Sunday, July 7, 2013

Hot Over Obama's Hypocrisy

On this issue in particular:

"Obama offers plan to fight climate dangers; New regulations, clean technology" by Beth Daley |  Globe Staff, June 26, 2013

The 21-page plan would expand production of solar and wind energy and includes billions of dollars in loan guarantees to develop cleaner fossil-fuel and other energy technologies. It also funds new efforts to armor communities against flooding, wildfires, and drought, and puts more emphasis on working with countries such as India and China to jointly lower emissions of gases that warm the atmosphere.

In a surprise, Obama also said the controversial Keystone pipeline that would bring oil extracted from Canada’s tar sands to Gulf Coast refineries should not be built if the overall result is more greenhouse gases.

“We don’t have time for a meeting of the flat Earth society,” Obama said to cheers near the end of a speech at Georgetown University. Multiple lines of scientific evidence point to emissions from power plants, cars, and industry as a major cause of the warming planet and changing climate.

 Related: The great global warming swindle

 Also see: CLIMATEGATE: A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY

Large Increase In Arctic Ice This Summer

Unprecedented Arctic Cold Continues

 Or you can go with Obama and believe bankers will save the world.

“Sticking your head in the sand might make you feel safer, but it is not going to protect you from the coming storm,” Obama said. 

 You can go stick your head in some snow, jerk.

The announcement builds on many of the president’s first-term initiatives and does not require approval of Congress, which has blocked previous efforts to pass legislation aimed at slowing global warming. However, the power plant rule, while short on specifics, is all but certain to face lawsuits, political opposition, and industry pressure.

Related:

 "The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit overturned one of the Obama administration’s hallmark air quality rules Tuesday, ruling that the Environmental Protection Agency had overstepped its authority in curbing pollution from Midwest power plants too sharply. The 2-to-1 ruling by the appeals court represents a major victory for utilities and business groups."

“Whether the American people want it or not, he says he’ll do it by presidential fiat,” Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from coal-rich Kentucky, said in a speech on the Senate floor. “The message this sends should worry anyone who cares about constitutional self-government.”

 A president swollen with power?

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Efforts to trim emissions have been helped along by a new, steady source of domestic natural gas, extracted from underground shale deposits using a technology known as fracking. Natural gas emits fewer greenhouse gases than coal. The faltering economy has also contributed, by cutting emissions from manufacturing plants and other industry. 

 A bad economy is good for the environment. That explains the policies.

 Related: Fracking Flatulence 

 Yeah, fracking is good for the environment. Now I know they have jumped the shark.

Obama also called for a renewed emphasis on adapting and preparing for climate change, including government support to make buildings and transportation systems better able to withstand flooding from rising oceans, a pressing issue brought into sharp relief by Superstorm Sandy last year. In Boston, where seas are rising faster than the global rate, officials have been working for several years to prepare the city for more floods, higher seas, and severe storms.

 Who cares if it is all wasted $$?

Reaction from environmentalists was largely positive while some industry officials described Obama’s plan as job-killing. Both sides, however, were circumspect and said they wanted more information....

It’s unclear how the new rules will play out in Massachusetts and the Northeast: The Bay State is part of a nine-state pact known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a market-based program that encourages dirty power plants to invest in cleaner technologies by having them buy increasingly expensive permits to pollute. Massachusetts also has strict air quality rules limiting mercury and other power plant pollutants, and those restrictions have made it more expensive for coal plants to operate. That, combined with the region’s increasing reliance on natural gas, has led to less electricity in New England generated from coal plants.

 Although incinerators seem to be no problem.

Some energy specialists say the new rules should encourage the US electric power system to rely even more on cleaner natural gas. Clean Air Task Force, a Boston-based research and advocacy group, found increasing use of gas and reducing use of coal could cut carbon pollution from existing power plants 25 percent below 2005 levels by 2020 with no increase in average household monthly electric bills.

 They always say that and it is never true. You always end up paying more.

“That’s because of two things — one, there is a lot of underutilized natural gas plants, and there is a lot of gas,” said Conrad Schneider, the task force’s advocacy director. “This is an opportunity.”

