The American Energy Institute has launched a new website, They-Knew.com, which argues that governments, researchers, and other institutions relied on an extreme climate scenario, known as RCP8.5, long after scientists questioned its realism.

Background on RCP8.5

RCP8.5 is a high-emissions climate scenario that researchers have widely used for years to study future warming. However, the American Energy Institute says the scenario drove climate alarmist headlines, government regulations, court filings, and school curriculum before climate researchers concluded it no longer reflected the world’s likely path.

The website includes a timeline, source documents, and examples of institutions continuing to use the scenario after scientists raised concerns about it. One section focuses on the Obama administration’s 2015 social cost of carbon analysis, which used RCP8.5 to estimate future climate damages despite later criticism that the scenario overstated likely coal use and emissions growth.

Debate Over RCP8.5

Some researchers say RCP8.5 has become less plausible as energy markets, technology, and emissions trends have changed. They argue that researchers should treat it as an extreme scenario, not the most likely outcome. The debate over RCP8.5 has continued beyond the American Energy Institute, with some arguing that it is no longer a realistic representation of the world’s likely climate future.

Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.