Climate Change, Katrina and Muzzled Scientists

In a "man bites dog" type report (because it's so unexpected), Time reports that "85% of Americans say global warming is probably happening." The survey follows Friday's news that Science predicts sea levels could rise 20 feet, the result of Arctic melt. Projected domestic casualties: lowland like New Orleans. "Already sea level rise has increased to an inch per decade, thanks to melting ice and warm water expansion."

The editors of Science write: '[A]ccelerated glacial melting and larger changes in sea level should be looked at as probable events, not as hypothetical possibilities." And it's happening faster than scientists have expected.

Call for Immediate Levee Inspection
On the heels of that gloomy report, the American Society of Civil Engineers' (ASCE) External Review Panel warns that the levee system remaining in the Crescent City may not protect the city. In a letter sent two weeks in advance of the final report, due to the "gravity" of the situation, ASCE investigators called for immediate inspection. The US Army Corps of Engineers appointed ASCE to review the levee collapse that led to post-Katrina flooding.

The Corps contends that the breech could not have been anticipated, a common Administration refrain. However, ASCE report authors disagreed, pointing out that the "failure had been studied by corps researchers as early as 1988." In fact, Corps reports had "predicted precisely the chain of events that caused the city's 17th Street Canal flood wall to fail."

Climate Scientist Muzzled
Ironically, it is the nation's leading scientist on climate change who has gone public about the politicization of science in America. This Administration has rejected the Kyoto Protocol.

And even if Bush et al don't like what their scientists are saying, the insurance industry and investment community have a different point of view:

The Investor Network on Climate Risk, whose two dozen members manage $3 trillion in assets, drew more than 200 participants, including a who’s who of Wall Street firms, to its 2005 summit.

Across the pond, the British government has released a study that concludes "fossil-fuel emissions must be cut back with resolve and urgency now.'" Tony Blair was in Australia this weekend: "Tony Blair has set a target to cut greenhouse pollution by 60 per cent by 2050; we should also be looking to make deep cuts. It's the right thing to do - ethically, environmentally and economically."

Mr. President, it's long past time to do more than lament our addiction to oil.

Time has lifted the theme of a post I made almost a year ago: Not for the faint of heart. This Scottish site has a video on climate change and US agriculture. Seattle Mayor Greg Nickles has led an effort to unite cities: 219 have joined the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. Finally, 10 things you can do. Read more at Real Climate, a blog authored by scientists.

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