New York City experienced in 2009 its coldest June since 1958. OK, it's not proof. But neither was the scorching summer of 1988 proof of global warming, as Al Gore, James Hansen and friends were saying. Sauce for the global warming goose is sauce for the global cooling gander....
Yet leave us give due process for the climate change crowd. Here is Tony Blair's "Seven Ways to Build a Cleaner Planet" article. The seven ways TB proposes:
"The good news is that if we focus on clear, practical, and achievable goals, major reductions can be made in order to ensure that, whatever the precise interim target, the world will fashion a radical new approach within a manageable timeframe. A new report from the Breaking the Climate Deadlock project, a strategic partnership between my office and The Climate Group, shows how major reductions even by 2020 are achievable if we focus action on certain key technologies, deploy policies that have been proven to work, and invest now in developing those future technologies that will take time to mature.
"Perhaps the most interesting fact to emerge is that fully 70 per cent of the reductions needed by 2020 can be achieved by investing in three areas: increasing energy efficiency, reducing deforestation, and use of lower-carbon energy sources, including nuclear and renewables. Implementing just seven proven policies - renewable energy standards (say, feed-in tariffs or renewable portfolio standards); industry efficiency measures; building codes; vehicle efficiency standards; fuel carbon content standards; appliance standards, and policies for reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation - can deliver these reductions.
"All seven policies have already been successfully implemented in countries around the world, but they need scaling up. While cap-and-trade systems or other means of pricing carbon emissions can help provide incentives for businesses to invest in low-carbon solutions, in the short term at least, these seven policy measures - and direct action and investment by governments - are needed to achieve the targets.
"In the longer term, we also need technologies such as carbon capture and storage, expanded nuclear power, and new generations of solar energy, together with the development of technologies whose potential or even existence is still unknown. The important thing for Copenhagen is that decisions are taken now for investments that will yield benefits later.
"For example, the overwhelming majority of new power stations in China and India - necessary to drive the industrialisation that will lift hundreds of millions out of poverty - will be coal-fired. That is just a fact. So developing carbon capture or an alternative that allows coal to become clean energy is essential for meeting the 2050 goal. But we need to invest now, seriously and through global collaboration, so that by 2020 we are in a position to scale up carbon capture or be ready to deploy other alternatives.
"Renaissance of nuclear power will require a big expansion of qualified scientists and engineers. Electric vehicles will need large adjustments to infrastructure. Smart grid systems can enable big savings in emissions, but require a plan for putting them into effect. These measures will take time, but require investment now. Meanwhile, in the short term, low energy lighting and efficient industrial motors may sound obvious, but we are nowhere near using them as extensively as we could."
At least TB is a Smart Green. He wants nuclear power to play a role, and pushes carbon capture. Be grateful for small things.
Bottom Line. Obviously, as noted at the start of this posting, single months do not prove anything--other than having fun at Al Gore's expense. But we have, as LFTC has noted, seen a cooling decade, after a three-decade warming period. So as climate change hawks push for trillions of carbon-emission investment as the global economy faces possibly a decade-long funk, perhaps we should hedge our climate expense bets.
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