Lavoisier Group
Encyclopedia
The Lavoisier Group is an organisation based in Australia
that promotes scepticism of current scientific consensus on global warming
. The organisation questions the fears of the effects of global warming
, the idea that human activity causes it, and the wisdom of policies designed to curtail it
. They believe that political influence has trumped scientific truth, and that most of the scientists that support the theory that human activity is a cause of global warming do so because scientists that disagree with that prevailing belief lose access to government funding, the primary source of funds for any scientific study.
The sources of funding for the group are not public, but the Sydney Morning Herald claimed it has links to many groups that have until recently been funded as part of the Exxon Mobil climate change skepticism campaign. That campaign recently ceased after a shareholder revolt.
The group was named after French scientist Antoine Lavoisier
(1743-1794), the father of modern chemistry who disproved the Phlogiston theory
of combustion
.
Following an inaugural conference in May 1999, the group was founded in April 2000 by former Finance Minister Peter Walsh, Ian Webber, Ray Evans
, Harold Clough, Robert Foster
and Bruce Kean, with an opening address by supporter Hugh Morgan
. Secretary Ray Evans describes the 90-odd Lavoisier members as a "dad's army" of mostly retired engineers and scientists from the mining, manufacturing and construction industries, such as Garth Paltridge
and Ian Plimer
. The annual subscription fee is 50 dollars
, and the annual budget is 10,000 dollars.
, including the arguments of retired judge, amateur climatologist and astrologer
Theodor Landscheidt
, whose work on solar cycles was used to argue that observed warming is based on solar cycles, and hence is not anthropogenic and will soon be reversed.
Walsh has blamed politics for the current consensus on global warming. The group claims that many scientists choose to endorse prevailing theories of global warming to protect their research funding by the government, a view that is held by French climatologist and author Marcel Leroux
, and was the subject of the book Meltdown: The Predictable Distortion of Global Warming by Scientists, Politicians, and the Media by Patrick Michaels
. A supporter, former minister Tony Staley
, has characterised global warming as a form of "political correctness
".
, is his book Scorcher, says that one can find the following arguments in the various papers promoted by the Lavoisier Group:
Critics of the group have pointed out its ties to greenhouse gas emitters. The group's top members have denied receiving compensation from industry, unlike some global warming skeptics in the United States, who have admitted to receiving compensation by fossil fuel
companies.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
that promotes scepticism of current scientific consensus on global warming
Climate change consensus
Climate change consensus may refer to:* Scientific opinion on climate change* Public opinion on climate change...
. The organisation questions the fears of the effects of global warming
Effects of global warming
This article is about the effects of global warming and climate change. The effects, or impacts, of climate change may be physical, ecological, social or economic. Evidence of observed climate change includes the instrumental temperature record, rising sea levels, and decreased snow cover in the...
, the idea that human activity causes it, and the wisdom of policies designed to curtail it
Politics of global warming
The politics of global warming have involved corporate lobbying, funding of special interest groups and public relations campaigns by the oil and coal industries which have affected policy decisions and legislation worldwide...
. They believe that political influence has trumped scientific truth, and that most of the scientists that support the theory that human activity is a cause of global warming do so because scientists that disagree with that prevailing belief lose access to government funding, the primary source of funds for any scientific study.
The sources of funding for the group are not public, but the Sydney Morning Herald claimed it has links to many groups that have until recently been funded as part of the Exxon Mobil climate change skepticism campaign. That campaign recently ceased after a shareholder revolt.
The group was named after French scientist Antoine Lavoisier
Antoine Lavoisier
Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier , the "father of modern chemistry", was a French nobleman prominent in the histories of chemistry and biology...
(1743-1794), the father of modern chemistry who disproved the Phlogiston theory
Phlogiston theory
The phlogiston theory , first stated in 1667 by Johann Joachim Becher, is an obsolete scientific theory that postulated the existence of a fire-like element called "phlogiston", which was contained within combustible bodies and released during combustion...
of combustion
Combustion
Combustion or burning is the sequence of exothermic chemical reactions between a fuel and an oxidant accompanied by the production of heat and conversion of chemical species. The release of heat can result in the production of light in the form of either glowing or a flame...
.
Creation
The Lavoisier Group was created in response to submissions by the Australian Greenhouse Office to Cabinet to implement a carbon trading scheme. Its founders claimed that there had been "very little ongoing public debate about these proposals... are of the view that the science behind global warming policy is far less certain than its protagonists claim, and we also believe that the economic damage which Australia would suffer, if a carbon tax of the magnitude canvassed in AGO documents were imposed, would be far, far greater than is currently appreciated in Canberra"Following an inaugural conference in May 1999, the group was founded in April 2000 by former Finance Minister Peter Walsh, Ian Webber, Ray Evans
Ray Evans (Australian businessman)
Ray Evans is an Australian business leader, a conservative, and campaigner against climate change mitigation efforts.-Early years:Evans was educated at the Melbourne High School before he attended University of Melbourne and graduated in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering...
