UK HEADING FOR DISASTER FOR FOLLOWING GERMANY IN DRASTIC CUTS TO FOSSIL FUEL USE

Booker's latest article is warning of the looming cost of our electricity as the cuts in fossil fuel use continue to bite. although the Germans pay a lot more for their electricity currently than we do, we are catching up fast due to the ridiculous climate change act. The government must dump it soon.

WHY DO FLOWERS COME OUT EARLIER THAN IN THE PAST?

This question is often raised as being evidence for global warming. There is clear evidence for it, but what is not clear is exactly why it is happening. This article looks at the issue in detail. In the comments several readers show links to articles on the urban heat island (UHI) effect as a possible cause, while others point to the fact that there has been a preponderance of milder winters in the UK in recent years (which are welcomed by most people). The article itself from the Royal Society shows on its graph that springs have been both warmer and cooler in the period studied, so there is no single trend. 

SCIENTIFIC NONSENSE AND THE PEER REVIEW LOTTERY

Here is a very disturbing article on the validity of "peer review" of scientific papers in which other scientists look at the work and pass judgment on it. It reveals a murky world in which some papers are rejected with no really valid reason while other papers of little or no merit can get passed. Yet it is this lottery that provides the evidence for costly political decisions such as those for global warming.

"In 1982, 12 already published papers were assigned fictitious author and institution names before being resubmitted to the same journal 18 to 32 months later. The duplication was noticed in three instances, but the remaining nine papers underwent review by two referees each. Only one paper was deemed worthy of seeing the light of day the second time it was examined by the same journal that had already published it."  The whole article is well worth reading

TOUR DE FORCE DEBUNK OF GW SCAREMONGERING

This piece is a thorough debunking of pretty much all the nonsense on GW that you are likely to meet. It is so useful that I have put it at the top of the link list on the RHS of this blog as a reference point.

THERE IS NO "HOTSPOT" AND THEREFORE THE GW THEORY IS DISPROVED

This article presents the case clearly and concisely. This evidence has been ignored by the mainstream media, but it needs to be distributed widely via the internet.

DODGY DATA FROM NOAA USED TO BOLSTER "WARMING TREND"

This article shows what is happening. Apparently in areas where data is missing NOAA is claiming that there is record warming - completely at odds with the satellite data. Of course none of this is being reported in the mainstream media such as newspapers or TV.

FORGET PARIS: FRANCE DROPS CARBON TAX PLAN (FOR NOW)

Reuters, 21 October 2016
 The French government is set to drop plans to introduce a carbon tax, French financial daily Les Echos said on Thursday.
 
The newspaper, quoting several sources, said the socialist government will not include the carbon tax in a draft 2016 budget update currently being discussed.

Environment Minister Segolene Royal had said in May that France would unilaterally introduce a carbon price floor of about 30 euros ($33) a tonne with a view to kickstart broader European action to cut emissions and drive forward the December 2015 United Nations-led international climate accord.

The plan had pushed power prices higher in the spring.

Les Echos quoted a source as saying that the measure is too complicated to put in place and might be unconstitutional.

The paper said that state-owned electric utility EDF, which produces mostly carbon-free nuclear power, was in favor of the measure, but that gas utility Engie SA had lobbied against the tax because it would make its gas-fired power plants less competitive than similar plants in neighboring countries.

A source close to the French government told Reuters that nothing had been decided yet on the carbon tax but confirmed there were doubts about it.

NICK STERN AT CENTRE OF FRAUDULENT CLAIM FOR FUNDING

This piece gives the details of a deception made by a top UK university to help secure £9million of YOUR money by passing off rivals’ research as its own… to bankroll the climate change agenda. 

An investigation by The Mail on Sunday also reveals that when the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (CCCEP) made a bid for more Government funds, it claimed it was responsible for work that was published before the organisation even existed. Last night, our evidence was described by one leading professor whose work was misrepresented as ‘a clear case of fraud – using deception for financial gain’. The chairman of the CCCEP since 2008 has been Nick Stern, a renowned global advocate for drastic action to combat climate change.

He is also the president of the British Academy, an invitation-only society reserved for the academic elite. It disburses grants worth millions to researchers – and to Lord Stern’s own organisation.

