State representatives Jim Ott and Jon Richards participated in a debate on global warming at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee Wednesday evening, where the two clashed mainly over whether current climate change is caused primarily by humans or nature.

Representative Ott, a former WTMJ 4 morning meteorologist and current Republican in the state Legislature, questioned the scientific consensus that global warming is caused mostly by human activity and said he wants more research conducted before drastic conclusions are made.

Ott opened the debate, stating that although carbon dioxide levels have increased 35 percent and temperatures have been warmer on average over the last 25 years, one can’t make the assumption that it’s explicitly because of our burning of fossil fuels.

Richards, a Democrat representing the 19th Assembly District, stated that although he is not a scientist like Ott, he has read extensively on what the scientific community has to say on the issue and agrees with the 90 percent that say current global warming is caused by human industrialism.

Throughout the debate, Ott also stressed that experts cannot predict climate increases based on weather change, and debunked the issue of scientific consensus by comparing it to that of medieval scientists believing the earth was flat.

“There were record high temperatures in the 1930s followed by a 45 year cooling period that scientists can’t explain,” Ott said.

Ott said he fears that our local state economy could be “driven into the ground” if we pass too much “green” legislature that doesn’t benefit society as a whole, based on the idea that global warming is man-made.

In order to become more energy efficient, Ott advocated doubling Wisconsin’s use of nuclear power from 20 percent to 40 percent. If Wisconsin were to increase that use to 100 percent, the state could cut 12 million tons of carbon dioxide waste, Ott said.

Richards, on the other hand, was more eager to use wind and hybrid energies over nuclear power despite Ott’s assertion that the United States had been using nuclear energy for 40 years and there have been no major problems.

Richards contended that an overwhelming majority of scientists believe that global warming is a very real problem caused by humans, and that “anti-regulatory think tanks” and Republicans are trying to undermine their work.

Richards compared their tactics to agencies that tried to diffuse any links between cigarettes and cancer in the 1950s.

“The man-made impact on global warming is 10 times that of any natural cause,” Richards said when talking about natural carbon dioxide emissions caused by volcano eruptions and forest fires.

Richards advocated the use of “carbon footprint labeling” that would be put on certain products in order to raise awareness of carbon dioxide emissions and their impact on the environment along with a carbon tax.

Richards also suggested that the U.S. government sign onto the Kyoto Protocol which serves to limit a nation’s emissions of green house gases. Most other industrialized nations already have signed onto the treaty, Richards said.

In closing Ott said he agreed with Richards that we, as a nation and as a people, have a responsibility to take care of the environment.

The two just disagree on how to get there, and warned that “cutting down on pollution isn’t cheap.”

Richards agreed with Ott and maintained that this is a complex issue that will take a lot of work and possible economic change, one he is ready for.

“It’s time for change, and it’s time to make a great change,” Richards said.

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