Transcript INNOVATIONS: What Is It & Why Does NIDIS Need It?

The Formulation and Presentation of a
Statement on Climate Change for Oklahoma
Gary McManus
Assistant State Climatologist
Or…How To Take A Chance On
Career Suicide
A little background
OCS has four climatologists on staff:
• Dr. Ken Crawford, State Climatologist and Director of
OCS
• Dr. Mark Shafer, Director of Climate Services
• Deke Arndt, Associate State Climatologist
• Gary McManus, Assistant State Climatologist
When faced with questions about climate change…
“First we were afraid, we were petrified…”
Why the fear?
Introducing Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe!
“I called the threat of
catastrophic global warming
the ‘greatest hoax ever
perpetrated on the
American people’.”
It gets better…other gems from Senator Inhofe
• Compared environmentalists to Nazis
oClimate change science = the Big Lie
• Compared the EPA to the Gestapo
• Compared “An Inconvenient Truth” to “Mein
Kampf”
• Claimed global warming was a hoax perpetrated
by The Weather Channel for bigger ratings
Senator Inhofe was re-elected
by a 14 point margin in 2002
Why produce a statement?
• More and more requests for information – public, media and
other state agencies
• It’s why our office was created
o OCS has a legislative mandate to: “...acquire, archive,
process, and disseminate ... all climate and weather
information which is or could be of value to policy and
decision makers in the state."
• The worry of non-scientists getting the first crack at
educating our citizens and decision-makers
• Frankly, we didn’t want to get left in the dust (pardon the
pun) – the chance for a collaboration with Oklahoma Water
Resources Board and the state’s water plan paved the way
In case of GOVERNOR Inhofe...
“I, Gary McManus, disavow any knowledge
of any climate change statement prepared or
released by the Oklahoma Climatological
Survey. “
Production of the statement
• Based on the Fourth Assessment Report of the IPCC
• One sheet, front and back (easily readable)
• Concentrate on the scientific basis
• Edited by scientists at OCS
• Edited and “bullet-proofed” by IPCC author Dr. David
Karoly – an IPCC lead author
• Stay away from mitigation (for now)
• No alarming statements
• First in a series – collaborations to come
Collaborations
• OWRB
• Oklahoma Corporation Commission
• Oklahoma Department of Forestry
• Oklahoma Association of Conservation
Districts
• Governor’s Office
• Oklahoma Insurance Department
After dozens and dozens of talks,
experiences have been mostly good
• My first time out, National Conversation on Climate
Change sponsored by Yale, at Tulsa U. Law School:
o
The mayor of Tulsa, a climatologist and a woman in a
polar bear suit walked into the University of Tulsa's
College of Law on Friday afternoon…” -- Tulsa World
(OK) - October 6, 2007.
• My last talk to the Oklahoma Association of Aerial
Sprayers:
o
“You people make me sick!”
Set apart what we
want to emphasize
Once again, set apart to
emphasize…this time
impacts for Oklahoma
Brazenly stolen from a
Manitoba document
You can find our climate change statement at:
http://climate.ok.gov/
Thank you!