I want to sue the republican party for willful denial of scientific evidence about climate change.

[China]

Climate Denial Group Is Masquerading as a Charity, Critics Say

 

The Global Warming Policy Foundation, a climate skeptic think tank, has been reported to the Charity Commission by Green Party Member of Parliament Caroline Lucas and Extinction Rebellion.

 

The move comes after the Guardian revealed that the group received funding from fossil fuel interests.

 

The think tank has charitable status, but climate campaigners say the questions about its funding mean it should be stripped of this. In a letter to the Charity Commission, the signatories, including the writers Irvine Welsh and Zadie Smith, say the GWPF is “not a charity, but a fossil fuel lobby group.”

 

The GWPF, set up in 2009 by the former Tory chancellor Lord Lawson, has enjoyed a recent revival in its influence in parliament. It has MP Steve Baker as a trustee and has its research promoted by the Net Zero Scrutiny Group of Conservative MPs.

 

The letter also claims that the think tank flouts the rules that charities must be run for the public good. The commission states that “a purpose must be beneficial—this must be in a way that is identifiable and capable of being proved by evidence where necessary and which is not based on personal views.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

[philibusters]

47 minutes ago, China said:

Climate Denial Group Is Masquerading as a Charity, Critics Say

 

The Global Warming Policy Foundation, a climate skeptic think tank, has been reported to the Charity Commission by Green Party Member of Parliament Caroline Lucas and Extinction Rebellion.

 

The move comes after the Guardian revealed that the group received funding from fossil fuel interests.

 

The think tank has charitable status, but climate campaigners say the questions about its funding mean it should be stripped of this. In a letter to the Charity Commission, the signatories, including the writers Irvine Welsh and Zadie Smith, say the GWPF is “not a charity, but a fossil fuel lobby group.”

 

The GWPF, set up in 2009 by the former Tory chancellor Lord Lawson, has enjoyed a recent revival in its influence in parliament. It has MP Steve Baker as a trustee and has its research promoted by the Net Zero Scrutiny Group of Conservative MPs.

 

The letter also claims that the think tank flouts the rules that charities must be run for the public good. The commission states that “a purpose must be beneficial—this must be in a way that is identifiable and capable of being proved by evidence where necessary and which is not based on personal views.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

Don't know the merits of this British case, but Michael Shellenberger poked fun at  Extinction Rebellion quite a bit in the book Apocalypse Never.

[China]

 

[China]

Roads buckling in intense Oklahoma heat

 

This month the metro has seen much rain, followed by intense heat – a terrible recipe for local roads.

 

The roads are starting to show damage. Some are buckling under the weight of cars.

 

Roads are built to expand as traffic goes over them. But when it gets too hot, roads expand more than they’re designed to and can crack or even buckle, like Interstate 35 did in Noble County Thursday.

 

“There was actually a pop-up across both lanes of northbound I-35 just north of the U.S. 412 interchange near Perry and, of course, that did cause damage to a few vehicles in the area at the time. They pulled over and local law enforcement, OHP worked with them,” said Lisa Shearer-Salim with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.

 

 

Click on the link for the full article and video

[China]

'Day Zero': This city is counting down the days until its water taps run dry

 

Every day, Morris Malambile loads his wheelbarrow full of empty plastic containers and pushes it from his home to the nearest running tap. It's much further than the usual walk to the kitchen sink — just a little under a mile away — but it's not the distance that bothers him.

 

It's the bumpy road — which runs between tightly packed shanty dwellings and beige public-funded houses — that makes balancing containers filled with 70 liters of water on his return a pain.

"Home feels far when you are pushing 70 kilograms of water in a wheelbarrow," said the 49-year-old resident from the impoverished South African township of Kwanobuhle.

Taps ran dry in parts of Kwanobuhle in March, and since then, thousands of residents have been relying on a single communal tap to supply their households with potable water. And the township is just one of many in the affected Nelson Mandela Bay area of Gqeberha city — formerly known as Port Elizabeth — that rely on a system of four dams that have been steadily drying up for months. There hasn't been enough heavy rain to replenish them.

