Tag Archives: policy

President Obama’s Climate Change Plan

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The Obama Administration is tackling climate change.  In a speech delivered at Georgetown University yesterday – outdoors in sweltering 90°F heat – the President outlined his plan to combat this pressing issue.

The three key points of his strategy are: cutting carbon pollution in America, preparing the U.S. for the impacts of climate change, and leading international efforts to cut global emissions.  While highlighting a number of measures in each category, one of the most significant aspects of this plan is to cut carbon dioxide emissions from both new and existing power plants. Coal-fired power plants are responsible for one-third of this country’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Emphasizing the need to act quickly, these measures will be put in place by executive order and not Congress. The President stated, “Americans across the country are already paying the price of inaction” and he would not tolerate politicized attempts to cast doubt on the scientific consensus of climate change.  Putting it bluntly, he said, “We don’t have time for a meeting of the flat earth society.”

The Perception Gap on Climate Change

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Climate Change seems to be suffering from a public relations problem.  Despite the fact that extreme weather events like heat waves, droughts, and floods are becoming more prevalent around the world, there is still a perception gap between the scientific community and the general public.

According to a study recently published in the journal, Environmental Research Letters, 97% of climate scientists agree that climate change is real and that it is the result of human activities. The study, led by John Cook of the University of Queensland and founder of the website skepticalscience.com, examined nearly 12,000 peer-reviewed climate papers published in more than a thousand different journals between 1991 and 2011.  While there have been similar surveys in the past – with comparable results – this one was the broadest to date and re-affirmed the scientific consensus.

In contrast, pubic opinion is still uncertain. A poll taken by the Pew Research Center last autumn shows that while most Americans acknowledge the climate is changing, only 42% believe it is a human-caused problem. This disconnect is very troubling, because before a problem can be addressed, let alone solved, it needs to be acknowledged.

 

NWS Changes Hurricane Warning Policy

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The National Hurricane Center, in the aftermath of Super-storm Sandy, drew heavy criticism for not issuing a warning in the northeastern United States ahead of the storm.  In response, the NHC announced yesterday that it is changing its policy for how post tropical storm warnings are delivered to the public.

According to the National Weather Service, Sandy was a category-1 hurricane that merged with a cold front and transitioned to a post tropical storm just prior to coming ashore.  Simply put, this means the storm’s energy source changed.  Nonetheless, it still delivered hurricane-strength winds and a devastating storm surge.  While the NWS explanation was technically correct, the change in nomenclature proved to be a source of confusion and led many people to under estimate the threat posed by the historic storm.

Until now, the NHC was only allowed to publish warnings for narrowly defined hurricanes and tropical storms.  With the implementation of the new policies, however, the hurricane center will be able to keep warnings and advisories in place for storms that threaten people and property, even if they lose their tropical characteristics. The new procedures go into effect on June 1st, the official start of the 2013 Atlantic Hurricane Season. Hopefully, this new approach will avoid any misperceptions in future.

Forecasting the Impacts of Federal Budget Cuts

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The government does not control the weather.  It does, however, exercise significant power over scientists’ ability to produce reliable forecasts.

Sequestration, the current budget crisis plaguing Congress, threatens widespread automatic spending cuts for all federal agencies starting March 1st.  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s satellite program is one of many facing disruption. The agency’s current polar-orbiting weather satellite, Suomi NPP, is due to retire in 2016.  Without funding to develop and launch a replacement, there will be a significant decline in the amount of data available for the computer models that are used to forecast the weather.  Simply put, less data means less accurate forecasts.  This will be especially important when meteorologists try to determine the path of future life threatening weather events like hurricanes and blizzards.

The sequestration is also expected to cut billions of dollars in federal aid to the victims of Hurricane Sandy and reduce FEMA’s ability to respond to future natural disasters.

Climate Rally in DC

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“Forward on Climate“, the largest climate rally ever held in this country took place yesterday afternoon in Washington, DC.  The event came just five days after President Obama’s State of the Union Address, in which he called on Congress to take action on climate change.

According to organizers – a variety of environmental groups – an estimated 35,000 concerned citizens from thirty states braved sub-freezing temperatures to rally on the National Mall and march to the White House.  In doing so, they urged lawmakers to reduce U.S. carbon emissions and support renewable energy. Many of the attendees, however, were specifically imploring the President to reject the Keystone XL Pipeline construction proposal.

If approved, the pipeline would carry Canadian tar sand oil across America’s agricultural heartland to refineries along the Gulf Coast. The consequences of a spill in this region would be catastrophic to farming, ranching, and the Ogallala Aquifer – an immense underground supply of freshwater used for drinking and irrigation by millions of people.

Tar sand oil is a viscous fossil fuel that is heavier and dirtier than conventional crude oil.  Its extraction process is also extremely energy intensive.  According to a National Resources Defense Council report, the production of one barrel of tar sand oil releases three times the amount of greenhouse gases compared to one barrel of traditional crude.

Environmental groups see the approval of the pipeline as not only sanctifying the production and use of tar sand oil, but also extending this country’s economic reliance on fossil fuels and increasing carbon pollution.

Protesters at the "Forward on Climate" rally in Washington, DC

Activists at the “Forward on Climate” rally in Washington, DC

Image Credit: 350.0rg

State of the Union 2013: Climate Change

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The issue of climate change was front and center last night during President Obama’s State of the Union Address.  He highlighted the increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events:

“We can choose to believe that Super-storm Sandy, and the most severe drought in decades, and the worst wildfires some states have ever seen were all just a freak coincidence.  Or we can choose to believe in the overwhelming judgment of science – and act before it’s too late.”

The President also urged Congress to pass legislation that would combat climate change by reducing carbon emissions and further developing cleaner, more sustainable sources of energy.