The White House is assembling a team of scientists to reevaluate the government’s climate findings, according to a report from The Washington Post.
The informal task-force, a National Security Council-led initiative that wouldn’t be subject to the same oversight and disclosure requirements as a formal advisory committee, would include scientists representing a mixture of opinions, including those skeptical of the role humans are playing in warming the planet, sources told the Post.
A range of government researchers have issued stark warnings about climate change and the risks it poses. That includes the National Climate Assessment released in November by a broad group of federal agencies as well as a report from the national intelligence director last month, each warning that weather-related climate hazards are growing worse.
Administration officials reportedly met Friday to discuss how best to form a group of federal researchers that could scrutinize government climate reports.
At the meeting, officials reportedly said Trump was displeased at the release of the National Climate Assessment, the findings of which Democrats have used to push for a Green New Deal that calls for cuts to carbon emissions.
Plans for the new group haven’t been finalized, and it isn’t clear what impact or power it might wield.
While some experts told the Post they worried such a group could harm national security by casting doubt on scientific consensus regarding the risks of climate change, others were skeptical the task-force would have a substantive impact given the amount of extant and ongoing research around the world.