Dear all,
Dr. Hans von Storch who recently has showed that the Hockey Stich is nothing
but rubbish, is no greenhouse dissenter. All scientist, both "dissenters"
and "believers" who try to find the truth are of course honest scientist.
After studying the subject since 1986, I too think that some measurable
influence of increased atm. CO2 conc. may, if not yet, be possible in the
future. But I remember when the Hockey Stick was presented to us for the
first time by the former IPCC chairman Bert Bolin (in a rather triumphatoric
style) during the climate seminar at the Swedish Royal Academy of Science
some years ago. People were laughing at good old Bert's nonsence diagram! In
fact, the curve he showed had the millennium heat record as soon as abt. in
the year 1955! You may remember that the atm. CO2 conc. was only 312 ppmv in
1955.

But when a similar curve popped up as the leading picture in the IPCC
Summary for Policymakers, and as a consequence, in thousands and thousands
of newspapers and tutorial material for schools and unversities, it was not
fun anymore. The EU emission trading directive etc. etc. and the demand for
fast action have all been results of scaring claims like "millennium heat
record...."

Scared politicians make bad decisions, the history book contains numerous
examples of that. Instead of hysterical decisions, more research would have
been needed. Increasing energy efficiency as a result of normal
technological development together with new energy sources would certainly
do better for the environoment and for the climate that globocratic
regulations.

In Finland we have hoped that the dangerous Russian old nuclear graphite
reactors (like Sosnovyi Bor) located close to us, soon could be replaced by
safe power plants, like modern coal-fired plants or gas-fired plants. There
are plenty of coal and gas reserves in Russia. Instead, these nuclear
scrap-heads with positive steam coefficient and no safety shell are given
more operating time. Now when the EU has forced Russia to join Kyoto, there
is little or no chance anymore to get these reactors out of operation
because there are no plans (no money) for replacing them by light-water
reactors and Russia needs the money for selling emission rights to the EU.

The real threat cannot be eliminated beause of fighting against a
hypothetical threat. In fact, a new Tjernobyl accident would not be nice for
the Germans either. The graphite reactors are perfect targets for terrorist
strikes too. One or two Stinger-type missiles, loss of coolant, and the
graphite will start burning. There is unfortunately no shortage of desperate
terrorists in Russia.

After working as a consulting engineer in the copper smelter project Norilsk
in Siberia in the 1970:s in minus 55 deg C, I am not very afraid of the
Greenhous Effect that according to some models should hit Siberia in the
first place.

Thanks again to Dr. Hans von Storch for making interesting science!

cheers Jarl

Jarl R. Ahlbeck
D.Sc. (chem. eng.)
docent (env.sci.)
Abo Akademi University
(The Swedish University of Finland)