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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for January 31, 2017
Posted: 31 Jan 2017 15:56:54
This is a service of the California Air Resources Board’s Office of Communications. You may need to sign in or register with individual websites to view some of the following news articles. AIR POLLUTION Air pollution linked to Alzheimer's disease, study says. USC study on elderly women links particle pollution to brain disease. Research led by USC scientists provides new evidence that exposure to diesel soot and other kinds of fine-particle air pollution may increase our risk for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The study, published today in the journal Translational Psychiatry, found that elderly women living… http://www.pe.com/articles/study-824424-pollution-alzheimer.html Spare the Air Alert in effect for Wednesday. A Spare the Air Alert is in effect for Wednesday. What are Spare the Air days? Air quality in the Bay Area can be unhealthy at times throughout the year. During the summer months, ozone pollution can become a health problem in the Bay Area. The summertime Spare the Air program notifies residents when air quality is forecast to be unhealthy and urges residents to drive less and… http://abc7news.com/weather/spare-the-air-alert-in-effect-for-wednesday/54306/ CLIMATE CHANGE Storms preview ocean-rise damage to California cities, roads. Ocean rise already is worsening the floods and high tides sweeping California this stormy winter, climate experts say, and this month's damage and deaths highlight that even a state known as a global leader in fighting climate change has yet to tackle some of the hardest work of dealing with it. The critical steps yet to come include starting to decide which low-lying cities, airports and highways… http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CALIFORNIA_CLIMATE_CHANGE_FLOODING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=7c2f7c99e3-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-7c2f7c99e3-327747457 Exclusive: Olympics - Green Paris bid pledges to slash carbon emissions. The Paris 2024 Olympics bid committee is proposing a strong eco-friendly plan that will slash carbon emissions by more than half compared to the last two Games in London and Rio. Speaking to Reuters on Tuesday, three days before the third part of their bid book is submitted to the International Olympic Committee (IOC)… http://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-paris-exclusive-idUSKBN15F10M Storms preview ocean-rise damage to California cities, roads. Ocean rise already is worsening the floods and high tides sweeping California this stormy winter, climate experts say, and this month's damage and deaths highlight that even a state known as a global leader in fighting climate change has yet to tackle some of the hardest work of dealing with it. http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/Storms-preview-sea-rise-damage-to-California-10893110.php Inside the Trump administration's power struggle over CO2 regs. Transition officials debated internally about whether the Trump administration should seek a major reversal of U.S. EPA's core authority to regulate greenhouse gases, and it continues today, according to sources. No decision was made about potentially overturning the agency's endangerment finding before President Trump was sworn in… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049261 Climate experts cast doubt on claim of imminent withdrawal. A pronouncement by a key former Trump administration transition team member that the White House may soon unveil plans to withdraw from the Paris Agreement was met with skepticism yesterday by climate diplomacy hands on both sides of the aisle. Myron Ebell, who left Trump's U.S. EPA transition team after the inauguration… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049263 Canadian scientists have advice on dealing with Trump administration. As American scientists navigate the tricky process of working under the Trump administration, their Canadian counterparts are offering support. The first week under the new administration has given scientists plenty to be concerned about, with multiple reports of climate change information being purged from… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049237 Carbon capture necessary to meet Paris goal — study. The global climate can survive the United States abandoning the Paris Agreement, but not a world without widespread carbon capture technologies, researchers said this week. One new study found that if nations fail to invest in technology that captures carbon emissions… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049241 Once unthinkable, 'planned retreat' enters the climate dialogue. As sea levels rise, U.S. communities have several strategies to cope with the effects of climate change, the president of the National Academy of Sciences said yesterday. There's triage for high-dollar assets, like airports and military installations and even the Statue of Liberty, Marcia McNutt said. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049240 Fish adapting reproductive cycle to warming. As temperatures in Alaska rise, a small species of fish is responding by switching up its breeding schedule. Scientists studying Lake Aleknagik, in the Bristol Bay area, have found evidence that a fish called the threespine stickleback has adapted its reproductive cycle to changes in the temperature. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049238 DROUGHT Ethiopia faces new drought and seeks urgent aid for 5 million. The carcasses of goats and sheep litter the ground near the airstrip in this remote eastern region of Ethiopia, which is struggling to counter a new drought that authorities say has left 5.6 million people in urgent need of assistance. U.N. humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien visited a camp for displaced persons on Saturday, saying that "these people are really struggling… http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-ethiopia-drought-20170128-story.html One month of storms erases big chunk of California’s snow-water deficit. Think of the snow that falls each winter in the Sierra Nevada as something like a paycheck for California’s water supply. The mountain snow melts and flows into downstream reservoirs, helping pay the “bills” for the state’s agricultural, urban and environmental water supply needs through the hot, dry summer and fall. http://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/water-and-drought/article129658579.html#storylink=cpy Planning for drought still important, experts say. Though nearly half of California has recovered from a four-year drought, it’s still important for ranchers to plan their irrigation and feeding strategies for when the next water shortage occurs, experts advise. Though 2016-17 turned out to be a wet winter, university and industry experts urge ranchers to continue to plan for drought in how they manage their pastures… http://www.capitalpress.com/California/20170131/planning-for-drought-still-important-experts-say FUELS Valero says record biofuels compliance costs to continue in 2017. Valero Energy Corp on Tuesday signaled that record high costs to comply with the U.S. renewable fuels program will continue this year, after the oil refiner was hit with a ballooning tab for the program in 2016. Valero, the largest independent U.S. oil refiner and the first of the sector to report 2016 results, said it expects its costs to meet annual biofuel blending… http://www.reuters.com/article/us-valero-energy-results-biofuels-idUSKBN15F28S Valero Energy profit beats estimates on higher ethanol margins. Valero Energy Corp (VLO.N), the largest independent U.S. refiner, reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit as higher margins in its ethanol unit more than offset weakness in its refining business. The company reported an operating profit of $126 million in its ethanol business for the fourth quarter, compared to a loss of $13 million a year earlier, helped by lower corn and stronger ethanol prices. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-valero-energy-results-idUSKBN15F1D1 Cathay Pacific to cut emissions with switch to biofuel. Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific will switch to biofuels made from landfill rubbish on select long haul flights, reports said Tuesday, in an effort to cut harmful emissions. Cathay flights to Hong Kong from the US, where the new fuel is produced, will use a combination of conventional jet fuel and biofuels starting in 2019… https://www.yahoo.com/news/cathay-pacific-cut-emissions-switch-biofuel-041224952--finance.html What’s at stake if Congress cuts methane regs. ‘Tailings wars’ of the past provide perspective on today’s flaring rules.In the 1880s, farmers on Colorado’s Front Range got fired up about— what else? Water. Their irrigation water came from Clear Creek, a stream that gets its start up on the Continental Divide, then tumbles through mining country before spilling onto the plains west of Denver. http://www.hcn.org/articles/methane-rules-in-danger VEHICLES Tesla Gives the California Power Grid a Battery Boost. Just off a freeway in Southern California, 396 refrigerator-size stacks of Tesla batteries, encased in white metal, have been hastily erected with a new mission: to suck up electricity from the grid during the day and feed it back into the system as needed, especially in the evening. The installation, capable of powering roughly 15,000 homes over four hours, is part of… https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/30/business/energy-environment/battery-storage-tesla-california.html?emc=eta1 FIAT/CHRYSLER (FCA) FCA nearing agreement with Feds over diesel. If FCA chief Sergio Marchionne's recent statements are anything to go by, the Italian-American automaker isn't far from reaching an agreement on just how it will address the EPA's emissions concerns that affect 140,000 turbodiesel Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs and Ram 1500 pickup trucks. A refresher: a couple of weeks ago, the EPA announced that it was seeking an explanation from FCA about why… http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1108638_fca-nearing-agreement-with-feds-over-diesel GREEN ENERGY EU set to meet green energy goal; UK trails: document. The European Union is on track to meet its goal for renewables to supply up 20 percent of its energy by 2020, the EU executive said in a report seen by Reuters, although Britain, Ireland and Luxembourg are lagging behind. In a stock take on the bloc's climate targets, due to be published on Wednesday, the European Commission saw renewables accounting for 16.4 percent of overall consumption in 2015. