CLIMATOLOGIST SEES FORECAST CLEAR, PARTLY

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, February 9, 1993                   TAG: 9302090058
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Dwayne Yancey
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short
CLIMATOLOGIST SEES FORECAST CLEAR, PARTLY
The forecast for the state climatology office cleared somewhat over the weekend, although its future remains cloudy.
The House of Delegates, in its version of the state budget, included $111,000 to keep the three-man climatology office going for the next fiscal year.
But the Senate included just $55,000 for the office in its version of the budget. The Senate's bill contained $115,000, but that included money for the University of Virginia's Center for Public Service.
The differences between the two budgets will be worked out in a conference committee.
"This leaves us in a very difficult situation," said state climatologist Pat Michaels, who's obviously hoping the House version will prevail.
The University of Virginia has run the state climatology office since the 1970s, but recently announced it would stop funding the office after June 30. Instead, it asked the state to pick up the expenses directly.
That set off a squall among businesses which depend on the state climatologist to provide them with weather information.
It's also provoked a storm in climatological circles around the country. Some climatologists discount the university's explanation that it's trying to prune unnecessary expenses. Instead, they believe the climatologist's office was singled out because Michaels is outspoken in discounting the phenomenon of global warming. That's made him a darling of industry, but unpopular among some environmentalists.
Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1993

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB