood, Not a Lot of People Know That, Apr 3, 2015

https://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com/2015/04/03/antarctic-sea-ice-close-to-record-high-in-march/

Changing Earth

Are we ready for the next volcanic catastrophe?

By Eric Worrall, WUWT, Mar 28, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/03/28/are-we-ready-for-the-next-volcanic-catastrophe/

Bidecadal North Atlantic ocean circulation variability controlled by timing of volcanic eruptions

By Swingedouw, et al, Nature Communications, Mar 30, 2015 [H/t Climate Etc.]

http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2015/150330/ncomms7545/full/ncomms7545.html

Acidic Waters

Effects of Ocean Acidification on Marine Crustaceans.

By Staff Writers, Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change, Mar 31, 2015

http://scienceandpublicpolicy.org/images/stories/papers/originals/ocean_acidification_marine_crustaceans.pdf

“As the air’s CO2 content rises in response to ever-increasing anthropogenic CO2 emissions, and as more and more carbon dioxide therefore dissolves in the surface waters of the world’s oceans, theoretical reasoning suggests the pH values of the planet’s oceanic waters should be gradually dropping. The IPCC and others postulate that this chain of events, commonly referred to as ocean acidification, will cause great harm — and possibly death — to marine life in the decades and centuries to come. However, as ever more pertinent evidence accumulates, a much more optimistic viewpoint is emerging. Such optimism is the focus of this summary examining the effects of ocean acidification on crustaceans.”

Un-Science or Non-Science?

NOAA study provides detailed projections of coral bleaching

By Staff Writers, Washington DC (SPX), Apr 02, 2015

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/NOAA_study_provides_detailed_projections_of_coral_bleaching_999.html

Link to paper: “Downscaled projections of Caribbean coral bleaching that can inform conservation planning”

By Ruben van Hooidonk, Jeffrey Allen Maynard, Yanyun Liu and Sang-Ki Lee, Climate Change Biology, Apr 1, 2015

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.12901/abstract

[SEPP Comment: Projections from models that are not validated or reliable.]

Communicating Better to the Public – Exaggerate, or be Vague?

A declaration of orthodoxy

By Andrew Montford, Bishop Hill, Apr 3, 2015

http://bishophill.squarespace.com/blog/2015/4/3/a-declaration-of-orthodoxy.html

Bill Nye The Science Guy Confuses Scientific Uncertainty Versus [With] Doubt

By Wm Briggs, Mar 30, 2015

http://wmbriggs.com/post/15612/

Deadly Japan quake and tsunami spurred global warming, ozone loss

By Staff Writers, Washington DC (SPX), Mar 31, 2015

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Deadly_Japan_quake_and_tsunami_spurred_global_warming_ozone_loss_999.html

[SEPP Comment: Without this earthquake caused “global warming” would we have global cooling?]

Communicating Better to the Public – Make things up.

Social sciences are best hope for ending debates over climate change

By Andy Hoffman, The Conversation, US, Apr 2, 2015 [H/t Clyde Spencer]

http://theconversation.com/social-sciences-are-best-hope-for-ending-debates-over-climate-change-39671?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Latest+from+The+Conversation+for+April+2+2015&utm_content=Latest+from+The+Conversation+for+April+2+2015+CID_36275c415dc1824844292f1853da24eb&utm_source=campaign_monitor_us&utm_term=Social%20sciences%20are%20best%20hope%20for%20ending%20debates%20over%20climate%20change

[SEPP Comment: The issue is the physical evidence supporting the claim that human emissions of CO2 are the primary cause of global warming/climate change. Ignoring the issue does not resolve anything.]

Coal is like “torture” rage Guardian, Friends of the Earth

By Jo Nova, Her Blog, Mar 30, 2015

http://joannenova.com.au/2015/03/coal-is-like-torture-rage-guardian-friends-of-the-earth/

Eyeroller: UW Madison says weather, er ‘climate change’ is affecting soybean yields amid record high yields

By Anthony Watts, WUWT, Mar 30, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/03/30/eyeroller-uw-madison-says-weather-er-climate-change-is-affecting-soybean-yields-amid-record-high-yields/

“But that growth could have been 30 percent higher if weather variations resulting from climate change had not occurred.”

Kerry warns of ‘climate refugees’ in not-distant future.

By Thomas Lifson, American Thinker, Mar 27, 2015

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2015/03/kerry_warns_of_climate_refugees_in_notdistant_future.html

[SEPP Comment: Earlier it was 50 million climate refugees by 2010.]

More bad news over the posited ‘climate to pine beetle’ link

By Anthony Watts, WUWT, Mar 30, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/03/30/more-bad-news-over-the-posited-climate-to-pine-beetle-link/

Southeast Asia faces increasingly intense climate events – analysts

By Joseph D’Urso, Reuters, Apr 2, 2015

http://news.yahoo.com/southeast-asia-faces-increasingly-intense-climate-events-analysts-130326846.html

[SEPP Comment: Part of the evidence is Japan’s 2011 earthquake and tsunami?]

Communicating Better to the Public – Go Personal.

Prominent Green Group Likens Fracking to Rape

Earthworks promotes staffer’s claim that Texas bill allows ‘industry to RAPE people’

By Lachlan Markay, Washington Free Beacon, Apr 1, 2015

http://freebeacon.com/issues/prominent-green-group-likens-fracking-to-rape/

Communicating Better to the Public – Use Propaganda on Children

EPA Hiring Storytelling Trainers to Increase ‘Inclusiveness’

‘Diversity dialogue initiative’

By Elizabeth Harrington, Washington Free Beacon, Apr 2, 2015 [H/t Timothy Wise]

http://freebeacon.com/issues/epa-hiring-storytelling-trainers-to-increase-inclusiveness/

National Wildlife Federation De-volves into Climate Alarmists!

By Jim Steele, WUWT, Apr 1, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/04/01/national-wildlife-federation-de-volves-into-climate-alarmists/

Expanding the Orthodoxy

Anthropocene – The New Pop Religion

By Steve Harris, WUWT, Mar 30, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/03/30/anthropocene-the-new-pop-religion/

Exploring the human side of climate change adaptation

Press Release, NSF, Apr 2, 2015

http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=134694&WT.mc_id=USNSF_1

[SEPP Comment: How can we predict future climate change without a valid model?]

Top scientists warn climate change solution could make things a lot worse

By John Siciliano, Washington Examiner, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/top-scientists-warn-climate-change-solution-could-make-things-a-lot-worse/article/2562362?utm_campaign=Washington%20Examiner:%20Politics%20Today&utm_source=Washington%20Examiner:%20Politics%20Today%20-%2004/01/15&utm_medium=email

[SEPP Comment: Would Ms. McNutt say the same if the earth was cooling?]

Questioning European Green

Germany’s Leading Daily Calls For An End To Green Energy Subsidies! Calls Green Promises “A Fairy Tale”

By P Gosselin, No Tricks Zone, Apr 3, 2015

http://notrickszone.com/2015/04/03/germanys-leading-daily-calls-for-an-end-to-green-energy-subsidies-calls-green-promises-a-fairy-tale/#sthash.Ajkw5QFG.dpbs

It’s Official: Most Efficient Gas-Fired Power Plant To Be Shut Down Due To Losses Stemming From “Energiewende”

By P Gosselin, No Tricks Zone, Mar 30, 2015

http://notrickszone.com/2015/03/30/its-official-most-efficient-gas-fired-power-plant-to-be-shut-down-due-to-losses-stemming-from-energiewende/#sthash.UJKzELyS.dpbs

The Desecration of Devon: The Duchess of Cornwall’s son-in-law has just developed this 50-acre, 25-year, solar farm. And through green levies on your power bills, YOU are paying for it… £430,000 every year

By David Rose, Sunday Mail, UK, Mar 28, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3016115/The-Desecration-Devon-Duchess-Cornwall-s-son-law-just-built-50-acre-solar-farm-green-levies-power-bills-paying-430-000-year.html

[SEPP Comment: Industrial solar is not pretty. Yet, Greens in Britain cite visual blight as a reason for opposing hydraulic fracturing for natural gas, which has a far less permanent visual impact.]

Questioning Green Elsewhere

Reassessing the Antiquities Act

By Staff Writers, NCPA, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=25513&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DPD

Link to report: The Antiquated Act: Time to Repeal the Antiquities Act,

By Nicolas Loris, The Heritage Foundation, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2015/03/the-antiquated-act-time-to-repeal-the-antiquities-act

[SEPP Comment: Another example how well-intended legislation becomes distorted and abused in Washington.]

