It ’s vindicated that ExxonMobil , the   multinational oil and natural gas corporation , knew about human - driven mood changeand the dangers of burn fossil fuels as early as the 1970s , yet actively worked to downplay thewarnings from their scientists .

But it turns out , it was n’t just the oil giant who knew ; the ember industry was aware of the problem even earlier .

A rediscovered clause has revealed that influential figures in   the ember industry were cognizant of their role in climate change and aura pollution as early as the mid-1960s .

Chris Cherry , prof of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Tennessee , Knoxville hasunearthed a 1966 copyof the Mining Congress Journal and found an article write by James Garvey , then Chief Executive of Bituminous Coal Research Inc.

In the 53 - twelvemonth - old   clause , Garveywrites : “ There is evidence that the amount of carbon dioxide in the ground ’s atmosphere is increasing rapidly as a result of the combustion of fossil fuel . If the next rate of increment continues as it is at the present , it has been portend that , because the CO2 envelope reduce radiation , the temperature of the globe ’s atmosphere will increase and that vast change in the climates of the earth will result .

“ Such changes in temperature will do melting of the pivotal icecaps , which , in turn , would result in the inundation of many coastal city , including New York and London . ”

verbalise toHuffPost , who first broke the story , Cherry explained : “ It pretty well described a translation of what we jazz today as climate change . Increases in average air temperature , melting of polar ice-skating rink hood , rising of ocean storey . It ’s all in there . ”

In response to Garvey ’s clause , a combustion engineer from Peabody Coal , James Jones , acknowledged that the coal industry is give to air befoulment , but remained quiet on the issuing of mood modification . Nevertheless , he mention we are “ buying time ” when it comes to addressing the problem , describing the situation as " pressing " .

The question is : how far did this warning permeate into the ember industry ? Was Garvey brushed off as a solitary crank ? Or were the influential human being ’s warnings swing out under the rug ?

It ’s hard to love for sure . However ,   Garvey ’s clause suggests these ideas of mood modification were starting to diffuse between science and vainglorious business .   Furthermore , as Jones from Peabody Coal notes , anyone with a vested interest in the coal industry who try his   warning must at least have investigated the claims , even if it was out of profit - drive ego - preservation .

It ’s also   deserving considering Peabody Coal go on to become Peabody Energy , the big private coalcompany in the world with a foresightful track record ofactive climate alteration abnegation . The company’sofficial stancetoday is : “ Peabody recognizes that climate change is occurring and that human activity , including the purpose of fossil fuel , contributes to greenhouse gas emissions . ”

[ H / T : HuffPost ]