Post by Mech on Jul 1, 2007 16:33:09 GMT -5
Alarmist global warming claims melt
under scientific scrutiny
JAMES M. TAYLOR
Chicago
Sun Times
Sunday July 1, 2007
In his new book, The Assault on Reason, Al Gore pleads, "We must
stop tolerating the rejection and distortion of science. We must insist
on an end to the cynical use of pseudo-studies known to be false for
the purpose of intentionally clouding the public's ability to discern
the truth." Gore repeatedly asks that science and reason displace
cynical political posturing as the central focus of public discourse.
If Gore really means what he writes, he has an opportunity to make
a difference by leading by example on the issue of global warming.
A cooperative and productive discussion of global warming must be open
and honest regarding the science. Global warming threats ought to be
studied and mitigated, and they should not be deliberately exaggerated
as a means of building support for a desired political position.
Many of the assertions Gore makes in his movie, ''An Inconvenient Truth,''
have been refuted by science, both before and after he made them. Gore
can show sincerity in his plea for scientific honesty by publicly acknowledging
where science has rebutted his claims.
For example, Gore claims that Himalayan glaciers are shrinking and
global warming is to blame. Yet the September 2006 issue of the American
Meteorological Society's Journal of Climate reported, "Glaciers
are growing in the Himalayan Mountains, confounding global warming alarmists
who recently claimed the glaciers were shrinking and that global warming
was to blame."
Gore claims the snowcap atop Africa's Mt. Kilimanjaro is shrinking
and that global warming is to blame. Yet according to the November 23,
2003, issue of Nature magazine, "Although it's tempting to blame
the ice loss on global warming, researchers think that deforestation
of the mountain's foothills is the more likely culprit. Without the
forests' humidity, previously moisture-laden winds blew dry. No longer
replenished with water, the ice is evaporating in the strong equatorial
sunshine."
Gore claims global warming is causing more tornadoes. Yet the United
Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change stated in February
that there has been no scientific link established between global warming
and tornadoes.
Gore claims global warming is causing more frequent and severe hurricanes.
However, hurricane expert Chris Landsea published a study on May 1 documenting
that hurricane activity is no higher now than in decades past. Hurricane
expert William Gray reported just a few days earlier, on April 27, that
the number of major hurricanes making landfall on the U.S. Atlantic
coast has declined in the past 40 years. Hurricane scientists reported
in the April 18 Geophysical Research Letters that global warming enhances
wind shear, which will prevent a significant increase in future hurricane
activity.
Gore claims global warming is causing an expansion of African deserts.
However, the Sept. 16, 2002, issue of New Scientist reports, "Africa's
deserts are in 'spectacular' retreat . . . making farming viable again
in what were some of the most arid parts of Africa."
Gore argues Greenland is in rapid meltdown, and that this threatens
to raise sea levels by 20 feet. But according to a 2005 study in the
Journal of Glaciology, "the Greenland ice sheet is thinning at
the margins and growing inland, with a small overall mass gain."
In late 2006, researchers at the Danish Meteorological Institute reported
that the past two decades were the coldest for Greenland since the 1910s.
Gore claims the Antarctic ice sheet is melting because of global warming.
Yet the Jan. 14, 2002, issue of Nature magazine reported Antarctica
as a whole has been dramatically cooling for decades. More recently,
scientists reported in the September 2006 issue of the British journal
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society Series A: Mathematical,
Physical, and Engineering Sciences, that satellite measurements of the
Antarctic ice sheet showed significant growth between 1992 and 2003.
And the U.N. Climate Change panel reported in February 2007 that Antarctica
is unlikely to lose any ice mass during the remainder of the century.
Each of these cases provides an opportunity for Gore to lead by example
in his call for an end to the distortion of science. Will he rise to
the occasion? Only time will tell.
James M. Taylor is senior fellow for environment policy at the Heartland
Institute.
under scientific scrutiny
JAMES M. TAYLOR
Chicago
Sun Times
Sunday July 1, 2007
In his new book, The Assault on Reason, Al Gore pleads, "We must
stop tolerating the rejection and distortion of science. We must insist
on an end to the cynical use of pseudo-studies known to be false for
the purpose of intentionally clouding the public's ability to discern
the truth." Gore repeatedly asks that science and reason displace
cynical political posturing as the central focus of public discourse.
If Gore really means what he writes, he has an opportunity to make
a difference by leading by example on the issue of global warming.
A cooperative and productive discussion of global warming must be open
and honest regarding the science. Global warming threats ought to be
studied and mitigated, and they should not be deliberately exaggerated
as a means of building support for a desired political position.
Many of the assertions Gore makes in his movie, ''An Inconvenient Truth,''
have been refuted by science, both before and after he made them. Gore
can show sincerity in his plea for scientific honesty by publicly acknowledging
where science has rebutted his claims.
For example, Gore claims that Himalayan glaciers are shrinking and
global warming is to blame. Yet the September 2006 issue of the American
Meteorological Society's Journal of Climate reported, "Glaciers
are growing in the Himalayan Mountains, confounding global warming alarmists
who recently claimed the glaciers were shrinking and that global warming
was to blame."
Gore claims the snowcap atop Africa's Mt. Kilimanjaro is shrinking
and that global warming is to blame. Yet according to the November 23,
2003, issue of Nature magazine, "Although it's tempting to blame
the ice loss on global warming, researchers think that deforestation
of the mountain's foothills is the more likely culprit. Without the
forests' humidity, previously moisture-laden winds blew dry. No longer
replenished with water, the ice is evaporating in the strong equatorial
sunshine."
Gore claims global warming is causing more tornadoes. Yet the United
Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change stated in February
that there has been no scientific link established between global warming
and tornadoes.
Gore claims global warming is causing more frequent and severe hurricanes.
However, hurricane expert Chris Landsea published a study on May 1 documenting
that hurricane activity is no higher now than in decades past. Hurricane
expert William Gray reported just a few days earlier, on April 27, that
the number of major hurricanes making landfall on the U.S. Atlantic
coast has declined in the past 40 years. Hurricane scientists reported
in the April 18 Geophysical Research Letters that global warming enhances
wind shear, which will prevent a significant increase in future hurricane
activity.
Gore claims global warming is causing an expansion of African deserts.
However, the Sept. 16, 2002, issue of New Scientist reports, "Africa's
deserts are in 'spectacular' retreat . . . making farming viable again
in what were some of the most arid parts of Africa."
Gore argues Greenland is in rapid meltdown, and that this threatens
to raise sea levels by 20 feet. But according to a 2005 study in the
Journal of Glaciology, "the Greenland ice sheet is thinning at
the margins and growing inland, with a small overall mass gain."
In late 2006, researchers at the Danish Meteorological Institute reported
that the past two decades were the coldest for Greenland since the 1910s.
Gore claims the Antarctic ice sheet is melting because of global warming.
Yet the Jan. 14, 2002, issue of Nature magazine reported Antarctica
as a whole has been dramatically cooling for decades. More recently,
scientists reported in the September 2006 issue of the British journal
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society Series A: Mathematical,
Physical, and Engineering Sciences, that satellite measurements of the
Antarctic ice sheet showed significant growth between 1992 and 2003.
And the U.N. Climate Change panel reported in February 2007 that Antarctica
is unlikely to lose any ice mass during the remainder of the century.
Each of these cases provides an opportunity for Gore to lead by example
in his call for an end to the distortion of science. Will he rise to
the occasion? Only time will tell.
James M. Taylor is senior fellow for environment policy at the Heartland
Institute.