Climate Progress

So the fall season has begun and, as expected, shows from Boston Legal to Moonlight are going green — even William Shatner got into the act. I’d be very interested in hearing from readers if any of their favorite shows had a green element.

In the opening voiceover of the second season opener, genetics professor Mohinder Suresh (Sendhil Ramamurthy) says that humanity’s problems, including global warming, are “insurmountable” without our Heroes. Shades of The 4400.

I’m glad the writers mentioned global warming. But the way they did leaves the impression that we can’t solve the problem without superhuman abilities. And people can’t fly or teleport or heal themselves from any injury — can they?

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The Post has a good article on the DC area’s high emissions, “D.C. Area Outpaces Nations in Pollution: High Carbon Emission Blamed On Coal Plants.” The reporter came to my house and I showed him some of the things I have done to lower my carbon footprint. Here is what he wrote:

The Washington area produces more carbon dioxide than several medium-size European countries, according to a new estimate of local emissions, as the region’s crawling traffic and coal-fired power plants give it a pollution “footprint” out of proportion to its size….

In Woodley Park, environmental blogger Joseph Romm made his own changes, remodeling his home to include energy-saving appliances and an energy-generating solar array on the roof. He works from home most days and drives a hybrid Toyota Prius when he does leave.

“If you have come to the view that global warming is the biggest problem facing this country,” said Romm, who writes about climate change, “then I think you have to do something.”

Too bad he didn’t mention the blog’s name. But at least anyone who googles my name will be able to find this site.

The climate science is in. The need for action is indisputable. The goal is clear. Or is it? Consider these few examples:

• Sixteen of the nation’s top environmental leaders tell Congress we must reduce America’s “global warming emissions” by 15-20% below current levels by 2020.

• The U.S. Climate Action Partnership — a coalition of environmental groups and corporations — proposes that greenhouse gas emissions reach 90-100% in 10 years, compared to what they are when a cap and trade bill is enacted.

• Six Western Governors sign the Western Climate Initiative, calling for greenhouse gas reductions of 15% below 2005 by 2020.

• California passes legislation calling for emissions to drop to 100% of 1990 levels by 2020.

• The European Union sets its targets at 20% below 1990 emissions by 2020. But it’s willing to go to 30% if others do.

• Meeting in Vienna a month ago, 1,000 delegates from 158 countries agree that industrialized nations should cut their greenhouse gas emissions 25-40% below 1990 levels by 2020.

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Bush has given us a new drinking game: Down a shot whenever the President uses the word “technology” in a climate speech. You’d get 19 shots for today’s 21 minute speech!

As predicted Bush closely follows the Frank Luntz playbook on how to seem like you care about the climate when you don’t. Bush stated the basic do-nothing message well:

Our investments in research and technology are bringing the world closer to a remarkable breakthrough – an age of clean energy where we can power our growing economies and improve the lives of our people and be responsible stewards of the earth the Almighty trusted to our care.

Translation: “If we had those technologies today, then maybe we could take genuine action now. But, darn it, people, we don’t. We can’t grow the economy and be responsible stewards of the earth quite yet. We are close, though, so be patient already and stop with all those calls for mandatory regulation. Sheesh!”

Since this is the main message of the shrewd Luntz-led delayers, who realized years ago it could be politically dangerous to be seen as opposing all action on global warming, let me repeat Luntz’s advice from his 2002 and 2005 memos to conservatives [both must-reads for progressives]. In his 2002 “Straight Talk” memo on climate change messaging he writes:

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Momentarily, the conservative media fudged their climate coverage - but this time it was a bit personal.

In a front-page article for The Washington Times this week, the statements of Kit Batten–the Center for American Progress’s head of energy and environmental policy–were severely misconstrued. In its article on the climate talks in D.C. this week, the paper wrote:

Kit Batten, director of energy and environmental policy at the Center for American Progress, said she did not think the U.S. meetings would “pull away a lot of large emitting nations that have committed to the Kyoto process.”

Except that’s not Batten’s stance at all, nor does that represent Batten’s message during her interview with The Washington Times. Hours later, you can see a much-appreciated editorial correction:

CORRECTION: Due to an editing error, The Washington Times today incorrectly stated the position of Kit Batten, director of energy and environmental policy at the Center for American Progress. Ms. Batten said she was afraid that U.S. conferences on global warming would “pull away a lot of large emitting nations that have committed to the Kyoto process.”

Doh! Bush’s climate summit is nothing more than an obstructionist greenwashing stunt.

The U.S. media in general has blown the climate story countless times, and frankly, wouldn’t it be nice to see bolded CORRECTIONs plastered on each and every one of those pieces?

Once again, the foreign media coverage is not fooled by Bush’s PR stunt, while the U.S. media buys the White House line. UK’s The Independent labeled this a “Greenwashing Climate Summit” in its headline, and opened their story with:

For the first time in 16 years, a major environmental conference opens in Washington, hosted by the Bush administration. But no concrete results are expected, and that — say European participants — is the point of this high-level meeting.