Funding Issues

The tip of the climate spending iceberg

By Paul Driessen, ICECAP, Apr 2, 2015

http://icecap.us/index.php/go/political-climate/the_tip_of_the_climate_spending_iceberg1/

UN At Odds With World Bank Over Coal Power

By Paul Homewood, Not a Lot of People Know That, Mar 31, 2015

https://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/un-at-odds-with-world-bank-over-coal-power/

The Political Games Continue

Senate GOP presses EPA on climate models

By Timothy Cama, The Hill, Apr 1, 2015

http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/237669-senate-gop-presses-epa-on-climate-models

[SEPP Comment: What a novel thought. How accurate are your models in predictions? The product may be down to one-hundreds of a decimal point but off by multiple integers. See link immediately below.]

Dear Gina (and Jerry): Where’s the Climate Science Behind Your Plan (Carbon Tax)?

By Robert Bradley, Master Resource, Apr 3, 2015

https://www.masterresource.org/environmental-protection-agency/dear-epa-and-jerry-wheres-the-climate-science-behind-your-plan-and-tax/

Link to letter sent to US EPA Administrator by the US Senate Committee on Environmental & Public Works, April 1, 2015

http://www.sessions.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/db079461-fa1e-4567-a03e-9c63c4733ea0/epw-letter-to-mccarthy-over-inaccuracy-of-climate-models.pdf

Cap-and-Trade and Carbon Taxes

Senate Passes Bill Blocking A Carbon Tax

By Michael Bastasch, Daily Caller, Mar 27, 2015

http://dailycaller.com/2015/03/27/senate-passes-bill-blocking-a-carbon-tax/

U.K. Coal Plants Risk Summer Closures as Carbon Tax Hits Profits

By Rachel Morison, Bloomberg, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-04-01/u-k-coal-plants-risk-summer-closures-as-carbon-tax-hits-profits

Subsidies and Mandates Forever

EIA Report: Subsidies Continue to Roll In For Wind and Solar

By Staff Writers, IER, Mar 18, 2015 [H/t AWED]

http://instituteforenergyresearch.org/analysis/eia-subsidy-report-solar-subsidies-increase-389-percent/

Link to report: Direct Federal Financial Interventions and Subsidies in Energy in Fiscal Year 2013

By Staff Writers, EIA, Mar 12, revised Mar 23, 2015

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

“EIA’s report shows that on a total dollar basis, wind energy has the highest federal subsidy. However, on a unit of production basis, solar energy is by far the costliest form of electricity production. Both of these technologies are being promoted by the Obama Administration and many environmentalists in lieu of the more cost effective fossil fuels.”

Pulling the plug on renewable energy

States with mandates suffer exploding electricity prices

By H. Sterling Burnett, The Washington Times, Mar 29, 2015

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/mar/29/h-sterling-burnett-pulling-the-plug-on-renewable-e/

The RFS Fallacy

By Staff Writers, IER, Apr 1, 2015

http://instituteforenergyresearch.org/analysis/the-rfs-fallacy/

[SEPP Comment: The Renewable Fuel Standard (mandate) is failing. Production requirements will not be met, 10% ethanol levels are damaging small engines, and the fuel is not as efficient as straight gasoline. In addition, RFS is not needed for national security. Oil and natural gas from US shale has replaced most possible domestic need for RFS. The Keystone XL pipeline, for which Washington is greatly delaying approvals, would have removed other possible import need.]

EPA and other Regulators on the March

More Executive Overreach, This Time from the EPA

By Ilya Shapiro, Townhall, Mar 29, 2015 [H/t Clyde Spencer]

http://townhall.com/columnists/ilyashapiro/2015/03/29/more-executive-overreach-this-time-from-the-epa-n1977499/page/full

The EPA’s Mercury Rule Will Cost The Economy At Least $16 Billion Per Year

By Brian Potts, Forbes, Apr 3, 2015

http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2015/04/03/the-epas-mercury-rule-will-cost-the-economy-at-least-16-billion-per-year/

Energy Issues – Non-US

Debacle: As Germany Adds 70 Gigawatts Of Green Electricity, Its Fossil Fuel Capacity Reaches New Record High!

