Media Advisory: State Climate Experts Assemble at Scripps April 20

What: Media are invited to a special public science meeting of the California Climate Action Team (CAT) at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego. Experts on wildfires, drought, sea-level rise, public health and economic effects of climate change will deliver brief presentations and invite feedback. A live Webinar of the event will also take place. (Please see below for access instructions.)

When: Monday, April 20, 2009, 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.

Where: Robert Paine Scripps Forum for Science, Society and the Environment (Scripps Seaside Forum), 8610 Kennel Way (formerly Discovery Way) in La Jolla, Calif. (For media only: Take I-5, exit La Jolla Village Drive, west one mile. Make left on La Jolla Shores Drive, then right on El Paseo Grande and immediate right into parking lots on right-hand side. Please obtain media parking passes from the Scripps Communications Office staff attendant upon arrival.)

Who: Authors of several of the reports included in the latest CAT assessment will deliver brief presentations, followed by question-and-answer sessions. Scripps Communications Office representatives will be on hand to facilitate one-on-one media interviews throughout the event.

California Energy Commission Vice Chair James Boyd will preside over the science meeting, which will include a wide range of presentations:

Climate and Socio-economic Scenarios Overview: Dan Cayan, climate scientist at Scripps Oceanography and Alan Sanstad, researcher at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; both are members of the CAT science steering team.

Climate Effects on Forests and Wildfire Prevalence: Anthony Westerling, former Scripps Oceanography climate scientist, current assistant professor of environmental engineering and geography, UC Merced

Water and Overall Economic Impacts: Michael Hanemann, Chancellor's professor and professor of environmental and resource economics, UC Berkeley

Agricultural Sector Impacts: Richard Howitt, professor of agricultural and resource economics and department chair, UC Davis

Sea-level Rise Scenarios: Heather Cooley, senior research
associate, Pacific Institute

Public Health: Rupa Basu, research scientist/epidemiologist, California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment

Air Quality Implications: Dev Millstein, researcher, UC Berkeley

Energy Impacts: Maximillian Auffhammer, assistant professor in the departments of Agricultural and Resource Economics and International Studies, UC Berkeley

Background: The state Climate Action Team draft assessment report, released April 1, uses updated, comprehensive scientific research to outline environmental and societal climate impacts. The team's second biennial report to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger includes new assessments of impacts from warming, precipitation changes and sea-level rise as well as the additional societal factors such as land-use changes and demographic shifts and the possible economic consequences of these potential changes. Impacts of climate change to California's coast, agriculture, forest and communities have been known and studied for years; however the studies that support the CAT report suggest that actual greenhouse gas emissions are outstripping 2006 projections. Of particular interest are the several papers focusing on the impacts of a rise in sea levels to coastal communities and increased potential of wildfires to residential areas.