South Dakota exempted from climate change! You here that people? if you want to beat climate change move to South Dakota. They have recently passed a law that labels climate change as a myth. This to me just seems like a case of politics trying to sweep science under the rug. From my previous education I can refute almost all of the facts mentioned in the bill.
Here is the bill http://www.scientificblogging.com/chatter_box/south_dakota_exempted_laws_science
1)"The earth has been cooling for the last eight years despite small increases in anthropogenic carbon dioxide"
- infact the global average tempeture has risen in the last ten years one to two degrees. Predictions from current climate models guess that the tempeture will rise three more degrees in the coming years if nothing is done.
2)"historical climatological data shows without question the earth has gone through trends where the climate was much warmer than in our present age. The Climatic Optimum and Little Climatic Optimum are two examples. During the Little Climatic Optimum, Erik the Red settled Greenland where they farmed and raised dairy cattle. Today, ninety percent of Greenland is covered by massive ice sheets, in many places more than two miles thick
- That is correct. There is also an other age in which we had the same amount of carbon in our atmosphere it was called the eocene and happend 56 to 34 million years ago. Also the point about Erik the Red is mute because guess what people still live in greenland on the southern most tip, check out these pictures !
http://www.greenlandphotos.net/narsarsuaq/Welcome.html
3)"carbon dioxide is not a pollutant but rather a highly beneficial ingredient for all plant life on earth. Many scientists refer to carbon dioxide as "the gas of life""
- This is another half truth. Yes here on earth we are carbon lifeforms. Yes plants need carbon to grow. they take in carbon dioxide, strip the carbon off and then exhale the dioxide. The problem is that we are emitting so much carbon dioxide that the plants and the ocean can't keep up with our emissions. so the carbon dioxide sticks around in the air and traps heat in the atmosphere thus giving us a green house effect or global warming.
South Dakota does not seem to be convinced of the presence of climate change, so what do they do? Hide it from the kids that should be learning about it so they in turn do something to save our earth.
-Blaise