Last night, CCCEP spokesman Bob Ward admitted it had ‘made mistakes’, both in claiming credit for studies which it had not funded and for papers published by rival academics. ‘This is regrettable, but mistakes can happen… We will take steps over the next week to amend these mistakes,’ he said.

Bob Ward, Nick Stern - these are central figures in the alarmist camp. Why should we trust them?

GLOBAL COOLING DUE TO LA NINA MAY BE COMING

Reuters, 20 October 2016

Karen Braun
 Cooling sea surface temperatures in the key Niño 3.4 region have touched the levels of early 2012.

Many have doubted forecasts calling for the onset of the first La Niña in almost five years, believing that its failure to materialize in convincing fashion last summer – as originally predicted – means that it may be off the table for 2016-17.

But in recent weeks, the oceans and atmosphere have been pulling everything into place to facilitate a potentially stronger La Niña than previously thought, so those who follow commodities markets may want to take a second look.

Last Thursday, the U.S. Climate Prediction Center reissued the La Niña watch that was removed in early September. The watch indicates that conditions are favourable for the phenomenon’s development within the next six months.

El Niño-Southern Oscillation, with its cool phase La Niña and warm phase El Niño, is one of the most reliable long-term indicators for global climate. The ENSO phases can have drastically different impacts on commodities worldwide – from energy use to grain yields.

La Niña, characterized by cooler-than-normal surface waters in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, has not officially been in place since the first quarter of 2012. But recently, cooling sea surface temperatures in the key Niño 3.4 region have touched the levels of early 2012 (reut.rs/2e2lI7y).


CPC now says there is a 70 percent chance that La Niña will develop during the Northern Hemisphere autumn 2016 and there is a 55 percent chance it will persist during winter 2016-17. This is up from last month’s forecast of a 40 to 45 percent chance of development.

The environment has not fully committed to the La Niña cycle for Northern Hemispheric winter as the sea surface temperature anomalies have at times hesitated to maintain the downward plunge.

But there are larger-scale features in the oceans and atmosphere that appear consistent with soon welcoming a full-on La Niña, rather than a borderline event or a neutral ENSO.

PACIFIC COOPERATION
Over the past few months, there has been a considerable shift in the Pacific Decadal Oscillation or PDO, a large-scale, long-term climate variability in the North Pacific Ocean that is closely associated with ENSO cycles.

A positive PDO index is associated with anomalously cool waters and below-average sea level pressure in the interior North Pacific, while a negative PDO index is the inverse scenario. Positive PDO is often correlated with El Niño and negative PDO typically coincides with La Niña.

The PDO index has been unusually positive over the past two years, which is not surprising given the record-strong El Niño observed late last year. Since 1900, the first six months of 2016 and 2015 ranked third and fourth for highest average PDO index, behind 1941 and 1940 (reut.rs/2e2gB7l).
 

But the index has been on a steep decline over the past couple of months, and September’s reading of 0.45 was the lowest value since February 2014. PDO has not been negative since December 2013.

This substantial shift in overall oceanic-atmospheric conditions certainly makes a good case for La Niña, so a close watch on PDO trends over the next few months may hint at whether La Niña conditions could stick around, or whether neutral ENSO or a reversal back to El Niño is possible in 2017.

UN GREEN CLIMATE FUND STRUGGLES TO RAISE AND SPEND THE MONEY

This article gives the details of what the fund has raised, which is only a small fraction of what it expected. It also shows that it is struggling to spend even a small fraction of that. Oh dear, what will the poor third world nations say? A lot of naughty little words, I expect. I am not surprised to learn this, as I thought that the West would struggle to find these sort of sums at a time when they have such large debts on top of slow growth. They need to wake up and face the reality - it isn't going to happen. 

OIL PRICES LIKELY TO REMAIN LOW DESPITE CUTS BY OPEC

This article gives the background. In recent weeks the price of oil has increased slightly from $40 a barrel to around $50. The middle eastern oil states which make up OPEC have decided to cut back on production in the hope that oil prices will rise further, but it appears that USA production is set to remain high and the world will continue to have production outstripping supply for the next year or two at least.

THE (CRAZY) ECONOMICS OF UK ENERGY POLICY

The House of Lords is holding an inquiry into the economics of UK energy policy. This would seem to be long overdue, though whether the government will listen to reason is another matter as they are so entranced by the global warming mantra. To help to give them sensible guidance the Global Warming  Policy Foundation have sent in this written submission. It is a real eye opener.