By P Gosselin, No Tricks Zone, Mar 28, 2015

http://notrickszone.com/2015/03/28/debacle-as-germany-adds-70-gigawatts-of-green-electricity-its-fossil-fuel-capacity-reaches-new-record-high/#sthash.nMEfoUP6.dpbs

‘Expert’ Report On Fracking Risks Was Written By Green Activist

By Ben Webster, The Times, Via GWPF, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.thegwpf.com/expert-report-on-fracking-risks-was-written-by-green-activist/

Tories Place Energy Policy at Heart of Manifesto

By Euan Means, Energy Matters, Apr 1, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://euanmearns.com/tories-place-energy-policy-at-heart-of-manifesto/

Energy Issues — US

Hail Shale

2014 Was A Banner Year for US Energy

By Tom Doggell and staff, The American Interest, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.the-american-interest.com/2015/03/31/2014-was-a-banner-year-for-us-energy/

Link to EIA report: U.S. oil production growth in 2014 was largest in more than 100 years

By Staff Writers, EIA, Mar 30, 2015

http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=20572

Washington’s Control of Energy

U.S. pursues aggressive energy agenda as it takes over major Arctic group

By John Siciliano, Washington Examiner, Apr 2, 2015

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/u.s.-pursues-aggressive-energy-agenda-as-it-takes-over-major-arctic-group/article/2562430?utm_campaign=Washington%20Examiner:%20Politics%20Today&utm_source=Washington%20Examiner:%20Politics%20Today%20-%2004/02/15&utm_medium=email

[SEPP Comment: The administration is willing to lead everywhere except in understanding the history of the earth’s climate and the natural influences on climate.]

Obama administration issues fracking regulations for federal land

By Staff Writers

American Council on Science and Health, Mar 24, 2015

http://acsh.org/2015/03/obama-administration-issues-fracking-regulations-for-federal-land/

A geoscientist’s take on new U.S. fracking rules

By Susan Cosier, Science Mag, Apr 1, 2015 [H/t Toshio Fujita]

http://news.sciencemag.org/earth/2015/04/geoscientist-s-take-new-u-s-fracking-rules

[SEPP Comment: Justifying unneeded federal regulations.]

EPA chief: Keystone wouldn’t be a ‘disaster’ for climate

By Timothy Cama, The Hill, Mar 30, 2015

http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/237379-epa-chief-keystone-wouldnt-be-a-disaster-for-climate

Oil and Natural Gas – the Future or the Past?

Fracking Now Accounts for Half Our Gas and Oil

Editorial, Real Clear Energy, Apr 2, 2015

http://www.realclearenergy.org/charticles/2015/04/02/fracking_now_accountes_for_half_our_gas_and_oil.html

Barnett Shale play on hiatus

By Max Baker, AP, Mar 29, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/mar/29/barnett-shale-play-on-hiatus/print/

[SEPP Comment: The shale oil and gas revolution started with the Barnett Shale formation in Texas. Now, it is no longer economically feasible to drill new gas wells.]

Oil Spills, Gas Leaks & Consequences

Flames engulf oil platform in Gulf, 4 workers dead

By Staff Writer, AP, Apr 1, 2015

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/04/01/oil-platform-fire/70813628/

[SEPP Comment: Will this accident in Mexican waters prompt demands by anti-fossil fuel groups for greater drilling restrictions in American waters?]

Methane in drinking water unrelated to fracking, study suggests

By Eric Hand, Science Insider, Mar 30, 2015

http://news.sciencemag.org/environment/2015/03/methane-drinking-water-unrelated-fracking-study-suggests

New Regs Ignore Fact Fracking Doesn’t Taint Well Water

Editorial, IBD, Apr 1, 2015

http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/040115-746116-fracking-does-not-taint-drinking-water.htm?p=full

Nuclear Energy and Fears

First New Nuclear Unit in U.S. in Nearly 20 Years Is on Track to Begin Operating in 2015

By Aaron Larson, Power Mag, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.powermag.com/first-new-nuclear-unit-in-u-s-in-nearly-20-years-is-on-track-to-begin-operating-in-2015/?hq_e=el&hq_m=3055066&hq_l=13&hq_v=5e660500d0

Alternative, Green (“Clean”) Solar and Wind

Rooftop Solar is Harmful, Part 1 & 2

By Donn Dears, Power For USA, Mar 31, 2015

https://dddusmma.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/rooftop-solar-is-harmful-part-1/

Rooftop Solar is Harmful, Part 2

By Donn Dears, Power For USA, Apr 3, 2015

https://dddusmma.wordpress.com/2015/04/03/rooftop-solar-is-harmful-part-2/

[SEPP Comment: Great exposé on the myths of PV Solar]

