Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
NOAA Scientist: Agency Likely Broke Science Integrity Rules
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
September 10, 2019

Share

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The acting chief scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said his agency likely violated its scientific integrity rules last week when it publicly chastised a weather office that contradicted President Donald Trump’s claim that Hurricane Dorian threatened Alabama.

“My understanding is that this intervention to contradict the forecaster was not based on science but on external factors including reputation and appearance, or simply put, political.” — acting chief scientist and assistant administrator for ocean and atmospheric research Craig McLean
Two top NOAA civil servants not so quietly revolted against an unsigned agency press release issued late Friday rebuking the Birmingham weather office for saying Alabama was safe. The agency’s top scientist called Friday’s release “political” and the head of the National Weather Service said the Alabama office “did what any office would do to protect the public.”
“My understanding is that this intervention to contradict the forecaster was not based on science but on external factors including reputation and appearance, or simply put, political,” acting chief scientist and assistant administrator for ocean and atmospheric research Craig McLean wrote to staffers Sunday night.
In the email, first reported by The Washington Post, McLean said he is “pursuing the potential violations” of the agency’s science integrity policy.
NOAA spokesman Scott Smullen said Monday, “NOAA’s policies on scientific integrity and communications are among the strongest in the federal government, and get high marks from third party observers. The agency’s senior career leaders are free to express their opinions about matters of agency operations and science. The agency will not be providing further official comment, and will not speculate on internal reviews.”

‘I Think the Speech Speaks for Itself’

Meanwhile, another career civil servant, National Weather Service Director Louis Uccellini said forecasters in Birmingham did the right thing Sept. 1 when they tried to combat public panic and rumors that Dorian posed a threat to Alabama.
“They did that with one thing in mind: public safety,” said Uccellini, who prompted a standing ovation at a meeting of the National Weather Association by asking members of the Birmingham weather staff to stand.
“Only later, when the retweets and politically based comments started coming to their office, did they learn the sources of this information,” he said.
Kevin Laws, science and operations officer for the weather service in Birmingham, declined comment on Uccellini’s remarks.
“I think the speech speaks for itself,” Laws said.
McLean in his letter said the Birmingham staff “corrected any public misunderstanding in an expert and timely way as they should. There followed, last Friday, an unsigned press release from ‘NOAA’ that inappropriately and incorrectly contradicted the NWS forecaster.”
McLean said that the NOAA Scientific Integrity Policy tells all agency employees to “approach all scientific activities with honesty, objectively, and completely, without allegiance to individuals, organizations, or ideology.”
He said the Friday NOAA press release “compromises the ability of NOAA to convey life-saving information” and “violated NOAA’s policies of scientific integrity.”

Alabama Had Never Been Included in Hurricane Forecast Advisories

The policy said employees should not “intimidate or coerce employees, contractors, recipients of financial assistance awards, or others to alter or censor scientific findings.”

“Our job is to protect the American public with the weather information we pass around. Of course, it’s frustrating when things get politicized and we are the scientists and the communicators that are delivering the message for weather safety.” — association president Paul Schlatter
The scientific integrity policy is not criminal and has no punishments, said former NOAA general counsel and deputy administrator Monica Medina, who served in the Barack Obama and Bill Clinton administrations. She praised McLean and Uccellini “for looking into the matter and holding their current leadership accountable.”
At the National Weather Association’s annual meeting, members including its president, signed two posters supporting the hurricane center and Birmingham office.
“We make forecasts, we don’t deal with politics,” said association president Paul Schlatter, who works for the weather service in Boulder, Colorado. “Our job is to protect the American public with the weather information we pass around. Of course, it’s frustrating when things get politicized and we are the scientists and the communicators that are delivering the message for weather safety.”
Trump has defended his Sept. 1 tweet that said Hurricane Dorian would threaten Alabama. Last week Trump displayed an altered hurricane forecast map in the Oval Office that included a crudely drawn addition in black ink to include parts of Alabama, in an attempt to make his point.
Alabama had never been included in hurricane forecast advisories. Trump cited older and less authoritative information, which was based on outdated computer models and older graphics on wind speed.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

California Prisoner Indicted for Exploiting Child Victim While Incarcerated

DON'T MISS

Kennedy Plans to Phase Out 8 Commonly Used Food Dyes

DON'T MISS

The Superintendent Search Document FUSD Does Not Want You to See

DON'T MISS

Trump Approval Rating Dips. Many Wary of His Wielding of Power, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