GW PAUSE IS ACCEPTED BY MANY CLIMATE SCIENTISTS ACCORDING TO RECENT PAPERS

While some prominent climate alarmist commentators are trying hard to deny the validity of a pause or hiatus in the global surface temperature, there are many scientists who do accept its reality and are trying to explain the reason for it, according to this report. 

CANADA TO GET A NEW TAX ON CO2 COSTING $1250 PER YEAR

This article gives the details of a new tax to be introduced in Canada on CO2 emissions. A tax that will further impoverish struggling Canadian families and will make no difference to the climate at all.  Why do all these climate alarmist refer to CO2 as pollution?  If carbon dioxide is pollution, then every single human being is a non-stop polluter exhaling CO2 every minute of every day.

THE GIGANTIC COST OF CUTTING CO2 EMISSIONS LAID BARE

This post reveals the stark truth about the costs that are being and are about to be spent on cutting down on CO2 emissions in Germany. No doubt similar figures can be attributed to other Western nations undertaking similar policies. 25,000 euros for a family of four - and it will not have any measurable effect on the climate or earth's surface temperature. We know that China and India and all the developing world will increase their emissions far more than the cuts made by Germany and their fellow developed nations.

EVIDENCE OF USA GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE IN THE IPCC

Here is an interesting article citing a government document which attempts to "sex up" a report from the IPCC.  It is widely known that governments want to convince the public that global warming is a serious problem in order to justify their very costly policies, but why do they believe it in the first place when the evidence is so flimsy?

JAMES HANSEN DEMANDS MUCH MORE RADICAL POLICIES TO REDUCE CO2

This article by the excellent Paul Homewood looks at the increasing demands of climate change extremist, James Hansen, former head of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City. First Hansen criticises the Paris Climate Accord for not providing an adequate solution. Of course he is quite right in that assertion, as it is not even binding, but what he does not admit is that he himself cannot find anything that will bind the major emitting nations such as China or India to reduce emissions. It is all very well to demand draconian cuts on the USA or the EU and to say that these are justified to compensate for historic emissions, but unless the other major nations cut their present levels of emissions there cannot be a worldwide reduction. The other major point he glosses over is how fossil fuels can be replaced with anything on the same scale at a feasible price. Renewables simply cannot do it. 

MASSIVE SUSTAINABILITY CONFERENCE COMING TO ECUADOR

Here are some details. 36,000 people is a big conference. How on Earth do they all get to say something? It sounds more like a large jamboree to me. Who is paying the bill, I would like to know.

MORE NONSENSE ON GW BEING FED TO CHILDREN

This piece explains what is going on in an Australian school, presumably with the approval of those in charge there. This blatant attempt to indoctrinate the young will rebound on them when they grow up to realise how they were duped by those who should have taught them to view things in a sceptical light.

UN BROKERS NEW TAX ON AIR TRAVEL

Yet another tax to save the planet from global warming has been agreed. Anyone who travels by air will pay it according to this report. In practice all these taxes will achieve nothing other than to push up the cost of living for all of us and prevent the poorest from doing things at all. Air travel will emit just the same amount of CO2 as it did before (probably more, globally as those in Chine and India start to get richer) and global temperatures will warm or cool depending on various factors that man has absolutely no control over.

FRACKING GETS THE GO AHEAD IN THE UK AT LAST

Finally the UK' new government has found the courage to over-rule the local council that has, understandably prevented fracking of natural gas in its area. Understandable, because they have been intimidated by a vociferous campaign by local people closest to the new drilling platforms and they fear for their positions, but this is much too important to leave to local politicians, it is a national project. Here are the latest details. There will surely be other decisions giving permissions to follow.

EUROPEAN ELECTRIC VEHICLE SALES DOWN AGAIN

European car buyers are not convinced that electric vehicles are good value and suitable to replace petrol and diesel vehicles. Sales have declined according to this article and that is against a low base line. The incentives will either have to increase, or (more likely) we will start to see governments trying to increase the cost of petrol/diesel cars to persuade us to change. How can the planet ever be saved?

