Real Climate Science

Facing the Obama administration’s so-called “war on coal,” some utility officials are warning that fewer coal-fired power plants could leave the U.S. power system vulnerable to blackouts in the near future.

“Regulation from five years ago is closing about 20 percent of the coal plants. Regulations being proposed now could close an additional 20 percent of coal plants. And that creates huge stresses — we’re just not ready for anything like that in this country,” Mike Duncan, from the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, told Fox News.

Asked about future regulations, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy suggested the agency is trying to be careful.

“Nothing we do can threaten reliability. We have to recognize that in a changing climate like the one we have recently been experiencing, it is an increasing challenge to maintain a reliable energy supply,” McCarthy said. 

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/04/12/epa-coal-rules-leaving-us-vulnerable-to-power-blackouts/

The EPA shuts down power plants, threatening the country’s energy supply, then blames the threat they have created on “climate change.“

US temperatures east of the Rockies are tied with 1899 for coldest on record through April 10.

http://www.hprcc.unl.edu/products/maps/acis/YearTDeptUS.png

About 80 House members wrote a letter to President Obama Wednesday urging him to renew enforcement against the import of military-style, semiautomatic firearms.

Under the 1968 Gun Control Act, they write, the president has broad authority to prohibit guns and ammunition from being imported into the country unless they are “generally recognized as particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes.”

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/9/obama-urged-enforce-ban-import-military-style-fire/?page=1

On April 10, 1963 Rio Grande City, Texas reached 112 degrees. This year it was 25 degrees cooler at 87 degrees.

China had many massive floods during the 1930s. One of the 1933 floods covered a larger area than the state of Arizona, and led to starvation and cannibalism.

http://query.nytimes.com/

I attended a presentation this afternoon in Boulder by Judy Curry and Kevin Trenberth.

First Judy presented a very clear, calm, concise scientific explanation of why the science wasn’t settled, and why the 97% consensus was a meaningless number. It was obvious that she had put a large amount of thought into a way to present it in a way that any educated but non-technical person could understand.

Then Trenberth had his turn, and immediately launched into a 15 minute rant how Fox News and Republicans were going to cause the climate to be destroyed (and kill us all.) You might think that I am exaggerating about this, but I am not.  Those were almost his exact words.

The good news is that Trenberth’s rant was so ugly, so political, and so opposite Judy’s soft spoken and well measured presentation – I imagine that most of the audience left a little more skeptical than they came in.

I’m curious if anyone is familiar with the legal implications of a civil servant launching a political attack in a public forum, while on the job and presenting himself as a representative of the government?

https://twitter.com/SteveSGoddard/status/454640930880892928

http://query.nytimes.com

http://trove.nla.gov.au/

Global Warming Scare Tactics

OAKLAND, Calif. — IF you were looking for ways to increase public skepticism about global warming, you could hardly do better than the forthcoming nine-part series on climate change and natural disasters, starting this Sunday on Showtime.

http://www.nytimes.com/