| NOAA Vindicated, Deniers Look Dumb: New research has confirmed that there was no global warming “pause” in the mid-2000s, validating the work of government scientists and squashing a favorite argument of climate change deniers. In July of 2015, NOAA released a paper correcting some of its data on ocean temperatures and suggesting a larger range of warming since 2000. Deniers seized the opportunity to accuse the agency of altering data for political purposes, and the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, led by the famously science-averse Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), filed a subpoena for all communications on the study. However, a new analysis published yesterday in Science Advances independently confirms the “cool bias” in NOAA’s previous data and supports the assertion that the planet is warming consistently. (Washington Post$, AP, InsideClimate News, Huffington Post, PBS, Ars Technica, The Verge, Scientific American. Commentary: The Guardian, John Abraham analysis, The Atlantic, Robinson Meyer analysis, ThinkProgress, Sam Page analysis)
Obama Coal & Methane Rules In GOP Crosshairs: The GOP will prioritize eliminating Obama’s recent regulations on coal mining near streams and rules to reduce methane emissions in the new session, party leaders confirmed this week. Speaker Kevin McCarthy called the methane and coal regulations “limits to our energy production” in a Wednesdayspeech on the House floor, and told reporters Tuesday night that the stream rule is the “highest priority” for elimination. Killing these regulations are part of a larger move by Republicans to utilize the Congressional Review Act, which would allow Congress to block some of Obama’s last-minute executive actions. (Washington Post $, AP, Politico Pro$, The Hill, E&E $, Morning Consult)
China’s Renewables Bonanza: China will invest 2.5tn yuan, or $361 billion, into renewable energy by 2020, the country’s energy agency announced Thursday. The agency estimates the move will create over 13 million jobs and put the country on track to sourcing 15% of its energy from renewables by the end of the decade. The announcement comes as smog, largely caused by coal pollution, engulfs Beijing, closing down highways and causing visibility of less than 50m in some areas. (Investments: Reuters, Huffington Post, Climate Home. Smog: Reuters, NBC.)
The Climate Movement’s Diversity Problem: The lack of diversity in the environmental movement will impede climate action in Trump’s America, two op-eds published this week argue. Charles Ellison’s essay in The Root points to the problem of a “green ceiling” of representation of people of color in climate organizations and conversations, while four professors from the University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication write in Quartz that the environmental movement, “designed by and for a white, upper-middle-class demographic,” has “failed” communities of color. Both pieces call for the movement to embrace efforts led and designed by people of color, and to endorse policies that meet the needs of communities affected by environmental racism. (Commentary: The Root, Quartz) |
