Chip Knappenberger

Chip Knappenberger

Credentials

  • M.S., Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia (1990).1About – MasterResource,” MasterResource (blog). Archived February 19, 2012. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.
  • B.A. degree, Environmental Science, University of Virginia (1986).2About – MasterResource,” MasterResource (blog). Archived February 19, 2012. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

Background

Paul C. (“Chip”) Knappenberger was the Assistant Director of the “Center for the Study of Science” at the Cato Institute. Knappenberger worked alongside the Center’s Director, fellow climate change denier Patrick J. Michaels.3Paul C. ‘Chip’ Knappenberger,” Cato Institute. Archived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/QJcph 4Patrick J. Michaels: Director, Center For The Study Of Science,” Cato Institute. Archived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/fslBz

Chip Knappenberger is the former Administrator of the World Climate Report, a blog published by New Hope Environmental Services, “an advocacy science consulting firm” run by global warming skeptic, Patrick J. Michaels. The last recorded post was October 5, 2012, and it is unclear if the website is still in operation.5Staff,” World Climate Report, March 15, 2005. Arhived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/UpsbJ 6Homepage. World Climate Report. Archived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LLq1P

Knappenberger has co-authored several papers with fellow skeptic Patrick Michaels and is a former contributor and “Principal” of MasterResource, a “free-market energy blog.”7About – MasterResource,” MasterResource (blog). Archived February 19, 2012. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

Stance on Climate Change

“The fact of the matter is that there does exist a growing body of scientific evidence that the climate changes in the coming decades will be modest and proceed at a rate that will lie somewhere near the low end of the IPCC projected temperature range.”8Global Warming is More Scare than Science – (absolutely!),” Chronwatch.com, June 19, 2005. Republished by Freerepublic.com. Archived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/qZwW4

Key Quotes

December, 2016

“It’s expected that the Arctic is going to warm more than the rest of the world. Now, does that mean it’s all doom and gloom? There, I take exception to that. […] Some particular elements of the press like to focus on the losers – and pretend like the winners don’t exist at all. But in that same annual Arctic report card from NOAA, there is plenty of good to be found there.”9Expert: Arctic heating up, but it’s not a bad thing …One News Now, December 22, 2016. Archived December 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Z9izo

2015

“[W]e conclude that future global warming will occur at a pace substantially lower than that upon which US federal and international actions to restrict greenhouse gas emissions are founded. It is high time to rethink those efforts.”10Patrick J. Michaels and Paul C. “Chip” Knappenberger. “Climate Models and Climate Reality: A Closer Look at a Lukewarming World” (PDF), Cato Institute, December 15, 2015. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

2013

“The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) has recently reached a ‘milestone’ of 400 parts per million (ppm). In some circles, this announcement has been met with consternation and gnashing of teeth. The proper reaction is celebration.”11Paul C. “Chip” Knappenberger and Patrick J. Michaels. “CO2: 400ppm and Growing,” Cato Institute, May 14, 2013. Archived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/yGSBh

2011

“There is still a general lack of evidence that shows a statistically significant relationship between anthropogenic climate change and weather-related damage…”12Coal: ‘Externalities’ Can be Positive, Not Only Negative,” MasterResource , March 7, 2011. Archived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/I9Y0Q

2010

“…the warming that appears in the compiled temperature history of the state [Utah] may not be evidence of regional (or larger-scale) climate change, but instead may be caused by non-climatic influences on the local thermometers.”13Paul C. Knappenberger, “Utah’s Climate Variability,” SPPI Original Paper, September 29, 2010. Science and Public Policy Institute. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

Key Deeds

July, 2016

Chip Knappenberger criticized a letter to Congress from 31 science associations advocating policies to combat climate change, reports The Washington Times.14Science groups blasted for crossing line into activism with climate-change letter to Congress,” The Washington Times, July 6, 2016. Archived July 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/TPUTd

On June 28, 2016, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) issued the letter and a press release introducing the letter, describing it as a partnership of 31 leading nonpartisan scientific societies “reaffirming the reality of human-caused climate change, noting that greenhouse gas emissions ‘must be substantially reduced’ to minimize negative impacts on the global economy, natural resources, and human health.”15(Press Release). “Thirty-One Top Scientific Societies Speak with One Voice on Global Climate Change,” AAAS.org, June 28, 2016. Archived July 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/p1Wq5

