2 Western Cities Join Suit to Fight Global Warming

The New York Times ^ | 12/24/2002 | Katharine Q. Seelye

[GeneD]

WASHINGTON, Dec. 23 — In a novel legal action, the City Councils of Oakland, Calif., and Boulder, Colo., have voted to join Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace in a lawsuit charging two federal agencies with failing to conduct environmental reviews before financing projects that the cities say contribute to global warming.

The lawsuit contends that the agencies — the Export-Import Bank and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation — have provided $32 billion in financing and insurance over the last 10 years for fossil-fuel extraction projects overseas like oil fields, pipelines and coal-fired power plants without assessing the contribution those projects make to global warming.

Spokesmen for the two federal agencies, which provide financing for American corporations for projects that commercial banks often deem too risky, said they could not comment on the specifics of the lawsuit because they were in litigation but they said they followed good environmental practices.

Mayor Jerry Brown of Oakland, who is a former governor of California and a former presidential candidate, said in an interview today that the suit was necessary because "there's been such an abject failure on the part of the Bush administration to protect the people of this country from the seriously deleterious effects of climate disruption."

The Oakland city council, which voted on Dec. 17 to join the suit, contends that global warming could cause the sea levels to rise, putting the city's groundwater aquifers at risk of saltwater contamination and threatening to flood the airport and sewer systems.

Mayor Will Toor of Boulder, said in a statement that Boulder officials, who voted to join the suit in August, were disturbed by predictions that global warming would bring more rain and less snow, which could threaten water availability in much of the West, where the water supply relies on gradual melting of the annual snowpack.

At the same time, Mr. Toor said that predictions of severe drought could require water restrictions and might mean an increased risk of wildfires, which could affect not only human life but the city budget to the tune of millions of dollars.

The Bush administration, which rejected joining the Kyoto Treaty on climate change, has been increasingly criticized for its climate policy, even though last year President Bush accepted findings by a panel of American experts that most of the global warming in recent decades had been caused by human activity.

Last year, Mr. Bush set a climate policy that until 2012 would rely on voluntary measures by industries to slow growth in emissions of carbon dioxide and the other heat-trapping gases. He said more research was needed to clarify the potential environmental risks of warming before stronger measures were taken, although White House officials said recently that they might speed up their timetable in seeking compliance.

Bo Ollison, a spokesman for the Export-Import bank, said that the bank had followed all necessary procedures in its projects. "The bank is very confident that we apply all rules, laws and regulations, including N.E.P.A., whenever we do a transaction," he said.

Lawrence Spinelli, a spokesman for the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, said, "All projects OPIC supports must meet the strictest environmental standards." He added, "Project sponsors must provide environmental impact assessments, major projects are posted on the OPIC Web site to allow for public comment, and, where appropriate, OPIC's environmental staff will actually visit the host country of a potential project to conduct due diligence."

The suit, however, filed in United States District Court in San Francisco, says the two agencies have refused to review the fossil-fuel projects they are involved in for their effects on climate change and that such reviews are required by the federal government.

"The case law is clear," said Brian Dunkiel, a Vermont lawyer representing the environmental groups and the cities. The National Environmental Policy Act, he said, "requires agencies to look at the impacts of their activities if a decision is made in the United States and the activity causes impact on the United States or on the global commons," meaning Antarctica and the international oceans.

Mr. Dunkiel added, "The agencies say there is no significant impact, but they have made that determination without doing an environmental assessment."

He said the suit targets these two relatively obscure federal agencies because the fossil-fuel projects that they finance account for the release of significant carbon dioxide emissions, both agencies "have virtually completely evaded all" National Environmental Policy Act review, and they were both designated by the administration as playing a major role in the Bush/Cheney energy plan.

The suit seeks to have the agencies conduct the environmental reviews on their future energy projects so that their claims of no significant impact can be scrutinized.

[Free the USA]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[Digger]

Oakland & Boulder. That says it all. Why not add Santa Cruz, Santa Monica, Austin, Madison, etc.

[Celtjew Libertarian]

Everyone complains about the weather... and now they're trying to do something about it....

[alaskanfan]

The Oakland city council, which voted on Dec. 17 to join the suit, contends that global warming could cause the sea levels to rise, putting the city's groundwater aquifers at risk of saltwater contamination and threatening to flood the airport and sewer systems.

Yeah, and everyone on Earth could be killed by a deathray from Mars.

Taxpayers in these two cities must be proud to have their taxdollars wasted in such a fashion.

[jeremiah]

This sounds like an opportunity to make them prove their assertions in a court of law, and if they can't, the lie will get big exposure.

