Oct 23 2009

Climate Changes

Posted by: Kory Raftery

Several stories on the science and politics of global warming caught our attention this week:

Tomorrow marks the "International Day of Climate Action," sponsored by 350.org. It's being billed as a grassroots political action campaign, but it's also a numbers game - more than 4,600 events in close to 200 countries will focus on the number 350. Scientists have identified 350 parts per million as the safe upper limit of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere. According to NASA scientists, the current concentration of CO2 is 385.

According to The Salt Lake Tribune, a group of Utah doctors says global warming is the "greatest public health threat of the 21st century." In a presentation at the University of Utah School of Medicine earlier this week, eight doctors and two climate experts called on lawmakers to take swift action in drafting and passing climate change legislation. "Those who urge or insist on waiting 'until all the science is in,' or call this a hoax," said Brian Moench, a Salt Lake City doctor and president of the doctors' group, "do so in defiance of overwhelming scientific evidence reminiscent of the tobacco industry's decades-long campaign to cast doubt on the adverse health effects of cigarettes."

The New York Times reports longtime environmental activist Stewart Brand says nuclear power should play an essential role in the efforts to curb global warming. Brand's new book, entitled "Whole Earth Discipline," sites several scientists and is in agreement with the recent Kerry-Boxer climate-change bill recently introduced in the Senate that would provide strong support for nuclear power in the nation's energy mix. Meantime, the organization Greenpeace disagrees with Brand, arguing  that energy efficiency will provide the biggest impact in the near term, followed by renewables. It also sees natural gas as a "bridge fuel" to be used while phasing out coal, oil -- and nuclear power.

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