DON'T MISS

Fresno Woman, Tied to Fentanyl ‘M30 King,’ Sentenced to Federal Prison

DON'T MISS

Tesla Settles Wrongful Death Lawsuit Claiming Sudden Acceleration in Ohio Crash

DON'T MISS

Trump Is Dismantling the Education Dept. How That Might Harm Special Ed

DON'T MISS

Special Interests Pour More Than Half a Billion Into CA Lobbying

DON'T MISS

Texas Walmart Shooter Who Killed 23 Avoids Death Penalty by Pleading Guilty

DON'T MISS

Chevron Announces First Oil at Ballymore Project in US Gulf

UP NEXT

Chargers in Need of Help at Wide Receiver and Tight End in the NFL Draft

UP NEXT

Magic Happens When Kids and Adults Learn to Swim. Tragedy Can Strike if They Don’t.

UP NEXT

Humanoid Robots Run a Chinese Half-Marathon Alongside Human Competitors

UP NEXT

Anti-Trump Protesters Turn Out to Rallies Across Country

UP NEXT

250 Years After America Went to War for Independence, a Divided Nation Battles Over Its Legacy

UP NEXT

Greg Cronin Fired as Coach of Anaheim Ducks After 2 Seasons

UP NEXT

Israeli Strikes on Gaza Kill More Than 90 People in 48 Hours, Palestinians Say

UP NEXT

US and Iran Advance Nuclear Talks to Expert Level After Rome Meeting

UP NEXT

Putin Announces an Easter Ceasefire as Russia and Ukraine Swap Hundreds of POWs

UP NEXT

NBA Playoff Guide: Who Plays When, How to Watch, What the Odds Are

Trump Approval Rating Dips. Many Wary of His Wielding of Power, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

15 minutes ago

Fresno Woman, Tied to Fentanyl ‘M30 King,’ Sentenced to Federal Prison

46 minutes ago

Tesla Settles Wrongful Death Lawsuit Claiming Sudden Acceleration in Ohio Crash

1 hour ago

Trump Is Dismantling the Education Dept. How That Might Harm Special Ed

1 hour ago

Special Interests Pour More Than Half a Billion Into CA Lobbying

2 hours ago

Texas Walmart Shooter Who Killed 23 Avoids Death Penalty by Pleading Guilty

2 hours ago

Chevron Announces First Oil at Ballymore Project in US Gulf

3 hours ago

Fresno Barbershop Shooting Leaves Man Dead, Two Others Injured

4 hours ago

Vance, Modi Welcome Significant Progress on India-US Trade Deal

4 hours ago

White House Denies Report It Is Searching for New Defense Secretary

4 hours ago

California Prisoner Indicted for Exploiting Child Victim While Incarcerated

A California inmate serving time for lewd acts against a child has been indicted on new federal charges alleging he continued to exploit the...

1 minute ago

Nathaniel Ray Diaz, 21, of Greenfield, is a California state prisoner who has been indicted on federal charges on Monday, April 21, 2025, for allegedly directing a minor to send sexually explicit images while serving time for previous offenses against the same child. (Shutterstock)
1 minute ago

California Prisoner Indicted for Exploiting Child Victim While Incarcerated

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks at a news conference about the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest autism survey in Washington, April 16, 2025. In his first attempt to significantly change the nation’s food supply, Kennedy will direct food manufacturers to phase out eight petroleum-based food dyes that are found in hundreds of thousands of grocery-store staples, the department said on Monday, April 21. (Pete Kiehart/The New York Times)
4 minutes ago

Kennedy Plans to Phase Out 8 Commonly Used Food Dyes

6 minutes ago

The Superintendent Search Document FUSD Does Not Want You to See

President Donald Trump attends the annual White House Easter Egg Roll, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 21, 2025. (REUTERS/Leah Millis)
15 minutes ago

Trump Approval Rating Dips. Many Wary of His Wielding of Power, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

46 minutes ago

Fresno Woman, Tied to Fentanyl ‘M30 King,’ Sentenced to Federal Prison

A Tesla logo is shown on a Model Y vehicle in Encinitas, California, U.S.,October 20, 2023. (REUTERS/Mike Blake)
1 hour ago

Tesla Settles Wrongful Death Lawsuit Claiming Sudden Acceleration in Ohio Crash

1 hour ago

Trump Is Dismantling the Education Dept. How That Might Harm Special Ed

California Lobbyists and Special Interests
2 hours ago

Special Interests Pour More Than Half a Billion Into CA Lobbying

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend