What's New List Serve Post Display

What's New List Serve Post Display

Below is the List Serve Post you selected to display.
newsclips -- CARB Newsclips for May 5, 2017.

Posted: 05 May 2017 16:33:48
CARB Newsclips for May 5, 2017. 
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.

CARB BUSINESS

Staff from the California Department of Transportation, the
California Air Resources Board, the California Energy Commission,
and the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development
invite you to participate in workshops to discuss implementation
of the California Sustainable Freight Action Plan (Action Plan).

The workshops will be held at the locations and on the dates
noted below.  The agencies will follow the same format and show
the same presentation at each of the workshop locations.    

OAKLAND:          May 9, 2017 

LOS ANGELES:  May 30, 2017

SAN DIEGO:        May 31, 2017 

For more information on the California Sustainable Freight Action
Plan including       
_________________________

David Cocker, PhD
University of California, Riverside. 

Tuesday, May 16, 2017 at 10:00 a.m., PDT (WEBCAST) Sierra Hearing
Room, 2nd Floor, CalEPA Building
1001 I Street, Sacramento, California

Low vapor pressure-volatile organic compounds (LVP-VOCs) are a
set of VOCs currently exempted for VOC content based on a
combination of boiling point, vapor pressure, and/or elution time
from a GC-column. This work explores evaporation rates and
secondary pollutant formation from a series of individual
LVP-VOCs associated with consumer products, select generic
consumer products that include these LVP-VOCs, and several
hydrocarbon solvents. For more go to the announcement at:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/seminars/cocker/cocker.htm       

May 8, 2017: Public Workshop to discuss ARB's Carbon Capture and
Sequestration (CCS) Program.

At this workshop, ARB staff will present an overview of
activities taken by the CCS program in 2016, and an initial
concept of a Quantification Methodology (QM) and Permanence
Protocol for CCS.
https://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/ccs/meetings/meetings.htm            

Air Resources Board staff have posted a white paper on the health
benefits of physical activity and air pollution exposure while
walking and bicycling for transportation.  
Download the White Paper:
https://www.arb.ca.gov/research/vprp/physical_activity_and_health_final_161216.pdf
                         

For more information, including the White Paper and other
resources, visit our Built Environment webpage:
https://www.arb.ca.gov/research/vprp/vprp.htm                    
    

A fact sheet summarizing this document can be found here:
https://www.arb.ca.gov/html/fact_sheets/physical_activity_fact_sheet.pdf
   

CAP AND TRADE


California Reports $559M In Cap-and-Trade Revenue Has Gone Into
Clean Vehicles. California has put $559 million into electrified
cars, trucks, and buses through the state’s cap-and-trade revenue
since 2013. During ACT Expo in Long Beach, Calif., the California
Air Resources Board announced that the state has invested those
funds into thousands of electrified and fuel cell vehicles and
demonstration projects.
http://www.hybridcars.com/california-reports-559m-in-cap-and-trade-revenue-has-gone-into-clean-vehicles/


California Bill to Make Cap and Trade Similar to Carbon Fee and
Dividend. California state Senators Bob Wieckowski and Kevin De
León introduced a bill this week that would update the state’s
5-year-old cap and trade system to have some remarkable
similarities to CCL’s Carbon Fee and Dividend. The bill would
shift cap and trade starting in 2021 to include a steadily rising
carbon price…
http://citizensclimatelobby.org/california-bill-make-cap-trade-similar-carbon-fee-dividend/


Offset providers say new carbon-pricing bill is 'horrific'. The
carbon offset industry is reeling from a new proposal by
California lawmakers that would shut them out of the state's
carbon market after 2020. S.B. 775, unveiled Monday by state
Senate President Pro Tempore Kevin de León (D) and Senate
Environmental Quality Committee Chairman Bob Wieckowski (D),
would end the state's current cap-and-trade system…
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/05/05/stories/1060054111


AIR POLLUTION

Court ruling is a first step toward controlling air pollution
from livestock farms. 
(THE CONVERSATION) Editor’s note: Most livestock farming in
industrialized countries takes place on large enclosed farms,
known in the United States as Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations (CAFOs), that house hundreds or thousands of animals.
Many environmental and public health groups say CAFOs are major
air and water polluters and should be regulated more stringently.
https://apnews.com/b94101738d7a47c3ba299f7b979ed176 

Bay Area air hits healthy milestone thanks to tough wood-burning
rules. The Bay Area has cleaned up its air enough to meet the
federal health standard for soot and fine pollution particles
after a long and controversial campaign to reduce wood burning.
In making the announcement Thursday, Bay Area air quality
regulators said it’s good news for people at risk of asthma and
emphysema attacks…
http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/05/04/bay-area-air-hits-healthy-milestone-thanks-to-tough-wood-burning-rules/


