H. Sterling Burnett

H. Sterling Burnett

Credentials

  • Ph.D., Applied Philosophy, Bowling Green State University (2001).1โ€œH. Sterling Burnett, PhD,โ€ biography at ProCon, December 6, 2010.
  • M.A., Applied Philosophy, Bowling Green State University, (1992).2โ€œH. Sterling Burnett, PhD,โ€ biography at ProCon, December 6, 2010.
  • B.A., Cultural Anthropology, Southern Methodist University, (1986).3โ€œH. Sterling Burnett, PhD,โ€ biography at ProCon, December 6, 2010.

Background

H. Sterling Burnett is a senior fellow and and the managing editor of Environment & Climate News at the Heartland Institute. He was previously a senior fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) for 18 years before joining Heartland in 2014.4โ€œH. STERLING BURNETT,โ€ The Heartland Institute. Archived May 11, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/5H3uL

According to his bio at the National Center for Policy Analysis, โ€œHe has held various positions in professional and public policy organizations, including serving as a member of the Environment and Natural Resources Task Force in the Texas Comptrollerโ€™s e-Texas commission, board of directors of the Dallas Woods and Water Conservation Club, and adviser for the American Legislative Exchange Councilโ€™s Natural Resources Task Force.โ€5โ€œDr. H. Sterling Burnett: Senior Fellow,โ€ National Center for Policy Analysis. Archived April 9, 2002. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/8rOvA

Stance on Climate Change

February 22, 2004

โ€œProponents of policies to control human-induced global warming cite science as the basis for their claims and proposals. There is only one problem โ€“ as much as they claim otherwise, there is no scientific consensus for their theories.โ€6H. Sterling Burnett. โ€œClimate science or science fiction?โ€ The Washington Times, February 22, 2004. Archived March 30, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ojmAj

August 15, 2001

โ€œIn other words, we do not know if the earth will get warmer or cooler in the future, and if temperatures do change, by how much or when, or if public policies can affect future temperature change.โ€7โ€œReality and Climate Change Policyโ€ (PDF), National Center for Policy Analysis, Brief Analysis No 376. (August 15, 2001).

December 5, 1998

โ€œThe current warming trend began as Earth came out of the little ice ageโ€”an important fact that is all too often overlooked in the global warming debate.โ€8โ€œLetters: Warmer than When?โ€ (PDF), Science News, Vol. 154, No. 23 (December 5, 1998), p. 355.

Key Quotes

January 31, 2018

Following President Donald Trumpโ€˜s State of the Union Address, Burnett said in a statement:9โ€œPRESS RELEASE: HEARTLAND INSTITUTE EXPERTS REACT TO PRESIDENT TRUMPโ€™S STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS,โ€ The Heartland Institute, January 31, 2018. Archived February 5, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/FeswS

โ€œPresident Trump has done more to reduce the regulatory burden in one year than any president in history. Combined with the steps he has taken to enact his America First energy plan, these actions have contributed to the countryโ€™s strong growth during the first year of the Trump administration. Based on recent business investment and consumer confidence polls, President Trumpโ€™s policies are reinvigorating the economy.

โ€œDuring his first State of the Union speech, President Trump was more than justified in touting his accomplishments so far. Under President Trump, the United States has increased energy production, reduced regulations, and cut taxes. Because of this, the United States is once again exporting freedom and prosperity around the globe.

โ€œHaving said all this, there is still more to do. Unfortunately, most of the cities with major ports, including all those along the West Coast, are in blue states run by Democratic governors. These vital states remain stuck in the grips of radical environmental ideologies. The Trump administration, working with Congress, must get new coal, oil, and natural gas export terminals built as part of an infrastructure plan. State recalcitrance should not be allowed to interfere with interstate and international commerce that, constitutionally, is the domain of the federal government.โ€

October 9, 2017

Following EPA administrator Scott Pruittโ€˜s announcement that the Trump administration would be scrapping the Clean Power Plan, Burnett issued the following statement via the Heartland Institute:10โ€œPRESS RELEASE: HEARTLAND INSTITUTE EXPERTS REACT TO EPA SCRAPPING THE CLEAN POWER PLAN,โ€ The Heartland Institute, October 9, 2017. Archived October 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/B9m3e