Internationally, the plan calls for the United States to work more closely with other major greenhouse gas-emitting countries on global warming. Secretary of State John Kerry, visiting India on Sunday, urged such cooperation. The plan also calls for the end of US financing of new coal-fired power plants overseas.

 Maybe he could stop zipping around the planet in that jet for a while. 

 Related: Indian Flood Coverage Dried Up

 He ignored those. Record-setting snow pack doesn't fit the agenda.

Obama’s comments on the Keystone pipeline, which is proposed to bring energy-intensive Canadian tar sand oil to US refineries, sparked speculation about whether he would ultimately approve the much-debated project. The State Department is still conducting an environmental review.

 See: Boston Globe Energizer

“Our national interest will be served only if this pipeline does not significantly exacerbate” climate change, Obama said, adding that the pipeline’s contribution to climate change was “critical” in determining the project’s fate....

 I bet it will quietly be approved late on a Friday before a holiday weekend with a website announcement.

--more--"

 Related: Obama climate plan to limit emissions at plants

 And then what does he do? 

 Turn around and flies over to Africa for a week-long trip. Thanks for pitching in!  

 UPDATED: White House slows pace of new energy regulation

 Related: Carbon Tax Coming to Massachusetts

Also see: Say yes to carbon tax in Mass.

 All the more rea$on to say no.

Of course, when it come$ to certain thing$:

"In N.H.’s North Country, ATVs may boost economy; By combining trails to create a 700-mile network, county makes a bid to rev up business for tourism industry" by Christopher Jensen |  Globe Correspondent, July 06, 2013

STEWARTSTOWN, N.H. — Connecting the ATV trails in Coos County had been discussed for years as local officials, business owners, and residents looked for ways to boost an economy that sorely needed help. A decade ago, four paper mills employed about 1,000 of the county’s 33,000 residents; today, only one mill, with about 200 workers, remains.

In 2011, a group of Coos residents — increasingly worried about the area’s economy — decided to make the trail network a reality. Harry Brown, 70, a retired businessman from Stewartstown and one of the leaders, saw the project as a self-help economic stimulus package.

Businesses and ATV clubs came together to form a nonprofit corporation, the North Country OHRV Coalition, investing hundreds of volunteer hours and winning the support of state and local officials....

While employment created by the trail network is unlikely to match the pay and benefits of lost manufacturing, Coos residents say it still has the potential to generate significant economic activity. The area benefits from snowmobile tourists during the winter, they say, and Ride the Wilds could extend those benefits year round....

The project faces challenges. There is still no single, detailed route map, showing how trails are linked and where to find lodging, fuel, and other services.

Another issue: All-terrain vehicles are scorned by environmentalists....

 When they start protesting the NASCAR races I'll take them seriously.

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 I guess it is better than hiking:

"Rescuers find body of Colorado senator’s brother" Associated Press, July 05, 2013

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — A search team found the body of Senator Mark Udall’s brother in western Wyoming’s Wind River Range after he did not return from a solo backpacking trip, Udall’s family said...

The office of Mark Udall, a Democrat of Colorado, released a statement.... 

 Udall, just by coincidence, complained about the NSA spying programs.

Randy Udall was an environmentalist and energy efficiency-advocate whose family has been active in politics. Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico is a cousin. His uncle, Stewart Udall, was interior secretary in the 1960s.

 Not that it matters, but they are Mormons.

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 Of course, conforming to the political orthodoxy means we will save money on our energy bills, right?

"Lower electricity bills predicted for summer" by Erin Ailworth |  Globe Staff, June 26, 2013

Energy forecasters are projecting that summer electric bills will fall to their lowest level in four years, largely due to what they expect will be a mild summer — notwithstanding Tuesday’s 90-plus-degree temperatures in Boston....

According to the US Energy Department, even though electricity prices are expected to increase slightly this summer, households are forecast to use less....

Tancred Lidderdale, an Energy Department analyst, said it is a classic good news-bad news scenario. The bad news: Electricity prices, driven down in recent years by cheap supplies of domestically produced natural gas burned to generate power, have begun to rebound.

“The good news is we’re buying less,” Lidderdale said.

Whether consumers will get relief on their energy bills is in question. Forecasters at the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center appear to differ with the Energy Department. They expect a warmer summer overall, although weather will vary from region to region....

