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Open Kyoto to debate
Sixty scientists call on Harper to revisit the science of global warming
Special to the Financial Post
Thursday, April 06, 2006
An open letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper:
Dear Prime Minister:
As accredited experts in climate and related scientific disciplines,
we are writing to propose that balanced, comprehensive public-consultation
sessions be held so as to examine the scientific foundation of the federal
government's climate-change plans. This would be entirely consistent with
your recent commitment to conduct a review of the Kyoto Protocol. Although
many of us made the same suggestion to then-prime ministers Martin and
Chrétien, neither responded, and, to date, no formal, independent
climate-science review has been conducted in Canada. Much of the billions
of dollars earmarked for implementation of the protocol in Canada will
be squandered without a proper assessment of recent developments in climate
science.
Observational evidence does not support today's computer climate models,
so there is little reason to trust model predictions of the future. Yet
this is precisely what the United Nations did in creating and promoting
Kyoto and still does in the alarmist forecasts on which Canada's climate
policies are based. Even if the climate models were realistic, the environmental
impact of Canada delaying implementation of Kyoto or other greenhouse-gas
reduction schemes, pending completion of consultations, would be insignificant.
Directing your government to convene balanced, open hearings as soon as
possible would be a most prudent and responsible course of action.
While the confident pronouncements of scientifically unqualified environmental
groups may provide for sensational headlines, they are no basis for mature
policy formulation. The study of global climate change is, as you have
said, an "emerging science," one that is perhaps the most complex
ever tackled. It may be many years yet before we properly understand the
Earth's climate system. Nevertheless, significant advances have been made
since the protocol was created, many of which are taking us away from
a concern about increasing greenhouse gases. If, back in the mid-1990s,
we knew what we know today about climate, Kyoto would almost certainly
not exist, because we would have concluded it was not necessary.
We appreciate the difficulty any government has formulating sensible
science-based policy when the loudest voices always seem to be pushing
in the opposite direction. However, by convening open, unbiased consultations,
Canadians will be permitted to hear from experts on both sides of the
debate in the climate-science community. When the public comes to understand
that there is no "consensus" among climate scientists about
the relative importance of the various causes of global climate change,
the government will be in a far better position to develop plans that
reflect reality and so benefit both the environment and the economy.
"Climate change is real" is a meaningless phrase used repeatedly
by activists to convince the public that a climate catastrophe is looming
and humanity is the cause. Neither of these fears is justified. Global
climate changes all the time due to natural causes and the human impact
still remains impossible to distinguish from this natural "noise."
The new Canadian government's commitment to reducing air, land and water
pollution is commendable, but allocating funds to "stopping climate
change" would be irrational. We need to continue intensive research
into the real causes of climate change and help our most vulnerable citizens
adapt to whatever nature throws at us next.
We believe the Canadian public and government decision-makers need and
deserve to hear the whole story concerning this very complex issue. It
was only 30 years ago that many of today's global-warming alarmists were
telling us that the world was in the midst of a global-cooling catastrophe.
But the science continued to evolve, and still does, even though so many
choose to ignore it when it does not fit with predetermined political
agendas.
We hope that you will examine our proposal carefully and we stand willing
and able to furnish you with more information on this crucially important
topic.
CC: The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of the Environment, and the
Honourable Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources
- - -
Sincerely,
Dr. Ian D. Clark, professor, isotope hydrogeology and paleoclimatology,
Dept. of Earth Sciences, University of Ottawa
Dr. Tad Murty, former senior research scientist, Dept. of Fisheries
and Oceans, former director of Australia's National Tidal Facility and
professor of earth sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide; currently
adjunct professor, Departments of Civil Engineering and Earth Sciences,
University of Ottawa
Dr. R. Timothy Patterson, professor, Dept. of Earth Sciences (paleoclimatology),
Carleton University, Ottawa
Dr. Fred Michel, director, Institute of Environmental Science and
associate professor, Dept. of Earth Sciences, Carleton University, Ottawa
Dr. Madhav Khandekar, former research scientist, Environment Canada.
Member of editorial board of Climate Research and Natural Hazards
Dr. Paul Copper, FRSC, professor emeritus, Dept. of Earth Sciences,
Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ont.
Dr. Ross McKitrick, associate professor, Dept. of Economics, University
of Guelph, Ont.
Dr. Tim Ball, former professor of climatology, University of Winnipeg;
environmental consultant
Dr. Andreas Prokocon, adjunct professor of earth sciences, University
of Ottawa; consultant in statistics and geology
Mr. David Nowell, M.Sc. (Meteorology), fellow of the Royal Meteorological
Society, Canadian member and past chairman of the NATO Meteorological
Group, Ottawa
Dr. Christopher Essex, professor of applied mathematics and associate
director of the Program in Theoretical Physics, University of Western
Ontario, London, Ont.
Dr. Gordon E. Swaters, professor of applied mathematics, Dept. of
Mathematical Sciences, and member, Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Research
Group, University of Alberta
Dr. L. Graham Smith, associate professor, Dept. of Geography, University
of Western Ontario, London, Ont.
Dr. G. Cornelis van Kooten, professor and Canada Research Chair in
environmental studies and climate change, Dept. of Economics, University
of Victoria
Dr. Petr Chylek, adjunct professor, Dept. of Physics and Atmospheric
Science, Dalhousie University, Halifax
Dr./Cdr. M. R. Morgan, FRMS, climate consultant, former meteorology
advisor to the World Meteorological Organization. Previously research
scientist in climatology at University of Exeter, U.K.
Dr. Keith D. Hage, climate consultant and professor emeritus of Meteorology,
University of Alberta
Dr. David E. Wojick, P.Eng., energy consultant, Star Tannery, Va.,
and Sioux Lookout, Ont.