State of the Air: California and Bay Area cities among top 10
most polluted in nation. California cities dominated a list of
top 10 most polluted regions published by the American Lung
Association. The State of the Air 2017 is based on air quality
monitoring from 2013 to 2015. The Visalia-Porterville-Hanford
areas in San Joaquin County had the highest level of
year-round-particle pollution in the country.
http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/05/05/state-of-the-air-california-and-bay-area-cities-among-top-10-most-polluted-in-nation/


Air pollution lawsuit set to go ahead despite delayed government
plan. Class action on behalf of asthma suffers may still go ahead
over repeated failure to tackle illegal levels of nitrogen
dioxide. Lawyers are taking a class action against the government
over its repeated failures to clean up illegal levels of air
pollution, the Guardian can reveal, as ministers publish a
long-awaited plan to reduce diesel emissions.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/may/04/government-faces-class-action-on-air-pollution-in-landmark-case


Survey: Environment and sustainability professionals united over
air pollution fears. Some 97 per cent of UK environment and
sustainability experts believe tackling air pollution should be a
top priority for the next government. The vast majority of
environment and sustainability professionals want to see the
government take urgent action to tackle air pollution…
http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/3009510/survey-environment-and-sustainability-professionals-united-over-air-pollution-fears


Air pollution from fumes. Construction firm burns discarded shoes
to melt pitch. Burning of discarded shoes made of synthetic
materials to melt pitch is causing severe air pollution in
Dakkhin Motukpur village of Domar upazila. Messrs SM Shafiqul
Alam, a construction firm in the district, is using the discarded
shoes for melting pitch instead of coal or wood. This causes air
pollution from dense smoke and fumes.
http://www.thedailystar.net/country/air-pollution-fumes-1401007 

Researchers find monetary value of air quality in China.
Researchers at the Yale School of Public Health and Peking
University have found that Chinese families are willing to invest
up to 6 percent of their annual income in efforts to improve air
quality. Published in Ecological Economics on March 7, the study
aimed to determine the amount people are willing to pay for
efforts to reduce air pollution…
http://www.enn.com/pollution/article/51189 

CLIMATE CHANGE

Scientists call for more precision in global warming predictions.
Researchers from Harvard University, Princeton University and the
Environmental Defense Fund proposed a new, more precise way to
measure the effects of greenhouse gas emissions on Earth's
climate in an article published on Thursday in the academic
journal Science.
The proposal, titled "Unmask temporal trade-offs in climate
policy debates”…
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-climatechange-model-idUSKBN1802E2


States Move to Roll Back Environmental Rules in Trump’s Wake.
Emboldened by the environmental rollbacks of President Donald
Trump, state legislatures are following suit, taking aim at items
as varied as solar incentives, chemical spill protections and,
even, anti-pipeline protesters. The legislation in states from
Florida to Wisconsin comes as the Environmental Protection Agency
under…
https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2017-05-05/states-move-to-roll-back-environmental-rules-in-trump-s-wake


We would need 1.7 Earths to make our consumption sustainable.
President Trump has acted on his campaign promises to reverse
Obama’s environmental policies and proposed a budget that would
significantly slash the Environmental Protection Agency’s funding
in an effort to take federal responsibility out of environmental
regulations.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/classic-apps/we-would-need-17-earths-to-make-our-consumption-sustainable/2017/05/04/2b2c2de8-30e2-11e7-8674-437ddb6e813e_story.html?utm_term=.3ada21b41496


Logging Plays Bigger Climate Change Role Than U.S. Acknowledges,
Report Says. Officials underestimate the role that preserving
forests can play in addressing the climate crisis, according to
the Dogwood Alliance. The U.S. has consistently underestimated
the impact that logging has on accelerating climate change and
the role that preserving its forests can play in sucking carbon
out of the atmosphere.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/05052017/climate-change-biomass-renewable-energy-coal-deforestation-paris-climate-agreement


Climate Change Is Causing The Dissolved Oxygen In World's Oceans
To Plummet. The planet is warming, and so are its oceans. Between
1901 and 2015, as the oceans’ heat absorbing capacity was
stretched to its limits, the average surface temperature of the
world’s oceans of rose at an average rate of 0.13 degrees
Fahrenheit per decade, and temperatures in the shallowest waters…
http://www.ibtimes.com/climate-change-causing-dissolved-oxygen-worlds-oceans-plummet-2535134