The average NStar residential customers can expect to spend $86.78 on electricity this July, about $7 more than last year, while Western Massachusetts Electric Co. customers will pay $89.60 on average, or about $10 more, said Caroline Pretyman, a spokeswoman for the utilities.

 That doesn't look like a lower bill to me. 

--more--"

 And you wonder why I'm so hot?

"Heat wave across West may ground airliners; Temperature near 120 in Phoenix" by Brian Skoloff and Chris Carlson |  Associated Press, June 29, 2013

PHOENIX — A blazing heat wave expected to send the mercury soaring to nearly 120 degrees in Phoenix and Las Vegas settled over the West on Friday, threatening to ground airliners and raising fears that people and pets will get burned on the scalding pavement.

The heat was so punishing that rangers took up positions at Lake Mead in Nevada to persuade people not to hike. And tourists at California’s Death Valley took photos of a thermometer that read 121.

The mercury there was expected to reach nearly 130 Friday — just short of the 134-degree reading from a century ago that stands as the highest temperature recorded on Earth.

The heat is not expected to break until Monday or Tuesday.

The scorching weather presented problems for airlines because high temperatures can make it more difficult for planes to take off. Hot air reduces lift and also hurts engine performance. Planes taking off in the heat may need longer runways or may have to shed weight by carrying less fuel.... 

 That must be what made the plane crash.

Temperatures are also expected to soar across Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho, with triple-digit heat forecast for the Boise area. Cities in Washington state that are better known for cool, rainy weather should break the 90s next week.

‘‘This is the hottest time of the year, but it’s going to be baking hot across much of the entire West,’’ said National Weather Service meteorologist Mark O’Malley....

--more--"

"Southwest region of US seared by scorching heat; Temperature in Calif. desert tops 120 degrees" by Brian Skoloff and Chris Carlson |  Associated Press, June 30, 2013

DEATH VALLEY, Calif. — Scorching heat blistered the Southwest on Saturday, where highs between 115 and 120 degrees were expected for parts of Arizona, Nevada, and California through the weekend.

Forecasters said temperatures in sunbaked Las Vegas Saturday could match the record of 117 degrees. Phoenix was also expected to hit that mark, matching the record set June 29, 1994.

And large swaths of California sweltered under extreme heat warnings, which are expected to last into Tuesday night — and maybe even longer as part of a heat wave that has caused large parts of the Western United States to suffer.

Death Valley’s record high of 134 degrees, set a century ago, stands as the highest temperature ever recorded on Earth....

Downtown Los Angeles was expected to hit 91 degrees, 7 degrees shy of its record.

To make matters worse in California, National Weather Service meteorologists John Dumas said cooling ocean breezes haven’t been traveling far enough inland overnight to fan Southern California’s overheated valleys and deserts.

In Northern California, temperatures Saturday were expected to reach the 80s in San Francisco, upper 90s in San Jose, and into the triple digits inland, about 20 degrees above typical highs in the Bay area.

Farther north, triple-digit temperatures were expected in Sacramento on Saturday and Sunday.

Health officials warned people to be extremely careful when venturing outdoors. The risks include not only dehydration and heat stroke but burns from the concrete and asphalt. Dogs can suffer burns and blisters on their paws by walking on hot pavement.

 And that gets one to thinking: that is why we are getting freak storms and such. As opposed to the past, the paving of the planet has meant more reflection of hot air rather than the earth soaking it in. 

 It's not global warming, fools, it's asphalt!

Cooling stations were set up to shelter the homeless and elderly people who can’t afford to run their air conditioners. In Phoenix, Joe Arpaio, the famously hard-nosed sheriff who runs a tent jail, planned to distribute ice cream and cold towels to inmates this weekend.

 See: Slow Saturday Specials: Sheriff Joe Arpaio

Officials said personnel were added to the Border Patrol’s search-and-rescue unit because of the danger to people trying to slip across the Mexican border. At least seven people have been found dead in the last week in Arizona after falling victim to the brutal desert heat.

Temperatures are also expected to soar across Utah and into Wyoming and Idaho, with triple-digit heat forecast for the Boise area. Cities in Washington state that are better known for cool weather should break the 90s next week.

