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Scientists: Ted Cruz’s Climate Theories Are a "Load of Claptrap"

by IngridNHZT Posted on March 18, 2015

Mother Jones

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Last night, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a probable candidate for the GOP presidential nomination, shared his thoughts about climate change with late-night host Seth Meyers (video above). Here’s what he said:

CRUZ: I just came back from New Hampshire where there’s snow and ice everywhere. And my view actually is simple. Debates on this should follow science and should follow data. And many of the alarmists on global warming, they’ve got a problem because the science doesn’t back them up. And in particular, satellite data demonstrate for the last 17 years there’s been zero warming, none whatsoever. It’s why, you remember how it used to be called global warming, and then magically the theory changed to climate change?

MEYERS: Sure.

CRUZ: The reason is it wasn’t warming. But the computer models still say it is, except the satellites show it’s not.

We totally agree with his point that debates about climate “should follow science and should follow data.” Right on! But according to Kevin Trenberth, a leading climate scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, everything else in Cruz’s quote is “a load of claptrap…absolute bunk.”

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Trenberth wasn’t alone in his criticism. Several prominent climate scientists contacted by Climate Desk dismissed Cruz’s analysis. “It is disturbing that some of our most prominent elected officials have decided to engage in distortions of and cynical attacks against the science,” said Michael Mann of Penn State.

“Lawmakers have a responsibility to understand the science, and not to embrace ignorance with open arms, as Senator Cruz is doing here,” added Ben Santer, a researcher at the Lawrence Livermore National Lab.

So what’s wrong with what Cruz said? For starters, the satellite record does, in fact, show warming. Here’s a view of temperature anomalies (that is, the deviation from the long-term average) reported by Remote Sensing Systems, a NASA-backed private satellite lab. It shows warming of about 0.2 degrees Fahrenheit per decade since 1980, the beginning of the satellite record:

Remote Sensing Systems

Even still, there are a couple important caveats with satellite temperature data that Cruz would do well to make note of. One, Santer said, is that it has a “huge” degree of uncertainty (compared to land-based thermometers), so it should be approached with caution. That’s because satellites don’t make direct measurements of temperature but instead pick up microwaves from oxygen molecules in the atmosphere that vary with temperature. Fluctuations in a satellite’s orbit and altitude and calibrations to its microwave-sensing equipment can all drastically affect its temperature readings.

More importantly, satellites measure temperatures in the atmosphere, high above the surface. The chart above shows the lower troposphere, about six miles above the surface. This data is an important piece of the climate and weather system, but it’s only one piece. There are plenty of other signs that are far less equivocal, and perhaps even more relevant to those of us who live on the Earth’s surface: Land and ocean surface temperatures are increasing, sea ice is declining, glaciers are shrinking, oceans are rising, the list goes on. In other words, the satellites-vs-computers dichotomy described by Cruz ignores most of the full picture.

For example, here’s the most recent land and ocean-surface temperature data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, showing how temperatures this winter deviated from the long-term average (dating all the way back to 1880). Much of the globe is warmer than average, some parts are the hottest on record, and the overall global temperature was the warmest on record:

NOAA

There’s also a big underlying flaw with Cruz’s cherry-picked timespan of 17 years, which almost any climate scientist would agree is far too short to observe any meaningful trend. 1998, the year Cruz starts with, was itself exceptionally warm thanks to the biggest El Nino event of the 20th century. If that’s your starting place, the warming trend does indeed look weak. But look over a longer time period, and it’s obvious that very warm years are more common now than before.

NOAA

And in any case, even the modest “slow-down” in warming that has occurred since 2000 isn’t inconsistent with what scientists have always expected man-made climate change will look like. Even the earliest climate models predicted the possibility of occasional leveling-off periods in upward-bound global temperature, like a landing on a staircase.

In fact, one reason why many scientists “magically” (as Cruz put it) have begun to prefer the term “climate change” to “global warming” is because they think the latter can misleadingly imply that every year will be incrementally warmer than the last. In reality, climate change is all about odds: Man-made greenhouse gas emissions substantially increase the chances of an exceptionally warm year, but they don’t eliminate the possibility for average or even cold years to happen.

Even accounting for the apparent stability of the last few years, Santer said, “everything tells us that what’s going on isn’t natural.”

As for Cruz’s reference to snowy weather in New Hampshire…give us a break.

