Most people know someone that is brilliant yet has no common sense. Thus, the fact that climate science deniers are making a big deal about finding 1,600 scientists from random fields that have signed a declaration that "there is no climate emergency" is little more than fodder for their echo chamber. I'm pretty certain with a sufficient effort I could find 1,600 scientists to sign a declaration stating that "God (or the devil) placed dinosuar bones in the ground to test Christians' faith".
To deny that there is a climate emergency, these 1,600 scientists (0.02% of the total) have to overlook the following:
- Hurricanes and typhoons are growing in intensity at rates never experienced during the satellite era. They are becoming increasingly deadly (the climate science deniers talk about there not being a significant increase in the number of hurricanes, but there has never been a consensus among mainstream climate researchers in regard to frequency, only that intensity would increase).
- Deadly flooding is becoming increasingly common. A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture—about 7 percent more per 1.8°F (1°C) of warming—and a significant increase in atmospheric moisture is present due to the air holding more moisture as it warms.This added moisture powers heavy rainstorms becoming flooding events.
- Sea level is rising by 1/8th inch per year globally and by more in many locations. In the past 20 years, the rate of sunny-day flooding has doubled. Compared to 2000, it's increased 400% on the East Coast and 1,100% on the Gulf Coast. As an example, Charleston SC flooded about 1 out of every 5 days in 2019, and the sunny day flooding problem is worsening.
- Some areas of the Middle East are too hot for human survival without the aid of air conditioning, fans or shade. The limit is somewhere between 104 and 122 degrees Fahrenheit if you're sitting perfectly still, according to a study conducted in the United Kingdom. Other research focuses on wet bulb temperatures.
- The capability of the oceans to support seafood harvesting is diminishing.
A. Coral bleaching is occurring globally For example, a recent paper shows that around 70% of reefs are now net erosional in the Florida Keys, meaning they are losing more habitat than they build. And the Great Barrier Reef has experienced mass bleaching events in 1998, 2002, 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2022. An estimated 25 percent of all marine life, including over 4,000 species of fish, are dependent on coral reefs at some point in their life cycle. The reefs provides essential food, shelter and the spawning grounds needed for their species’ survival. When their homes disappeared, the fishing industry becomes less productive.
B. The acidity of the ocean has increased by 26% since the beginning of the industrial era. For oysters, scallops and other shellfish, lower pH means less carbonate, which they rely on to build their essential shells. As acidity increases, shells become thinner, growth slows down and death rates rise.The shellfish industry is experiencing higher mortality rates. Many shellfish farmers have had to add soda ash to their hatcheries to permit the seed clams, oysters and geoduck to thrive.
Conclusion
The social conservative echo chamber is very effective at amplifying climate disinformation. They cherry pick data, utilize obscure data sources, and make a big deal of the wildest faulty predictions made by individual climate researchers which never obtained widescale acceptance. The amount of coverage of a declaration by 0.02% of scientists from an assortment of fields is a good example of how effective the social conserative echo chamber is at promoting their denial of climate science.