Far from representing a Damascene conversion on climate change by President George Bush, the two-day gathering of the world’s biggest polluting nations is aimed at undermining the UN’s efforts to tackle global warming, say European sources. “The conference was called at very short notice,” said one participant. “It’s a cynical exercise in destabilising the UN process.”

So how does the AP puff piece on the summit begin?

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Man causing climate change - poll - BBB News. On average, 79% of respondents to the BBC survey of 22,000 people in 21 countries agreed that “human activity, including industry and transportation, is a significant cause of climate change.” Some two-thirds said “it is necessary to take major steps starting very soon.” Full report here.

Improving the Environment to Benefit Latinos - Center for American Progress. “According to the American Lung Association, 80 percent of Latinos live in counties that do not meet at least one federal air quality standard as mandated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This compares to only 57 percent of whites and 65 percent of African Americans.”

Banks Urging U.S. to Adopt the Trading of Emissions - New York Times. Some of the world’s leading banks — Citigroup, Lehman Brothers Holdings, Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas, Barclays Capital and Deutsche Bank, “will urge the United States and other industrial nations this week to move quickly to introduce a lightly regulated system for trading carbon emissions permits.” As for the safety valve, “Price caps should play a very limited role in the system,” said Gia Schneider, a vice president for carbon markets at Credit Suisse, which is a member of the lobbying group. “Such policies could lead to market distortions and stymie efforts to raise enough capital to fund new energy technologies such as windmills and solar power.”

U.N. Chief Urges Immediate Climate Action - New York Times. ”The need to act is now,” Al Gore told delegates to the one-day UN summit. As for California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger:

”One responsibility we all have is action. Action, action, action,” the former Hollywood action star said as he helped open the summit, winning warm applause from the assembled presidents and premiers.

UN is best for climate talks, poor nations say - International Herald Tribune. On Bush’s summit, to start today: “The world has been asked to Washington to discuss this issue this week,” said Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA). “But it is a little bit like being invited to a prayer breakfast with a group of fellow believers, but the meeting is hosted by an atheist.”

Since President Clinton’s press conference today was not webcast, I thought I would blog on that.

There’s so many good talks that I am behind on my CGI blogging, yes, and I will catch up, but I hope that you have been tuning in to the webcast — Clinton said today that 400,000 people were (up from 50,000 last year).

Clinton remains a genuine polymath (unlike Greenspan) — without notes, he gave a 7-minute history of the human race and civilization — starting 150,000 years ago in the Olduvai Gorge through today (which takes us from 1 human to 6.5 billion) through 2050 (which adds another 2.5 billion in the blink of an eye) — to give some idea of the scale and speed of the transformation taking place on this planet.

He was asked about the Kyoto Protocol, and replied “we should all be personally impatient about climate change.” But we must remember “most ideas aren’t adopted when they are first proposed.” Then he said the quote that I used in the headline, adding that such failure “keeps people stumbling in the right direction.”

On sustainable development in the Third World, he repeated the point he tried to get Robert Zoellick to understand yesterday, “We are not asking you to change your economic growth rate, we’re asking you to change the way you grow.”

He had a lot to say on a carbon trading system versus a carbon tax:

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After Ron in the comments of this blog circulated a claim that our nation’s top climate scientist “once warned of Ice Age” — I (and no doubt many others) emailed Hansen and said he should reply to the rapidly morphing and spreading myth. He has here.

I will reprint what he has to say below (you can also go to that link for an interesting commentary “Please talk to your grandfather”):

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If you thought you could go untouched by global warming, think again.

Mic Check Radio, another project of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, has compiled a list of 100 effects of global warming. Some are humorous, some are poignant, but it’s altogether serious and worth reading to the end.

To highlight a few of their favorites:

More Bear Attacks
Earlier this year, Moscow warned its citizens to beware of brown bear attacks. In Russia, it’s been too hot in the winter for bears to sleep. When bears can’t hibernate, they get very grouchy and become “unusually aggressive.” [Der Spiegel]

Say Hello to Bulgarian Hooker Shortages
“Brothel owners in Bulgaria are blaming global warming for staff shortages. They claim their best girls are working in ski resorts because a lack of snow has forced tourists to seek other pleasures.” [Metro UK]

Say Hello to Really Tacky Fake Ski Vacations
Weiner Air Force and former House Majority Leader Dick Armey are building a year-round ski resort in Texas, with “wet, white Astroturf with bristles” standing in for snow to make up for all the closed resorts around the country. [WSJ]

Death in the Time of Cholera
Cholera, which thrives in warmer water, appeared in the newly warmed waters of South America in 1991 for the first time in the 20th century. “It swept from Peru across the continent and into Mexico, killing more than 10,000 people.” [Washington Post]

Say Goodbye to Baseball
The future of the ash tree–from which all baseball bats are made–is in danger of disappearing, thanks to a combination of killer beetles and global warming. [NY Times]