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Scientists: Ted Cruz’s Climate Theories Are a "Load of Claptrap"

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Dot Earth Blog: Building Sustainable Energy Access, from the Outside In

by GeorgiaBlanks Posted on October 29, 2014

green4us

White Dwarf Issue 39: 25 October 2014 – White Dwarf

Gaze upon them and risk madness – the Glottkin have come. We introduce the favoured of Nurgle to the world. Can there be now any hope for the Empire? Read all about the Glottkin and see them in their incredible photographic glory. The End Times are begun, and we have it all: a stonking Battle […]

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The Back to Basics Handbook – Abigail R. Gehring

Anyone who wants to learn basic living skills—the kind employed by our forefathers—and adapt them for a better life in the twenty-first century need look no further than this eminently useful, full-color guide. With hundreds of projects, step-by-step sequences, photographs, charts, and illustrations, The Back to Basics Handbook will help you dye your own wool […]

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The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up – Marie Kondo

This best-selling guide to decluttering your home from Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes readers step-by-step through her revolutionary KonMari Method for simplifying, organizing, and storing. Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles? Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes […]

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Following Atticus – Tom Ryan

After a close friend died of cancer, middle-aged, overweight, acrophobic newspaperman Tom Ryan decided to pay tribute to her in a most unorthodox manner. Ryan and his friend, miniature schnauzer Atticus M. Finch, would attempt to climb all forty-eight of New Hampshire’s four thousand- foot peaks twice in one winter while raising money for charity. […]

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Top Dog – Maria Goodavage

The New York Times bestselling author of Soldier Dogs returns with the incredible story of K-9 Marine hero Lucca, and the handlers who fought alongside her through two bloody wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In Top Dog , Maria Goodavage takes readers into the life of Lucca K458, a decorated and highly skilled military working […]

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The Art of Raising a Puppy (Revised Edition) – Monks of New Skete

For more than thirty years the Monks of New Skete have been among America’s most trusted authorities on dog training, canine behavior, and the animal/human bond. In their two now-classic bestsellers, How to be Your Dog’s Best Friend and The Art of Raising a Puppy, the Monks draw on their experience as long-time breeders of […]

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Inside of a Dog – Alexandra Horowitz

The bestselling book that asks what dogs know and how they think, now in paperback. The answers will surprise and delight you as Alexandra Horowitz, a cognitive scientist, explains how dogs perceive their daily worlds, each other, and that other quirky animal, the human. Horowitz introduces the reader to dogs’ perceptual and cognitive abilities and […]

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Marley & Me – John Grogan

The heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life. Now with photos and new material

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How to Raise the Perfect Dog – Cesar Millan & Melissa Jo Peltier

From the bestselling author and star of National Geographic Channel’s Dog Whisperer , the only resource you’ll need for raising a happy, healthy dog. For the millions of people every year who consider bringing a puppy into their lives–as well as those who have already brought a dog home–Cesar Millan, the preeminent dog behavior expert, […]

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Saddled – Susan Richards

One day, at the age of thirty-one, Susan Richards realized that she was an alcoholic. She wrote it down in her journal, struck by the fact that it had taken nine years of waking up hung-over to name her illness. What had changed? Susan had a new horse, a spirited Morgan named Georgia, and, as […]

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Dot Earth Blog: Building Sustainable Energy Access, from the Outside In

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Why Americans Should Fear Fear of Ebola More than the Virus

by Myrna Posted on October 24, 2014

Two vital efforts to tamp down unfounded fears of Ebola contagion. Read this article:  Why Americans Should Fear Fear of Ebola More than the Virus ; ; ;

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Why Americans Should Fear Fear of Ebola More than the Virus

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Scott Brown’s Big-Money Sellout

by KimberlHiggs Posted on October 23, 2014

Mother Jones

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Name a major super-PAC or dark-money outfit and there’s a good chance it has helped Republican Scott Brown, the former senator from Massachusetts now trying to oust Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire. Karl Rove’s American Crossroads? Check. The Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity? Check. The US Chamber of Commerce, billionaire Joe Ricketts’ Ending Spending, FreedomWorks for America, ex-Bush ambassador John Bolton’s super-PAC—check, check, check, and check.

Despite being a darling of conservative deep-pocketed groups, Brown once was a foe of big-money machers. As a state legislator in Massachusetts, he sought to curb the influence of donors by stumping for so-called clean elections, in which candidates receive public funds for their campaigns and eschew round-the-clock fundraising. But during his three years in Washington—from his surprise special-election win in January 2010 to his defeat at the hands of Elizabeth Warren in November 2012—Brown transformed into an insider who embraced super-PACs, oligarch-donors such as the Koch brothers, and secret campaign spending. On the issue of money in politics, there is perhaps no Senate candidate this year who has flip-flopped as dramatically as Brown. Here’s how it happened.

