January 2007, NPR’s All Things Considered discusses a National Academy of Sciences report on how budget cuts are affecting our nation’s ability to monitor climate changes.

It appears that the NPR story can be traced back to a confidential December 2006 document that National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and NASA delivered to the White House. That same document was leaked to the AP in June 2007 and the story was picked up by CBS, MSNBC, and other major outlets.

September 2007, Financial Times (sub. req’d) published an editorial on the topic, reporting from the perspective of Frank Nutter and the Reinsurance Association of America. It’s a strongly worded piece. Nutter:

“A cross-agency authority should be designated to promote a more cohesive vision for monitoring the earth, one that incorporates the needs of private-sector users.”

It’s good to see the professional risk management community taking a stand in support of better climate science.

[tags]Reinsurance Association of America, Frank Nutter, FT[/tags]