Republicans in California say they're ready to work on climate
change. Should Democrats take them seriously? As Republican
leader of the California Assembly, Mayes oversees just 25 of the
body's 80 members, giving him little political power. Democrats
hold two-thirds supermajorities in both houses of the state
Legislature, meaning they can pass whatever measures they want if
they mostly stick together… 
http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/environment/2017/05/05/republicans-california-say-theyre-ready-work-climate-change/310421001/


Total EU emissions tied to fossil fuels declined last year.
Combined emissions of carbon dioxide for the European Union
declined slightly from last year, though big contributors to
pollution posted gains, data show. Eurostat, the record-keeping
arm of the European Union, reported a preliminary estimate for
carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels declined 0.4 percent
compared with last year.
http://www.upi.com/Energy-News/2017/05/05/Total-EU-emissions-tied-to-fossil-fuels-declined-last-year/6741493984306/


Negative emissions tech: can more trees, carbon capture or
biochar solve our CO2 problem? As CO2 levels rise, controversial
techniques including carbon capture and storage, enhanced
weathering and reforestation may be solutions. In the 2015 Paris
climate agreement, 195 nations committed to limit global warming
to two degrees above pre-industrial levels.
https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2017/may/05/negative-emissions-tech-can-more-trees-carbon-capture-or-biochar-solve-our-co2-problem

California celebrates emissions-funding milestone at ACT Expo.
Nearly $600 million from new program spurring clean technologies,
but CARB warns stricter rules still needed. California often is
considered a dirty word among truckers. That is partly due to the
state’s aggressive truck and bus emissions regulations, which
truckers say adds costs to an already complex regulatory
environment at the federal level.
http://fleetowner.com/running-green/california-celebrates-emissions-funding-milestone-act-expo

Court to decide if state can cap sea walls at 20 years. The
California Supreme Court is deciding whether the state can place
limits on homeowners who want to build a sea wall. California
Supreme Court justices yesterday scrutinized state rules on sea
walls in a case that could impact myriad homes on bluffs and
beaches affected by climate change.
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/05/05/stories/1060054088


Global methodology aims to make 'no deforestation' easier. A
metric widely used by companies, governments and communities to
protect the world's most carbon-rich forests is getting a
face-lift. The High Carbon Stock (HCS) Approach is a
science-based methodology that categorizes forests based on how
much carbon they store and their biodiversity.
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/05/05/stories/1060054090


DIESEL ACTIVITIES

Trucking Industry Poised for Electric Heavy-Duty Truck Growth.
Sexy Tesla sports cars aren’t the only vehicles that deserve the
battery treatment – drayage vehicles, school buses, garbage
trucks and cargo haulers are also going electric. And the ranks
of those medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicles are swelling…
https://www.trucks.com/2017/05/05/trucking-industry-electric-heavy-duty-truck-growth/


VDL Bus & Coach Receives Order For Largest Electric Bus Fleet In
Europe. Electric bus manufacturer VDL Bus & Coach has announced
the receipt of an order for 100 of its VDL Citeas SLFA electric
buses and 18 of its VDL Futura FDD2, the company’s flagship
electric double-decker bus.
https://cleantechnica.com/2017/05/05/vdl-announces-order-for-118-electric-buses/


EPA Announces Settlements for California Truck, Bus Regulation
Violations. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has
announced recent settlements with three companies totaling
$201,000 in penalties for violating California’s Truck and Bus
Regulation. According to the EPA, the companies either failed to
install particulate filters on their own heavy-duty diesel trucks
or failed to verify that trucks they hired for use in California
complied with the state rule.
https://ngtnews.com/epa-announces-settlements-california-truck-bus-regulation-violations


Elon Musk Explains Why Tesla Wants Electric Semi Truck. The first
details are coming out about the plans of Tesla Inc. and its
Chief Executive Elon Musk to build an electric semi-truck. “I
don't want to jump the gun on the Tesla semi-truck unveiling
later this year, but I think, it's going to be a good product…
https://www.trucks.com/2017/05/04/elon-musk-tesla-electric-semi-truck-2/


Trucking Leaders Plan to Stay Course on Phase 2 GHG Regs.
Government rules on trucking are getting trickier to navigate,
especially amid challenges from the Trump administration and
variations across the global market. But at the Advanced Clean
Transportation Expo – at the Long Beach, Calif., convention
center this week – major industry players pledged to stay the
course on advancements in fuel economy…
https://www.trucks.com/2017/05/04/trucking-leaders-stay-course-phase-2-ghg-regs/


