Message From the Editor

This week, the world watched in horror as an unprecedented attack on the U.S. Capitol and American democracy came from a violent mob incited by a sitting president. Many observers, including Republicans and fossil fuel lobbying groups who in the past have supported President Trump and his policies, immediately condemned the unfolding violence. But some prominent climate science deniers — who have so often spread misinformation about climate change — were among those who were now sharing conspiracy theories, support for the rioters, and calls for more violence during and after the attack.

Sharon Kelly has the story of just a few of the climate deniers, such as Marc Morano, William Briggs, and James Delingpole, who were spreading misleading and potentially harmful information in the wake of the siege on the Capitol Building.

“The goal isn’t necessarily to convince anyone of anything,” Melissa Ryan, alt-right expert and CEO of CARD Strategies, told DeSmog. “The goal is to sow so much confusion that it’s actually hard for people to tell the truth from fiction.”

And that misinformation benefits the far-right, she said.

Have a story tip or feedback? Get in touch: editor@desmogblog.com.

Thanks,
Brendan DeMelle
Executive Director

P.S. DeSmog’s public interest journalism exposes misinformation that harms the climate and democracy. Can you pitch in $10 or $20 to support this essential work right now?

Climate Deniers Moved Rapidly to Spread Misinformation During and After Attack on US Capitol

— By Sharon Kelly (7 min. read) —

Prominent climate science deniers moved rapidly to spread false and misleading conspiracy theories online during and after the attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters this week.

Some climate deniers, including some with ties to the Heartland Institute and other organizations that have historically helped to create the false impression that there is sizeable scientific disagreement on climate change, also directly expressed support for the attackers and called for more violence.

Photos of the Struggle for Environmental Justice in Louisiana’s Cancer Alley in 2020

— By Julie Dermansky (7 min. read) —

The disproportionate toll that COVID-19 is taking on the Black community brought environmental justice issues to the forefront during 2020. Calls for dealing with climate change and environmental justice were elevated by president-elect Biden, who spoke about endangered communities in the last presidential debate and on his campaign website, calling for environmental justice and “rooting out the systemic racism in our laws, policies, institutions, and hearts.”

That toll is apparent in Louisiana where I continued to document the struggle for environmental justice for DeSmog throughout 2020. These photos are part of an ongoing DeSmog series on the industrial corridor between Baton Rouge and New Orleans known as ‘Cancer Alley’ which hosts more than 100 petrochemical plants and refineries. Environmental racism and pollution have left fenceline communities especially vulnerable to COVID-19.

These Are Some Climate Stories That Flew Under the Radar in 2020

— By Sharon Kelly (10 min. read) —

At the start of December 2020, U.N. Secretary General António Guterres spoke at Columbia University, appearing not before a packed auditorium as in years past, but before a “virtual” audience, making his annual State of the Planet address. “To put it simply,” he said, “the state of the planet is broken.”

“Today, we are at 1.2 degrees of warming and already witnessing unprecedented climate extremes and volatility in every region and on every continent,” Guterres said.

Another Bomb Train Accident Highlights Regulatory Failures

— By Justin Mikulka (6 min. read) —

A train carrying over 100 cars of volatile Bakken oil derailed in Washington state, causing the evacuation of the town of Custer. At least two of the train cars ruptured and the oil ignited and burned — reminding us once again why these dangerous trains are known as bomb trains.

Matt Krogh of Stand.earth has been leading efforts to keep these dangerous trains off the tracks for years, so he was well aware of the potential deadly consequences of oil train accidents in populated areas. Krogh could see the smoke from this latest accident from his home in Bellingham, Washington.

2020 Gulf Coast Hurricane Season in Photos: From the Front Lines of Climate Change

— By Julie Dermansky (8 min. read) —

The 2020 Atlantic hurricane season had a record-breaking 30 named storms, so many that the National Hurricane Center ran through the standard list of names and moved on to the Greek alphabet with over two months of the season left. In all, 12 storms made landfall in the continental United States, with five hitting the Gulf Coast. I photographed the aftermath — the destroyed homes, damaged oil and gas sites, and contaminated wetlands — from four of those Gulf Coast storms, including Hurricanes Laura, Sally, Delta, and Zeta.

This selection of photos shows the devastating impact hurricanes have had primarily in Louisiana but also in Alabama and Florida, in an already difficult year beset by a pandemic and subsequent economic downturn.

"Disappointing" Decision from Norway's Supreme Court in Climate Lawsuit Challenging Arctic Offshore Oil Licenses

— By Dana Drugmand (5 min. read) —

Norway’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled not to overturn the Norwegian government’s approval of new licenses for offshore oil drilling in the fragile Arctic region.

The ruling – a culmination of four years of high-profile litigation in a case challenging continued fossil fuel production on climate change grounds — came as a big disappointment, and even outrage, for environmental and climate activists in Norway and internationally.

How The Fracking Revolution Is Killing the U.S. Oil and Gas Industry

— By Justin Mikulka (16 min. read) —

After over a decade of the much-hyped U.S. fracking miracle, the U.S. oil and gas industry is having to deal with years of losses and falling asset values which has dealt the industry a serious financial blow. This is despite the fracking revolution delivering record oil and gas production for the past decade, peaking in 2019.

While the pandemic has hurt the industry, companies have also benefited from excessive bailouts from pandemic relief programs but these bailouts are a stop gap financial band-aid for the struggling industry.

2020 Was a Busy Year for Taking the Climate Fight to the Courts

— By Dana Drugmand (5 min. read) —

This year — with its converging crises, from the coronavirus pandemic to longstanding racial injustice to climate-related disasters — was also a remarkably active time for climate litigation. All around the world, communities, organizations, and especially young people turned to the courts in 2020 in strategic attempts to hold governments and polluting companies accountable for exacerbating the unfolding climate emergency.

In particular, this year saw a notable uptick in climate accountability litigation with multiple new cases filed in the U.S. and internationally.

From the Climate Disinformation Database: Marc Morano

Marc Morano is the executive director and chief correspondent of ClimateDepot.com, a project of the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT), which is a conservative think tank in Washington D.C. that has received funding from ExxonMobil and Chevron. Morano also serves as communications director for CFACT, and from 2006 to 2009, he was the communications director for Senator James Inhofe (R-Okla.). Morano has been called a “central cell of the climate-denial machine.” In June 2020, Morano claimed on Twitter that wearing face masks to prevent the spread of coronavirus was “nonsense” and in January 2021, he directly expressed support for the attackers who stormed the U.S. Capitol and called for more violence.

Read the full profile and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database and Koch Network Database.