http://blog.algore.com/ The personal journal of Al Gore. en Copyright 2010 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 15:17:38 -0500 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Chicago Tribune reports: “It wasn't long ago that Marco Rubio and Tim Pawlenty, two of the brightest fresh faces in the Republican Party, supported legislation to limit the greenhouse gas emissions that are blamed for global warming. But in recent weeks both have suddenly begun to express doubts about whether burning coal, powering cars with gasoline and other human activities in fact have anything to do with a warming Earth.” “The shifts by Rubio and Pawlenty -- as well as other prominent Republicans -- reflect the rising power of climate change skeptics in the GOP, where global warming is becoming a litmus test for conservatives.” The idea that a rejection of science is a litmus test for Republican candidates is both incredibly disappointing and scary. No political party should require its members to reject fact as a prerequisite for electoral office.]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/a_disappointing_litmus_test.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/a_disappointing_litmus_test.html Thu, 11 Mar 2010 15:17:38 -0500 wrote: “Despite what the professional skeptics might claim, the overwhelming consensus on global warming remains unchanged. Less than a handful of small mistakes in a 4,000-page document do not undermine decades and volumes of important, careful scientific research, no matter what the paid pundits and pessimists try to spin. We cannot ignore that global temperatures have steadily increased in the past century, or that the past 10 years were the hottest decade on record. These are facts. Nor can we ignore that as the climate crisis worsens, we could see more severe flooding, more destructive hurricanes and longer droughts.” “We have every reason to be confident in the overall conclusions of the U.N. report, which is based on thousands of peer-reviewed studies and multiple forms of analysis. At the same time, we can all welcome the increased transparency that will come from an independent committee that will review the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s work. What we do not need is to taint objective science with partisan conclusions, which is exactly what some climate change deniers in the US Congress are trying to do. We should not try to manipulate science to our own political ends or to serve the politics of the day. As a nation and a people, we need to respond to scientific evidence with effective and smart solutions. The severity of the crisis befalling our planet requires nothing less.” “Which is why the Senate is currently crafting a proposal to limit carbon pollution and spur investments in clean energy. Comprehensive clean energy and climate policies can create millions of new American jobs and strengthen our national security, all the while reducing the pollution that causes global climate change. Now is the time to make sure we pass strong, comprehensive legislation that involves our entire economy and benefits the whole planet.” Read her entire post by clicking here. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/great_article_by_maggie_fox.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/great_article_by_maggie_fox.html Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:37:10 -0500 Repower America who made more than 63,000 calls to their Senators last week. Everyday we are moving closer and closer to passing climate and green jobs legislation and that is due to your efforts. I’ll be calling on you to take action again in the next few weeks, and I know you’ll come through.]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/63000_calls_in_72_hours.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/63000_calls_in_72_hours.html Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:22:13 -0500 how: "Around the world, glaciers and ice sheets have begun breaking apart and accelerating toward the oceans faster than ever imagined possible. With his Extreme Ice Survey, photographer James Balog is trying to alert the world to this unsettling fact." You can watch the show online by clicking here. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/extreme_ice.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/extreme_ice.html Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:19:41 -0500 clicking here. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/22_trillion.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/22_trillion.html Fri, 05 Mar 2010 09:23:56 -0500 climate crisis: "The world's coral reefs will begin to disintegrate before the end of the century as rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere make the oceans more acidic, scientists warn." "The research points to a looming transition in the health of coral = ecosystems during which the ability of reefs to grow is overwhelmed by the rate at which they are dissolving." "More than 9,000 coral reefs around the world are predicted to disintegrate when atmospheric carbon dioxide levels reach 560 parts per million. The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere today stands at around 388ppm, but is expected to reach 560ppm by the end of this century." ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/coral_reefs_disintegrating.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/coral_reefs_disintegrating.html Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:58:22 -0500 reporters: "The majority leader is deadly serious about making progress this year on climate and energy reform. He's been a hero every step of the process and he's been in constant communication. Senators Lieberman, Graham and I have been meeting every day and we're on a short track here, piecing together legislation and working with our colleagues so it can be finished and rolled out soon." Right now we need to increase the pace of our efforts. Call your Senator today and ask them to “support a strong clean energy and climate bill that will create more jobs and less pollution” by clicking here. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/reid_wants_a_bill_asap.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/reid_wants_a_bill_asap.html Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:56:33 -0500 here. Our goal is to bombard Senate offices with more then 20,000 calls, demonstrating the significant public support for solving the climate crisis. Senator John Kerry is wrapping up his climate bill in the next two weeks, so action now is more important then ever before. Pledge to make a call today by clicking here. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/pledge_to_call_your_senators.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/03/pledge_to_call_your_senators.html Mon, 01 Mar 2010 15:00:45 -0500 New York Times: "It would be an enormous relief if the recent attacks on the science of global warming actually indicated that we do not face an unimaginable calamity requiring large-scale, preventive measures to protect human civilization as we know it." "Of course, we would still need to deal with the national security risks of our growing dependence on a global oil market dominated by dwindling reserves in the most unstable region of the world, and the economic risks of sending hundreds of billions of dollars a year overseas in return for that oil. And we would still trail China in the race to develop smart grids, fast trains, solar power, wind, geothermal and other renewable sources of energy — the most important sources of new jobs in the 21st century." "But what a burden would be lifted! We would no longer have to worry that our grandchildren would one day look back on us as a criminal generation that had selfishly and blithely ignored clear warnings that their fate was in our hands. We could instead celebrate the naysayers who had doggedly persisted in proving that every major National Academy of Sciences report on climate change had simply made a huge mistake."]