In November 1998, Brown won a seat in the Massachusetts House. That same year, voters in the state approved a ballot measure to implement a clean elections system; the proposal passed by a 2-1 margin. By law, however, ballot measures can’t allocate taxpayer funds, and the fight to implement the new system moved to the legislature in Boston.

Brown allied himself with supporters of clean elections. As part of the state House’s tiny Republican caucus, Brown clashed with the old-guard Democratic leadership, including House Speaker Tom Finneran, who viewed clean elections as inimical to incumbents. Brown did quibble with reformers over some details of the proposed clean-elections system, but he voted in 2002 against a plan that would have gutted the program.

David Donnelly, who spearheaded the clean elections effort in Massachusetts, remembers Brown as a reliable supporter of clean elections: “Over those years, Scott Brown was not only a consistent vote, but a consistently outspoken supporter of the clean-elections program.” In a June 2001 letter to the editor in the Boston Globe, an activist with Common Cause, the good government group, hailed Brown’s support for clean elections as “not only courageous, but gutsy and heroic.”

When Brown ran for state Senate in 2004, he billed himself as “the person that bucks the system often.” He frequently mentioned his support for clean elections as evidence of his reformer bona fides. “As a state representative,” he said then, “I fought House Speaker Thomas Finneran’s pay raise bill and supported the voters’ will on Clean Elections.” Brown won the special election and served in the state Senate from 2004 to 2010.

In 2010, Brown ran for the US Senate seat that had been held by Ted Kennedy for 46 years. Most people remember his ubiquitous pickup truck, the one he drove everywhere and used to burnish his regular-guy image. What’s less remembered is how Brown again bragged about his support of campaign finance reform on his way to becoming a US senator.

Here’s what Brown told NPR the day after his upset win over Democrat Martha Coakley:

Maybe there’s a new breed of Republican coming to Washington. You know, I’ve always been that way. I always—I mean, you remember, I supported clean elections. I’m a self-imposed term limits person. I believe very, very strongly that we are there to serve the people.

That reformer approach vanished as soon as Brown joined the Senate Republican caucus.

In the summer of 2010, Senate Democrats heavily lobbied Brown to be the decisive 60th vote on the DISCLOSE Act, a bill that would beef up disclosure of spending on elections by dark-money nonprofit groups, including Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS and David Koch’s Americans for Prosperity. But Brown instead joined the Republican filibuster that killed the bill. In an op-ed explaining his vote, Brown said the bill was an election year ploy that exempted labor unions, which traditionally back Democrats, from some disclosure requirements. (In fact, the bill applied the same requirements to corporations and unions, and the AFL-CIO opposed it.) But he praised the 2002 McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform law as “an honest attempt to reform campaign finance” and wrote that genuine reform “would include increased transparency, accountability, and would provide a level playing field to everyone.” This gave some reformers hope that Brown might support a whittled-down version of the bill.

But no. Brown later opposed two newer, slimmer versions of the DISCLOSE Act and refused to cosponsor a national clean-elections bill similar to the measure he had backed in Massachusetts. (A spokeswoman for Brown’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.)

Brown has gone on to accept millions from the interests most opposed to campaign finance reform. In 2011, he was caught on camera practically begging David Koch, the billionaire industrialist, for campaign cash. “Your support during the 2010 election, it meant a ton,” Brown told Koch. “It made a difference, and I can certainly use it again.” In his 2012 race against Warren, he benefited from a super-PAC funded largely by energy magnate Bill Koch, the youngest Koch brother and also a billionaire, and casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson’s Las Vegas Sands company. And though he agreed that year to the “People’s Pledge”—a pact intended to keep outside spending out of the campaign—Brown refused to make the same pledge in his current campaign against Shaheen.

As a state legislator, Brown bragged that he was someone who “bucks the system often.” Today, he is relying on the system—dominated by millionaires and billionaires, overrun with money, and cloaked in secrecy—to get back to the Senate.

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Scott Brown’s Big-Money Sellout

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Fuels America Celebrates Labor Day

by Posted on August 28, 2014

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Fuels America Celebrates Labor Day

Posted 28 August 2014 in

National

This weekend, Americans across the country will celebrate the achievements of American workers — including the workers that support the US biofuels industry.

