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April 2, 2018
A new study found that climate change is fueling the southward expansion of the Sahara Desert. Image courtesy of NASA via wikimedia.org.
EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is considering a proposal that would ban the agency from using any scientific studies that do not make their underlying data publicly available. The decision would significantly reduce the pool of research available for EPA's rulemaking decisions, including many studies on the public health effects of air pollution. Joanne Spalding of the Sierra Club said, “If you can’t count those benefits because you can’t rely on reams of academic studies showing that those pollutants are harmful to people who have to breathe them, then you essentially undercount the benefits of reducing the pollution and over count the costs.” Pruitt confirmed his plan to address so-called “secret science” in a recent media interview. Former EPA official Joseph Goffman observed that Pruitt’s plan seems “very much targeted” at particular studies that were fundamental in establishing particulate matter regulations. Goffman added that EPA's National Ambient Air Quality Standards and the Risk and Technology Review for toxic air pollution would be vulnerable under the plan, since they also rely on health-based standards.
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Scientific American
A series of eight "talking points" distributed by EPA's Office of Public Affairs to regional staffers instructed them to play up uncertainties in the relationship between human activity and climate change. The phrasing of the points hewed closely to past statements made by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt meant to diminish climate science. The memo containing the points was obtained and published by the press. The memo stated, "The ability to measure with precision the degree and extent of [climate change's] impact, and what to do about it, are subject to continuing debate and dialogue." The memo added that "clear gaps remain including our understanding of the role of human activity and what we can do about [climate change]." These statements directly conflict with the vast majority of climate scientists, including those within the federal government who have written it is "extremely likely" that humans have been the primary cause of climate change since the mid-20th century.
Washington Post
On March 23, a U.S. District Court in Montana ruled against an Interior Department plan to open over 15 million acres of public land and mineral rights to fossil fuel extraction, claiming that the government did not sufficiently consider how this plan would affect the climate and environment. The case was filed in 2016 by environmental groups with the plaintiffs arguing that the fossil fuel development plans violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) because they did not address the damages that coal, oil, and gas would cause to the environment. The area under dispute in Montana and Wyoming's Powder River Basin contains around 10.2 billion tons of coal and the potential for 18,000 new oil and gas wells. This decision comes after multiple others that were ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, due to the defendants’ lack of consideration for the environmental impacts of their plans. Interior’s Office of the Solicitor said they would review the court's decision, but declined to say if they would file an appeal.
InsideClimate News
With EPA poised to relax rules limiting vehicle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that the administration views as too aggressive, California is set to retaliate by decoupling the state’s rules from federal standards. EPA's anticipated action would initiate a long-term process to rewrite regulations implemented under the Obama administration to dramatically reduce carbon emissions from cars and light trucks. California officials have said they would revoke the state's “deemed to comply" rule, which says that car producers abiding by EPA’s tailpipe GHG regulations automatically fulfill California’s standards as well. Twelve additional states follow all or part of California's vehicle emission standards. Altogether, the 13 states make up a third of the U.S. auto market. California is already committed to its standards through 2025 and is currently developing even stricter standards through 2030. Automakers, who at first lobbied the current administration for revising the vehicle emission rules, are now expressing concern over the growing rift between Sacramento and Washington. Some companies are trying to convince federal officials to avoid lowering the requirements to the point that California would break away entirely.
Bloomberg
In Wyoming, at the last of four meetings regarding the repeal of the Clean Power Plan (CPP), supporters discussed the well-known effects of climate change, the benefits of the CPP, and the negative impacts of the coal industry. Meanwhile, the regulation's opponents pointed out coal’s history of regional employment and affordable electricity, arguing that some regions in Wyoming cannot afford to abandon the coal industry. State economists predicted a 25 to 50 percent drop in Wyoming coal production, representing a downturn in employment, if the CPP were to be implemented. Even though the CPP never took force, coal production decreased by about 25 percent from 2015-2017 due to competition from natural gas-fired electricity. However, community members at the meeting described the impacts of continued coal use, such as miscarriages and other health issues attributed to poor air and water quality. Other speakers explained that the CPP would not call for the immediate elimination of coal use, but rather a gradual adjustment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a manner suitable for Wyoming.
Casper Star Tribune
Included in Congress' omnibus spending package was a provision requiring the Congressional Research Service (CRS) to make its reports available to the general public, instead of just Capitol Hill. The provision comes in the midst of arguments that CRS has sometimes fallen short in providing objective and reliable expert analysis to lawmakers, especially on politically charged issues like climate science, in order to avoid partisan politics. Alexandria Wyatt, a legislative attorney at CRS, noted that while the agency's analysis is of good quality, their assessment of climate change "[doesn't] necessarily objectively reflect the scale of the issue and the real impacts that are in play." Kevin Kosar, a former CRS employee, said, "You can't flinch every time somebody gets mad. It kills morale, and it kills the ability of analysts to do their jobs if they have to not make expert judgments." The advent of the web 20 years ago gave CRS reports a much wider audience, but also led to an outpouring of scrutiny that the agency had previously avoided.
E&E News
Although recent weather has been great for skiers and snowboarders, overall trends show a 30 percent decline in North America’s snowpack in the past century. By 2050, winter sport seasons for ski resorts will be cut in half. The decline in snow is significant beyond recreation, since it also supplies drinking water and irrigates farms. Some skiing regions in the western United States renowned for their "fluffy powder" will likely see denser snow in the future. Resorts are having to rely more frequently on snowmaking machines due to unpredictable snowfall, though innovations have led to greater automation and require less electricity and water than in the past. High winds and snowstorms can also lead to power outages and infrastructure damage. While resort operators have expressed concern about climate change, the industry still has a large carbon footprint. Visit Salt Lake CEO Scott Beck said, "The ski industry has not found a good narrative for our own responsibility for driving demand."
Wired
The International Energy Agency's (IEA) annual survey of global carbon levels showed an overall increase in CO2 emissions a year after the signing of the Paris Climate Agreement. In 2017, energy-related emissions increased by 1.4 percent, equivalent to adding 170 million cars to the road. The surge in carbon emissions came primarily from Asia and Europe, while the United States achieved the steepest year-over-year decline in CO2 levels of any advanced economy. IEA analysts were not surprised by these findings, citing a stronger global economy coupled with lower energy prices as cause for the global CO2 increase. Dan Klein, head of global coal research at S&P Global said, “If it weren’t for the increase in overall [electricity] demand, the biggest story would have been the increase in renewables.” Chinese wind and solar output grew by 21 and 38 percent respectively in 2017, while the United States saw a surge in renewables and a decrease in electricity demand.
New research published in the Journal of Climate has found that the Sahara Desert is growing. The desert's southern advance into Sudan and Chad is drying out vegetation and leaving farmland barren. The expansion has been partly fueled by a lack of rain, which is unusual for Africa's summer. Although the study only covered the Sahara, the authors said that their findings suggest other hot deserts are likely expanding due to the effects of climate change on weather circulation patterns. The study examined data from 1920 to 2013, including satellite data from the past three decades. The researchers found that in the 1960s, one of these cycles, the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO), switched from a phase that delivered more rain to areas around the Sahara to one that facilitated drier conditions. One of the most intense droughts of the 20th century was later attributed to this shift. Lake Chad is among the water resources being depleted due to the encroachment of drier conditions.
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