Timothy Francis Ball (November 5, 1938 – September 24, 2022) was a British-born Canadian public speaker and writer who was a professor in the Department of Geography at the
University of Winnipeg
The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and kinesiology and applied health as well as gr ...
from 1971 until his retirement in 1996. Ball then became very active in promoting rejection of the
scientific consensus on global warming, giving public talks and writing opinion pieces and letters to the editor for Canadian newspapers. He has been a member of energy industry funded lobbying groups.
Education and professional career
Ball received a bachelor's degree with honors in geography from the
University of Winnipeg
The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and kinesiology and applied health as well as gr ...
in 1970, followed by an M.A. from the
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.[Queen Mary University of London
, mottoeng = With united powers
, established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College
, type = Public researc ...](_blank)
in England in 1983. Ball became an instructor at the University of Winnipeg in 1971, and a lecturer the following year. He then served in the latter capacity for 10 years. In 1982 he became an assistant professor there, and was promoted to associate professor in 1984 and full professor in 1988. He retired from teaching in 1996.
Research and books
Historical climatology and natural history
Ball founded the Rupert's Land Research Centre, a historical society dedicated to promoting the history of the area formerly known as
Rupert's Land
Rupert's Land (french: Terre de Rupert), or Prince Rupert's Land (french: Terre du Prince Rupert, link=no), was a territory in British North America which comprised the Hudson Bay drainage basin; this was further extended from Rupert's Land t ...
, in 1984. He also served as its director from then until 1996. The society placed a particular emphasis on the use of the
Hudson's Bay Company Archives
Archives of Manitoba (), formerly the Provincial Archives of Manitoba () until 2003,[historical climatology
Historical climatology is the study of historical changes in climate and their effect on civilization from the emergence of homininis to the present day. This differs from paleoclimatology which encompasses climate change over the entire history o ...](_blank)
, most of which pertain to reconstructing temperatures in Canada during the past several centuries. In 2003, Ball co-authored a book entitled "Eighteenth-Century Naturalists of Hudson Bay," which was reviewed in the
American Indian Quarterly
The ''American Indian Quarterly'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering studies on the indigenous peoples of North and South America. It is published by the University of Nebraska Press and was established in 1974. The editor-in-c ...
by Theodore Binnema of the
University of Northern British Columbia
The University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) is a small, research-intensive public university in British Columbia, Canada. The main campus is located in Prince George, with additional campuses located in Prince Rupert, Terrace, Quesnel, and ...
in 2005, as well as by Fred Cooke in
the Auk
''Ornithology'', formerly ''The Auk'' and ''The Auk: Ornithological Advances'', is a peer-reviewed scientific journal and the official publication of the American Ornithological Society (AOS). It was established in 1884 and is published quarterly. ...
in 2004.
Climate and polar bears study
In 2007 Ball was one of seven co-authors of a paper arguing that "spring air temperatures around the Hudson Bay basin for the past 70 years (1932–2002) show no significant warming trend," and that, as a result, "the extrapolation of polar bear disappearance is highly premature." The paper was a "Viewpoint" article and was not
peer-reviewed
Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work (peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...
. While the paper was cited by
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin (; Heath; born February 11, 1964) is an American politician, commentator, author, and reality television personality who served as the ninth governor of Alaska from 2006 until her resignation in 2009. She was the 2008 R ...
to justify opposition to listing polar bears on the endangered-species list,
its findings were contradicted by reports from the
U.S. Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and ...
and other independent researchers, who concluded that man-made climate change was likely to devastate polar-bear populations by 2050. The paper was also criticized by an expert at the
National Snow and Ice Data Center
The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) is a United States information and referral center in support of polar and cryospheric research. NSIDC archives and distributes digital and analog snow and ice data and also maintains information abo ...
, who wrote that it "doesn't measure up scientifically."
A subsequent in depth international independent study, ''Re-Assessment of the Baffin Bay and Kane Basin Polar Bear Subpopulations: Final Report to the Canada-Greenland Joint Commission on Polar Bear'' determined that while polar bear populations are not declining overall and are increasing significantly in some areas, "If the current trends in sea ice continue it is reasonable to predict further changes in
he Baffin Baysubpopulation including, ultimately, declines in abundance and vital rates. This warrants caution in both future monitoring and management."