โ€œ[โ€ฆ] Even if it werenโ€™t unconstitutional, itโ€™s still terrible policy, because it imposes huge costs on individuals and businesses and makes the nationโ€™s electric power supply less reliableโ€”all while doing nothing to prevent climate change or to protect human health or the environment. Good riddance to a bad regulation.โ€

2010

Burnett commented on the Gulf Oil Spill, claiming that โ€œEnvironmentalists hyped the spill in an attempt to push the Senate to pass the largest energy tax in history.โ€ His policy center also issued a press release describing the situation on the Gulf Coast as โ€œmore hype than reality.โ€H. Sterling Burnett. โ€œLessons from the Horizon blowout: More hype than harm,โ€ The Hill (Blog), March 8, 2010.11Tom Henry. โ€œSouthern Michigan faces long recovery after oil spill,โ€ Toledo Blade, August 8, 2010. Archived August 16, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/0CF9s

April 2007

โ€œ[T]here is no predicted human health effect from increased CO2 emissions at any foreseeable level. [โ€ฆ] nothing the EPA could do would reduce the speculative effects of global warming on sea levels, human health, or weather patterns โ€” since EPA regulations canโ€™t affect these things, it ought not to regulate emissions as if it could.โ€12โ€œ(PRN) Supreme Court Ruling Doesnโ€™t Mean EPA Will Regulate CO2 Emissions,โ€ PRNewswire-USNewswire, April 3, 2007. Republished by chron.com. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/RzdAF

May 2006

In a May 2006 Fox News interview, Burnett compared Al Goreโ€™s Inconvenient Truth to Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebellsโ€˜ films. Burnett stated:13Judd Legum. โ€œExxon-Backed Pundit Compares Gore To Nazi Propagandist,โ€ ThinkProgress, May 23, 2006.

โ€œYou donโ€™t go see Joseph Goebbelsโ€™ films to see the truth about Nazi Germany. You donโ€™t want to go see Al Goreโ€™s film to see the truth about global warming.โ€

Key Deeds

February 14, 2022

Burnett featured guest speaker Jason Isaac, director of the Texas Public Policy Foundationโ€˜s Life:Powered project, on an episode of the Heartland Daily Podcast.14โ€œPOLITICIANS ARE RUINING TEXASโ€™ POWER GRID (GUEST: JASON ISAAC),โ€ The Heartland Institute. Archived .mp3 on file at DeSmog.

โ€œAs it stands, subsidized renewable power sources forced onto the system have left Texans vulnerable to power outages, a problem that could worsen in the future,โ€ Burnett claimed in the podcastโ€™s description.

Discussing the Texas power outages in 2021, Burnett commented:

โ€œIโ€™m saying we used to have other coal plants, but they were not just off line they had been closed. We had a lot of wind and solar, more wind in Texas than solar, but some solar that suddenly was politically mandated, but was not putting power on the grid. So thatโ€™s the day. But what built up to it?โ€

Jason Isaac responded:

โ€œYeah, and itโ€™s really these market distorting policies that have propped up one form of generation over another, put us in this situation to begin with. And youโ€™ve seen a decline in thermal generation over the last seven years because they canโ€™t compete. And thatโ€™s the big thing. The market design is the problem when you have wind, generate electricity because of the investment tax credit, the production tax credit, the property tax exemptions they get from the state of Texas and other incentives.โ€

โ€œWe shouldnโ€™t depend on variable sources of unreliable electric generation on our grid. Because then where we are at the whims of nature, especially especially when we have reliable forms of thermal generation that are out there,โ€ Isaac said.