Since the passage of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in 2005, the renewable fuel industry has grown by leaps and bounds. Today the renewable fuel sector supports more than 850,000 jobs and generates $46.2 billion in wages annually in the United States. Altogether, the biofuels sector creates $184.5 billion each year in total economic activity for the United States — amazing progress in just a few short years.

But these numbers don’t represent the full picture. With more than 840 facilities supporting renewable fuel production, distribution, and research throughout the country, this growing industry supports workers in cities and states from coast-to-coast. Did you know that:

In Iowa, the biofuels industry supports more than 73,371 jobs and $5.0 billion in wages each year.
In Nebraska, the biofuels industry supports 39,629 jobs, and $2.9 billion in wages annually.
In Colorado, the biofuels industry supports 10,619 jobs and $642.2 million in wages each year.
In Michigan, the biofuels industry supports 22,794 jobs and $1.1 billion in wages annually.
In California, the biofuels industry supports 59,665 jobs and $3.7 billion in wages each year.
In New Hampshire, the biofuels industry supports 2,156 jobs and $138.7 million in wages annually.
In North Carolina, the biofuels industry supports 13,687 jobs and $692.9 million in wages each year.

As the Obama Administration prepares to issue the 2014 Renewable Fuel Standard, it’s important to know that the renewable fuels sector supports billions in economic activity across our country — thanks in no small part to investments in the biofuels industry made possible by the Renewable Fuel Standard.

Find out how the biofuels industry impacts your community — read our economic report.
 

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Prototype: Planting for Profit, and Greater Good

by Myrna Posted on June 7, 2014

Jason Aramburu, who developed a sensor and smartphone app to help plants thrive, looks to use them to fight drought and food shortages. Continue reading: Prototype: Planting for Profit, and Greater Good Related ArticlesWorld Briefing: Syria: Drought Adds to Woes, U.N. SaysDot Earth Blog: Roundup: Can New E.P.A. CO2 Rules Have a Climate Impact?Report Finds Higher Risks if Oil Line Is Not Built

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Prototype: Planting for Profit, and Greater Good

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POLL: Tea Party Members Really, Really Don’t Trust Scientists

by ChristiWhitford Posted on May 20, 2014

Mother Jones

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It’s one of the biggest trends in US politics over the last decade: A growing left-right split over the validity of scientific information. This “science gap” is apparent most of all on the issue of climate change, but the problem is much broader, encompassing topics ranging from evolution to the safety and effectiveness of condoms in preventing sexually transmitted diseases.

Yet even those of us who know how politicized science has become may be surprised by some new polling data out of the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. There, survey researcher Lawrence Hamilton has run a new analysis of 568 New Hampshire residents, asking them a variety of questions including the following: “Would you say that you trust, don’t trust, or are unsure about scientists as a source of information about environmental issues?” Hamilton then broke down the responses by party, separating out members of the tea party from more mainstream Republicans. And look at the result:

Lawrence Hamilton, 2014.

This is pretty striking: The first three political groups—Democrats, independents, and non-tea party Republicans—all trust scientists on the environment. But then you come to tea party members, and suddenly, distrust in scientists soars. The numbers are stark: 60 percent of traditional Republicans trust scientists on the environment, versus only 28 percent of tea partiers.

Hamilton says he’s surprised by the strength of these results. “I didn’t realize it would be at the level of division that it was,” says Hamilton. He adds that while Republicans and tea partiers in New Hampshire aren’t precisely the same in all respects as they are elsewhere in America, “in general, New Hampshire is not drastically unrepresentative.” When it comes to tea partiers and more traditional Republicans on the national level, Hamilton says that he “would expect similar gaps to show up.”

So what’s going on with this plummeting trust in scientists on the ideological right? The main factor, Hamilton thinks, is that the highly polarized climate issue is leading climate deniers to break up with scientists in general. “Climate change is sort of bleeding over into a lower trust in science across a range of issues,” says Hamilton. That means the consequences are not limited to the climate issue. “The critiques of climate science work by often arguing that science is corrupt, and then that spills over to other kinds of science,” Hamilton observes. Prior research has found that watching Fox News, in particular, leads to a declining trust in climate scientists.

