A Legal Licking, Nobel Gesture, and a Planet Melting Faster Than Expected: Hot Week for Global Warming

Yesterday, the state of California prevailed in a lawsuit filed by the Auto Industry which had sought to overturn tougher emission standards for new cars and trucks. AB 1493, also known as the Pavley Standard, limits the greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles sold in California beginning in model year 2009. The federal judge who dismissed the suit relied on the string of recent court decisions regarding global warming in his rejection of the automakers' arguments.

California must still receive a waiver from the U.S. EPA to implement the law, and the Bush Administration continues to drag its feet on California's request.

On Monday, Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) accepted the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change."

In his acceptance speech, Al Gore called on the United States and China, the two largest emitters of greenhouse gases, "to make the boldest moves, or stand accountable before history for their failure to act."

Listen to or watch Gore deliver his Nobel lecture.
Listen to or watch R. K. Pachauri, Chairman of the IPCC deliver his Nobel Lecture.

Their plea for planetary action couldn't be more urgent.

Earlier this week, NASA released new satellite data showing faster melting of arctic ice than previously estimated, reinforcing the growing concern that climate models have been too conservative. NASA climate scientist Jay Zwally characterized the situation bluntly: "The Arctic is often cited as the canary in the coal mine for climate warming. Now as a sign of climate warming, the canary has died. It is time to start getting out of the coal mines."

We encourage all readers to talk to their local officials about actions that public agencies can take to cut greenhouse gas emissions and prepare their jurisdictions for climate impacts. Stay tuned for next week when we'll announce our latest campaign to help you change the forecast for the planet at the local level!

Gary Patton is the Executive Director of the Planning and Conservation League, a statewide, nonprofit lobbying organization. For more than thirty years, PCL has fought to develop a body of environmental laws in California that is the best in the United States. PCL staff review virtually every environmental bill that comes before the California Legislature each year. It has testified in support or opposition of thousands of bills to strengthen California's environmental laws and fight off rollbacks of environmental protections.