EXPLAINING CLIMATE CHANGE WITH FACTS

Climate Change – Just the Facts

August 2012 (California Governor’s Office of Planning & Research)

“Climate change poses an immediate and growing threat to California’s economy, environment, and to public health. California’s groundbreaking efforts are helping reduce greenhouse gases emissions, which are warming the planet. The state is also taking action to prepare for the unavoidable impacts of climate change, including the increased likelihood of both flooding and drought…”

“…[S]ome of those who oppose the move to renewable energy and cleaner transportation have mischaracterized the science of climate change in an effort to create artificial uncertainty about the existence and causes of climate change…[but] the science is clear: climate change is real and happening now; human-made greenhouse gas emissions are affecting our planet…[W]e reached a point where we stopped debating whether cigarette smoke causes cancer…[Now] we need to end the climate change debate and focus on how to solve the problem…”

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“…If the experts agree on the existence and causes of climate change, why do some public opinion polls find that only about half or less than half of the American public is convinced that emissions from human activities bear responsibility? …A small but vocal group has aggressively spread misinformation about the science…”

“…[D]eniers have now shifted their contention; claiming that humans are not responsible for the warming. Because the basic physics of greenhouse gases has been well-established, along with the fact that human activity has generated billions of tons of greenhouse gases, make this argument untenable, the denier argument…[now concedes] that warming will occur, but that impacts will be minimal…[or] it will cost too much for us to do anything about it. Of course, the cost of failing to act will be much higher…”