October 23, 2018

Burnett co-wrote an article at American Thinker with Heartland policy advisor Justin Askins titled โ€œWhy Some Scientists Say Global Warming Is Out and Global Cooling Is In.โ€ In the article, Burnett and Haskins promote a global cooling study by Valentina Zharkova, an astrophysicist that they introduce as a climate scientist.15Justin Haskins and H. Sterling Burnett. โ€œWhy Some Scientists Say Global Warming Is Out and Global Cooling Is In,โ€ American Thinker, October 23, 2018. Archived November 7, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/DMkWN

โ€œAlthough Zharkova says her modelโ€™s accuracy is 97 percent, sheโ€™s not sure precisely how impactful lower solar magnetic activity will be โ€ฆโ€ they wrote, claiming that โ€œa cooling effect completely undermine virtually every single climate model predicting steady warming over the next century.โ€16Justin Haskins and H. Sterling Burnett. โ€œWhy Some Scientists Say Global Warming Is Out and Global Cooling Is In,โ€ American Thinker, October 23, 2018. Archived November 7, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/DMkWN

Burnett and Askins argued that man-made CO2 emissions are needed to combat global cooling: โ€œIf climate alarmists are correct, then the planet would be much cooler today than it is now if humans were never to have produced significant amounts of carbon dioxide. That means that whatever cooling results from decreased solar activity would theoretically be much more extreme without humansโ€™ CO2 emissions. Thatโ€™s incredibly important, because cooler global temperatures have historically been linked to deadly living conditions for humans, plants, and wildlife.โ€17Justin Haskins and H. Sterling Burnett. โ€œWhy Some Scientists Say Global Warming Is Out and Global Cooling Is In,โ€ American Thinker, October 23, 2018. Archived November 7, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/DMkWN

Sky News article from December 2017, from which Burnett and Askins pulled a quote from Zharkova, also included this additional context: โ€œBut she cautions that her mathematical research cannot be used as proof that there will be a mini ice age this time around, not least because of global warming.โ€ The article also notes that โ€œProfessor Zharkova warned that any downward impact on global warming will last only until the Sunโ€™s two magnetic waves become active again in the 2050s.โ€18โ€œScientists predict โ€˜mini ice ageโ€™ could hit UK by 2030,โ€ Sky News, December 27, 2017. Archived November 7, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/z08iU

The Guardian reported that Zharkovaโ€™s research has reignited the โ€œimminent mini ice ageโ€ myth more than once, based on her research suggesting the sun would enter a quiet phase. โ€œWhile she has created a model predicting an imminent period of quiet solar activity, other scientists have identified serious flaws in the model, and in any case, research has shown that another solar minimum would only have a small and temporary impact on Earthโ€™s climate,โ€ The Guardian noted.19Dana Nuccitelli. โ€œThe โ€˜imminent mini ice ageโ€™ myth is back, and itโ€™s still wrong,โ€ The Guardian, January 9, 2018. Archived November 7, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/aPzgO

August 24, 2018

Burnett wrote a piece at The Hill criticizing Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, suggesting they make vehicles less safe, and applauding the EPAโ€˜s decision to freeze fuel economy standards.20โ€œA fuel-economy change that protect freedom and saves lives,โ€ The Hill, August 24, 2018. Archived September 6, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/Kunxd

โ€œThe laws of physics will never change. In a vehicle crash, larger and heavier is safer than lighter and smaller. EPAโ€™s fuel-economy freeze will prevent unnecessary deaths while protecting consumer choice,โ€ Burnett wrote.21โ€œA fuel-economy change that protect freedom and saves lives,โ€ The Hill, August 24, 2018. Archived September 6, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/Kunxd

According to Burnett, having more fuel efficient vehicles is counter productive because people would drive more.  โ€œAs fuel efficiency increased and driving became cheaper, people drove more miles โ€” thereby negating the marginal gains of owning more-fuel-efficient vehicles,โ€ he wrote.22โ€œA fuel-economy change that protect freedom and saves lives,โ€ The Hill, August 24, 2018. Archived September 6, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/Kunxd

August 7, 2018

Burnett spoke at the Heartland Instituteโ€˜s โ€œAmerica First Energy Conferenceโ€ (AFEC 2018) in New Orleans, Louisiana.23โ€œSpeakers,โ€ America First Energy Conference 2018. Archived August 1, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/mwtga

