In part one of our response to the Governor’s letter on cap-and-trade we highlighted several areas where the Governor diverged from accepted experience and was at odds with environmental economics.

Part two takes a closer look at the scientific divergences within the Governor’s letter.

Claim: “We’ve already lost 20% of our snow pack over the last 30 years.”

Response: It is unclear where this number comes from, but it is at odds with the most recent study being re­leased by atmospheric scientists at the UW. Mark Stoelinga, the study’s lead author, and a professor in the UW’s Atmospheric Sciences Department told The Seattle Times last year that, “We can’t see the global-warming signature in terms of a decline in snowpack.” This doesn’t mean that rising tem­perature may not affect snowpack in the future, but if supporters of cap-and-trade need to distort the science, it raises questions about the policy justification.

Claim: “In my first four years as Governor, I made more emergency declarations than ever in the history of the state. Within 13 months, we suffered through two 100-year floods. In the summers, we are enduring more droughts and devastating wildfires.”

Response: This claim is repeated frequently in Washington, citing recent storms as evi­dence of climate change. But this is completely un­scientific in the same way that citing our two years of record snowpack “dis­proves” climate change. UW atmospheric scientist Cliff Mass addressed this earlier this year. He wrote: “How many times have you heard that severe windstorms and heavy rains will increase in the Northwest under global climate change? The truth is, there is no strong evi­dence for these claims and the whole matter is being actively researched. Some portions of the North­west have had more rain and wind during the past decades, some less.”

Claim: “Rising sea levels threaten nearly 40 communities – including several of Washington’s largest cities – along our 2,300 miles of shoreline.”

Response: While many numbers for sea level rise are thrown around, the UN Intergov­ernmental Panel on Cli­mate Change and the UW both agree that the most likely scenario is about 14 inches. The numbers cited by the Governor likely re­fer to projections of 2 feet or more which are called “unlikely” by scientists.

Click here to read the full WPC response to Governor's letter on cap-and-trade