A week ago, one dam was decommissioned as levels dropped too low to extract any actual water — its pipes were just sucking up mud. Another is just days away from emptying out.
Now much of the city is counting down to "Day Zero," the day all taps run dry, when no meaningful amount of water can be extracted. That's in around two weeks, unless authorities seriously speed up their response.

The wider Eastern Cape region of South Africa suffered a severe multi-year drought between 2015 and 2020, which devastated the local economy, particularly its agricultural sector. It had just a brief reprieve before slipping back into drought in late 2021.

Like so many of the world's worst natural resource crises, the severe water shortage here is a combination of poor management and warping weather patterns caused by human-made climate change.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[tshile]

4 hours ago, China said:

It's the bumpy road — which runs between tightly packed shanty dwellings and beige public-funded houses — that makes balancing containers filled with 70 liters of water on his return a pain.

"Home feels far when you are pushing 70 kilograms of water in a wheelbarrow," said the 49-year-old resident from the impoverished South African township of Kwanobuhle.

just want to take this moment to point out why the imperial system sucks 
 

a poor and impoverished mid aged person living in some random down in south Africa can convert volume to mass without effort mid conversation. 
 

Ask a college educated middle to upper class US citizen to convert 70 gallons of water to pounds of water

 

let me know how that goes 

 

Edited June 21, 2022 by tshile

[China]

A Heat Wave Derailed a Train Outside San Francisco

 

Our existing infrastructure isn’t built to withstand climate change, and heat waves have started to drive wedges into the cracks in the system. Triple-digit temperatures caused a train to derail near San Francisco last week, according to an internal evaluation by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART).

 

The tracks of the BART train hit 140 degrees Fahrenheit, causing them to curve, according to the agency.
 

Click on the link for the full article

[skinsmarydu]

[China]

HSBC banker quits after 'nut job' climate speech

 

A senior HSBC executive who accused central bankers and officials of exaggerating the financial risks of climate change has resigned.

 

Stuart Kirk, the bank's global head of responsible investing, was reportedly suspended in May after he said in a speech: "There's always some nut job telling me about the end of the world."

 

He said on Thursday his comments had made his position "unsustainable".

 

"A cancel culture destroys wealth and progress," he added in a LinkedIn post.

 

Mr Kirk's role, which is based in London, involved considering the impact of investments on environmental, social and governance issues.

 

In his resignation statement, he said he had "only ever tried to do the best for my clients and readers" in a "27-year unblemished record in finance, journalism and consulting".

 

"Ironically given my job title, I have concluded that the bank's behaviour towards me since my speech at a Financial Times conference in May has made my position, well, unsustainable," he said. "Funny old world."

 

HSBC came under pressure to investigate Mr Kirk after he gave the presentation entitled "Why investors need not worry about climate risk" at a conference.

 

In the address he made light of the risks of major floods and said that he had to spend his time "looking at something that's going to happen in 20 or 30 years".

 

During the 15-minute address, Mr Kirk said climate change was "not a financial risk that we need to worry about".

 

"Unsubstantiated, shrill, partisan, self-serving, apocalyptic warnings are always wrong," a slide showed as part of the presentation said.

 

Later in the presentation, he said: "Who cares if Miami is six metres underwater in 100 years? Amsterdam has been six metres underwater for ages and that's a really nice place."

 

Click on the link for the full article

Edited July 8, 2022 by China

[China]

More than 200 congressional staffers urge Pelosi and Schumer to act on climate or risk dooming younger generations

 

In a rare move, more than 200 congressional staffers have sent a letter to Democratic leadership in the House and Senate, demanding they close the deal on a climate and clean energy package and warning that failure could doom younger generations.

 

"We've crafted the legislation necessary to avert climate catastrophe. It's time for you to pass it," the staffers wrote in a letter, sent to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday evening. The letter, which staffers signed anonymously with initials, was shared first with CNN.

 

"Our country is nearing the end of a two-year window that represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to pass transformative climate policy," the letter continues. "The silence on expansive climate justice policy on Capitol Hill this year has been deafening. We write to distance ourselves from your dangerous inaction."