โ€œThe purpose of this event is to promote and expand energy freedom in the United States, as outlined in President Donald Trumpโ€™s bold America First Energy Plan, a proposal first released during the 2016 presidential campaign. The presidentโ€™s plan marks a decisive change in direction from the Obama administrationโ€™s โ€˜war on fossil fuelsโ€™ and focus on the theory of catastrophic man-caused climate change,โ€ the conference description reads.24โ€œAbout,โ€ America First Energy Conference 2018. Archived July 23, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/E4Gnt

Burnett spoke on a panel titled โ€œ4B. Cafe Standards: Why They Need to Goโ€ and moderated another titled โ€œThe Future of Coal, Oil, and Natural Gas.โ€25โ€œH. Sterling Burnett, Ph.D.,โ€ America First Energy Conference 2018. Archived August 1, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.fo/DJdaG

February 4, 2018

In January 2018, more than 200 scientists endorsed an open letter calling on the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) to remove climate change denier Rebekah Mercer from its board and to โ€œend ties to anti-science propagandists and funders of climate science misinformation.โ€ The New York Times reported that those among the AMNH letter calling for Mercer to step down were Michael E. Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University, and Katharine Hayhoe, director of the Climate Science Center at Texas Tech University.26Robin Pogrebin and Somini Sengupta. โ€œA Science Denier at the Natural History Museum? Scientists Rebel,โ€ The New York Times, January 25, 2018. Archived February 13, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tAIv4

Burnett was among a group of climate change deniers who responded with their own open letter, calling for the AMNH โ€œnot to cave in to this pressure.โ€ The letter was signed by numerous individuals with ties to groups funded by the Mercer Family Foundation such as Will Happer of the CO2 CoalitionRichard Lindzen, a fellow at the Cato InstituteCraig Idso, the chairman of the Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change. There are a number of signatories affiliated with the Heartland Institute, which has received over $5.78 million from the Mercer Family Foundation since 2008.27Graham Readfearn. โ€œClimate Science Deniers Defend New Yorkโ€™s American Museum of Natural History From Calls to Drop Trustee Rebekah Mercer,โ€ DeSmog, February 6, 2018.

The letter reads:28mnh18-feb4-petitionletter (PDF โ€“ Untitled). Retrieved from Watts Up With That.

โ€œThe Earth has supported abundant life many times in the geological past when there were much higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It is quite likely that future generations will benefit from the enrichment of Earthโ€™s atmosphere with more carbon dioxide.

โ€œMake no mistake, the agitators are not defending science from quackery โ€” quite the contrary!โ€

November 9, 2017

Burnett was a speaker and moderator at the Heartland Instituteโ€™s โ€œAmerica First Energy Conferenceโ€ at the Marriott Hotel in Houston, Texas. Burnett spoke or moderated four panels on November 9 including:29โ€œH. STERLING BURNETT,โ€ America First Energy Conference. Archived November 20, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/fpygE

PANEL 1A: CLIMATE SCIENCE (Moderator)

PANEL 2B: PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT (Speaker)

PANEL 3B: PEACE DIVIDEND: BENEFITS OF ENDING THE WAR ON FOSSIL FUELS (Moderator)

PANEL 6B: REFORMING EPA (Moderator)

The event description read as follows:30โ€œAbout,โ€ America First Energy. Archived October 11, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8bTTJ

โ€œAt the America First Energy Conference, we plan to examineโ€”one year and one day after Trumpโ€™s shocking Election Day victoryโ€”the following:

โ€œWhere does Trumpโ€™s America First Energy Plan stand?

โ€œHow much progress has been made in implementing it, and what remains to be done?

โ€œWhat scientific and economic evidence is there that the plan is putting the nation on the right path for economic growth, environmental protection, or both?โ€31โ€œAbout,โ€ America First Energy. Archived October 11, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8bTTJ

In a fundraising letter obtained by DeSmog, Fred Palmer had promoted the event as having the goal to โ€œreview the scientific and economic evidence that exposes the fraud inherent in the Obama-era regulation regimeโ€ while discussing โ€œthe overwhelming benefits of fossil fuels to us all.โ€32October 2017 Fundraising letter by Fred Palmer. On file at Desmog.

