Congress's attacks on science-based rules

Rosenberg, Andrew A.; Branscomb, Lewis M.; Eady, V.; Frumhoff, Peter C.; Goldman, Gretchen; Halpern, Michael; Kimmell, Kristopher T.; Kothari, Y.; Kramer, Larry; Lane, Neal F.; McCarthy, James J.; Phartiyal, P.; Rest, Kathleen M.; Sims, Rod; Wexler, C.

doi:10.1126/science.aab2939

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 1 publication

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“…The influence of evangelical beliefs on climate change disbelief is a stark reminder that climate change, while marked in scientific terms, is clearly a social issue, heavily laden with values (often over facts). In a political climate where the rejection of science has turned to outright attacks on the scientific enterprise (Rosenberg et al., ), it is critical to understand how religious identity informs, and intersects with, other identities to shape attitudes about climate change.…”

Section: Results: the Millennial Effect On Party Sorting Of Climate Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polarization of Climate Change Beliefs: The Role of the Millennial Generation Identity

Ross

Rouse

Mobley³

2019

Social Science Quarterly

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Objective. This article explores how the Millennial Generation identity-the shared values and experiences of young adults (born between 1980 and 1997)-affects political polarization of climate change belief, specifically how it mediates the relationship between party affiliation and educational attainment. Method. To test this, an interaction between Millennial * Republican * education is estimated, using data from an original national survey administered in 2015. Results. Millennials are more likely to believe in the evidence of climate change and its anthropogenic causes than older adults of their same party affiliation. Unlike older adults, the most educated Millennials are not the most likely to adhere to political party stance; rather, it is among the least educated Millennials that party sorting is most evident. Conclusion. The Millennial Generation identity is meaningful for understanding political attitudes. Important distinctions exist between Millennials and older adults in the evaluation of climate change opinion and related policies.

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Section: Results: the Millennial Effect On Party Sorting Of Climate Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polarization of Climate Change Beliefs: The Role of the Millennial Generation Identity

Ross

Rouse

Mobley³

2019

Social Science Quarterly

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“…Knowing what impact FWS biologists' discretion has on ESA implementation is timely because the U.S. Congress is currently assessing the directive for use of the best science available (Rosenberg et al 2015). Whether the use of the best available science as the overriding consideration to protect imperiled species is the best approach has been discussed extensively (e.g., Hill 1993;Carroll et al 1996;Doremus 2010).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hybridization, agency discretion, and implementation of the U.S. Endangered Species Act

Lind-Riehl

Mayer

Wellstead

et al. 2016

Conservation Biology

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The U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires that the "best available scientific and commercial data" be used to protect imperiled species from extinction and preserve biodiversity. However, it does not provide specific guidance on how to apply this mandate. Scientific data can be uncertain and controversial, particularly regarding species delineation and hybridization issues. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) had an evolving hybrid policy to guide protection decisions for individuals of hybrid origin. Currently, this policy is in limbo because it resulted in several controversial conservation decisions in the past. Biologists from FWS must interpret and apply the best available science to their recommendations and likely use considerable discretion in making recommendations for what species to list, how to define those species, and how to recover them. We used semistructured interviews to collect data on FWS biologists' use of discretion to make recommendations for listed species with hybridization issues. These biologists had a large amount of discretion to determine the best available science and how to interpret it but generally deferred to the scientific consensus on the taxonomic status of an organism. Respondents viewed hybridization primarily as a problem in the context of the ESA, although biologists who had experience with hybridization issues were more likely to describe it in more nuanced terms. Many interviewees expressed a desire to continue the current case-by-case approach for handling hybridization issues, but some wanted more guidance on procedures (i.e., a "flexible" hybrid policy). Field-level information can provide critical insight into which policies are working (or not working) and why. The FWS biologists' we interviewed had a high level of discretion, which greatly influenced ESA implementation, particularly in the context of hybridization.

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“…The situation in the United States is somewhat different, however, following the enactment of the Information Quality Act in 2001 that requires Federal agencies to issue guidelines ensuring and maximizing the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of information (including statistical information) disseminated by the agency. This has a powerful influence on the nature of regulation developed by Federal agencies (not state agencies) to restrain from precautionary directions and is evident in the political rhetoric in Washington (Rosenberg et al 2015).…”

Section: Testingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is There Scientific Evidence to Support the Selection of Hydraulic Fracturing Rules?

Campin

2016

Day 3 Wed, April 13, 2016

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The application of hydraulic fracturing to hydrocarbon-rich basins has evolved since the first tentative steps to stimulate conventional oil reservoirs in the United States Mid-West in the late 1940s, into a widely practiced technology, principally used today in gaining commercial flows of unconventional hydrocarbon reserves. The early application of the technology was directed toward draining methane from coal seams as a safety measure (Thakur 2014), evolving to assist commercial recovery of coalbed methane as the first systematic use in the unconventional resources. In conjunction with the application of horizontal drilling and completions technology, real time micro-seismic monitoring technology, and understanding of the nature of unconventional resources geology, the phenomena of modern shale gas and oil extraction transformed the US energy landscape. Following this break-through in the US, other jurisdictions commenced similar pursuits for their unconventional petroleum potential. The application of hydraulic fracturing was just one more aspect in a rapidly evolving complex business where regulations were in a state of permanent catch-up.Regulations to address specific environmental 1 risks 2 associated with on-shore hydraulic fracturing evolved as use of the technology spread to new jurisdictions. State oversight of hydraulic fracturing is the norm worldwide other than for single-level federal jurisdictions such as the UK. Elsewhere, federal regulation is generally restricted to the outer envelope of environmental impacts such as air quality standards and receiving water standards, except with the case of off-shore activities. State regulations tend to be directed to the exploration and development processes with local government exerting control using 1 Environment includesa. ecosystems and their constituent parts, including people and communities; and b. all natural and physical resources; and c. amenity values; and d. the social, economic, aesthetic, and cultural conditions which affect the matters stated in paragraphs (a) to (c) or which are affected by those matters 2 Risk means consequence times probabilityplanning rule 3 s such as noise and set-back. Off-shore regulation of hydraulic fracturing is dominated by federal authorities across the globe due to complexities of national waters and contiguous hydrocarbon basins extending across national economic zone boundaries (Nordtveit 2015, Gordon andPaterson 2015). This paper builds on earlier work where hydraulic fracturing regulations from fifty five jurisdictions were assessed (Campin 2013). Self-selected rule categories (fifty nine elements) were identified based on frequency of occurrence in the various regulatory frameworks examined. The rationale and justification for environmental protection parameters is examined and documentary evidence is assessed for selected rules. This paper draws from the peer reviewed, scientific literature or official reports from government agencies and is restricted to the on-shore sector.Regulation in the absence of a ...

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Congress's attacks on science-based rules

Abstract: Proposed laws based on false premises could undermine science for the public interest

Cited by 7 publications

References 1 publication

Polarization of Climate Change Beliefs: The Role of the Millennial Generation Identity

Polarization of Climate Change Beliefs: The Role of the Millennial Generation Identity

Hybridization, agency discretion, and implementation of the U.S. Endangered Species Act

Is There Scientific Evidence to Support the Selection of Hydraulic Fracturing Rules?

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