Rob Scagel, M.Sc., forest microclimate specialist, principal consultant,
Pacific Phytometric Consultants, Surrey, B.C.
Dr. Douglas Leahey, meteorologist and air-quality consultant, Calgary
Paavo Siitam, M.Sc., agronomist, chemist, Cobourg, Ont.
Dr. Chris de Freitas, climate scientist, associate professor, The
University of Auckland, N.Z.
Dr. Richard S. Lindzen, Alfred P. Sloan professor of meteorology,
Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute
of Technology
Dr. Freeman J. Dyson, emeritus professor of physics, Institute for
Advanced Studies, Princeton, N.J.
Mr. George Taylor, Dept. of Meteorology, Oregon State University;
Oregon State climatologist; past president, American Association of State
Climatologists
Dr. Ian Plimer, professor of geology, School of Earth and Environmental
Sciences, University of Adelaide; emeritus professor of earth sciences,
University of Melbourne, Australia
Dr. R.M. Carter, professor, Marine Geophysical Laboratory, James Cook
University, Townsville, Australia
Mr. William Kininmonth, Australasian Climate Research, former Head
National Climate Centre, Australian Bureau of Meteorology; former Australian
delegate to World Meteorological Organization Commission for Climatology,
Scientific and Technical Review
Dr. Hendrik Tennekes, former director of research, Royal Netherlands
Meteorological Institute
Dr. Gerrit J. van der Lingen, geologist/paleoclimatologist, Climate
Change Consultant, Geoscience Research and Investigations, New Zealand
Dr. Patrick J. Michaels, professor of environmental sciences, University
of Virginia
Dr. Nils-Axel Mörner, emeritus professor of paleogeophysics &
geodynamics, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
Dr. Gary D. Sharp, Center for Climate/Ocean Resources Study, Salinas,
Calif.
Dr. Roy W. Spencer, principal research scientist, Earth System Science
Center, The University of Alabama, Huntsville
Dr. Al Pekarek, associate professor of geology, Earth and Atmospheric
Sciences Dept., St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minn.
Dr. Marcel Leroux, professor emeritus of climatology, University of
Lyon, France; former director of Laboratory of Climatology, Risks and
Environment, CNRS
Dr. Paul Reiter, professor, Institut Pasteur, Unit of Insects and
Infectious Diseases, Paris, France. Expert reviewer, IPCC Working group
II, chapter 8 (human health)
Dr. Zbigniew Jaworowski, physicist and chairman, Scientific Council
of Central Laboratory for Radiological Protection, Warsaw, Poland
Dr. Sonja Boehmer-Christiansen, reader, Dept. of Geography, University
of Hull, U.K.; editor, Energy & Environment
Dr. Hans H.J. Labohm, former advisor to the executive board, Clingendael
Institute (The Netherlands Institute of International Relations) and an
economist who has focused on climate change
Dr. Lee C. Gerhard, senior scientist emeritus, University of Kansas,
past director and state geologist, Kansas Geological Survey
Dr. Asmunn Moene, past head of the Forecasting Centre, Meteorological
Institute, Norway
Dr. August H. Auer, past professor of atmospheric science, University
of Wyoming; previously chief meteorologist, Meteorological Service (MetService)
of New Zealand
Dr. Vincent Gray, expert reviewer for the IPCC and author of The Greenhouse
Delusion: A Critique of 'Climate Change 2001,' Wellington, N.Z.
Dr. Howard Hayden, emeritus professor of physics, University of Connecticut
Dr Benny Peiser, professor of social anthropology, Faculty of Science,
Liverpool John Moores University, U.K.
Dr. Jack Barrett, chemist and spectroscopist, formerly with Imperial
College London, U.K.
Dr. William J.R. Alexander, professor emeritus, Dept. of Civil and
Biosystems Engineering, University of Pretoria, South Africa. Member,
United Nations Scientific and Technical Committee on Natural Disasters,
1994-2000
Dr. S. Fred Singer, professor emeritus of environmental sciences,
University of Virginia; former director, U.S. Weather Satellite Service
Dr. Harry N.A. Priem, emeritus professor of planetary geology and
isotope geophysics, Utrecht University; former director of the Netherlands
Institute for Isotope Geosciences; past president of the Royal Netherlands
Geological & Mining Society
Dr. Robert H. Essenhigh, E.G. Bailey professor of energy conversion,
Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, The Ohio State University
Dr. Sallie Baliunas, astrophysicist and climate researcher, Boston,
Mass.
Douglas Hoyt, senior scientist at Raytheon (retired) and co-author
of the book The Role of the Sun in Climate Change; previously with NCAR,
NOAA, and the World Radiation Center, Davos, Switzerland
Dipl.-Ing. Peter Dietze, independent energy advisor and scientific
climate and carbon modeller, official IPCC reviewer, Bavaria, Germany
Dr. Boris Winterhalter, senior marine researcher (retired), Geological
Survey of Finland, former professor in marine geology, University of Helsinki,
Finland
Dr. Wibjörn Karlén, emeritus professor, Dept. of Physical
Geography and Quaternary Geology, Stockholm University, Sweden
Dr. Hugh W. Ellsaesser, physicist/meteorologist, previously with the
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Calif.; atmospheric consultant.
Dr. Art Robinson, founder, Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine,
Cave Junction, Ore.
Dr. Arthur Rörsch, emeritus professor of molecular genetics,
Leiden University, The Netherlands; past board member, Netherlands organization
for applied research (TNO) in environmental, food and public health
Dr. Alister McFarquhar, Downing College, Cambridge, U.K.; international
economist
Dr. Richard S. Courtney, climate and atmospheric science consultant,
IPCC expert reviewer, U.K.
© National Post 2006
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