Many of the other speakers have regularly spoken at the Heartland Instituteโ€™s past ICCCs. Notable speakers listed so far Joe Bast, Fred PalmerRoger BezdekH. Sterling BurnettHal Doiron, Paul DriessenJohn Dale DunnMyron Ebell, Heartlandโ€™s new President Tim HuelskampCraig IdsoDavid LegatesJay LehrAnthony LupoRoss McKitrickSteve MilloyTodd MyersJohn Nothdurt, David Schnare, and numerous others.33โ€œSPEAKERS,โ€ America First Energy. Archived October 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/OJWeX

As reported at the Houston Chronicle, speakers notably included two Trump Administration officials: Richard W. Westerdale II of the State Department and Vincent DeVito of the Department of Interior. David Bernhardt, deputy secretary of the Interior Department, was also formerly listed as a Heartland conference speaker, but apparently withdrew.34James Osborne. โ€œTrump officials to appear at Houston event hosted by climate skeptics,โ€ Houston Chronicle, November 2, 2017. Archived November 20, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/XPtYc

Scott Pruitt also addressed the conference in a recorded video, personally thanking Heartland for โ€œwhat youโ€™re doing to advance energyโ€ and โ€œfor what youโ€™re doing to advance natural resources.35โ€œScott Pruitt,โ€ America First Energy ConferenceArchived November 20, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/X4F6m

The Climate Investigations Center put up a parody of the America First Energy conference website, complete with profiles on the individual speakers and highlighting their corporate funding and ties to groups such as the Cooler Heads Coalition (CHC).36โ€œAmerica First Energy Conference Stacked with Climate Change Deniers,โ€ Climate Investigations Center, November 6, 2017. Archived November 20, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mISrd

November 3, 2017

Writing at The Heartland Institute, Burnett criticizes a report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) that totalled the direct costs of extreme weather events. The report had concluded the costs of extreme weather events and fire would continue to increase as a result of human-caused climate change.37โ€œCOSTS OF DECARBONIZATION GREATER THAN COSTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE,โ€ The Heartland Institute, November 3, 2017. Archived November 7, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/o2oE8

Burnett disagreed, calling the report โ€œvirtually useless for guiding climate change responses.โ€ He states that the โ€œcomplex modelsโ€ used by the GAO โ€œgrossly overstate the amount of warmingโ€ while โ€œSimpler climate modelsโ€ by non-scientist Christopher Monckton or by other climate change deniers such as Willie Soon, David R. Legates, and William M. Briggs are โ€œmore accurate.โ€38โ€œCOSTS OF DECARBONIZATION GREATER THAN COSTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE,โ€ The Heartland Institute, November 3, 2017. Archived November 7, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/o2oE8

Burnett also argues that the GAO report โ€œentirely ignores the tremendous benefits flowing from the use of fossil fuelsโ€ like the so-called โ€œgreening of the Earthโ€ attributed to increased CO2 concentrations.39โ€œCOSTS OF DECARBONIZATION GREATER THAN COSTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE,โ€ The Heartland Institute, November 3, 2017. Archived November 7, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/o2oE8

 March 23โ€“24, 2017

H. Sterling Burnett was the moderator of three panels at the Heartland Instituteโ€™s 12th International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC12). 

Panel 1B) Climate Science

Panel 3A) Fossil Fuels and the Environment

Panel 5A) Sustainability

January 5, 2017

H. Sterling Burnett was a signatory to a Cornwall Alliance open letter supporting Scott Pruitt for EPA Administrator under the Trump administration.40โ€œOpen Letter Supporting Scott Pruitt for EPA Administrator,โ€ Cornwall Alliance, January 5, 2017. Archived January 19, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/xMash

โ€œMr. Pruitt has also demonstrated understanding of and open-mindedness toward scientific insights crucial to the formulation and implementation of environmental regulation. He is prepared to hear all sides in debates over the risks and benefits of various activities that come under the purview of the EPA,โ€ reads the letter.

On January 12, 2017, Senate Democrats raised conflict of interest concerns regarding Scott Pruttโ€™s fossil fuel ties. Pruitt had spent years working to combat the Obama Administrationโ€™s Clean Power Plan.41Ben Jervey. โ€œMapping EPA Nominee Scott Pruittโ€™s Many Fossil Fuel Ties,โ€ DeSmog, January 13, 2017.