Books disputing climate change
Tim Ball wrote several books positing a false notion that carbon dioxide is not a
greenhouse gas
A greenhouse gas (GHG or GhG) is a gas that Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorbs and Emission (electromagnetic radiation), emits radiant energy within the thermal infrared range, causing the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse ...
causing warming and advancing a false
climate change conspiracy theory.
In his 2016 book ''Human Caused Global Warming : the Biggest Deception in History'' Ball tells "the story of how and why the global warming deception was achieved. The world has not warmed for over 20 years, yet carbon dioxide (CO2) levels continue to rise in complete contradiction to what all governments are saying".
Ball writes:
Ball introduces his book as "presented in the form of a journalistic investigation answering basic questions, Why, Who, What, Where, When, and How."
Ball's 2014 book ''The Deliberate Corruption of Climate Science'' was along the same lines.
Ball was one of several authors of the 2011 book ''Slaying the Sky Dragon: Death of the Greenhouse Gas Theory''.
Climate change-related activism
Ball worked with
Friends of Science
Friends of Science (FoS) is a non-profit advocacy organization based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The organization Climate change denial, rejects the established Scientific consensus on climate change, scientific consensus that Attribution of rece ...
and
Natural Resources Stewardship Project, which oppose the scientific consensus of significant anthropogenic
global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
, and is a former research fellow at the
Frontier Centre for Public Policy
The Frontier Centre for Public Policy (FCPP) is a Canadian public policy think tank, founded to undertake research and education projects in support of economic growth and social outcomes that enhance quality of life. 2012 Annual Report http://ww ...
.
Ball also rejected the scientific consensus on climate change, claiming that "
CO2 is not a
greenhouse gas
A greenhouse gas (GHG or GhG) is a gas that Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorbs and Emission (electromagnetic radiation), emits radiant energy within the thermal infrared range, causing the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse ...
that raises global temperature."
[Ball, Tim]
"CO2 is not a Greenhouse Gas that Raises Global temperature. Period!"
personal website, 15 Feb. 2016.
Ball rejected the
scientific consensus on climate change
There is a strong scientific consensus that the Earth is warming and that this warming is mainly caused by human activities. This consensus is supported by various studies of scientists' opinions and by position statements of scientific org ...
and stated that he believed global warming is occurring but that human production of
carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...
is not the cause.
Ball rejected not only greenhouse gas–induced climate change but the existence of the
greenhouse effect
The greenhouse effect is a process that occurs when energy from a planet's host star goes through the planet's atmosphere and heats the planet's surface, but greenhouse gases in the atmosphere prevent some of the heat from returning directly ...
itself.
Ball told
National Geographic
''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...
that carbon dioxide causing warming was just a hypothesis, but had been treated as fact because it fit a political agenda and the views of the environmentalists. He reiterated the view that man-made global warming was fabricated by the environmental movement, particularly
Environment Canada
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC; french: Environnement et Changement climatique Canada),Environment and Climate Change Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of the Environment ( ...
, in a presentation he gave in June 2006 to the
Comox Valley
The Comox Valley is a region on the east coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, that includes the city of Courtenay, British Columbia, Courtenay, the town of Comox, British Columbia, Comox, the village of Cumberland, British Columb ...
Probus Club.
Ball was also a frequent guest on
Coast to Coast AM
''Coast to Coast AM'' is an American late-night radio talk show that deals with a variety of topics. Most frequently the topics relate to either the paranormal or conspiracy theories. It was hosted by creator Art Bell from its inception in 19 ...
, an alternative media radio show. On July 21, 2011, while a guest on the show, he stated: "To suggest that 's a pollutant when it's an extremely important gas in the atmosphere for all plant life and therefore for the oxygen that's produced, is just nonsense."