UK BACK BENCH MP SPEAKS OUT ABOUT THE FUTILITY OF GLOBAL WARMING POLICY

Here is a link to another excellent speech by David TC Davies MP. It is a pity that there weren't more MP's in the chamber to hear him, but it was still pleasing to hear such good sense spoken. He is saying what many other MP's are thinking, but are still afraid to say, as they fear being subjected to ridicule by the "mainstream majority".

REMEMBER WHEN "EXPERTS" TOLD US WE HAD 100 MONTHS TO SAVE THE WORLD?

Well, the 100 months is just coming to an end. So now is a good time to take stock of the claims they made and that is exactly what Paul Homewood has done here. In his usual clinical fashion he has looked at the data and found nothing to get alarmed about, despite the fact that levels of CO2 have continued to rise, despite the UK reducing its emissions by 22%. As Paul says, the world is in a remarkably good place at the moment. It certainly won’t be, if you take away fossil fuel. 

JAMES LOVELOCK RECANTS ON GW

This piece, taken from a Guardian article, shows James Lovelock, the father of the environmental movement, now admitting that he was wrong on global warming. It takes a lot of courage to admit to being wrong about something that has become so big, and this confession by Lovelock should receive much more coverage than will be the case.

WITH ICE GROWING AT BOTH POLES GLOBAL WARMING THEORIES IMPLODE

This article looks at the evidence which contradicts the climate doomsayers. It is piling up at both poles. The most recent data show that the Antarctic is currently surrounded by more sea ice than at any other point since records began.

In all, there are right now about 20 million square kilometres of frozen sea area surrounding the Antarctic continent. That is 170,000 square kilometres more than last year’s previous all-time record, and more than 1.2 million square kilometres above the 1981-to-2010 mean, according to researchers.

While at the Arctic after the very high melt rates of the 2007-2012 period, the trend reversed in 2013 and especially in 2014 when the melt fell below the long-term average.The heat content of the North Atlantic was also plummeting. 

GRANGEMOUTH REFINERY TO EXPAND DUE TO USA SHALE GAS IMPORTS

This article explains how the availability of cheap shale gas has given the Grangemouth refinery a new lease of life, despite a ban on fracking in Scotland. If or when the UK gets on with fracking at home, just imagine how it could transform our industry and the economy.

CONDESCENDING RUBBISH FROM THE GUARDIAN

This piece by Roger Helmer MEP looks at an article in the Guardian which attempts to link "climate denial", as they put it, to some form of mental problem. Roger robustly defends climate scepticism as being the true application of the scientific method. I would add that those who blindly accept climate alarm, without questioning it, have their own mental weakness to try and understand, but I won't attempt to psychoanalyse their behaviour other than to say it is remarkably similar to that of religious fundamentalism.   

HOW DANGEROUS ARE THE TINY SOLID PARTICLES (PM2.5) IN AIR?

Here is an article which argues that the evidence is not as conclusive as bodies like the USA Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) try to make out.

Everyone is constantly and unavoidably exposed to PM_2.5 from both natural and manmade sources. Natural sources include dust, pollen, mould, pet dander, forest fires, sea spray and volcanoes. Manmade sources primarily are smoking, fossil fuel burning, industrial processes, wood stoves, fireplaces and indoor cooking. Indoor exposures to PM_2.5 can easily exceed outdoor exposures — by as much as a factor of 100. Although EPA claims that almost 25% of annual U.S. deaths are caused by PM_2.5, no death has ever been medically attributed to PM_2.5.

Of course that is not to say that we should not try to reduce these micro particles, simply that the effect of inhaling them does not seem to be as serious as we are led to believe.  

TRUMP NAMES CLIMATE SCEPTIC TO DEAL WITH THE EPA

This piece gives the details of Donald Trumps plans for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), should he win the presidency. This is a very welcome development, though I fear that Hillary Clinton is quite likely to win and she will continue with the current Obama policies.

WILD EXAGGERATION IN NEWLY PUBLISHED CLIMATE SENSITIVITY PAPER

This article looks at a recently published paper that claims that the climate sensitivity is such that a doubling of CO2 would cause an increase in global temperatures of between 7 and 13 degrees C. Apparently this paper passed "peer review", and yet it has since been denounced by arch alarmist climate scientists, such as Gavin Schmidt.