Clipmarks | Climate change Clips

Cheney wanted cuts in climate change testimony

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 01:36:58 GMT

clipped by: rustajb

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Seeking to play down the effects of global warming, Vice President Dick Cheney's office pushed to delete from congressional testimony references about the consequences of climate change on public health, a former senior EPA official claimed Tuesday.

The official, Jason K. Burnett, said the White House was concerned that the proposed testimony last October by the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention might make it tougher to avoid regulating greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere.

"The Council on Environmental Quality and the office of the vice president were seeking deletions to the CDC testimony (concerning) ... any discussions of the human health consequences of climate change," Burnett wrote.

Burnett, 31, a lifelong Democrat, resigned his post last month as associate deputy EPA administrator because of disagreements over the agency's response to climate change.

White House in Climate Change "Cover Up" - Sen Boxer

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:50:36 GMT

clipped by: Socratoad

Clip Source: www.planetark.com

White House in Climate Change "Cover Up" - Sen Boxer

WASHINGTON - A leading US Senate Democrat accused the Bush administration on Tuesday of a "cover-up" aimed at stopping the Environmental Protection Agency from tackling greenhouse emissions.

"This cover-up is being directed from the White House and the office of the vice president," said Sen. Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

At issue is a preliminary finding by the EPA last December that "greenhouse gases may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public welfare," according to Jason Burnett, the agency's former associate deputy administrator who appeared at a news conference with Boxer.

Such a finding would be an early step toward government regulation aimed at protecting public health.

Cheney Censored Climate Testimony

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 23:33:03 GMT

clipped by: Wisco
clipper's remarks: At issue was the EPA's denial of a waiver to California allowing them to set stricter emissions standards. In fact, EPA staff supported the waiver, but it was denied anyway.

The Bush administration has had a long history of politicizing science -- which is basically denying facts... Which is basically lying.

Clip Source: www.mcclatchydc.com

Vice President Dick Cheney's office and the White House demanded that all mention of how global warming harms human health be cut from testimony to Congress last fall, a former Environmental Protection Agency official who had a key role on climate policy said Tuesday.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., charged that the new information from the former official showed that the White House and Cheney were covering up the dangers of global warming in an attempt to block the EPA from taking action.

The former EPA official, Jason Burnett, said in a letter to Boxer dated Sunday that the White House Council on Environmental Quality and Cheney's office wanted to cut any discussion of the human health consequences of climate change from testimony to Congress last October by Julie Gerberding, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Tags: news

Cheney's Office Pushed Purge Of Climate Change Testimony

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 23:30:07 GMT

clipped by: boniface

Clip Source: online.wsj.com

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney's office was behind a push to censor congressional testimony that global warming poses a danger to the public, a former Environmental Protection Agency official told Congress.

The director of the Centers for Disease Control testified to a U.S. Senate panel last year about the public health effects of climate change in testimony that was heavily edited by the White House's Office of Management and Budget. Until now, Mr. Cheney's office hadn't been publicly linked to the efforts to keep information about climate change out of the public eye.

"We know that the administration's efforts have been about covering up the real dangers of global warming and hiding facts from the public," Sen. Boxer said at a press conference Tuesday. "This cover-up is being directed from the White House and the Office of the Vice President."

Tags: cheney, office, pushed, purge, climate, change, testimony

Cheney wanted cuts in testimony on Climate Change and Health of Public

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:40:15 GMT

clipped by: TJColatrella
clipper's remarks: That's our Vice President alright...

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

Cheney wanted cuts in climate testimony

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney's office pushed for major deletions in congressional testimony on the public health consequences of climate change, fearing the presentation by a leading health official might make it harder to avoid regulating greenhouse gases, a former EPA officials maintains.

When six pages were cut from testimony on climate change and public health by the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last October, the White House insisted the changes were made because of reservations raised by White House advisers about the accuracy of the science.

Tags: cheney, halliburton, kbr, climate change, science, corruption, impeachment, iraq war, co2, bush

Cheney Reportedly Wanted Cuts In Climate Testimony

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:24:42 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: If you don't like it, delete. THAT'S THE SCIENCE OF CHENEY

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney’s office pushed for major deletions in congressional testimony on the public health consequences of climate change, fearing the presentation by a leading health official might make it harder to avoid regulating greenhouse gases, a former EPA officials maintains.

