Monday 21 December 2009

Stewart Franks quite frankly puzzles


I must confess that until fairly recently I had not heard of Associate Professor Stewart Franks.

Franks swam into view when his name become associated with Family First's Senator Steve Fielding and the now notorious Assessment of Penny Wong's Response to My 3 Questions on Climate Change.

Now I do not call into question this academic's record, but I do wish he wouldn't misspeak concerning possible conflicts of interest arising from his research funding.

The Australian online states in Rebels of the Sun:

While not interviewed for Channel 4, hydro-climatologist Stewart Franks at Newcastle University in NSW is one such scientist. Like all other scientists quoted in this article, he says he has never received any funding from any industry, but is increasingly uneasy about the dangerous path the debate is taking, where alternative views are discouraged and reputations attacked and discredited. [my emphasis]

However, in 2007 Stewart Franks received a two-year project grant from Macquarie Generation worth $85,000.

Macquarie Generation is a state-owned corporporation with a core business producing and wholesale selling electricity on the National Electricity Market in Australia.
This corporation operates two of the largest coal-powered stations in New South Wales (consuming a combined total of 13 million tonnes of greenhouse gas producing coal per annum) and is part of the national energy industry.

Therefore, this academic did indeed receive funding from industry.

Which does give one pause for thought when Associate Professor Franks goes into print asserting that high levels of CO2 in the atmosphere are not driving climate change.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

a fibber? Or just an innocent forgotten ommision?

Anonymous said...

Or perhaps just an out and out industry stooge? He repeated the claim of receiving no funds from industry this morning on Channel 7, Weekend Sunrise show. He strikes me as an odious, attention-seeking little Brit prat.

Anonymous said...

or perhaps just an academic who takes his funds where he finds them...

Surely every industry employs academics?

Anonymous said...

ys dubious cloak of "renowned expert". I'm a "renowned expert", too, but it's usually my very own renown and my very, very own expertise. from Redoubtable Rose.

Anonymous said...

I love the way you like to rip apart someone when they don't agree with you.
Using your analogy, about where Prof Franks receives his funds, may I point out that Tim Flannery, David Karoly and the rest of the travelling Circus that is called The Climate Commission are sponsored by the Federal Gov't, lead by The Labor Party and The Greens...so to use your mode of thinking, How can we believe "evidence" that is so tainted..A little like "Cesare investigating Cesare"..don't you think?