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/we_cant_wish_away_climate_chan.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/we_cant_wish_away_climate_chan.html Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:52:45 -0500 extreme weather: "Fact: Climate change causes more frequent and severe snowstorms Record snowstorms need two things: temperatures below freezing, and very high humidity. On a planet warmer by a few degrees on average, the Northeast US will still have plenty of days below freezing; the big difference will be warmer seas producing higher levels of moisture in the air — and therefore more severe cold-season storms." "Fact: We can expect more extreme weather Scientists tell us that climate change has already led to more extreme weather in the United States and we can expect stronger hurricanes, more wildfires, heatwaves and droughts, to name a few." "Fact: The world is warming at a quickening pace Weather in one region over days or months should not be confused with climate or the patterns of weather over decades and centuries. And the science is clear here: the last decade was the hottest on record. And to put this year’s weather in perspective, January was warmer than average for the continental United States" ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/repower_america_reports_the_fa.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/repower_america_reports_the_fa.html Tue, 23 Feb 2010 14:46:58 -0500 New York Times last week: “That fossil fuel industry-financed forces are continuing their campaign to undermine the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and its chief scientists should not distract us from what we know about our climate.” “Two physical findings stand out. In the last 50 years the world ocean has accumulated 22 times as much heat as has the atmosphere (data provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the Department of Commerce). It is this repository of heat -- through processes like evaporation and ocean overturning -- that drives the changes in weather we are experiencing: heavier precipitation events, sequences of large storms, bitter cold spells and prolonged droughts in some regions.” “The I.P.C.C. 2007 report also found that winds have changed -- specifically circumpolar westerly winds (those blowing from the west) in both hemispheres. This ominous sign means that weather fronts and weather patterns are less stable.” “Our society, security and the health of the global economy depend upon a stable climate. Getting off fossil fuels is the first, necessary step toward achieving climate stabilization.” ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/a_great_lte.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/a_great_lte.html Fri, 19 Feb 2010 17:27:59 -0500 writing: “In 2008 we will discontinue contributions to several public policy research groups whose position on climate change could divert attention from the important discussion on how the world will secure the energy required for economic growth in an environmentally responsible manner.” Now it seems they have backed away from that pledge. According to Mother Jones: “Free-market, anti-climate change think-tanks such as the Atlas Economic Research Foundation in the US and the International Policy Network in the UK have received grants totaling hundreds of thousands of pounds from the multinational energy company ExxonMobil. Both organizations have funded international seminars pulling together climate change deniers from across the globe.” Exxon needs to be honest with its shareholders and consumers. It's time for them to once again live up to the pledge they made in 2008. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/in_2008_under_pressure_from.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/in_2008_under_pressure_from.html Thu, 18 Feb 2010 18:11:45 -0500 Midwest: "The report, "American Innovation: Manufacturing Low Carbon Technologies in the Midwest," which uses economic research from Deloitte, estimates that climate and energy policies could create up to 100,000 new jobs in the Midwest, and generate additional market revenues of up to $12 billion, boosting state and local tax revenues by over $800 million by 2015. These gains were estimated from policy-assisted growth in the wind turbine component, hybrid powertrain, and advanced battery manufacturing sectors in the Midwest." "The report considers the impact of three climate and energy policies: a $17 per ton price on carbon in 2015, resulting from a cap on emissions; a national renewable electricity standard (RES) of 20% by 2020; and a green economic stimulus package. It compares job and revenue growth in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin with these policies in place, and without." These areas have been hit hardest by the recession, and green technology could be the key to leading them back to economic prosperity. However, if we continue on the current path, China will end up leading the way. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/100000_new_jobs.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/100000_new_jobs.html Tue, 16 Feb 2010 15:37:49 -0500 pictures have told us: "For scientists studying the health of Arctic sea ice, satellite observations are absolutely essential for providing the big picture. It was satellites that revealed in September 2007 a record minimum ice coverage in the region -- the result of a massive summer melt. And it was satellites that showed in 2008 and 2009 the modest recovery of late-summer Arctic ice that suggested to some that the specter of a totally ice-free polar ocean might be somewhat less imminent than feared." "But those high-altitude observations need occasional reality checks from scientists down on the surface. It was during one such on-the-ground research expedition last fall that David Barber, an Arctic climatologist at the University of Manitoba, got an unwelcome surprise." "Barber was aboard the Canadian research icebreaker Amundsen, checking on ice in the Beaufort Sea north of Alaska and Western Canada. The ship was well inside a region the satellites said should be choked with thick, multiyear-old ice. "That's pretty much a no-go zone for an icebreaker of the Amundsen's size," says Barber. But the ship kept going, at a brisk 13 knots -- its top speed in open water is 13.7 knots -- and even when it finally reached thick ice, he says, "we could still penetrate it easily."" "In short, as Barber and his colleagues explain in a recent paper in Geophysical Review Letters, the analysis of what the satellites were seeing was wrong. Some of what satellites identified as thick, melt-resistant multiyear ice turned out to be, in Barber's words, "full of holes, like Swiss cheese. We haven't seen this sort of thing before."" ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/worse_than_we_thought.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/worse_than_we_thought.html Fri, 12 Feb 2010 19:08:06 -0500 supporters: "I want you to go out there and start knocking on doors and telling people this has to happen," Kerry said during a conference hosted by labor, farming, military veteran and environmental groups. "You know if the Tea Party folks can go out there and get angry because they think their taxes are too high, for God's sake, a lot of citizens ought to get angry about the fact that they're being killed and our planet is being injured by what's happening on a daily basis by the way we provide our power and our fuel and the old practices we have. That's something worth getting angry about." We can’t only get angry – we need to let the Senate know that inaction is simply not an option. A great way to spread that message is by adding your voice to the Repower Will by clicking here. ]]> http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/get_angry_take_action.html http://blog.algore.com/2010/02/get_angry_take_action.html Mon, 08 Feb 2010 20:12:56 -0500