But Jason K. Burnett, until last month the senior adviser on climate change to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson, says that Cheney’s office was deeply involved in getting nearly half of the CDC’s original draft testimony removed.

for months to get e-mail exchanges and other documents to determine the extent of political influence on government scientists, but have been rebuffed.

Our better interests at heart? Nah, give me the money big business

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 20:18:53 GMT

clipped by: douchrti
clipper's remarks: Feel like your votes count? Your elected officials not working for you?
Get used to it!

Clip Source: www.popsci.com

Cheney Cut Testimony on Health Consequences of Climate Change to Avoid Regulation, Claims EPA Official

As reported by the Associated Press, Burnett believes Cheney sought the reductions to prevent future regulation of carbon dioxide emission. Originally, the White House said the pages were deleted because the science underlying the assertions was inaccurate. The content of the six deleted pages is still unknown, and continuing investigations into White House influence over government scientists promise to uncover even more similar actions.

Tags: cheney, epa, regulation, testimony

the Group of Eight leaders :" on the way to a "shared vision" for 2050 "

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 20:11:05 GMT

clipped by: einbar
clipper's remarks: "G8 nations, papering over deep differences, said today they would work toward a target of at least halving global greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 but emphasised they would not be able to do it alone."

Clip Source: images.aad.gov.au

Clip Source: www.independent.co.uk

In a communique released during a summit in northern Japan, the Group of Eight leaders agreed that they would need to set interim goals on the way to a "shared vision" for 2050 although it gave no numerical targets.

Mention of mid-term goals was an advance from last year when the G8 agreed only to "seriously consider" a goal of halving emissions by mid-century.

Critics outside the rich nations' club slammed the deal. Environmental campaign group WWF said the leaders had ducked their responsibilities

The G8 are responsible for 62 per cent of the carbon dioxide accumulated in the Earth's atmosphere, which makes them the main culprit of climate change and the biggest part of the problem," WWF said shortly after the statement was issued.

The European Union and Japan had been pressing for this year's summit to go beyond just "considering" the 2050 goal, and Brussels had wanted clear interim targets as well.

Future of the World: Four Scenarios

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 19:45:49 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: A must-read that probes world outcomes, in light of current crises, by thinking on how human systems transform: "Fundamental transformation is not only possible, it is the routine way natural systems evolve. Radical change is as common as grass in world history, because it is as common as grass in the life of all living systems.

But here’s the critical point: What unlocks social transformation is a shift in values, because values are at the core of a self-organizing human system"

Clip Source: www.tikkun.org

In a Market Forces scenario, current trends in resource use continue to increase through 2050

nations converge toward American lifestyles

result is runaway climate change and a radically damaged biosphere

In a Policy Reform scenario, government emerges as a powerful actor, embracing ambitious policies to reduce energy use, carbon emissions, hunger, and income inequity

given the likely resistance of corporate lobbyists,

Policy reform in the absence of cultural transformation likely is a fantasy

A Fortress World scenario envisions that reform fails and problems cascade into self-amplifying crises

conditions deteriorate, combining with food insecurity and emergent diseases to foster a health crisis. The affluent live in protected enclaves

The future we have yet to focus on is that of a Great Transition

we embrace traveling less, consuming less

not with a sense of deprivation, but because

quality of life matters more than quantity of stuff. Conspicuous consumption is seen as a vulgar throwback

Tags: future

Study: End 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:21:57 GMT

clipped by: Wisco
clipper's remarks: I love that last paragraph. "No empirical evidence?" Well, other than the study, anyway.

This is the same flatearther mentality that brings you creationism and climate change denial -- dismiss any evidence that doesn't back up your prejudice, then claim the other side isn't being scientific enough.

Clip Source: ap.google.com

Congress should repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" law because the presence of gays in the military is unlikely to undermine the ability to fight and win, according to a new study released by a California-based research center.

The study was conducted by four retired military officers, including the three-star Air Force lieutenant general who in early 1993 was tasked with implementing President Clinton's policy that the military stop questioning recruits on their sexual orientation.

"Evidence shows that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly is unlikely to pose any significant risk to morale, good order, discipline or cohesion," the officers states.

Supporters of the ban contend there is still no empirical evidence that allowing gays to serve openly won't hurt combat effectiveness.

