Institute of Physics forced to clarify submission to climate emails inquiry
3/3/2010 Guardian Professor The Institute of Physics has been forced to clarify its strongly worded submission to a parliamentary inquiry into climate change emails released onto the internet.The institute’s submission, to the science and technology select committee, said
the emails from scientists at the University of East Anglia (UEA) contained
“worrying implications for the integrity of scientific research in this field”.
The submission has been used by climate sceptics to bolster claims that the
email affair, dubbed “climategate”, shows the scientists did not behave properly
and that the problem of global warming is exaggerated.
The committee held its only evidence session yesterday and interviewed witnesses
including Phil Jones, the climate scientist at the centre of the media storm.
In a statement issued today the institute said its written submission to the
committee “has been interpreted by some individuals to imply that it does not
support the scientific evidence that the rising concentration of carbon dioxide
in the atmosphere is contributing to global warming.”
It says: “That is not the case. The institute’s position on climate change is
clear: the basic science is well enough understood to be sure that our climate
is changing, and that we need to take action now to mitigate that change.”
The institute said its critical comments were focused on the scientific process,
and “should not be interpreted to mean that the institute believes that the
science itself is flawed.”
The statement appears to contradict sections of the original submission, which
suggests the emails showed scientists had cherry-picked data to support
conclusions and that some key reconstructions of past temperature cannot be
relied upon.
The institute statement says its submission was approved by its science board, a
formal committee of experts that oversees its policy work.
The Guardian has been unable to find a member of the board that supports the
submission. Two of the scientists listed as members said they had declined to
comment on a draft submission prepared by the institute, because they were not
climate experts and had not read the UEA emails. Others would not comment or did
not respond to enquiries.
An institute spokesperson said the submission was “strongly supported” by three
members of the board. “All members were invited to comment. Only a few did, all
concerned approved [the submission] unanimously.”
Go to: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/mar/02/institute-of-physics-emails-inquiry-submission