US Laureates say Bush Administration has systematically distorted scientific facts on Environment by The New York Times / Union of Concerned Scientists 9:59am 20th Feb, 2004   February 20, 2004    More than 60 influential scientists, including 20 Nobel laureates, have issued a statement asserting the Bush Administration has systematically distorted scientific fact in the service of policy goals on the environment, health, biomedical research and nuclear weapons.    The sweeping accusations were discussed in a conference call on Wednesday organised by the Union of Concerned Scientists, an independent organisation that focuses on technical issues and has often stood at odds with Administration policy. The organisation also issued a 38-page report detailing its accusations.    The documents accuse the Administration of repeatedly censoring and suppressing its own scientists' reports, stacking advisory committees with unqualified political appointees, disbanding government panels that provide unwanted advice, and refusing to seek independent scientific expertise in some cases.    "Other administrations have, on occasion, engaged in such practices, but not so systematically nor on so wide a front," the statement from the scientists said.    Dr Kurt Gottfried, a Cornell University emeritus professor of physics who signed the statement and spoke during the conference call, said the Administration had a "cavalier attitude to science" that could risk the basis of the nation's long-term prosperity, health and military prowess.    The Satement reads: "The United States has an impressive history of investing in the capabilities and respecting the independence of scientists. This legacy has brought us sustained economic progress, science-based public health policy, and unequaled scientific leadership within the global community. However, actions by the Bush administration threaten to undermine this legacy, and as a result, policy decisions are being made that have serious consequences for our health, safety, and environment.    Across a broad range of issues—from childhood lead poisoning and mercury emissions to climate change, reproductive health, and nuclear weapons—the administration is distorting and censoring scientific findings that contradict its policies; manipulating the underlying science to align results with predetermined political decisions; and undermining the independence of science advisory panels by subjecting panel nominees to political litmus tests that have little or no bearing on their expertise; nominating non-experts or underqualified individuals from outside the scientific mainstream or with industry ties; as well as disbanding science advisory committees altogether.    These activities are of grave concern to members of the scientific community as well as to those who rely on government information to inform policy decisions. But they should also concern the American public, which places its trust in the government as an honest broker of scientific information and one that will protect our health and safety".     John Marburger, science adviser to President George Bush and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy at the White House, said it was important to listen to "the distinguished scientific leadership in this country". But he said the report consisted of a largely disconnected list of events that did not make a case for the suppression of good scientific advice by the Administration.    The science adviser to Mr Bush's father, Dr Allan Bromley, went further. "You know perfectly well that it is very clearly a politically motivated statement," the Yale physicist said.    The Union of Concerned Scientists denied it had political motives in releasing the documents in the lead-up to the 2004 presidential election. The organisation's report, Dr Gottfried said, had taken a year to prepare, much longer than planned, and was released as soon as it was ready.    The letter was signed by luminaries from an array of disciplines. Among the Nobel winners are David Baltimore and Harold Varmus, both biomedical researchers, and Leon Lederman, Norman Ramsey and Steven Weinberg, who are physicists.    The report says the Bush Administration has misrepresented scientific consensus on global warming, censored at least one report on climate change, manipulated scientific findings on the emissions of mercury from power plants and suppressed information on condom use.    The report charges that administration officials have:    * Ordered massive changes to a section on global warming in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2003 Report on the Environment. Eventually, the entire section was dropped.    * Replaced a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fact sheet on proper condom use with a warning emphasizing condom failure rates.    * Ignored advice from top Department of Energy nuclear materials experts who cautioned that aluminum tubes being imported by Iraq weren't suitable for use to make nuclear weapons.    * Established political litmus tests for scientific advisory boards. In one case, public health experts were removed from a CDC lead paint advisory panel and replaced with researchers who had financial ties to the lead industry.    * Suppressed a U.S. Department of Agriculture microbiologist's finding that potentially harmful bacteria float in the air surrounding large hog farms.    * Excluded scientists who've received federal grants from regulatory advisory panels while permitting the appointment of scientists from regulated industries.    Global warming is real and underway    The mainstream scientific consensus on global warming is becoming clearer every day: changes in our climate are real and they are underway. Now. But we can do something about it. The evidence that human-induced global warming is real is increasingly clear and compelling.    * Since the beginning of the 20th century, the mean surface temperature of the earth has increased by about 1.1º F (0.6°Celsius).    * Over the last 40 years, which is the period with most reliable data, the temperature increased by about 0.5 º F (0.2-0.3°Celsius).    * Warming in the 20th century is greater than at any time during the past 400-600 years.    *Seven of the ten warmest years in the 20th century occurred in the 1990s. 1998, with global temperatures spiking due to one of the strongest El Niños on record, was the hottest year since reliable instrumental temperature measurements began.    In addition, changes in the natural environment support the evidence from temperature records:    * mountain glaciers the world over are receding;    * the Arctic ice pack has lost about 40% of its thickness over the past four decades;    * the global sea level is rising about three times faster over the past 100 years compared to the previous 3,000 years; and    * there are a growing number of studies that show plants and animals changing their range and behavior in response to shifts in climate.    Causing serious disruptions to our environment and lives . . .    As the Earth continues to warm, there is a growing risk that the climate will change in ways that will seriously disrupt our lives. While on average the globe will get warmer and receive more precipitation, individual regions will experience different climatic changes and environmental impacts. Among the most severe consequences of global warming are:    * a faster rise in sea level,    * more heat waves and droughts, resulting in more and more conflicts for water resources;    * more extreme weather events, producing floods and property destruction; and    * a greater potential for heat-related illnesses and deaths as well as the wider spread of infectious diseases carried by insects and rodents into areas previously free from them.    If climatic trends continue unabated, global warming will threaten our health, our cities, our farms and forests, beaches and wetlands, and other natural habitats.    We can take action to reduce the threat    Fortunately, we can take action to slow global warming. Global warming results primarily from human activities that release heat-trapping gases and particles into the air. The most important causes include the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, gas, and oil, and deforestation. To reduce the emission of heat-trapping gases like carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxides, we can curb our consumption of fossil fuels, use technologies that reduce the amount of emissions wherever possible, and protect the world’s forests.    We can also do things to mitigate the impacts of global warming and adapt to those most likely to occur, e.g., through careful long-term planning and other strategies that reduce our vulnerability to global warming. Clearly, global warming is a huge problem. It will take everyone -- governments, industry, communities and individuals working together to make a real difference.. Visit the related web page
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