Human Role in Climate Change Downplayed by NOAA

In a July 2017 news release, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), within the U.S. Department of Commerce, failed to link greenhouse gas emissions to human activity.

The news release publicized the Annual Greenhouse Gas Index which tracks the warming effects of long-lived greenhouse gases. The release noted that the index has increased by forty percent since 1990 but, in contrast to Obama-era releases, did not highlight the link between that increase and human activity. This is despite the findings of NOAA scientists, who have indicated that the rise is primarily attributable to increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide related to human activity.