Mankind blamed for global warming

A state blue ribbon task force on climate change stated emphatically Monday that humans are to blame for global warming and offered a slate of recommendations on ways Utah can fight the changes.

But one much-discussed option, developing nuclear power, was only on the B list of recommendations by the Blue Ribbon Advisory Council on Climate Change.

A nearly final version of a report to Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. was accepted Monday by the task force, which Huntsman appointed a year ago.

The council's report, about an inch thick and printed on both sides of the page, still needs some final tinkering, such as clarification comments, but the basic recommendations will remain the same, according to the state energy adviser, Dianne Nielson.

Recommendations are divided into high priority and medium priority items to combat global warming, which a consensus of scientists blames on greenhouse gas emissions. These are mostly carbon dioxide, released by burning fossil fuel.

"There is no longer any scientific doubt that the Earth's average surface temperature is increasing and that changes in ocean temperature, ice and snow cover, and sea level are consistent with this global warming," says the report.

"Based on extensive scientific research, there is very high confidence that human-generated increases in greenhouse gas concentrations are responsible for most of the global warming observed during the past 50 years."

The task force recommended the following "high-priority options" — these are highlights, not all of the many detailed recommendations:

• Develop significant amounts of renewable energy resources, with the state having a portfolio of renewable energy, energy development zones, tax credits and incentives for renewable energy, pricing and metering strategies, and research and development on energy.

• "Encourage carbon capture and sequestration technology," in which carbon dioxide from emitters like coal-burning power plants is caught before it can reach the smokestacks, then pumped into an underground storage area.

• "Develop and deploy advanced generation technology," with incentives for advanced fossil fuel technologies that yield a reduction of carbon emissions.

• "Improve efficiency and reduce CO2 (carbon dioxide) at existing electricity generation plants." Tactics could include retrofitting plants to capture CO2, retiring old plants and building new, low-carbon plants.

• Promote combined heat and power distributed generation.

• "Develop and implement aggressive mass transit strategy."

• Reduce vehicle idling and vehicle speed, to cut down on emissions.

• Have the state vehicle fleet take the lead in changes.