Revenge of the renewables: How wind and solar play in Germany and Texas

By Jeff Ryser, Platts, Apr 2, 2015

http://blogs.platts.com/2015/04/02/revenge-of-the-renewables-how-wind-and-solar-play-in-germany-and-texas/

Global turbine O&M spend to hit $17bn by 2020

By Katherine Steiner-Dicks, Wind Energy Update, Mar 30, 2015

http://social.windenergyupdate.com/operations-maintenance/global-turbine-om-spend-hit-17bn-2020?utm_campaign=WIND%2001APR15%20Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&utm_source=WEU%20Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=WEU%2031%2F03&elqTrackId=7CD0AC49E168006E9E1C9F22FA9D5FF0&elq=570cb217c4c14739b10024d03245cb82&elqCampaignId=1493&elqaid=3817&elqat=1

“On average, offshore O&M is two to four times more expensive than onshore O&M. Offshore wind power accounted for about 2.4 % of the world’s cumulative wind power capacity in 2014, but accounts for approximately 10% of the global wind O&M market.”

Controversy Surrounding Wind Power’s Potential

By Staff Writers, NCPA, Apr 3, 2015

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=25524&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DPD

Link to report: Obama Administration Report Overstates Wind Power’s Potential, Understates Costs and Limitations

By Julian Morris, Reason Foundation, Mar 24, 2015

http://reason.org/news/show/white-house-claims-about-wind-power

A New “Bird Friendly” Altamont Pass?

By Jim Wiegand, Master Resource, Apr 2, 2015

https://www.masterresource.org/cuisinarts-of-the-air/bird-reform-altamont-pass/

China Puts The Brakes On New Solar Production Capacity

By Doug Young, Alt Energy Stocks, Mar 31, 2015 [H/t GWPF]

http://www.altenergystocks.com/archives/2015/03/china_puts_the_brakes_on_new_solar_production_capacity.html

Carbon Schemes

Carbon capture and storage is not coming to the rescue

By Matt Ridley, Rational Optimist, Mar 28, 2015

http://www.rationaloptimist.com/blog/carbon-capture-and-storage-is-not-coming-to-the-rescue.aspx

Health, Energy, and Climate

Pesticides and sperm quality: A quintessential example of junk science

By Staff Writers, ACSH, Mar 31, 2015

http://acsh.org/2015/03/pesticides-and-sperm-quality-a-quintessential-example-of-junk-science/

[SEPP Comment: What part of pesticides that humans generally ingest is naturally occurring, and what part is applied?]

Environmental Industry

Greens gone wild on college campuses

By Naomi Schaefer Riley, New York Post, Mar 30, 2015

http://nypost.com/2015/03/30/greens-gone-wild-on-college-campuses/

A big shoutout to Dr. Patrick Moore, who dared to challenge Greenpeace on GMOs

By Staff Writers, ACSH, Apr 1, 2015

http://acsh.org/2015/04/a-big-shoutout-to-dr-patrick-moore-who-dared-to-challenge-greenpeace-on-gmos/

Other Scientific News

Major publisher retracts 43 scientific papers amid wider fake peer-review scandal

By Fred Barbash, Washington Post, Mar 27, 2015 [H/t Climate Depot]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/03/27/fabricated-peer-reviews-prompt-scientific-journal-to-retract-43-papers-systematic-scheme-may-affect-other-journals/?tid=hp_mm&hpid=z3

Three Retractions for Highly Cited Author

Robert Weinberg’s team at MIT is pulling three papers, noting some figure panels were composites of different experiments.

By Kerry Grens, The Scientist, Mar 19, 2015 [H/t Catherine French]

http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/42503/title/Three-Retractions-for-Highly-Cited-Author/

Other News that May Be of Interest

Who Trashes Liberal Arts?

By Thomas Sowell, Real Clear Politics, Mar 31, 2015

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2015/03/31/who_trashes_liberal_arts_126096.html

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BELOW THE BOTTOM LINE:

CERN researchers confirm existence of the Force

By Anthony Watts, WUWT, Apr 1, 2015

http://wattsupwiththat.com/2015/04/01/cern-researchers-confirm-existence-of-the-force/

Will Global Warming Cause Prostitution

By John Hinderaker, Power Line, Mar 28, 2015 [H/t Timothy Wise]

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2015/03/will-global-warming-cause-prostitution.php

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