[ancient_geezer]

The lawsuit contends that the agencies — the Export-Import Bank and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation — have provided $32 billion in financing and insurance over the last 10 years for fossil-fuel extraction projects overseas like oil fields, pipelines and coal-fired power plants without assessing the contribution those projects make to global warming.

***

The suit seeks to have the agencies conduct the environmental reviews on their future energy projects so that their claims of no significant impact can be scrutinized.

 

The reality is, even a doubling of atmospheric CO2 concentration over current levels could not induce significant temperature change whatever its source.

Climatic temperature is predominantly a consequence of Solar heating/cooling arising from variation of solar radiance, plus astronomical & geophysical events affecting surface & atmospheric albedo.

Water Vapor Rules the Greenhouse

Climate Catastrophe, A spectroscopic Artifact?

A Lukewarm Greenhouse

CO2-Temperature Correlations

---

Global Warming Score Card

A Look at Environmental Changes and "Global Warming"

---

The Bottom Line:

 

Globally Averaged Atmospheric Temperatures
(NASA)

This chart shows the monthly temperature changes for the lower troposphere - Earth's atmosphere from the surface to 8 km, or 5 miles up. The temperature in this region is more strongly influenced by oceanic activity, particularly the "El Niño" and "La Niña" phenomena, which originate as changes in oceanic and atmospheric circulations in the tropical Pacific Ocean. The overall trend in the tropospheric data is near zero, being +0.04 C/decade through Feb 2002. Click on the chart to get the numerical data.

[.38sw]

As if Oakland doesn't have actual problems to deal with, such as their stratospheric homicide rate. Oh, wait, maybe that's caused by global warming, and that's why they're suing these companies.

[spoiler2]

Thanks for the chart, but to really reflect the trend toward global warming or lack of it, the chart data must show the data from the late 1920s, through the '30s, up to the present.

If the abberant conditions of the "dustbowl years" are honestly taken into consideration, today's apparent "warming" trend looks relatively weak.

[ancient_geezer]

Thanks for the chart, but to really reflect the trend toward global warming or lack of it, the chart data must show the data from the late 1920s, through the '30s, up to the present.

Lets do go back a bit further and place it in full context of climate variations across the millenia:

 

Ice Ages & Astronomical Causes
Brief Introduction to the History of Climate
by Richard A. Muller

Figure 1-1 Global warming (surface temperature, not adjusted for urban island effects)

Figure 1-2 Climate of the last 2400 years

 

Figure 1-3 Climate of the last 12,000 years

Figure 1-4 Climate of the last 100,000 years

Figure 1-5 Climate for the last 420 kyr, from Vostok ice

[eskimo]

The cities mentioned are not real "western cities"; they are pockets of old hippies and their spawn who want to create a socialist commune wherever they go. Such freaks of nature must be expelled from any society of freedom-loving individuals they infest.

[Publius6961]

This is great!
If these suits go to trial, finally the Great Delusional Ones will be exposed for the frauds and liars that they are.

News Flash...
Global warming is a normal tiny part of the dynamic earth.
There is little in nature more variable and constantly changing than climate. Always has... always will.

Now, explain previous warmings in the distant past much larger than the present "alarming" trend, then we can start discussing the real agenda of these fruit loops. What happened? Did you beat the "endangered species" dead horse to a pulp?

Need to try something new and impossible to verify? Have at it!

[DrNo]

The populations of both cities need to get together at a prearranged time to huff and puff and blow the sun out!

[Publius6961]

Thanks for the charts!
They are very educational.

Do you have a URL? Some do not come though very clearly.

Now... let's see the morons explain the absolutely constant temperatures of the last 10,000 years!

Gheeeez!

[ancient_geezer]

Do you have a URL? Some do not come though very clearly.

Click on the titles just above the top chart. I always try to provide a reference to the papers from which the information came.

Globally Averaged Atmospheric Temperatures
(NASA) &

Ice Ages & Astronomical Causes
Brief Introduction to the History of Climate
by Richard A. Muller

[Texas Eagle]

Plants love global warming. The more carbon dioxide there is for them to eat the more oxygen they put out for us to breathe. Imagine that...we inhale plant waste!

[Sparta]

This and these stupid cities voting not to assist the Feds implement the Patriot Act and other terrorism laws makes me want to declare these cities in rebellion and send in the Army.

[caisson71]

This sounds like the recently accepted practice to balance their budget - sue the Feds instead of taking responsibility.

[Texas Eagle]

The Oakland city council, which voted on Dec. 17 to join the suit, contends that global warming could cause the sea levels to rise, putting the city's groundwater aquifers at risk of saltwater contamination and threatening to flood the airport and sewer systems.

Sounds like a plan to me.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Great info!

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