This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Boise, Idaho • The latest revisions to Idaho's K-12 science standards downplay the negative impacts of human activity on climate change.
State education officials unveiled the updated standards Friday after spending several months collecting more than 1,000 public comments.
The proposal is the latest attempt to appease Idaho's conservative Republican Legislature, which has been hesitant to adopt any direct references to global warming.
Most peer-reviewed studies, science organizations and climate scientists agree the world is warming, mainly due to rising levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
Earlier this year, lawmakers only approved updating the state's outdated science standards after striking key references to human behavior and climate change. The removed sections have since been tweaked to suggest humans can mitigate the effects of climate change.
The standards must now be approved by the Idaho State Board of Education and the Legislature in 2018.