Hardening an attack on climate scienceAfter two years spent unraveling the environmental policies of his predecessors, President Trump and his appointees are preparing a new assault. Since the release of the National Climate Assessment in November, the administration has pushed to alter the results of some science reports, several officials said. Government scientists projected in the most recent climate assessment that the atmosphere could warm as much as eight degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century if fossil fuel emissions continue unchecked, leading to higher sea levels, more devastating storms and droughts, and severe health consequences. But officials said that such worst-case projections won’t automatically be included in some government reports, including the next National Climate Assessment, which is to be released in 2021 or 2022. Response: James Hewitt, a spokesman for the Environmental Protection Agency, said of the proposed changes: “The previous use of inaccurate modeling that focuses on worst-case emissions scenarios, that does not reflect real-world conditions, needs to be thoroughly re-examined and tested if such information is going to serve as the scientific foundation of nationwide decision-making now and in the future.”Another angle: The Trump administration wants to create a new climate review panel, led by a Princeton physicist who has attacked the science of man-made climate change and defended the virtues of carbon dioxide.

Source: New York Times May 28, 2019 09:35 UTC