FUELS

Pruitt wants Brown 'at the table' for standards review. U.S. EPA
Administrator Scott Pruitt has asked California Gov. Jerry Brown
(D) to participate in the review of federal vehicle emissions and
mileage requirements. In a Tuesday letter to Brown, Pruitt said
he had "made a commitment to follow the principles of cooperative
federalism and underlying environmental statutes and that means
ensuring states have a seat at the…
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/05/05/stories/1060054112


VEHICLES

Electric Car Sales Are Suddenly Taking Off in Europe. After
meager growth in 2016, this year is starting strong thanks to a
new Renault. It’s no secret that Americans are embracing electric
cars. But new data show that increasingly Europeans are too.
Sales of battery-powered cars soared 38 percent in the first
quarter after models including Renault SA’s improved Zoe won
buyers in Germany and Spain.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-04/electric-car-sales-are-suddenly-taking-off-in-europe

Navy base in San Diego gets fast-charging station as part of
coming fleet of electric cars. The San Diego Naval Base unveiled
on Friday its first so-called DC fast-charging station for
electric vehicles, the latest move in a push to green up the
regional military’s fleet of light-duty vehicles. Along with the
dozens of recently installed chargers around California,
officials plan to roll out more than 200 new electric vehicles in
coming...
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/environment/sd-me-navy-charging-stations-20170505-story.html


CARB Invests Heavily in New Generation of Clean Vehicles for
California Roads. The California Air Resource Board is making
moves to accelerate reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by
putting more clean vehicles on roads and highways in its home
state. Since 2013, California Climate Investments – a statewide
program that funds myriad efforts to improve the economy,
environment and public health…
https://www.trucks.com/2017/05/04/carb-invests-clean-vehicles-california/


Carmakers might need carbon trading to 'survive' in 2025.
Carmakers will rely on carbon credits earned today from
overcomplying with emissions and fuel economy standards to meet
increasingly strict standards in the future, according to a new
report.
The new analysis will likely bolster automakers' arguments that
the existing corporate average fuel economy regulations are too
complicated and burdensome.
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/05/05/stories/1060054113


VW RECALL

VW looks to halt losses in Americas, Russia by 2020. Volkswagen's
(VOWG_p.DE) core brand has pledged to end losses in the United
States, Latin America and Russia by the end of the decade,
counting on cost cuts and higher-margin new models as it tries to
move beyond its diesel emissions crisis. Europe's largest
automaker is pursuing efficiency measures to generate billions of
euros for investment in electric cars…
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-volkswagen-emissions-strategy-idUSKBN1810QE


MISCELLANEOUS

Tahoe National Forest’s Truckee Ranger District to Begin Spring
Prescribed Fire Operations. The Truckee Ranger District, part of
the Tahoe National Forest, will conduct prescribed fires this
spring to reduce build-up of hazardous fuels and continue
ecological restoration. Planned projects include low-to-moderate
intensity understory burns of forest litter and vegetation on the
forest floor.
https://yubanet.com/regional/tahoe-national-forests-truckee-ranger-district-to-begin-spring-prescribed-fire-operations/


OPINIONS

This Is the Pivotal Moment in the Fight Against Climate Change.
Momentum is building in the Trump administration to leave the
Paris Agreement on climate change in the coming weeks — which
would put the global climate deal in danger of becoming a largely
symbolic pact, rather than a meaningful move that slows the pace
of global warming. Reports that the U.S. might soon leave the
Paris Agreement — the decision is far from final…
http://time.com/4766881/paris-agreement-climate-change-trump/

Natural Gas Exports Can Solve U.S. Energy Glut. Easing access to
foreign markets is the key to lifting depressed prices. The
slogan “Made in the U.S.A.” resonates with Americans, except when
there’s too much of a given product being made, which forces down
prices along with the industry. One example is natural gas, where
U.S. inventories have been largely above average for the last two
years.
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-05-05/natural-gas-exports-can-solve-u-s-energy-glut


Emphasizing uncertainty about climate change is the new form of
denialism. To the editor: Jonah Goldberg delights in the fact
that his fellow conservative writer Bret Stephens has “trolled”
liberals in his inaugural column at the New York Times. Stephens’
position can be summed up as such: Yes, humans are causing global
temperatures to rise, but the range of estimates includes numbers
that are not so bad.
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/readersreact/la-ol-le-climate-change-bret-stephens-20170504-story.html


Letter: Climate change not a liberal-only cause. I thank you for
the coverage you have provided of the March for Science. I was
there myself, thankfully under a tent, and very glad to be part
of a group that understood the grand importance of not losing
sight of that which has contributed so much to our society and
humanity as a whole: scientific thought and empiricism.
http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/letters/2017/05/05/letter-climate-change-not-liberal-only-cause/311266001/


