{"id":516340,"date":"2010-04-05T14:27:42","date_gmt":"2010-04-05T18:27:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/climateprogress.org\/?p=22374"},"modified":"2010-04-05T14:27:42","modified_gmt":"2010-04-05T18:27:42","slug":"sen-bennett-%e2%80%9cco2-is-actually-a-nutrient-for-plants-and-helps-some-parts-of-the-continents-grow-more-and-have-greater-vegetation-%e2%80%9d-utah-conservative-falsely-asserts-greenhouse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/516340","title":{"rendered":"Sen. Bennett: \u201cCO2 is actually a nutrient for plants and helps some parts of the continents grow more and have greater vegetation.\u201d – Utah conservative falsely asserts: “Greenhouse gas emissions have absolutely nothing whatever to do with clean air. CO2 does not add to pollutants or cause asthma or any of the other things you think of with dirty air. “"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the classic signs of anti-science syndrome<\/a> is repeated asserting that because CO2 is needed for life, vast increases of CO2 must perforce be vastly good for life (see Rep. Shimkus: Cutting CO2 emissions is \u201cTaking away plant food from the atmosphere\u201d<\/a>).<\/p>\n

In fact, lots of things are needed for life that are fatal in high doses or amounts.\u00a0 Iron and water come to mind.<\/p>\n

Another classic sign of ASS is denying that too much CO2 is harmful to life.\u00a0 This sometimes gets taken to its ASSinine extremes (see House GOP leader Boehner on ABC: \u201cThe idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen that is harmful to our environment is almost comical\u201d<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Let’s look at the many anti-science symptoms manifested by Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT), courtesy of Think Progress<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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In 2007, the Supreme Court ruled<\/a> that the Environmental Protection Agency must regulate greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, under the stipulations in the Clean Air Act. Last month, the EPA announced<\/a> that it would phase-in the regulation over several years, starting with the largest sources of emissions. Many \u2014 mostly Republican \u2014 state legislators have recently introduced measures to block or limit<\/a> the EPA\u2019s authority to regulate the gases.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Reporting on the state action today on Fox News, host Megyn Kelly went a bit overboard….\u00a0 Taking the discussion a bit further into right field, Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT) actually argued that greenhouse gases are helpful:<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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KELLY: Back in 2007 the United States Supreme Court basically issued a decision saying it was ok for the EPA to start putting its nose into other peoples\u2019 business in this way if it so desired<\/strong>. […]<\/p>\n

BENNETT: Greenhouse gas emissions have absolutely nothing whatever to do with clean air. CO2 does not add to pollutants or cause asthma or any of the other things you think of with dirty air<\/strong>. CO2 is actually a nutrient for plants and helps some parts of the continents grow more and have greater vegetation.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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None of this is a terribly big shock, given where Bennett is from (see “Utah: Still the right wing place<\/a>“).\u00a0 But it remains important to rebut these conservative talking points.<\/p>\n

Of course, right now, GHGs have a lot to do with dirty air, since we generate most of our dirty air with the same fossil fuels that cause GHGs.\u00a0 And the hotter it gets, he worst urban air pollution and ashthma incidents are going to get.<\/p>\n

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Of course the Court didn\u2019t rule that the EPA could \u201cstart putting its nose into other peoples\u2019 business\u201d whenever it wants. The decisions specifically stated that the agency is legally required<\/a> to regulate CO2. And in fact, the auto industry has actually applauded<\/a> the EPA\u2019s move to regulate car emissions. Apparently they don\u2019t feel the mandate means \u201cthe cost of nearly everything in America\u201d will increase, as Kelly claimed.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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And Bennett\u2019s claim \u2014 one that climate change deniers<\/a> regularly<\/a> make<\/a> to prevent action on climate change \u2014 is simply<\/a> wrong<\/a>. In fact, new scientific research out this month \u201cfound that domes of increased carbon dioxide concentrations\u2026cause local temperature increases that in turn increase the amounts of local air pollutants<\/a>, raising concentrations of health-damaging ground-level ozone as well as particles in urban air.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Since conservatives are working hard to blow smoke in our eyes on this issue, I’ll examine some of the recent science of how CO2 and higher temperatures are directly harmful to human life in future posts.<\/p>\n

Related Posts:<\/p>\n