Tags: news

"Dick" Cheney Censored Environmental Data

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 16:51:50 GMT

clipped by: maquser
clipper's remarks: White House Republicans named "Dick" = 2. The shmuck stops here.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

Vice President Dick Cheney's office pushed for major deletions in congressional testimony on the public health consequences of climate change, fearing the presentation by a leading health official might make it harder to avoid regulating greenhouse gases

six pages were cut from testimony on climate change and public health by the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last October

the senior adviser on climate change to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson, says that Cheney's office was deeply involved in getting nearly half of the CDC's original draft testimony removed.

Cheney's office also objected last January over congressional testimony by Administrator Johnson that "greenhouse gas emissions harm the environment."

The EPA currently is examining whether carbon dioxide, a leading greenhouse gas, poses a danger to public health and welfare. The Supreme Court has said if it does, it must be regulated under the Clean Air Act.

Tags: ecology, congress, cheney, dick, wad, lies, suppression of facts, science

The Eco Voyager

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 16:11:06 GMT

clipped by: egsnyder
clipper's remarks: More from David Chernushenko, my latest green guru.

Clip Source: communities.canada.com

It’s not every Canadian traveller who passes by Europe’s museums and castles, seeking instead to view how ordinary people commute to work, how they deal with their waste, what they are eating, and where they are getting the energy to heat their homes. I am interested in what makes cities work, and communities more vibrant, and I am especially interested in the role people and their choices play in this. I want to understand what works, and how it works, with a view to imagining how my home town, and everybody’s home town, might be a better place, and what we would need to do to make this possible.

A 100 Percent Renewable Energy Revolution

Tags: david chernushenko, sustainability, energy saving, green ideas, environment, climate change, greenhouse gases, urban planning

Pictured: The floating cities that could one day house climate change refugees

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 14:18:10 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Pictured: The floating cities that could one day house climate change refugees

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 2:13 AM on 04th July 2008

At first glance, they look like a couple of giant inflatable garden chairs that have washed out to sea

But they are, apparently, the ultimate solution to rapidly rising sea levels.

This computer-generated image shows two floating cities, each with enough room for 50,000 inhabitants.

The 'Lilypad' cities would be powered by renewable energy sources

Based on the design of a lilypad, they could be used as a permanent refuge for those whose homes have been covered in water. Major cities including London, New York and Tokyo are seen as being at huge risk from oceans which could rise by as much as 3ft by the end of this century.

The 'Lilypad City' would float around the world as an independent and fully self-sustainable home.

Power for the central accommodation hub is provided through

renewable

energy sources

including solar panels

, wind turbines

a power station

Tags: tech

nuclear tidbits from the G-8 summit

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:52:38 GMT

clipped by: deb2012
clipper's remarks: Germany and USA agree to disagree

Clip Source: www.iht.com

"A country that has the capability to responsibly use nuclear energy in my view has a responsibility to do so, if we want to get serious about not just cutting greenhouse gas emissions, but also improving public health through reduced air pollution," said James Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality.

Asked if that was a dig at Germany, since Merkel is sticking to her predecessor's plan to phase out Germany's 17 nuclear power plants in the coming years, Connaughton did not respond directly.

Merkel countered: "I don't think that climate protection is decided by the question of nuclear energy alone."

"The decision that many countries count on nuclear power is OK," Merkel said. "But to say that the future for climate change and careful use of energy can be solved by that alone — I don't see it that way."

Tags: nuclear, energy

Biofuels cause 75pc increase in food prices, report says

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:23:02 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

Clip Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Biofuels cause 75pc increase in food prices, report says

By Paul Eccleston

Last Updated: 12:40pm BST 04/07/2008

Environmental campaigners have called for a change in policy on biofuels after a report that they have caused a 75 per cent increase in food prices.

G8 'acting too slowly' on climate change

Extinction threatens more species than thought

Telegraph Earth homepage

An unpublished World Bank study claimed the EU and US drive towards biofuels was having a massive impact on both food supply and prices.

The US Government had claimed that biofuels - mainly ethanol produced from crops such as corn, palm and soya - was responsible for only a three per cent rise in food prices.

President Bush had linked higher food prices to a bigger demand by wealthier consumers in China and India.

But there has been growing criticism that the growing of crops for biofuels causes more harm than good because of the amount of land and energy needed to grow them in sufficient quantities.

Tags: biofuel