The Drought Is Not Over. When we hear “The drought is over,” we
know down deep it is not over. We have just received a reprieve.
Clearly, California does not have enough water for the people and
the products it grows. Something has to give. We can’t continue
to increase the number of people, and keep our agriculture at the
level it is now, unless we increase water conservation and water
storage.
http://www.mercedcountytimes.net/editorials/050417_drought.html 

BLOGS
 
GREENHOUSE GAS MONEY FLOWS. California’s Cap and Trade program
has surpassed $500 million for funding zero-emission vehicles in
our state. The Air Resources Board says the money helped
subsidize over 520 passenger vehicles in Kern County, plus 74
pollution-free trucks for local businesses. Companies in
disadvantaged communities can see even more savings.
http://www.kuzz.com/2017/05/03/greenhouse-gas-money-flows/ 

It's time for the Conservatives to clear up their air pollution
mess. Today's air quality plan could provide a welcome boost to
low emission technologies, or it could prove a cynical exercise
in political positioning. Before we look at the somewhat
dispiriting detail of the long-awaited draft air quality plan, it
is worth setting the record straight on a few issues.
http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/blog-post/3009575/its-time-for-the-conservatives-to-clear-the-air
   

Government Plans To Tackle Air Pollution ‘Woefully Inadequate’,
Say Campaigners. Just 9,000 diesel cars out of two million could
be eligible for scrappage under new scheme. Government plans to
tackle air pollution across the country have been branded
‘woefully inadequate’ by leading campaigners. Defra was forced to
publish its draft air quality strategy this week by the High
Court…
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/government-plans-to-tackle-air-quality-woefully-inadequate-say-campaigners_uk_590c8b8de4b0e7021e9720e8


Is Climate Changing Cloud Heights? Too Soon to Say. A new
analysis of 15 years of NASA satellite cloud measurements finds
that clouds worldwide show no definitive trend during this period
toward decreasing or increasing in height. The new study updates
an earlier analysis of the first 10 years of the same data that
suggested cloud heights might be getting lower.
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6838 

Renewable energy critic to oversee wind, solar power programs.
The Trump administration has named a fervent critic of government
support for wind and solar projects to oversee federal renewable
energy programs. The Department of Energy confirmed Wednesday
that Dan Simmons will lead its Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy.
http://www.elp.com/articles/2017/05/renewable-energy-critic-to-oversee-wind-solar-power-programs.html


Ancient Methane Seeps Tell Tale of Sudden Warming. Newly
discovered rock mounds left by ancient methane seeps give
scientists clues that methane on ancient ocean floor was released
by ancient global warming.  Krista Williscroft and her colleagues
trudged for days through mud, often up to their knees, cataloging
large mounds of rock across a desolate landscape.
https://eos.org/articles/ancient-methane-seeps-tell-tale-of-sudden-warming


How a digital dashboard could make cities’ power, water smarter.
Technology revolutionizes the way people interact with the world.
From video chats to securing homes from thousands of miles away,
digital connections bring us closer to what matters most. This
same connectivity can play a critical role in helping cities
around the world in the fight against climate change…
http://blogs.edf.org/energyexchange/2017/05/05/how-a-digital-dashboard-could-make-cities-power-water-smarter/


The Real Uncertainties of Climate Science. In his controversial
first op-ed for the New York Times last week, neoconservative
writer Bret Stephens argued that there’s great uncertainty about
the threat of climate change, and thus, environmentally minded
scientists, activists, and politicians ought not be so confident
about what they claim as fact.
https://newrepublic.com/article/142505/real-uncertainties-climate-science


Bucking Trump, US cities press ahead on clean energy, climate
goals. More than two dozen cities now have renewable energy
commitments, putting them on the front lines of climate action.
This month, three senators introduced legislation that lays out
how the United States can kick its fossil fuel habit by 2050. The
bill also calls for half of all electricity in the U.S. to be
generated by renewable sources by 2030.
http://www.utilitydive.com/news/bucking-trump-us-cities-press-ahead-on-clean-energy-climate-goals/442001/


California SB-100 Would Mandate 100% Renewable Energy by 2045. On
May 1, California Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de León
(D-Los Angeles) on introduced an amended version of Senate Bill
100, The California Clean Energy Act of 2017, in the Senate
Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee, which would put
the Golden State on the path to 100 percent clean, renewable
energy by 2045.
https://www.energymanagertoday.com/california-sb-100-mandate-100-clean-energy-2045-0169806/


ARB What's New

preload