, Harold Clough, Robert Foster
Robert Foster
Robert Foster may refer to:*Robert Sanford Foster , Union general*Sir Robert Sidney Foster , former governor-general of Fiji...
and Bruce Kean, with an opening address by supporter Hugh Morgan
Hugh Morgan (Australian businessman)
Hugh Matheson Morgan AC, , an Australian businessman, is the son of former Western Mining Corporation CEO Bill Morgan, and was himself CEO of WMC from 1990 to 2003. He was also President of the Business Council of Australia from 2003 to 2005. The Howard Government appointed him to the board of the...
. Secretary Ray Evans describes the 90-odd Lavoisier members as a "dad's army" of mostly retired engineers and scientists from the mining, manufacturing and construction industries, such as Garth Paltridge
Garth Paltridge
Garth William Paltridge, , is a retired Australian atmospheric physicist. He is presently a Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University and Emeritus Professor and Honorary Research Fellow at the Institute of Antarctic and Southern Oceans Studies , University of Tasmania.-Career:Paltridge...
and Ian Plimer
Ian Plimer
Ian Rutherford Plimer is an Australian geologist, academic, professor of mining geology at the University of Adelaide, and a director of four mining companies...
. The annual subscription fee is 50 dollars
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
, and the annual budget is 10,000 dollars.
Aims
The Lavoisier Group lists its aims as:- To promote vigorous debate within Australia on greenhouse science and greenhouse policy;
- To ensure that the full extent of the economic consequences, for Australia, of the regime of carbon withdrawal prescribed by the yet-to-be-ratified Kyoto Protocol, are fully understood by the Australian community;
- to explore the implications which treaties such as the Kyoto Protocol have for Australia's sovereignty, and for the GATT/WTO rules which protect Australia (and other WTO members) from the use of trade sanctions as an instrument of extraterritorial power.
Current activities
The Lavoisier Group continues to hold annual conferences, and the group has promoted a variety of theories contradicting the mainstream scientific positions on global warmingScientific opinion on climate change
The predominant scientific opinion on climate change is that the Earth is in an ongoing phase of global warming primarily caused by an enhanced greenhouse effect due to the anthropogenic release of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases...
, including the arguments of retired judge, amateur climatologist and astrologer
Astrologer
An astrologer practices one or more forms of astrology. Typically an astrologer draws a horoscope for the time of an event, such as a person's birth, and interprets celestial points and their placements at the time of the event to better understand someone, determine the auspiciousness of an...
Theodor Landscheidt
Theodor Landscheidt
Theodor Landscheidt was an author, astrologer and amateur climatologist.In 1989, Landscheidt forecast a period of sunspot minima after 1990, accompanied by increased cold, with a stronger minimum and more intense cold which should peak in 2030 , which he described as the "Landscheidt Minimum" ...
, whose work on solar cycles was used to argue that observed warming is based on solar cycles, and hence is not anthropogenic and will soon be reversed.
Walsh has blamed politics for the current consensus on global warming. The group claims that many scientists choose to endorse prevailing theories of global warming to protect their research funding by the government, a view that is held by French climatologist and author Marcel Leroux
Marcel Leroux
Marcel Leroux was a French climatologist, a former Professor of Climatology at Jean Moulin University in Lyon, France, and director of the Laboratory of Climatology, Risk, and Environment....
, and was the subject of the book Meltdown: The Predictable Distortion of Global Warming by Scientists, Politicians, and the Media by Patrick Michaels
Patrick Michaels
Patrick J. Michaels is an American climatologist. Michaels is a senior research fellow for Research and Economic Development at George Mason University, and a senior fellow in environmental studies at the Cato Institute...
. A supporter, former minister Tony Staley
Tony Staley
Anthony Allan Staley, AO is an Australian politician, member of parliament and businessman....
, has characterised global warming as a form of "political correctness
Political correctness
Political correctness is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, certain other religions, beliefs or ideologies, disability, and age-related contexts,...
".
Responses
Author Clive HamiltonClive Hamilton
Clive Charles Hamilton AM FRSA is an Australian public intellectual and Professor of Public Ethics at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics and the Vice-Chancellor's Chair in Public Ethics at Charles Sturt University. He is the Founder and former Executive Director of the The...
, is his book Scorcher, says that one can find the following arguments in the various papers promoted by the Lavoisier Group:
- There is no evidence of global warming.
- If there is evidence of global warming, then it is not due to human activity.
- If global warming is occurring and it is due to human activity, then it is not going to be damaging.
- If global warming is occurring and it is due to human activity, and it is going to be damaging, then the costs of avoiding it are too high, so we should do nothing.
Critics of the group have pointed out its ties to greenhouse gas emitters. The group's top members have denied receiving compensation from industry, unlike some global warming skeptics in the United States, who have admitted to receiving compensation by fossil fuel
Fossil fuel
Fossil fuels are fuels formed by natural processes such as anaerobic decomposition of buried dead organisms. The age of the organisms and their resulting fossil fuels is typically millions of years, and sometimes exceeds 650 million years...
companies.
External links
- The Lavoisier Group website
- Sourcewatch The Lavoisier Group