He is also one of the signatories of the
Manhattan Declaration on Climate Change. Ball also, along with
Tom Harris, argued that the
National Climatic Data Center
The United States National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), previously known as the National Weather Records Center (NWRC), in Asheville, North Carolina, was the world's largest active archive of weather data. Starting as a tabulation unit in New Orl ...
misleads the public by announcing premature results from their temperature datasets based on incomplete data, and then quietly updating the data when they gain access to all of it, usually diminishing the warming trend in doing so. He also wrote about
ocean acidification
Ocean acidification is the reduction in the pH value of the Earth’s ocean. Between 1751 and 2021, the average pH value of the ocean surface has decreased from approximately 8.25 to 8.14. The root cause of ocean acidification is carbon dioxid ...
from a similarly skeptical point of view, arguing that "Even if increases to 560 ppm by 2050, as the IPCC predict, this would only result in a 0.2 unit reduction of pH. This is still within the error of the estimate of global average
hich is 0.3 units" Ball also said that since he became a vocal opponent of the consensus position on global warming, he received five death threats.
Michael E. Mann called Ball "perhaps the most prominent
climate change denier
Climate change denial, or global warming denial, is denial, dismissal, or doubt that contradicts the scientific consensus on climate change, including the extent to which it is caused by humans, its effects on nature and human society, or the ...
in Canada." The
Frontier Centre for Public Policy
The Frontier Centre for Public Policy (FCPP) is a Canadian public policy think tank, founded to undertake research and education projects in support of economic growth and social outcomes that enhance quality of life. 2012 Annual Report http://ww ...
, a Canadian think tank, states that Ball disputed
anthropogenic global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
since the mid-1990s, and asserted that global warming is due to natural variations. Ball spoke twice at
The Heartland Institute
The Heartland Institute is an American conservative and libertarian public policy think tank known for its rejection of both the scientific consensus on climate change and the negative health impacts of smoking.
Founded in 1984, it worked wit ...
's
International Conference on Climate Change
The International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC) is a conference series organized and sponsored by The Heartland Institute which aims to bring together those who "dispute that the science is settled on the causes, consequences, and poli ...
, where he was presented as a former climatology professor at the University of Winnipeg.
However, critics pointed out that Ball was a professor of geography, not climatology, and that the University of Winnipeg never had a climatology department.
Ball replied that the climate program at The University of Winnipeg was part of the geography department in the early 1980s. He also asserted that websites such as
DeSmogBlog
DeSmog, (formerly The DeSmogBlog) founded in January 2006, is an international journalism organization that focuses on topics related to climate change. DeSmog's emphasis is investigating and reporting on misinformation campaigns and organizatio ...
made false charges about his credentials and professional qualifications.
From 2002 to 2007, Ball wrote 39 opinion pieces and 32 letters to the editor in 24 different Canadian newspapers, and from 2002 to 2012, he gave over 600 public talks about global warming and various environmental issues.
Friends of Science maintains a "Climate Digest" of articles written by Ball in 2008–09.
In 2007 Ball appeared on
The Great Global Warming Swindle
''The Great Global Warming Swindle'' is a 2007 British polemical documentary film directed by Martin Durkin. The film denies the scientific consensus about the reality and causes of climate change, justifying this by suggesting that climatolo ...
, an hour and a quarter-long British television documentary that aired on
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
and that was described as a "deceptive and propagandist portrayal of the science of global warming". Also in 2007, he participated in ''Exposed: The Climate of Fear'', a special presentation of the
Glenn Beck Program
''Glenn'' (previously titled ''The Glenn Beck Program'') is a news talk and political opinion show on TheBlaze hosted by Glenn Beck. It is produced and recorded at TheBlaze studios in Dallas, TX. The show originally ran on CNN Headline News fr ...
, with
Patrick Michaels
Patrick J. Michaels (February 15, 1950 – July 15, 2022) was an American agricultural climatologist. Michaels was a senior fellow in environmental studies at the Cato Institute until 2019. Until 2007, he was research professor of environmental ...
,
John Christy
John Raymond Christy is a climate scientist at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) whose chief interests are satellite remote sensing of global climate and global climate change. He is best known, jointly with Roy Spencer, for the firs ...
, and other climate sceptics.
[ Ball was misidentified in the documentary as Professor from the Department of Climatology, University of Winnipeg; he left his faculty position in 1996, and the University of Winnipeg never had a Department of Climatology.] In 2010, he appeared on the
Michael Coren Show.
Controversies and lawsuits
Ball claimed, in an article written for the ''
Calgary Herald
The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network.
History
''The ...
'', that he was the first person to receive a PhD in climatology in Canada, and that he had been a professor for 28 years, claims he also made in a letter to then-prime minister of Canada,
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006.