The new data on trust in science comprise just one part of Hamilton’s new report. The study also looked at partisan gaps on a number of other scientific issues, and compared the size of those gaps with those that exist on non-scientific issues. And again, the result was pretty surprising: In New Hampshire, there is a bigger partisan divide over climate change and whether environmental scientists are trustworthy than there is over abortion and the death penalty. Note that in this analysis, unlike in the earlier figure, Republican responses include both those of traditional Republicans and those of tea partiers. It is the latter who are driving much of the partisan gap on issues like trust in science:

Lawrence Hamilton, 2014

Last week, we got some of the scariest news about global warming yet: We may have already helped set in motion an irreversible destabilization of the West Antarctic ice sheet, thus locking in 10 or more feet of sea level rise over the coming centuries. It’s the kind of news that ought to serve as a wake up call for all Americans, causing them to stop and say: Enough. We’ve got to do something here.

But as these data make clear, when it comes to science, there’s no such thing as “all Americans” any more. There are highly polarized camps, divided over the very validity of the information.

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POLL: Tea Party Members Really, Really Don’t Trust Scientists

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Stanford will dump its coal company investments

by MichaelDanielso Posted on May 7, 2014

Suck it, Harvard

Stanford will dump its coal company investments

By

Hammerin Man

Stanford University’s endowment fund is a fat one — nearly $19 billion rich. And, moving forward, none of those riches will be sunk into the ghastly practice of coal mining.

The university – which is situated on the edge of Silicon Valley, a hotbed for clean technology companies like Tesla – announced on Tuesday that its board of trustees had approved a divestment resolution. According to the university’s statement, the fund will sell off stocks and abstain from buying any more in “publicly traded companies whose principal business is the mining of coal for use in energy generation.”

“Stanford has a responsibility as a global citizen to promote sustainability for our planet, and we work intensively to do so through our research, our educational programs and our campus operations,” Stanford President John Hennessy said in the statement. “Moving away from coal in the investment context is a small, but constructive, step while work continues, at Stanford and elsewhere, to develop broadly viable sustainable energy solutions for the future.”

The Washington Post reports that Stanford is “the twelfth and most prestigious university” to divest from fossil fuel companies:

Stanford’s move comes after protests last week by climate activists at other leading universities. Seven students at Washington University in St. Louis were arrested demanding Peabody Energy chief executive Gregory H. Boyce resign from the university’s board of trustees, and a student was arrested at Harvard University for trying along with half a dozen other students to blockade the office of Harvard president Drew Faust. More than 100 faculty members have signed a letter to Faust urging the university to divest. …

Stanford has also been pressed from within; its board of trustees includes Tom Steyer, a wealthy former hedge fund head who has devoted himself to promoting policies that might slow climate change. …

The divestment movement has convinced Seattle, San Francisco, Portland and other cities to shed fossil fuel firms. Other colleges that have divested include Hampshire College, Pitzer College, and College of the Atlantic.

But most colleges have not gone along.

As the Post reporter notes, the move to dump coal holdings might not just make ethical sense — it could be a prudent financial move, with many coal stocks flailing this year as the federal government starts to get at least a little bit serious about curbing climate change.


Source
Stanford to divest from coal companies, Stanford University
Stanford becomes the most prominent university yet to divest from coal, The Washington Post

John Upton is a science fan and green news boffin who tweets, posts articles to Facebook, and blogs about ecology. He welcomes reader questions, tips, and incoherent rants: johnupton@gmail.com.

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Loaded Chambers: A Brief History of Politicians Accidentally Shooting Things

by MichelineWorth Posted on February 24, 2014

Mother Jones

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Last week, Colorado state Rep. Jared Wright, a Republican, left his handgun in a canvas bag in the state capitol—following a hearing on rolling back concealed carry laws. Wright, a former police officer, told the Denver Post he will stop carrying his revolver to committee meetings. He wasn’t the first public servant in recent memory to forget, shoot, drop, or otherwise unintentionally mishandle a firearm:

2014

Kentucky state Rep. Leslie Combs, a Democrat, accidentally fires a gun in her capitol office while attempting to empty it in front of another lawmaker.

2013

West Virginia Del. Kelli Sobonya drops her handgun in a meeting with Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin. “I said, ‘Hey, Governor, you don’t have to worry; I have my permit,'” she tells the Charleston Daily Mail.

Dave Evans, an aide to Missouri House Speaker Tim Jones, leaves a loaded gun on top of a capitol bathroom toilet paper dispenser.

Texas state Rep. Drew Darby is arrested at an Austin airport after a loaded .380 Ruger is found in his carry-on bag.

2012

New Hampshire state Rep. Kyle Tasker explains that he dropped one of his two handguns on the floor of the capitol because he was “loopy” from just donating blood.

