Climate Science Legal Defense Fund Offerings at AGU 2012 Fall Meeting

The Climate Science Legal Defense Fund (CSLDF) has a large presence this year at the American Geophysical Union’s 2012 Fall Meeting. Please mark your calendars:

Legal Duties to Preserve and Disclose Scientific Data and Personal Communications

Mon Dec. 3 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm

San Francisco Marriott Marquis – Salon 10

Join us for a brown bag lunch with Michael Gerrard, director of the Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University.

Michael will discuss the increasing number of Freedom of Information Act requests and subpoenas that scientists are facing, and what kinds of documents scientists are required to disclose and to whom. Special attention will be devoted to e-mail and social media. Michael will leave ample time to answer your questions at this event.

The Law for Government Scientists

Tuesday Dec. 4 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm

San Francisco Marriott Marquis – Salon 1055

Please join us for this brown bag lunch with Kathryn (Kit) Douglass, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) staff counsel. PEER is a nonprofit service organization assisting public agency scientists, attorneys, and other specialists working on environmental issues.

Everyday PEER helps government scientists with a wide range of legal issues. Learn about legal provisions that affect you as a government scientist at this event. Kit will leave ample time to answer your questions.

An Inside Look at the Michael Mann Case

5 December 2012 from 12:30 – 1:30PM

Moscone South: Mezzanine – Room 226

Join us for a brown bag lunch with Peter Fontaine, counsel to Michael Mann and a leader of Cozen O’Connor’s Brownfield Development and Climate Change practices.

Peter will use examples from recent Freedom of Information Act litigation American Tradition Institute v. University of Virginia to discuss the application of state public records acts to researcher electronic correspondence, the interplay between the Federal FOIA and state laws, practical issues related to document review, potential exemptions to protect correspondence from disclosure, and other legal theories for the protection of correspondence, such as the First Amendment and Academic Freedom, and emerging trends in this dynamic intersection between science and the law.

One-On-One Time With a Lawyer (Have a question? Talk to a lawyer in private – no fees.)

Moscone South: Mezzanine – Room 264

8am-3pm Monday-Wednesday

Exhibit Hall Booth #140 Tuesday-Friday (Come visit the CSLDF booth and learn more about our mission.)

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My Three Presentations for AGU 2012 Fall Meeting

I travel once again to one of my favorite cities in the world, San Francisco, California to take part in the American Geophysical Union’s 2012 Fall Meeting. This year I will be presenting two oral talks and one poster. Please consider stopping by if you are attending AGU.

71,000 New Yorkers: “Rise Does Matter!”

Superstorm Sandy produced record storm surge levels for locations in and around the NY City metropolitan region. One way that global warming made Sandy worse is because global warming is causing sea levels to rise. Sea levels have risen more than a foot in the New York City region since the Industrial Revolution. So what difference did this extra foot make for the citizens of New York City? Quite a lot. 6,000 more people impacted for each inch of rise!

70,929 more people and 30,551 more homes flooded.

8ft surge vs. 9 ft surge for New York City residents