New Study: Republicans More Persuasive Than Scientists On Climate Change

Regardless of political affiliation, people are more likely to believe facts about climate change when they come from Republicans speaking against what has become a partisan interest in this country, says a new University of Connecticut study. In fact, Republicans are even more persuasive than scientists when it comes to correcting misinformation about climate change, researchers found. —EurekAlert, 18 April 2018

Republicans are more skeptical than ever that climate change is a problem, and the partisan gap on the issue appears to be widening under President Donald Trump. Sixty-nine percent of Republicans say the threat of climate change is “exaggerated,” according to a new Gallup poll. That’s compared to only 4% of Democrats who said the same thing. — Business Insider, 28 March 2018

Chinese shale gas production will almost double between now and 2020, energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie (Woodmac) has predicted. Woodmac said China had made significant progress over the last decade, growing to nearly 600 wells and 9 billion cubic meters (bcm) of production last year. —Energy Voice, 17 April 2018

In less than two decades, Permian Basin operators have unleashed a shale revolution that has virtually tripled crude production from the region and upended global energy markets. Now a second revolution is on the horizon as operators prepare to re-enter those wells that launched the first revolution and implement secondary recovery projects. —mrt news, 16 April 2018

The United States exported 97.0 million short tons (MMst) of coal in 2017, a 61% (36.7 MMst) increase from the 2016 level. Exports to Asia more than doubled from 15.7 MMst in 2016 to 32.8 MMst in 2017, although Europe continues to be the largest recipient of U.S. coal exports. —US Energy Information Administration, 19 April 2018