The letter (PDF) addresses Members of Congress, writing to remind “of the consensus scientific view of climate change.”16“Dear Members of Congress” (PDF), AAAS.org, June 28, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

“Obviously folks should be free to deliver their opinions,” said Knappenberger. “That said, since many of these organizations publish some of the most respected scientific journals, it certainly calls into question the degree of objectivity to which new science pertaining to the issues addressed in the letter is treated with. This is a far greater concern.”17Science groups blasted for crossing line into activism with climate-change letter to Congress,” The Washington Times, July 6, 2016. Archived July 27, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/TPUTd

July 5, 2016

Following the release of a study suggesting “favourable conditions for additional Antarctic sea ice growth since 2000,” Chip Knappenberger said that it “should come as a surprise to no one that natural variability is playing a strong role in Antarctic sea ice extent trends (i.e., recent growth),” reports The Washington Times.18Valerie Richardson. “Expanding Antarctic sea ice caused by ‘natural climate fluctuations,’ study finds,” The Washington Times, July 5, 2016. Archived July 26, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JJNjJ

“It is wrong to suggest that growth there suggests that global warming is not happening,” said Chip Knappenberger, representing the Cato Institute’s Center for the Study of Science. “Mostly, we have merely brought it up to point out the fact that global warming alarmists were only telling part of the story by focusing on what was going on in the Arctic.”

InsideClimate News describes the phenomenon as a “paradox [that] has puzzled scientists for years and given climate-change deniers fodder to dispute global warming.”19Why Is Antarctica’s Sea Ice Growing While the Arctic Melts? Scientists Have an Answer,” InsideClimate News, May 31, 2016. Archived July 26, 2016.

March 24, 2016

Writing in The Hill, Chip Knappenberger suggests that President Obama should back out of the Paris Climate pledge:20Paul C. “Chip” Knappenberger. “Time to Fess Up and Walk Back Our Paris Pledge,” The Hill , March 24, 2016. Archived April 12, 2016. WebCite URL: http://www.webcitation.org/6giocviJg

“Rather than pay the rest of the world to look the other way, the president should revise, or better yet, rescind that promise.

And now is the time to do that, before the grand signing ceremony of the Paris Climate Agreement that is scheduled for April 22, Earth Day, at the UN’s New York headquarters. Putting our name on a promise that we know we can’t keep would be a disingenuous act, painting the Paris Agreement not as a serious undertaking, but as a global publicity stunt.”21Paul C. “Chip” Knappenberger. “Time to Fess Up and Walk Back Our Paris Pledge,” The Hill , March 24, 2016. Archived April 12, 2016. WebCite URL: http://www.webcitation.org/6giocviJg

December 15, 2015

Chip Knappenberger co-authored a “working paper” with Patrick J. Michaels at the Cato Institute. The paper (PDF) makes “The case for lukewarming — modest anthropogenic climate change in accordance with the lower end of expectations from mainstream science,” which Michaels and Knappenberger describe as “simple, straightforward, and compelling.”22Patrick J. Michaels and Paul C. “Chip” Knappenberger. “Climate Models and Climate Reality: A Closer Look at a Lukewarming World,” Cato Institute, December 15, 2015. Archived July 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Ibx13 23Patrick J. Michaels and Paul C. “Chip” Knappenberger. “Climate Models and Climate Reality: A Closer Look at a Lukewarming World” (PDF), Cato Institute, December 15, 2015. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

May, 2010

Knappenberger was a speaker at the Heartland Institute‘s Fourth International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC4) where he gave a speech titled “Assessing the Consistency Between Short-Term Global Temperature Trends on Observations and Climate Model Projections.24“Fourth International Conference on Climate Change, Program,” (PDF) Heartland Institute. Archived January 23, 2018.

DeSmog has done research on the co-sponsors of the conference and found that 19 of the 65 sponsors (including Heartland itself) have received a total of over $40 million in funding since 1985 from ExxonMobil, Koch Industries family foundations or the Scaife family foundations.

