Monthly Archives: June 2014

The baffling Gore and Palmer show

'Like cigarettes and lung cancer' - Al Gore links climate change and fires

AL GORE became the face of climate change back in 2006, when he released the documentary An Inconvenient Truth. He climbed aboard a cherry-picker to emphasise just how shocking the rise in global temperatures has been relative to the last few thousand years.

It was a ground-breaking film on a number of levels. The film was very, very effective at spreading the message about climate change. Coupled with Sir Nicholas Stern’s economic report on the threat of climate change, suddenly the whole world was talking about climate change.

In Australia one of the principal reasons for Kevin Rudd’s convincing election win in 2007 was his clear commitment to action on climate change. He ratified the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gas emissions as his first order of business.

The film spawned a thousand doubting bloggers and galvanised the climate sceptics movement…

Read more: http://www.abc.net.au/environment/articles/2014/06/25/4033168.htm

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Concern for climate change is rising

a thermometer showing 35C with sky background

AUSTRALIANS ARE MORE concerned about climate change than they were last year, according to the latest Lowy Poll. Concern is up five per cent.

It is a predictable public response given the past history of this measure: as action on climate change goes up, concern goes down.

Almost every year for eight years, the Lowy Institute, largely funded by shopping centre tycoon Frank Lowy, has asked a sample of Australians what they think on a number of issues. Climate change is always one.

Agreement that climate change should be addressed has not dipped below 80 per cent since the poll began, but the urgency with which it is addressed has fallen.

Back in 2006, 68 per cent of us agreed with the statement “Global warming is a serious and pressing problem. We should begin taking steps now even if this involves significant costs.”

In 2014, that’s down to 45 per cent. But it’s an increase from its all-time low of 36 per cent in 2012…

Read more http://www.abc.net.au/environment/articles/2014/06/04/4018585.htm