More on the Bush-era greenhouse gas endangerment recommendation
The release of documents discussed in Holly’s post ends the story of one of the more ridiculous of the last Administration’s unceasing efforts to delay climate change regulation. Scientists and policymakers at EPA had concluded that greenhouse gases were a danger to the public and should be regulated under the Clean Air Act. They sent an email, with accompanying memo, to the White House saying so. Rather than deal with the substance of the message and its consequences, the White House took an easier route: It refused to open the email.
The episode was splashed across the pages of the Washington Post and lampooned, hilariously, by Jon Stewart (if you haven’t seen Stewart’s great clip, or you have seen it but are beginning to forget what life was like pre-Obama, treat yourself).
Here’s a link to the infamous unopened email and its 28-page attachment that is not password-protected.
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About Cara
Cara Horowitz is the executive director of the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at UCLA School of Law. The Emmett Institute was founded as the firs…
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Cara said:
“…Late 2007 saw one of the more ridiculous of the last Administration’s unceasing efforts to delay climate change regulation…”
Dear Cara,
In retrospect, the efforts of the last Administration seem entirely reasonable given the fact that our global climate has actually been experiencing a cooling trend which continues today. Our fears about potential catastrophic impacts of global warming have been effectively resolved by an act of God. We be should be thankful.
Mr Coody, are you for real?
There is a single article on BBC that suggests that the last eleven years of relative cooling might upend some climate scientists’ predictions w/r/t global warming. But, if you actually read more than the first paragraph you’ll see that most climate scientists agree that eleven years is not a trend, and that periods of stasis or even cooling are to be expected.
Nowhere does it suggest that the last eleven years proves that continuing to pump CO2 into the atmosphere at unprecedented levels is safe, and that CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere have nothing to do with climate change. Do you realize that the CO2 concentrations in the ocean have everything to do with how much calcium can be dissolved in the water, the pH level of the water, and therefore ability of entire classes of animals, like corals, to exist? Do you understand that the permafrost, which continues to melt rapidly, becomes dark colored as it thaws, absorbing more heat, and releasing even more CO2 in a race condition so intense that it will not likely be offset by the predicted increased growth of green plants in the region?
I guess not. Keep on thanking God for your entirely responsible Bush administration. Drive a hummer, invest in coal, whatevs. Global warming – just a crock of sh*t.
John said:
“…Keep on thanking God…”
Dear John,
I am thankful that the predicted floods, famine, disease, and human suffering due to global warming has not yet occurred, and hopefully never will.
In retrospect, the relative cooling trend over the last eleven years is a welcome relief which will likely have a significant impact on pending climate change legislation.
It is always interesting afterwards…