2011

More butterfingered Granite State Republicans: State Rep. George Lambert drops his holstered gun outside the statehouse. State Rep. Paul Mirski drops his firearm during a meeting and doesn’t get around to picking it up until the event adjourns.

2008

Oklahoma state Rep. Sally Kern is caught bringing a loaded handgun into the capitol in her purse. “As soon as my purse went through the scanner and the uh, gentleman there said, ‘Representative Kern,’ I went, ‘Aw, I forgot!,'” Kern tells a local news station. It’s the second time in two months.

2007

An aide to Democratic Virginia Sen. James Webb is arrested for carrying his boss’ loaded gun into a Senate office building.

2006

Virginia Del. Jack Reid fires his handgun in his office as he’s trying to remove the clip. The round strikes a bulletproof vest hanging on a door.

Vice President Dick Cheney hits a hunting companion in the face with birdshot while hunting quail in Texas.

2002

A pistol goes off as it’s being handed to Georgia Rep. Bob Barr at a reception. Explains the lobbyist who passed the gun, “We were handling it safely, except that it was loaded.”

Excerpt from – 

Loaded Chambers: A Brief History of Politicians Accidentally Shooting Things

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The Abortion Rate Hits a 30-Year Low

by Sheeritwern Posted on February 3, 2014

Mother Jones

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The abortion rate fell by 13 percent between 2008 to 2011, according to a new study.

The study, released by the Guttmacher Institute, a pro-abortion rights think tank, concluded that nearly 1.1 million abortions took place in the United States in 2011, some 700,000 fewer than in 2008. That’s the equivalent of 16.9 abortions per 1,000 women between 15 and 44. During the same time, the number of abortion providers fell by 4 percent and the number of abortion clinics fell by 1 percent.

“The national abortion rate appears to have resumed its long-term decline,” conclude researchers Rachel K. Jones and Jenna Jerman. The rate of abortions in the United State has decreased almost every year since 1981, when, according to Guttmacher spokeswoman Rebecca Wind, there were 29.3 abortions per 1,000 women. The decline halted from 2005 to 2008. As of 2011, the abortion rate not only began to drop again, it also hit its lowest point since 1973.

The authors did not investigate the reasons for the decline. However, since rates of abortion fell consistently across almost all states, and the time period covered by the study predates the surge of state-level antiabortion laws, the overall decline is likely not the product of new restrictions, the study notes. A few states, however, may have experienced declines related to new restrictions. Missouri’s abortion rate dropped 17 percent between 2008 and 2010, the authors note, perhaps reflecting the impact of a 2009 state law requiring women to seek in-person counseling before getting an abortion. Still, Jones and Jerman write, “It is crucial to note that abortion rates decreased by larger-than-average amounts in several states that did not implement any new restrictions between 2008 and 2010, such as Illinois (18%) and Oregon (15%).”

The increased use of contraceptives is thought to have played a role by reducing the number of unintended pregnancies—in particular among women living in poor economic circumstances who may have used birth control more consistently during the recession and the sluggish recovery period that followed.

Declines in abortions were steepest in Midwest and Western states, and all but six states—Alaska, Maryland, Montana, New Hampshire, West Virginia, and Wyoming, some of which had lower-than-average abortion rates to begin with—experienced decreased rates of abortion.

The loss of providers and facilities which performed abortions may have also had something to do with the drop in abortions. Jones and Jerman also surveyed the accessibility of abortion providers, finding that 38 percent of reproductive-aged women lived in a county without an abortion clinic—some 90 percent of all counties. Abortions induced by medication accounted for nearly 25 percent of all non-hospital abortions in 2011, up from 17 percent in 2008.

Jones and Jerman note that while the drop in abortion providers and facilities—4 percent and 1 percent, respectively—may seem negligible, the caseloads of different facilities can vary widely. Abortion clinics, for example, account for only 19 percent of the facilities that offer abortions, but provide 63 percent of abortions.

Nearly 50 abortion clinics closed from 2008 to 2011—and the drop in clinics was more pronounced than that for other types of facilities that offer abortions. Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Vermont each lost one clinic. “While these states lost only one clinic each, they had few to begin with, so the loss of even one may have affected access to services,” the authors write. “The closure of a clinic may have contributed to the larger-than-average declines in abortion incidence in Kansas and Oklahoma.”

As of 2011, North Dakota, Mississippi, and South Dakota had only one abortion clinic.

Taken from – 

The Abortion Rate Hits a 30-Year Low

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