American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2014 - 49

events and climate scenarios other than
those driven by carbon dioxide emissions
and simulated by deficient climate models
has the potential to increase our vulnerability to future climate surprises," Curry
charges.
Cornwall Alliance Senior Fellow Roy
W. Spencer, who is principal research
scientist in climatology at the University
of Alabama, Huntsville, and U.S. team
lead scientist on NASA's Aqua satellite,
released responses to Climate Assessment's
12 major findings. To the report's conclusion that global warming of the past
50 years is primarily the result of human
activities, Spencer replies, "There is no
way to know . . . because there is no fingerprint of human-caused versus natural
climate change. To claim the changes are
'unprecedented' cannot be demonstrated
with reliable data and is contradicted by
some published paleoclimate data that
suggest most centuries experience substantial warming or cooling."
In response to the report's claim that
human-induced climate change has increased the number and severity of extreme
weather events, Spencer says, "There is
little or no evidence of increases in severe
weather events, except possibly in heavy
rainfall, which would be consistent with
modest warming. The statement panders
to the public's focus on the latest severe
weather and limited memory of even
worse events of the past."
Spencer counters the report's contention
that climate-change impacts will become
increasingly disruptive by noting, "Even
if human-caused impacts are a net negative,
they are far outweighed by the benefits
to society (especially the poor) of access
to abundant, affordable energy."
Similarly, to the report's accusation
that climate change threatens human
health and well-being, Spencer replies,
"Most of this is simply made up and ignores the positive benefits of access to
affordable energy, which far outweigh
the negatives."
In conclusion, Spencer says the report
"is nowhere near balanced regarding science, costs-versus-benefits, or implied
policy outcomes. Like the previous two
national assessment reports, it takes global
climate models that cannot even hindcast what has happened, that over-forecast
global average warming, and that are
known to have essentially zero skill for
regional (e.g., U.S.) predictions, and uses
them anyway to instill fear into the masses
so that we may be led to safety by politicians."

chose to focus on the aspects of the 841page report that were positive for natural
gas, remarking that this key take-away
"largely has been lost in the initial (media)
coverage of the report."
EID says the report indicates that natural gas development-especially from
shale-is critical to both the future of
American energy and the nation's ability
to reduce its carbon footprint. As evidence,
EID cites these passages:
* "An increase in natural gas consumption could lead to a reduction in
U.S. greenhouse gas emissions (page
269)."

* "Carbon dioxide emissions from
energy use declined by around 9 percent
between 2008 and 2012, largely because
of a shift . . . to less CO2-intensive natural
gas for electricity production (page 13)."
* "Increased use of natural gas in
the Midwest has the potential to reduce
emissions of greenhouse gases (page
424)."
The Climate Assessment even pays a
backhanded compliment to hydraulic fracturing, EID mentions, concluding that
"reductions in natural gas prices are
largely (the result of) advances in hydraulic
fracturing (page 269)."
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Industry Perspective
The Independent Petroleum Association
of America's Energy in Depth program
JUNE 2014 49
American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2014

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