 

Click on the link for the full article

[PleaseBlitz]

Funny that they don't even pretend that McConnell or My Kevin would give a ****. 

[China]

Looks like the kids in Montana are doing what MadMike wanted to do:

 

 

[China]

Alarm as fastest growing US cities risk becoming unlivable from climate crisis

 

The ferocious heatwave that is gripping much of the US south and west has highlighted an uncomfortable, ominous trend – people are continuing to flock to the cities that risk becoming unlivable due to the climate crisis.

 

Some of the fastest-growing cities in the US are among those being roasted by record temperatures that are baking more than 100 million Americans under some sort of extreme heat warning. More than a dozen wildfires are engulfing areas from Texas to California and Alaska, with electricity blackouts feared for places where the grid is coming under severe strain.

San Antonio, Texas, which added more to its population than any other US city in the year to July 2021, has already had more than a dozen days over 100F this summer and hit 104F on Tuesday.

 

Phoenix, Arizona, second on the population growth rankings compiled by the US census, also hit 104F on Tuesday and has suffered a record number of heat-related deaths this year. Meanwhile, Fort Worth, Texas, third on the population growth list, has a “red flag” warning in place amid temperatures that have reached 109F this week.

 

Cities that stretch across the “sun belt” of the southern and south-western US have in recent years enjoyed population booms, with people lured by the promise of cheap yet expansive properties, warm winters and plentiful jobs, with several large corporations shifting their bases to states with low taxes and cheaper cost of living.

 

But this growth is now clashing with the reality of the climate emergency, with parts of the sun belt enduring the worst drought in more than 1,000 years, record wildfires and punishing heat that is triggering a range of medical conditions, as well as excess deaths.

 

“There’s been this tremendous amount of growth and it’s come with a cost,” said Jesse Keenan, an expert in climate adaption at Tulane University. Keenan pointed out that since the 1990s several states have gutted housing regulations to spur development that has now left several cities, such as in Scottsdale, Arizona, struggling to secure enough water to survive.

 

“The deregulation is really catching up with communities and they are paying that price today,” Keenan said. “We are seeing places run out of water, no proper subdivision controls to ensure there are enough trees to help lower the heat, and lots of low-density suburbs full of cars that create air pollution that only gets worse in hot weather. We’ve reached a crunch point.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Califan007 The Constipated]

 

 

[China]

 

[Fergasun]

There was a disturbing graphic/video I recently saw of avg temperatures....we are way hotter from 2000 to 2022 than we ever were 1918 to 2000... at least I think that is what the graphic meant...

[CousinsCowgirl84]

Anyone who owns their home on here should definitely look into solar power. It won’t solve global warming by any stretch of the imagination, but if enough people do it will make a significant impact. Then of course EVs, but I understand they are still basically a luxury item. And stop bagging everything you buy. I rarely bag what a buy.

 

put your money where your mouth is folks.

 

Really I think if everyone agreed so do all the things that cost them zero time or money to do that were beneficial to the environment there would be a significant reduction in pollution and an impact on climate change. 

[China]

The amount of Greenland ice that melted last weekend could cover West Virginia in a foot of water

 

The water off the coast of northwest Greenland is a glass-like calm, but the puddles accumulating on the region's icebergs are a sign that a transformation is underway higher on the ice sheet.

 

Several days of unusually warm weather in northern Greenland have triggered rapid melting, made visible by the rivers of mel****er rushing into the ocean. Temperatures have been running around 60 degrees Fahrenheit -- 10 degrees warmer than normal for this time of year, scientists told CNN.

The amount of ice that melted in Greenland between July 15 and 17 alone -- 6 billion tons of water per day -- would be enough to fill 7.2 million Olympic-sized swimming pools, according to data from the US National Snow and Ice Data Center.

Put another way, it was enough to cover the entire state of West Virginia with a foot of water.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Larry]

Obviously we should have bought them, when the prices would have been cheaper. 

