New Zealand Climate Science Coalition

The New Zealand Climate Science Coalition is an organisation based in New Zealand which has the aim of refuting what it claims are unfounded claims about anthropogenic global warming.[1]

Beginnings

The New Zealand Climate Science Coalition is regarded as a climate denier organization based in New Zealand[2][3], whose stated aim is to "represent accurately, and without prejudice, facts regarding climate change; to provide considered opinion on matters related to both natural and human-caused climate effects; and to comment on the economic and socio-political consequences of climate change".[4]

The Coalition was formed in April 2006 by the group because of their shared concern "at the misleading information being disseminated about climate change and so-called anthropogenic (man-made) global warming".[4] They hold the position that "climate science is not settled, that the world is not on the brink of a man-made global warming catastrophe".[5]

The New Zealand Climate Science Coalition provides links to a range of material and commentary with significance to the scientific and public debate over climate change issues via its website.[4]

Membership

The chairman of the group is Jack Welch, a former Navy Rear Admiral.[6]

The founding members were:[7]

Events

In July 2006, the Coalition called on the New Zealand government to institute a Royal Commission on climate change because the public were "being given incomplete, inaccurate and biased information about the effects of increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere" when "global warming caused by man-made emissions of greenhouse gases ... cannot be substantiated".[8] The Government refused on the grounds that the majority of climate scientists in the world agree that there is no longer any doubt that climate is changing due to human activity.[9]

In April 2007, the Coalition described the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report as "dangerous unscientific nonsense" and "lacking in scientific rigour".[10]

In March 2008, the New Zealand Listener reported that Owen McShane and Bryan Leyland and the Coalition were lobbying business journalists to cover their questioning of climate change science in order to create an illusion of greater disagreement over the science than actually exists.[11]

In July 2008, the Coalition issued a press release that stated that the premise that "the globe is warming" was "a lie". The release also described the Royal Society of New Zealand's statement on climate change as "an orchestrated litany of lies".[12]

In August 2010, the Coalition commenced legal action against the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, asking the High Court to invalidate its official temperature record, to prevent it using the temperature record when advising Government and to require the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research to produce a "full and accurate" temperature record.[13][14] In 2012, the High Court declined all claims and ruled that the Coalition pay NIWA's costs.[15][16] In response to the ruling, the Coalition liquidated the trust fund it administered to handle the court case, in an attempt to avoid financial liability.[17]

Heartland Institute Connections

The New Zealand Climate Science Coalition has been funded by the Heartland Institute, a conservative/libertarian political think tank and leading organization in the organized climate change denial.[18] The Heartland Institute rejects mainstream scientific information about man-made climate change, has funded New Zealand’s most prominent anti-climate-science groups. In 2007, Heartland granted US$25,000 (NZ$32,000) to the NZ Climate Science Coalition. They also gifted the International Climate Science Coalition US$45,000 (NZ$59,000).[19]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Mc Shane, Owen (2006-05-01). "Scientists Group to Refute Global Warming Claims". Press Release: Centre for Resource Management Studies. Retrieved 2010-06-12. A group of leading New Zealand climate scientists has announced today the formation of the New Zealand Climate Science Coalition, aimed at refuting what it believes are unfounded claims about anthropogenic (man-made)global warming.
  2. ↑ James Lawrence Powell: The Inquisition of Climate Science. New York 2012, p 17.
  3. ↑ Jim Salinger: The climate journey over three decades: from childhood to maturity, innocence to knowing, from anthropocentrism to ecocentrism. . .. Climatic Change 100, 2010, 49–57, doi:10.1007/s10584-010-9844-3
  4. 1 2 3 "About Us & Contact". New Zealand Climate Science Coalition. 2009-07-25. Retrieved 2010-06-12.
  5. ↑ "Bellamy Joins NZ Climate Science Coalition". Scoop Independent News. 2006-10-17.
  6. ↑ Tim Fulton (2008-05-05). "Doubts on human-induced climate change". NZ Farmers weekly.
  7. ↑ "About Us & Contact". New Zealand Climate Science Coalition. 2009-07-25. Retrieved 2010-01-11.
  8. ↑ "Call for Royal Commission on Climate Change" (Press release). New Zealand Climate Science Coalition. 2006-07-26. Retrieved 2010-08-17.
  9. ↑ Parker, David (2006-07-26). "Royal Commission on Climate Change rejected". New Zealand Government Press Release.
  10. ↑ "IPCC Report slammed as "dangerous nonsense"" (Press release). New Zealand Climate Science Coalition. 2007-04-10. Retrieved 2010-08-17. 'The claims of the IPCC are dangerous unscientific nonsense', says Dr Gray.
  11. ↑ Dave Hansford (2008-03-22). "Some like it hot". New Zealand Listener (Vol 213 No 3541). Lobbyists from the New Zealand Climate Science Coalition have lately got stories in the business pages of national media, with articles liberally quoting Owen McShane and Bryan Leyland, questioning the reality of climate change.
  12. ↑ Gray, Vincent (2008-07-15). "Comments on the recent statement by the climate committee of the Royal Society of New Zealand". New Zealand Climate Science Coalition. Retrieved 2010-01-10.
  13. ↑ NZPA (2010-08-15). "Niwa sued over data accuracy". Stuff. Fairfax New Zealand Ltd. Retrieved 2010-08-15.
  14. ↑ "Niwa challenged over accuracy of data". New Zealand Herald. APN Holdings NZ Ltd. 2010-08-15. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
  15. ↑ Underhill, Jonathan (7 September 2012). "Climate change deniers swamped in NIWA court challenge". NBR.
  16. ↑ "New Zealand: Court Rejects Challenge to Climate Change Research Findings". Library of Congress. 2012-09-07.
  17. ↑ Steve Kilgallon (2014-01-12). "Failed doubters trust leaves taxpayers at loss". The Dominion Post.
  18. ↑ Juliet Roper et al: Doubt, Delay, and Discourse: Skeptics’ Strategies to Politicize Climate Change. Science Communication 38, 6, 2016, 776– 799, doi:10.1177/1075547016677043.
  19. ↑ "Puppets on a string: US think tank funds NZ sceptics". 2012-01-24. Retrieved 2012-05-07.
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