Is it just me or does everybody not see that the bill for environmental extremism is coming due and it is expensive. This assault on our pocket book and our freedoms will continue because most of us have remained silent. As we speak California is moving to outlaw the common incandescent light bulbs and dictate that compact fluorescents be used. I think what we need is a collective, “Hey wait a minute.” Do we really need to completely defer all energy and environmental concerns to theses extremists and their ideas about man made global warming and our consumption of fossil fuels destroying the planet? I say let’s stop and examine the situation. Not to knock meteorologists, but they usually do great in predicting a 3-day forecast. However, the a 7-day forecast is usually very suspect, or predicting the intensity of a hurricane season usually leaves egg on their collective faces. Some of these people are predicting global doom if we don’t take immediate and extreme action. So since these extremists seem to have a problem with a 7-day forecast why should we bow down to their demands without some serious skepticism. The founder of the weather channel, John Colman, stated that global warming was, “Greatest Scam in History.” In stark contrast to the current wisdom Time Magazine warned in June 1974 of a coming ice age? And again in January 1994, “The Ice Age Cometh.” Hey do any of you remember how back in the ’70’s and ’80’s how Acid Rain was destroying our environment? How about the ozone hole? The ozone hole only became a problem after the technology was available to detect it. Scientists now know that it gets smaller and larger in cycles.

So why has the continuing increase and hype about man made global warming been a part of our existence. It’s become popular to accept the premise that this condition is fact. Well the idea of man made global warming can only be described in the scientific community as consensus. Consensus is not and has never been considered as science. It’s sad to say the increased hype can be broken down to the sad adage, “Follow the money.” Michael Crichton brilliantly illustrated in his novel “State of Fear” how environmentalist’s extremists stand to gain and control millions of dollars for combating man made global warming. Also, consider the millions of dollars granted each year for research institutions to study the problem. Is it in the best interest of the researchers to say, “it’s not a problem?” No.

Please don’t make the assumption that I am not in favor of being a good steward of our domain. Advances in water and sewage treatment have virtually eliminated such things as dysentery and other waterborne maladies, thus increasing the quality and quantity of life. Industries have spent billions to improve their environmental quality; the consumers have demanded it. Next time you pay your power bill look and see your extra charge for environmental cost. The consumer will always pay these costs.

Let us ask questions about the issue. It does not take advanced training chemistry, physics, hydraulics and thermodynamics to understand the simple common sense questions can be asked and understood. Has the earth been hotter of colder than it is right now? Yes. The geologic record indicates that the earth has done just that. We are told that the arctic ice cap extended as far south as Tennessee 10,000 years ago. What did the man made global warming do to cause the massive retreat of this enormous ice cap? How many of you have heard about “The Little Ice Age,” recorded in Europe from 1650 to 1850? Regarding the changes in earth temperatures one simple question should be asked. Could the cause of these changes be that uncontrolled nuclear reaction, 93,000 million miles away, called the sun? It was discovered in 1843 by scientists that the sun does go through cycles and that these cycles do affect the environment on earth.

What I see as negative impacts of environmental extremists are many. The blocking of new oil refineries construction. There has not been a new refinery built in 29 years. While demand for gas goes up here and around the world our refining capacity remains the same or even shrinking due to the age of some existing refineries. The price you pay at the pump will continue to rise. Secondly, these extremists have successfully blocked new oil production from Alaska to the Gulf of Mexico. Why? Have the oil companies been so irresponsible in the production of current sites? No. The only domestic accident in this area that most people will remember is the Exxon Valdez incident in Prince William Sound. Exxon was held accountable for this accident and they paid a high price for cleanup and mitigation, as they should have. The incident led to new rules and regulations that has guarded against further incidents. Thirdly, these extremists have blocked the construction of any new nuclear power plants. A nuclear power plant has not been built in the United States since 1996. Why is this? It’s cheap, it’s efficient, and it has been proven to be safe. One accident in the US has been recorded, Three-mile Island in 1979. In this case safety and emergency design mitigation prevented a large scale radiation release and exposure was small. Further, due to this accident, designs were improved and additional fail safe methods for nuclear power plant safety were created. Currently the US gets 20 percent of its electrical power from nuclear. France produces 80 percent of its electrical power from nuclear. France! How about the US Navy. Many of their vessels are powered by nuclear power, safely. We can thank fear mongering by these extremists and movies like “The China Syndrome” for this unfounded fear, thanks Hollywood and by the way thanks for the movie, “The Day After Tomorrow.” Finally there are coming, requirements, by law, that our light builds will have to be compact fluorescent types. Sure they’re more efficient, but did you know that when they are broken they emit small amounts of mercury which is harmful to humans. Many of these bulbs will be buried in our landfills.

The grandest unintended consequence that we now see unfolding before us is the diversion of grain from human consumption to the production of ethanol. Our food prices are going up due to this increased demand. We are starting to see stories in the news about food shortages around the world. Is ethanol the answer? Research published in Science News stated that it takes six units of energy to produce one unit of ethanol when all farming and production factors are considered.

There are naturally occurring “greenhouse gases.” Did you know that every time you exhale you emit CO2, a green house gas. Methane and nitrous oxide are others. Roy Spencer, PhD, University Alabama at Huntsville, states in his book Climate Confusion, “Al Gore likes to say that mankind puts 70 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every day. What he probably doesn’t know is that Mother Nature puts 24,000 times that amount of our main greenhouse gas — water vapor — into the atmosphere every day, and removes about the same amount every day. While this does not ‘prove’ that global warming is not manmade, it shows that weather systems have by far the greatest control over the Earth’s greenhouse effect, which is dominated by water vapor and clouds.“ The 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines injected millions of tons of sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere. The resulting 2 percent-4 percent reduction in sunlight offered a natural test of the earth’s climate sensitivity to changes in solar radiation. The sulfur dioxide that spread around the northern hemisphere reduced the amount of sunlight resulting in a cooling effect that lasted two to three years.

Most scientists admit they do not know for sure if global warming is caused by man. They go on to say since we’re not sure we must take immediate action to reduce our component of the problem. I’m not so sure. The question is will people have their, “hey wait a minute moment,” now or will we wait another decade of spending thousands of dollars and find out that it really wasn’t the big deal it was advertised to be.



Gregory R. Miller

Professional Engineer

Meridian