In an open letter to the Office of Government Ethics, members of the Senateโ€™s environmental panel commented:42Ben Jervey. โ€œMapping EPA Nominee Scott Pruittโ€™s Many Fossil Fuel Ties,โ€ DeSmog, January 13, 2017.

โ€œDuring his tenure as Attorney General of Oklahoma, Mr. Pruitt has blurred the distinction between official and political actions, often at the behest of corporations he will regulate if confirmed to lead EPA,โ€ the letter said. โ€œPublic reporting based on documents produced by Freedom of Information Act requests illustrate how Mr. Pruitt and members of his staff have worked closely with fossil fuel lobbyists to craft his officeโ€™s official positions.โ€

Pruitt was further grilled on his fossil fuel ties at his confirmation hearing on January 18.43Ben Jervey and Steve Horn. โ€œEPA Nominee Scott Pruitt Gets Grilled on Fossil Fuel Ties at Confirmation Hearing,โ€ DeSmog, January 18, 2017.

Some notable signatories of the Cornwall Alliance letter, as of January 5, 2017, included:

June 2015

Burnett was a moderator of a panel at Heartland Instituteโ€˜s Tenth International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC10) in Washington, D.C.44โ€œTenth International Conference on Climate Change, Program,โ€ (PDF) Heartland Institute. Archived February 12, 2018.

He moderated panel 2, โ€œClimate Science and Accurate Dataโ€, which featured speakers Anthony Watts, Roy Spencer and J. Scott Armstrong. 

Panel 2) Climate Science and Accurate Data

May 12, 2015

H. Sterling Burnett is a signatory to an open letter to Pope Francis on climate change. The letter invites the Pope to reconsider his views on climate change before his upcoming encyclical letter on the environment, which is widely expected to call for measures to prevent climate change in the interests of the worldโ€™s poor. 

The open letter was coordinated and signed by Calvin Beisner of the Cornwall Alliance. According to the letter, โ€œGood climate policy must recognize human exceptionalism, the God-given call for human persons to โ€˜have dominionโ€™ in the natural world (Genesis 1:28), and the need to protect the poor from harm, including actions that hinder their ascent out of poverty.โ€ Another excerpt below:45โ€œAn Open Letter to Pope Francis on Climate Change,โ€ Cornwall Alliance For The Stewardship of Creation. April 27, 2015. Archived with March 30, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gdNdc

โ€[โ€ฆ] the [climate] models are wrong. They therefore provide no rational basis to forecast dangerous human-induced global warming, and therefore no rational basis for efforts to reduce warming by restricting the use of fossil fuels or any other means.โ€

Judith Curry comments on her blog Climate Etcthat โ€œArguably the most effective โ€˜pushbackโ€™ comes from Cal Beisner of the Cornwall Alliance, who coordinated An Open Letter to Pope Francis on Climate Change.โ€46Judith Curry. โ€œPope Francis, climate change, and morality,โ€ JudithCurry.com, April 29, 2015.  Archived March 10, 2017. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/R4kGw

December, 2014

H. Sterling Burnett is a contributor to the book Climate Change: The Facts published by the Institute of Public Affairs and featuring โ€œ22 essays on the science, politics and economics of the climate change debate.โ€ The Institute of Public Affairs, while not revealing most of its funders, is known to have received funding from mining magnate Gina Rinehart and at least one major tobacco company.โ€œ47Institute of Public Affairs,โ€ SourceWatch. Accessed May 27, 2015.

Essays and articles from a range of climate change skeptics, while listed authors include:

October 9, 2014

H. Sterling Burnett is quoted in the Heartland Instituteโ€˜s press release, โ€œHeartland Institute Climate Experts Comment on 18 Straight Years of No Global Warming,โ€ which states โ€œthe global mean surface temperature has not risen for 18 consecutive years. This extends the so-called โ€˜pauseโ€™ in global warming to a new record, one not predicted by the climate models of the United Nationsโ€™ International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).โ€ Burnett writes:48H. Sterling Burnett. โ€œHeartland Institute Climate Experts Comment on 18 Straight Years of No Global Warming,โ€ Heartland Institute, October 9, 2014. Archived October 16, 2014.

โ€œEighteen years of no warming. That means this yearโ€™s high school graduates were raised to believe in and fear something that stopped happening before they were born. Weโ€™ve had as many years of relatively steady temperatures as we had actual years of warming since the ice age panic of the 1970s. Growing Antarctic ice sheets, increased greening of the earth, more walruses and polar bears than at any time since the beginning of the 20th century, fewer hurricanes and tornadoes, only a modest sea level rise, longer life spans and better overall health โ€ฆ if these are the terrors of global warming, Iโ€™ll have more please.

โ€œEvery one of the climate models missed the lull. Youโ€™ve got to ask yourself, โ€˜Are you going to believe what the modelers tell you, or are you going to believe your โ€œlying eyes,โ€ which in this case is the actual measured temperature data?โ€™ Iโ€™ll take hard data over faulty models any day.โ€49H. Sterling Burnett. โ€œHeartland Institute Climate Experts Comment on 18 Straight Years of No Global Warming,โ€ Heartland Institute, October 9, 2014. Archived October 16, 2014.

December 4, 2010

Attended the Cancun Climate Change Summit. He was interviewed by the BBC shortly before attending the summit:

April 9, 2008

Testified (PDF) before the Texas House Select Committee on Electric Generation & Environmental Effects on the topic of โ€œElectrical Power for Texas: Economic and Environmental Considerations.โ€50โ€œStatement for the Record: Texas House Select Committee on Electric Generation & Environmental Effects On ELECTRIC POWER FOR TEXAS: ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONSโ€ (PDF), April 9, 2008. Republished by the National Center for Policy Analysis.

In his testimony, Burnett concludes, with regards to the concern that โ€œthe [coal-fired] plants will emit large quantities of carbon dioxide and contribute to global warming,โ€ he has attached a โ€œprimerโ€ that would explain why โ€œthis should not be an issue preventing the building of new coal fired power plants.โ€

March 2008

Burnett was a speaker at the Heartland Instituteโ€˜s First International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC1) in New York.51โ€œFirst International Conference on Climate Change, Program,โ€ (PDF) Heartland Institute. Archived February 12, 2018.

His speech, titled โ€œPrecaution and Managing Future Risk in Climate Changeโ€ can be viewed below. 

Precaution and Managing Future Risk in Climate Change

August 2, 2002

Burnett was signatory to an open letter to President Bush written by Myron Ebell and Fred L. Smith congratulating Bush for not attending the World Summit on sustainable Development in Johannesburg, an event that they warned could result in โ€œcreating a World Environmental Organization.โ€52โ€œAn Open Letter To President Bush About The World Summit On Sustainable Development,โ€œ Competitive Enterprise Institute, August 2, 2002. Archived November 5, 2002. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mMFvn

December, 1997

In a report titled โ€œAstroturf Troopersโ€œ53Keith Hammond. โ€œAstroturf Troopers,โ€ Mother Jones, December 4, 1997. Archived March 25, 2017. Archive. Is URL: https://archive.is/uqFvL Mother Jones how the Global Climate Coalition (GCC) was โ€œcoordinating a secret coalition of extreme right-wingers and astroturf groups.โ€ Internal memos (page 1, page 2)54โ€œAstroturf Memo, page 1,โ€ Mother Jones, December 4, 1997. Archived November 1, 2005. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/eVd8Z obtained by Mother Jones listed the names of several astroturf groups and representatives. H. Sterling Burnettโ€™s name appears on the list, beside the National Center for Policy Analysis.55โ€œAstroturf Memo, page 2,โ€ Mother Jones, December 4, 1997. Archived November 2, 2005. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Nk3vS

Affiliations

Publications

According to a search of Google Scholar, H. Sterling Burnett has not published research in any peer-reviewed journals on the subject of climate change. 

However, Burnett is a prolific author of skeptical articles and opinion pieces on the subject. For example:

A list of Burnettโ€™s publications in Environment & Climate News is available at the Heartland Institute.

Other Resources

Profile image a screenshot from YouTube of H. Sterling Burnett, moderator at Heartland Instituteโ€™s ICCC12.

Resources

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