Mainstream science and economics do not support much of the current climate policy agenda and certainly not the radical extremes demanded by activist groups There’s an assumption out there that if you “accept” the science of climate change, you are obliged to support drastic measures to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This is not true. The one does not follow from the other. Mainstream science and economics do not support much of the current climate policy agenda and certainly not the … [Read more...]
Ross McKitrick: All those warming-climate predictions suddenly have a big, new problem
One of the most important numbers in the world goes by the catchy title of Equilibrium Climate Sensitivity, or ECS. It is a measure of how much the climate responds to greenhouse gases. More formally, it is defined as the increase, in degrees Celsius, of average temperatures around the world, after doubling the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and allowing the atmosphere and the oceans to adjust fully to the change. The reason it’s important is that it is the ultimate justification for … [Read more...]
We must fight climate extremists before they upend society
Start learning the deep details of the science and economics instead of letting extremists dictate what you’re allowed to think or say. Last year was the year the climate issue took a sharp turn towards extremism. Let’s hope 2020 is the year sanity makes a comeback. There have long been three groups occupying the climate issue. To avoid pejoratives, I will call them A, B and C. The A group are the doubters. They don’t believe greenhouse gases (GHGs) do much harm and they don’t support … [Read more...]
Climate Models vs Observations: 2019 Update
Back around 2014 many people, me included, were commenting on the discrepancy between climate models and observations. In a report for the Fraser Institute I showed the following graph: The HadCRUT4 series (black) was then dipping below the 95% lower bound of the model distribution. The IPCC itself in the 5th Assessment Report (2013) noted that out of 114 model runs, 111 had overstated observed warming since the late 1990s. That same year, Hans von Storch told Der Spiegel that If things … [Read more...]
The Intrinsic Value of Nature and the Proper Stewardship of the Climate
Ross McKitrick[1] Department of Economics University of Guelph For presentation to “Exploring the theological, economic, cultural and political assumptions for faith groups (and others) dealing with climate change.” Conference at Huron College, University of Western Ontario, May 29, 2012. Abstract: Historically there have been three broad ways of viewing the natural world. Primitive cultures viewed it as a personal entity with a mind of its own. Biblical cultures view it as the work of a … [Read more...]
Contaminated Data
[Editor's Note: We don't usually publish such a long excerpt as this, but this is a very important, and very substantive, article. It adds to the many reasons to question seriously the reliability and scientific objectivity of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the magnitude of recent warming.--ECB] Below is the famous graph of "global average surface temperature," or "global temperature" for short. The data come from thermometers around the world, but between the thermometer … [Read more...]
