Manufacturing Data

The Union of Concerned Scientists is a leading science non-profit organization dealing with environmental issues.
Image: Union of Concerned Scientists

The Union of Concerned Scientists has issued a report documenting ExxonMobil's attempts to create public confusion on global warming. According to the report, ExxonMobil is adapting the tobacco industry's disinformation strategies to hinder the science behind climate change. The company had allegedly supplied some $16 million to skeptic groups between 1998 and 2005. Alden Meyer, the Union of Concerned Scientists' Director of Strategy and Policy, has said:

"ExxonMobil has manufactured uncertainty about the human causes of global warming just as tobacco companies denied their product caused lung cancer. A modest but effective investment has allowed the oil giant to fuel doubt about global warming to delay government action just as Big Tobacco did for over 40 years."

The report is entitled Smoke, Mirrors & Hot Air: How ExxonMobil Uses Big Tobacco's Tactics to "Manufacture Uncertainty" on Climate Change.

--The report can be accessed from the Union of Concerned Scientists

Climate Change through Inuit Eyes

Snow-covered mountains in upper Canada.
Image: NOAA

"In the old days, we used to have 10 months of winter; now it's six. Every year we're getting winter later and later." These are the words of Simon Awa, an Inuit leader from Nunavut in Canada. There are some 155,000 people in Canada, Greenland, Russian and Alaska who struggle to maintain their ancient way of life in wake of the changing polar climate. The native people have noticed there is less time to hunt caribou, walrus, and polar bear, all now in danger from a thawing climate. These animals must migrate further north to colder climates in order to survive. Scientists fear the change felt in these arctic regions is a forecast of what the rest of the planet may face in the future.

--The USA Today has more information

Carbon Emissions Rising

Global carbon emissions are currently rising by 2.5% annually.
Image: NASA

Anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide have increased by two and a half times over the last half-decade. According to the Global Carbon Project, emissions had been rising by 1 percent before the year 2000, but since 2000 they have accelerated to 2.5 percent. Some researchers believe that the cause rests with the high cost of oil; this has precipitated an increase in the use of charcoal, and charcoal contributes more carbon pollution than oil. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, a pollutant directly linked to global warming.

--BBC has more information

Stern Review: Facts and Figures

From left to right: Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown, Sir Nicholas Stern, and Prime Minister Tony Blair at the Royal Society (London).
Image: Associated Press

Former World Bank chief economist Sir Nicholas Stern has produced a comprehensive report on the effect of global warming on world economics. Stern argues that drought, encroaching coastlines, crop failure and other climate events will severly undermine world economics this century. Stern reports that 15-40% of species may face extinction after a warming of 2 degrees celsius, damaging economies based on wildlife. The full report and powerpoint presentation are available online.

--See the powerpoint by Sir Nicholas Stern
--Read the full report

Tony Blair: Global Warming Consequences "Disastrous"

Producing power releases the highest volume of carbon dioxide.

Image: BBC

Economist Sir Nicholas Stern warns that climate change could reduce the global economy by one-fifth. Stern is optimistic in spite of the sobering data, because he believes that immediate international cooperation can nullify some of the malevolent economic effects of global warming. One percent of global gross domestic product, Stern concludes, must be directed to reducing emissions. British Prime Minister Tony Blair is taking the issue very seriously, informing his people that "disaster" will come from continued environmental degradation.

--BBC has more information

BBC's Guide to Climate Change

Most scientists believe humans are causing global warming.

Image: Nasa

BBC provides an interactive multimedia feature concerning climate change. The site's maps, charts, videos, and diagrams--along with cited statistics--supply important information on global warming. Globe models also project best and worst case scenarios of climate change. Scientists forecast that the Earth will increase by 1.4-5.8 degrees Celsius before 2100, causing significant damage.

--Click here to visit the online feature

California Law Pledges to Reduce Emissions

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed anti-pollution legislation into effect.
Image: BBC.co.uk

California is now the first US state requiring standard target reductions of greenhouse gases. Although some fear businesses may leave the state due to increased restrictions, many--including Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair--feel the move is necessary. Mr. Blair said, "This will echo right around the rest of the world." Gov. Schwarzennegger believes the legislation will further the cause of environmental protection.

--BBC.co.uk has more information

Top Scientists Sound Alarm on Warming

The Portage Glacier in Alaska has retreated significantly due to global warming.

Image: USA Today

A report from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences warns of dangerous anthropogenic (human-causing) climate change. The research, led by James Hansen of NASA, found that the planet has warmed to the highest overall temperatures in the last 12,000 years. The journal Nature reported that 1,700 species of plants and animals have migrated poleward to find cooler climates. The most affected region is the far north, where glaciers are melting as a result of the change.

--The USA Today has more information

Meteorological Office: England's Temperature Rising

Sites collecting temperature data.
Image: BBC.co.uk

Analysis of temperature records at the Meteorological Office in England show the country's average temperature to have risen 1 degree Celsius since 1950. Animals in Britain are moving north to cooler zones, and spring is coming earlier to the continent of Europe. Researchers David Karoly (University of Oklahoma) and Peter Stott (Hadley Centre-UK Meteorological Office) concluded, based on computer climate models, the rise is due to anthropogenic (human) causes, namely the release of greenhouse gases. The findings are published in the journal Atmospheric Science Letters.

--BBC.co.uk has more information