COVID-19 is hardly over as an issue, but I hear renewed talk of getting back to dealing with climate change. The same old doomsday predictions are back in the air, plus calls for renewable energy and all its euphoric potential.
Three new works have at last brought some clarity and credibility to these issues. First is a new book by Michael Shellenberger, Apocalypse Never: Why environmental alarmism hurts us all. The title is self-explanatory. He has been a scientific adviser to the IPCC and long-time environmentalist, and is making an apology to all people for being part of the fear mongering scenario for a long time. A new documentary movie edited by Ozzy Zehner and produced by Michael Moore, Planet of the Humans, looks at the debacle of renewable energy and debunks the utopian hyperbole of its promoters.
Another of Zehner’s works is his book Green Illusions: The dirty secrets of renewable energy, which gives a scholarly review of the real results of wind, solar and biomass energy systems and separates them from their mythology. He is a professor at University of California, Berkeley.
At long last there are some recognized and credible scientists and writers giving voice to the real concerns around these issues. The message is: there is certainly a changing climate, there is no apocalypse looming and there are many more urgent environmental issues to be tackled.
I recommend all three works.
Peter Noakes,
Charlottetown