National Research Council claims US agencies and political leaders not getting the right information or guidance
Suzanne Goldenberg, guardian.co.uk 12 Mar 09;
America is woefully unprepared for climate change, and the government agencies charged with delivering the latest science to decision makers are not up to the task, a new report said today.
The National Research Council, a policy advice centre that is part of the US National Academy of Sciences, said that government agencies and political leaders, concerned more than ever about climate change, were not getting the information or the guidance they needed.
"Many decision makers are experiencing or anticipating a new climate regime and are asking questions about climate change and potential responses to it that federal agencies are unprepared to answer," the council said in its report, Restructuring Federal Climate Research to Meet the Challenges of Climate Change.
"Robust and effective responses to climate change demand a vastly improved body of scientific knowledge."
The report called for an expansion of federal government research into global warming, as well as a "transformational change" in how scientific research is conducted and incorporated into public policy.
It said government scientists, such as those at the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, needed to pay greater attention to the human dimension of climate change — its effects on food supply, public health and the environment.
Government researchers also needed to forge strong connections across different scientific disciplines and linking the worlds of natural and social science, said the non-profit institution which aims to improve government decision making and public policy.
The committee that produced the report called for the creation of a national climate service, and for further research to determine which parts of the country would be most vulnerable to global warming.
It drew on New York City as an extreme example of the decisions facing government leaders. Greening New York "will take literally thousands of individual decisions in order to upgrade existing municipal buildings, including firehouses, police precincts, sanitation garages, offices and courthouses," the report said.
But although government is increasingly focused on dealing with climate change, it appears that the US public is not.
A record number of Americans — some 41% — now believe the danger of climate change has been exaggerated in the mainstream media, a new Gallup poll found. In contrast, only 28% thought the media had downplayed the dangers of global warming.
The rise of climate change doubters was among Republican and non-affiliated voters – but not Democrats – and was confined to those above the age of 30.
Planning for future must consider climate change
Randolph E. Schmid, Associated Press Yahoo News 12 Mar 09;
WASHINGTON – Despite years of study and analysis, the world is unprepared for climate change and needs to rethink basic assumptions that govern things as varied as choosing cars and building bridges, the National Research Council reports.
Current building, land use and planning practices assume a continuation of climate as it has been known in the past.
"That assumption, fundamental to the ways people and organizations make their choices, is no longer valid," the Council, the working arm of the National Academy of Sciences, said in a report released Thursday.
The Earth's average temperature has been rising over the last century and scientists attribute much of the increase to greenhouse gases added to the air by industrial processes and burning fossil fuels, such as in automobiles.
Indeed, last year the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which collected the work of more than 2,000 scientists, said climate change is "unequivocal, is already happening, and is caused by human activity."
Government agencies need to step up their efforts to provide guidance to decision makers, including the establishment of a national climate service, the report said.
The report said the national climate service should be linked closely to research. It noted there has been discussion of such an agency within, or led by, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is the parent of the National Weather Service.
Last year, leaders in the earth science community proposed creation of a new Earth Systems Science Agency by merging NOAA and the U.S. Geological Survey.
"The United States faces unprecedented environmental and economic challenges in the decades ahead. Foremost among them will be climate change, sea-level rise, altered weather patterns, declines in freshwater availability and quality, and loss of biodiversity," the group warned at the time.
Facing such challenges at a time when the climate is changing means officials can no longer rely on the assumptions of the past, the new study says.
"Moreover, climatic changes will be superimposed on social and economic changes that are altering the climate vulnerability of different regions and sectors of society, as well as their ability to cope," the Research Council said.
The new study looked at the New York metropolitan area as an example, noting that decisions involving climate change include proposals for a 30 percent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
"Accomplishing the goal will take literally thousands of individual decisions in order to upgrade existing municipal buildings, including firehouses, police precincts, sanitation garages, offices and courthouses," the report said.
Such decisions include choices of energy-efficient lighting, refrigeration units, boilers, office equipment and heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems.
New York also faces complex challenges adapting regional transportation to potentially more damaging coastal floods, protecting water services, health and energy production.
Meanwhile, a British researcher was warning that climate change will mean higher medical costs, taxes, insurance rates and other costs.
"The hike in costs will be shared, climate change will affect all of our wallets," Alistair Hunt, a researcher at the University of Bath, said in remarks prepared for an international climate conference under way in Denmark.
As warmer than average summers are becoming more common, Hunt said, costs will rise for health care and maintenance of parks and highways and even because of property subsidence.
In addition to establishment of a climate service, the Research Council report made other recommendations, including focusing research on users' needs, building connections across disciplines, monitoring foreign research and expanding the work of NOAA, the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies.