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-eu-renewables-idUSKBN15F0HI State renewable energy targets 'will be vital to meet emissions goals' RETs are the only policy tool left to shift Australia’s electricity sector away from fossil fuels, RepuTex modelling shows. State-based renewable energy targets are becoming essential drivers of Australia’s carbon reduction framework and, based on current policy settings, will be vital for Australia to meet its 2030 emissions targets… https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jan/30/australia-state-renewable-energy-targets-will-be-vital-to-meet-emissions-goals DPL settlement to close two power plants, shift to green energy. Dayton Power & Light Co. will close two Ohio coal-fired power plants amid a proposed settlement with environmental groups that stipulates the company invest in green energy and economic development in Ohio. The company filed the settlement to its Electric Security Plan at the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio late Monday. http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/news/2017/01/31/dpl-settlement-to-close-two-power-plants-shift-to.html World's largest energy storage project opening in San Diego. The largest battery storage project in the world will open in days in San Diego County, part of a surge of Southern California energy storage projects coming online, energy officials said here yesterday. AES Energy Storage installed lithium-ion batteries with a capacity of 30 megawatts on property owned by utility San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E)… http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049291 Energy industry says 'no thanks' to Trump aid. Shopping lists for billions of dollars in potential construction projects that circulated last week raise questions about whether the nation's sprawling energy sector will share in the spoils of an infrastructure plan coming out of Trump's White House. The National Governors Association distributed one list to state governors after the election, and the second came… http://www.eenews.net/energywire/2017/01/31/stories/1060049257 MISCELLANEOUS Emissions rules could cost 1 million jobs, Ford CEO tells Trump: what's behind that number? Among his actions during a whirlwind first week in office, U.S. President Donald Trump met last week with the CEOs of U.S. automakers Fiat Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors. He met on two consecutive days with Mark Fields, CEO of Ford, in fact. Fields was part of a group of manufacturing executives who met with the president separately the day before the carmaker CEO gathering. http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1108629_emissions-rules-could-cost-1-million-jobs-ford-ceo-tells-trump-whats-behind-that-number OPINIONS The E.P.A. Gag Order. Re “Agencies Told to Halt Communications” (news article, Jan. 26): In light of public communications restrictions placed on federal agencies by the Trump administration, including the Environmental Protection Agency gag order, the Society of Environmental Journalists strongly urges the federal government to commit itself to transparency and to provide verifiable… https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/27/opinion/the-epa-gag-order.html?mabReward=CTM&recp=1&module=WelcomeBackModal&contentCollection=Travel®ion=FixedCenter&action=click&src=recg&pgtype=article Transitioning to an Emerging Green Economy. California may not be alone in its efforts to deal with climate change but neither can state officials ignore the need for a smooth transition to a greener economy that would rely on traditional energy sources. That was the message gleaned from the opening sessions of the 10th annual VerdeXchange conference in Los Angeles dedicated to promoting a green economy. http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2017/01/transitioning-emerging-green-economy/ BLOGS Another alarm for scientists: Trump’s pick to guide NOAA transition. President Donald Trump is taking aim at one of the federal government’s main agencies for climate change research – the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – and NOAA employees are girding for drastic changes in how they conduct science and report it to the public. Trump has appointed a leading denier of climate change, Kenneth Haapala of the Heartland Institute… http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/white-house/article129716229.html?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=7c2f7c99e3-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-7c2f7c99e3-327747457#storylink=cpy California is in a drought emergency. Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.