Our guest speaker on Tuesday was Brian Leyland.

Brian was introduced by Roger Gower.

Brian’s address was entitled “if the planet is warming why is it so cold outside?”

In his address Brian opened by saying you need to believe half of what you see and half of what you hear. This is because, he contends, much of what we see and read about climate change, the health impacts of chemicals, the energy impact of wind or solar power is incorrect or just plain wrong.

In man-made global warming, sea level rise, the benefits if any of wind and solar power, possible fuel alternatives and electric cars.his

address Brian looked at the use of the DDT,

Dealing with each;

DDT - its use as approved by the World Health Organisation but many people than because of its apparent side-effects. The net effect of the ban is that other methods of mosquito control are used that are ineffective and possibly dangerous. In places where malaria should have been eliminated through the use of DDT, malaria is still present as other controlled substances have failed to work.

Man-made global warming;

Brian contends that the evidence does not support the assertion global warming is caused by human activity. Indeed Brian postulates that there is a cooling phase about to occur.

Brian pointed to the models which have been bandied about for now over three decades and notes that in general terms the models used do not match what happens in reality.

The inexorable rise of sea levels;

Brian accepts that there has been some sea level increase but it is no-where near extreme levels at some say. Rather than meters per year any increase can only be measured in millimetres a year.