Affiliations

Social Media

Publications

According to Knappenberger’s archived profile at MasterResource, he has authored or co-authored over 20 papers “appearing in the peer-reviewed scientific literature,” and others in scientific conference proceedings, professional journals, and the press.30About – MasterResource,” MasterResource (blog). Archived February 19, 2012. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

Many of his papers were co-authored with fellow skeptic Patrick J. Michaels, and published by the Cato Institute a swell as other think tanks such as the Science and Public Policy Institute (SPPI). Some of Knappenberger’s scientific articles have been debunked by DeepClimate.31Michaels and Knappenberger’s World Climate Report: ‘No warming whatsoever over the past decade’,” Deep Climate, June 6, 2010. Archived July 26, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LLsLE

Sample Publications Listed at Cato Institute

Commentary

ArticlePublicationDate
The Lessons from El NinoTownHall.comMarch 24, 2016
Confusion at Science?TownHall.com March 5, 2016
U.S. Mineral Resources Need to Be Mined, Not UnderminedForbes March 1, 2016
Clean Power without the Clean Power PlanReal Clear Policy February 19, 2016
A Green Mess: Is EPA in Hot Water over Alaska’s Bristol Bay?American Spectator (Online) February 11, 2016
The Climate Snow JobThe Wall Street Journal January 24, 2016
Natural Gas Naysayers Have It All WrongReal Clear Policy January 12, 2016
“Homogenized” US Warming Trend May Be Grossly ExaggeratedTownHall.com December 29, 2015
The Paris Climate Deal: Is That All You Get for Your Money?Daily Caller December 15, 2015
The Long-Range Climate Forecast Goes BustDaily Caller December 8, 2015
Business as Usual at the Paris Climate ConferenceNational Review (Online) November 23, 2015
Does Climate Change Actually Fuel Terrorism?Huffington Post November 18, 2015
Food and Witches to BurnThe Hill (Online) October 29, 2015
Wishful Thinking Meets Hard Realities in Energy ProductionNewsweek October 22, 2015
What Should Pope Francis Say about Climate Change?Washington Examiner September 22, 2015
The Latest Climate KerfuffleReal Clear Policy August 20, 2015
Pope Francis Recycles (Stale Arguments about Climate)Daily Caller June 19, 2015
When Will Climate Scientists Say They Were Wrong?TownHall.com May 29, 2015
The Climate Courage of Pope FrancisNational Review (Online) April 27, 2015
Climate Change’s False Illusion of ProgressThe Hill (Online) April 16, 2015
FEMA Asks Michigan to Do the ImpossibleDetroit News April 9, 2015
FEMA Wants Georgia to Earn Funds by Crystal-Ball Storm ForecastingThe Augusta Chronicle April 4, 2015
FEMA Tells Oklahoma to Do the Impossible … Or ElseTulsa World March 27, 2015
FEMA Asks Louisiana to Do the Impossible — Or ElseThe Advocate March 24, 2015
FEMA Is Asking Mississippi to Do the Impossible … Or Lose Disaster AidSunHerald March 24, 2015

Other Sample Publications

  • Patrick J. Michaels, P.C. Knappenberger, and R.E. Davis, “The way of warming” (PDF), Regulation, Cato Institute, January 1, 2000, Volume 33, pages 10-16. Archived February 15, 2007. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.
  • Patrick J. Michaels, and P.C. Knappenberger, “Natural signals in the MSU lower tropospheric temperature record,” Geophysical Research Letters, August 2, 2000, Volume 27, pages 2905-2908.
  • Paul C. Knappenberger, “Utah’s Climate Variability,” SPPI Original Paper, September 29, 2010. Science and Public Policy Institute.
  • P.C. Knappenberger, Patrick J. Michaels and R.E. Davis, “The Nature of Observed Temperature Changes Across the United States During the 20th Century ” (PDF), Climate Research, July 2001, Volume 17, pages 45-53.
  • J.D. Hux, P.C. Knappenberger, Patrick J. Michaels, and P.J. Stenger, “Development of a discriminant analysis mixed precipitation (DAMP) forecast model for mid-Atlantic winter storms” (PDF), Weather and Forecasting, Number 16, 2001, pages 248-259.

Other Resources

Resources

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