- Author: Carole Hom
Former Secretaries of the Interior Whitman (under GW Bush), Reilly (GHW Bush), Thomas (Reagan), and Ruckelshaus (Nixon) wrote an op-ed published in today's New York Times.
"Climate change puts all our progress and our successes at risk. If we could articulate one framework for successful governance, perhaps it should be this: When confronted by a problem, deal with it. Look at the facts, cut through the extraneous, devise a workable solution and get it done.
"We can have both a strong economy and a livable climate. All parties know that we need both. The rest of the discussion is either detail, which we can resolve, or purposeful delay, which we should not tolerate.
"Mr. Obama’s plan is just a start. More will be required. But we must continue efforts to reduce the climate-altering pollutants that threaten our planet. The only uncertainty about our warming world is how bad the changes will get, and how soon. What is most clear is that there is no time to waste."
Worth a read!
- Author: Michael Levy
We're thrilled to have published a summary of the first annual CCWAS "State of the Science and Policy" workshop in Eos, Transactions of the American Geophysical Union. The workshop was very useful for us in generating and focusing research ideas and approaches, and based on feedback, it was also productive for participants. We're optimistic about future iterations of the workshop and excited to see how it evolves. If don't have access to Eos and would like a full copy of the summary, feel free to email me (malevy@...).
- Author: Carole Hom
Remember Harry Potter's new improved broom, the Nimbus 2000? The one with the curvy bits where an ordinary household broom is straight? Imagine that handle grafted onto a hockey stick.
What does that have to do with climate change? A recent analysis published in the journal Science examined reconstructions of climate data back 11,000 years. The resulting graph of temperature anomalies through time looks sort of like Harry Potter's broom merged with the hockey stick. Sort of.
What this means: although some past climates may have been warmer than the current one, the today's speed of change has no precedent. That is, our climate has warmed faster in the past 100 years than previous climates over a 4,000 year period.
You can read descriptions of the article in The Atlantic blog, the New Scientist, CNN.com ("Epic" global warming) or the original paper in Science online.
- Author: Carole Hom
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This month, Davis voters will weigh in via an all-mail ballot on whether or not the city should tap into Sacramento River water in a project shared with the city of Woodland. The Davis Enterprise recently asked CCWAS PI Graham Fogg and co-PI Jay Lund to comment on technical aspects of the proposed project. You can access Fogg's interview and Lund's interview if you register on the Davis Enterprise website at no cost to subscribers and for a nominal fee for others. CCCWAS trainee and Ecology grad student Michael Levy also weighed in about Measure I via an op ed . Update, 13 February 2013: The Sacramento Bee quoted Graham in its editorial supporting Measure I. |
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- Author: Michael Levy
As anyone familiar with California water and politics could probably guess, in thinking about climate change, water and society, we end up thinking about the Delta quite a bit. For those who don't know, the Delta is the confluence of the rivers that are formed high up in the Sierras, run down the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys (i.e., the Central Valley), and meet just east of the San Francisco Bay. It is the largest estuary on the west coast of North America and was historically a great wetland with a variety of habitats that supported incredible fish and wildlife (check out fellow CCWAS Trainee Alison Whipple's great work on the history of the delta in map form here). Now, it's mostly agricultural land, with a little modern development, and canals instead of wetlands and networks of rivers.
The academic learning without the experience of a place can feel hollow, so a few of us headed down to the Delta last weekend to get a little taste of the flavor of the delta. Here are some pictures of what we saw...