The son o ...
.
Dan Johnson, a professor of environmental science at the
University of Lethbridge
, mottoeng = ''Let there be light''
, type = Public
, established =
, academic_affiliations = Universities Canada
, endowment = $73 million (2019)
, chancellor = Charles Weasel ...
, countered his claim on April 23, 2006, in a letter to the ''Herald'' stating that when Ball received his PhD in 1983, "Canada already had PhDs in climatology," and that Ball had only been a professor for eight years, rather than 28 as he had claimed. Johnson, however, counted only Ball's years as a
full professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...
. In the letter, Johnson also wrote that Ball "did not show any evidence of research regarding climate and atmosphere," which Ball later admitted.
In response, Ball filed a lawsuit against Johnson. Johnson's statement of defence was provided by the Calgary Herald.
In the ensuing court case, Ball acknowledged that he had only been a tenured professor for eight years, and that his doctorate was not in climatology but rather in the broader discipline of geography,
and subsequently withdrew the lawsuit on June 8, 2007.
In 2011 climate scientist
Andrew J. Weaver sued Ball over an article Ball wrote for the
Canada Free Press
Judi Ann T. McLeod (born 1944) is a Canadians, Canadian journalist. Formerly a reporter for a series of newspapers in Ontario, she now operates the conservative website, ''Canada Free Press'' (CFP).
Early life and career
McLeod was born in Prince ...
which was later retracted. In the article, Ball described Weaver as lacking a basic understanding of climate science and stated, incorrectly, that Weaver would not be involved in the production of the IPCC's next report because he had concerns about its credibility.
Andrew Weaver's defamation suit against Ball was dismissed in 2018. The judge noted that Ball's words "lack a sufficient air of credibility to make them believable and therefore potentially defamatory" and concluded that the “article is poorly written and does not advance credible arguments in favour of Dr. Ball’s theory about the corruption of climate science. Simply put, a reasonably thoughtful and informed person who reads the article is unlikely to place any stock in Dr. Ball’s views...". The British Columbia Court of Appeal in April 2020 reversed the dismissal. Writing that Ball's statements "meet the classic test for defamation," it sent the case back to the trial judge to decide the amount of damages and whether the article was fair comment.
The
Frontier Centre for Public Policy
The Frontier Centre for Public Policy (FCPP) is a Canadian public policy think tank, founded to undertake research and education projects in support of economic growth and social outcomes that enhance quality of life. 2012 Annual Report http://ww ...
's web site published a February 2011 interview, in which Ball told an anonymous interviewer that
Michael E. Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...
, "should be in the State Pen, not Penn State". This referred to Mann's role in the
Climatic Research Unit email controversy
The Climatic Research Unit email controversy (also known as "Climategate") began in November 2009 with the hacking of a server at the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) at the University of East Anglia (UEA) by an external attacker, copying thousa ...
. Mann then sued Ball and Frontier Centre for libel,
and stated that he was seeking punitive damages and for the article to be removed from the web site.
On 7 June 2019, the Frontier Centre For Public Policy published a retraction and apology and settled their part of the case with Mann.
[ (story originally published by the '' National Observer'')] On 21 March 2019, Tim Ball had applied to the court to dismiss the action for delay, this request was granted at a hearing on 22 August 2019, and court costs were awarded to Ball. The actual defamation claims were not judged, but instead the case was dismissed due to delay by Mann's legal team.
Funding sources
Some have linked Ball's activism to funding from the fossil fuel industry,
especially through the organization
Friends of Science
Friends of Science (FoS) is a non-profit advocacy organization based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The organization Climate change denial, rejects the established Scientific consensus on climate change, scientific consensus that Attribution of rece ...
, whose scientific advisory board he sat upon.
For example, Peter Gorrie said in the ''
Toronto Star
The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...
'' that Friends of Science received a third of its funding from the oil industry. Bankruptcy disclosures made by Peabody Energy, a large US coal company, showed that Friends of Science received funding from the company. Ball himself has publicly denied these claims,
as has his wife, Marty Ball.
Books
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ball, Tim
1938 births
2022 deaths
University of Winnipeg faculty
Canadian geographers
University of Manitoba alumni
Canadian people of English descent
Alumni of Queen Mary University of London