The heat was so punishing that rangers took up positions at trailheads at Lake Mead in Nevada to persuade people not to hike. Zookeepers in Phoenix hosed down the elephants and fed tigers frozen fish snacks.

Airlines kept a close watch on the heat for fear that it could cause flights to be delayed.

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Related:

 "High temperatures brought discomfort and hazards to much of the Southwest on Sunday as many parts were coping with record-breaking heat and bracing for more sizzling temperatures." 

 Seems like they say this every year.

"The National Weather Service says a heat wave smothering the West is rewriting the record books, probably tying a record more than century old for the United States while putting Las Vegas through its hottest June ever." 

 What was happening back then?

"In the nation’s biggest loss of firefighters since 9/11, violent wind gusts Sunday turned what was believed to be a relatively manageable lightning-ignited forest fire in the town of Yarnell into a death trap that left no escape for a team of Hotshots. The tragedy raised questions of whether the crew should have been pulled out much earlier and whether all the usual precautions would have made any difference in the face of triple-digit temperatures, erratic winds, and tinderbox conditions that caused the fire to explode." 

 Is it just me, or does it sound like they are implicating the victims there?

 Related: In Arizona, a consuming grief, a capricious fire

From what I've been told it will be burning all summer.... 

"129 homes, structures lost in Ariz. wildfire that killed 19 firefighters" by Tami Abdollah and Felicia Fonseca |  Associated Press, July 04, 2013

YARNELL, Ariz. — Nearly 130 homes and structures have been destroyed by the Arizona wildfire that claimed the lives of 19 members of an elite firefighting crew.

The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office released the new tally Wednesday. Officials earlier had provided estimates ranging from 50 to 250 homes and other buildings lost in Yarnell. They were able to get a better estimate after getting a closer look at the scene.

Reporters on Wednesday were taken into the fire area, where charred pine trees resembled burnt toothpicks sticking out of the hillsides.

Nearly 600 firefighters are battling the blaze, which has burned about 13 square miles. Hundreds of residents remain evacuated.

Meanwhile, hundreds of firefighters came off the line Wednesday to salute a procession of fire vehicles that had been left by 19 elite Hotshot crew members who died.

The firefighters and law enforcement personnel gathered along a highway to honor the Prescott-based unit. One of the vehicles held backpacks, water jugs, and coolers. Another was emblazoned with the group’s motto, in Latin: ‘‘To be, rather than to seem.’’

Fire crews across the United States also planned to pause throughout the day to remember the Granite Mountain Hotshots and recognize the dangers firefighters face, said Jim Whittington, spokesman for Southwest Incident Command Team.

--more--"

"Bigger wildfires predicted in West of US" by Alicia Chang and Seth Borenstein |  Associated Press, July 06, 2013

LOS ANGELES — There’s a dangerous but basic equation behind the killer Yarnell Hill wildfire and other blazes raging across the West this summer: More heat, more drought, more fuel and more people in the way are adding up to increasingly ferocious fires.

Scientists say a hotter planet will only increase the risk....

Wildfires are chewing through twice as many acres per year on average in the United States compared with 40 years ago, US Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell told a Senate hearing last month....

 Well, policy has been and is to let it burn, but....

A draft federal report released earlier this year said climate change is stressing Western forests, making them more vulnerable to fires.

What’s happening now ‘‘is not new to us,’’ said climate scientist Don Wuebbles of the University of Illinois, one of the main authors of the federal report. ‘‘We’ve been saying this for some time.’’

 Pffft!  They also said snowfall would be a thing of the past.

Communities nestled next to wilderness are used to girding for fire season, which typically occurs in the summer. Compared with decades past, however, the traditional fire season now lasts two months longer and first responders sometimes find themselves beating back flames in the winter.

Rising temperatures all over the West, for one, have created dangerous, dry conditions.

 Yup, whatever.

--more--"

Which leads back to the heat and coming hurricane.

 Also see: As heat wave hits, region falls under a sultry spell

The hottest July 5 on record was in 1919, at 101 degrees.

Still, it is hot out there and be careful taking a swim. Certainly global warming must be responsible for the floods, lightning strikes, and tsunami even. 

And sorry, Maine, but I don't like Boston Globe lobster. 

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