[Cooked Crack]

 

[China]

On 7/13/2022 at 10:39 AM, China said:

More than 200 congressional staffers urge Pelosi and Schumer to act on climate or risk dooming younger generations

 

In a rare move, more than 200 congressional staffers have sent a letter to Democratic leadership in the House and Senate, demanding they close the deal on a climate and clean energy package and warning that failure could doom younger generations.

 

"We've crafted the legislation necessary to avert climate catastrophe. It's time for you to pass it," the staffers wrote in a letter, sent to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday evening. The letter, which staffers signed anonymously with initials, was shared first with CNN.

 

"Our country is nearing the end of a two-year window that represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to pass transformative climate policy," the letter continues. "The silence on expansive climate justice policy on Capitol Hill this year has been deafening. We write to distance ourselves from your dangerous inaction."

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

 

[China]

Where On Earth Is the GOP on Climate Policy?

 

When Joe Manchin announced an abrupt end to Senate negotiations over major climate legislation last week, activists and even fellow Democrats expressed outrage against the West Virginia lawmaker. Manchin was attacked as a “modern-day villain” who had delivered “nothing short of a death sentence” to a rapidly heating planet.

 

Some Democratic leaders, however, including President Joe Biden, have since attempted to redirect that anger toward congressional Republicans instead.

 

“Not a single Republican in Congress stepped up to support my climate plan. Not one,” Biden said, speaking at a coal-turned-wind power plant in Massachusetts on Wednesday. “So let me be clear: climate change is an emergency.”

 

Although congressional Republicans have refused to embrace Biden’s policy ideas, the party has largely abandoned its past climate denialism. But climate experts and activists say the ideas Republicans have proposed are insufficient or misguided and fail to address the magnitude and urgency of this crisis.

 

Republicans have not generally been viewed as champions when it comes to combating the climate crisis at the federal level. Donald Trump famously withdrew the US from the Paris climate agreement, and his administration rolled back nearly 100 environmental rules during his presidency, eliminating important regulations for the fossil fuel industry.

 

More recently, the conservative-dominated Supreme Court handed down a decision, in West Virginia v the Environmental Protection Agency, that will severely hamper that government agency’s ability to curtail greenhouse gas emissions.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

West Virginia won't work with major banks that pledged to fight climate change

 

West Virginia said Thursday that it would no longer do business with five financial institutions over their pledges to fight climate change by reducing financing for fossil fuel projects.

Why it matters: It's the first time a state has severed financial ties with major financial institutions over their policies to reduce the emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases, the New York Times reports.

 

The decision, announced by West Virginia Treasurer Riley Moore, will prevent BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo from receiving state banking contracts from Moore's office.

What they're saying: "As state treasurer, I have a duty to act in the best interest of our state and its people," Moore said in a video uploaded to social media.

 

"Any financial institution that has broad, sweeping policies that will harm our economy, tax base and energy jobs has a clear conflict of interest in handling our tax dollars," he added. "If a financial institution does not want to do business with our people, I don't think we should give them our business either."

“I simply cannot stand by and allow financial institutions working against West Virginia’s critical industries to profit off the very funds their policies attempt to diminish," he said in a statement.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

These hurricane flood maps reveal the climate future for Miami, NYC and D.C.

 

As climate change warms the planet, drives up sea levels and energizes hurricanes, the arsenal of dangerous impacts delivered by the fierce storms is expected to get supercharged.

Among the most worrisome: powerful flooding from storm surge.

 

Rising seas and stronger winds mean the punishing waves pushed ashore by tropical storms and hurricanes will make their way farther and farther inland. That inland march would expose a larger swath of the U.S. coast to the kind of flooding unleashed during Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, and put more people at risk of drowning, the leading cause of death in hurricanes.

 

An NPR analysis based on modeling from the National Hurricane Center for three critical regions — New York City, Washington, D.C., and Miami-Dade County — found future sea rise alone could expose about 720,000 more people to flooding in the decades to come.

 

 

Click on the link for the full article and more detailed maps

[China]

99% of sea turtles are now born female due to extreme heatwaves

 

Sea turtles are already under threat in the USA. With heatwaves increasing the temperature of the sand where turtles lay their eggs, scientists say they have seen no male turtle babies in 4 years.

 

Click on the link for the video