What's New List Serve Post Display

CARB Newsclips for June 7, 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

Thursday, June 15, 2017 at 10:00 a.m., PDT (WEBCAST) Sierra
Hearing Room, 2nd Floor, CalEPA Building
1001 I Street, Sacramento, California

The 2010 emission standards for heavy-duty engines have
established a limit for oxides of nitrogen (NOX) emissions of
0.20 g/bhp-hr, a 90% reduction from the previous emission
standards. However, it is projected that even when the entire
on-road fleet of heavy-duty vehicles operating in California is
compliant with the 2010 NOX emission standards, the upcoming
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) requirements for
ambient particulate matter and ozone will not be achieved in
California without further significant reduction in NOX emissions
from the heavy-duty vehicles.
https://www.arb.ca.gov/research/seminars/sharp/sharp.htm   

______________________________

The California Air Resources Board in collaboration with the
South Coast Air Quality Management District and the Los Angeles
Department of Water and Power, is holding a free professional wet
cleaning demonstration workshop.   

The free workshop will be held on Sunday, June 11, 2017 from
2:00PM - 4:00PM in
Los Angeles.  Doors open at 1:45 PM.

Venue: London Cleaners, 1073 Gayley Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90024. 

Space is limited.  Register early at
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/free-professional-wet-cleaning-demonstration-workshop-for-dry-cleaners-tickets-33498967313
     or by searching for "wet cleaning workshop" on Eventbrite
at: http://www.eventbrite.com        

For more details about the workshop, please visit ARB's Non-Toxic
Dry Cleaning Incentive Program (AB998) website at:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/toxics/dryclean/ab998.htm              

AIR POLLUTION



One Chart Suggests Trump May Be Wrong About Emissions and GDP.
Donald Trump last week drew a straight line between membership in
the landmark 2015 Paris climate agreement and American economic
hardship when he withdrew U.S. support for the pact. “The cost to
the economy at this time would be close to $3 trillion in lost
GDP and 6.5 million industrial jobs…
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-07/one-chart-suggests-trump-may-be-wrong-about-emissions-and-gdp


EPA delays Obama air pollution rule by one year. The Trump
administration is putting a one-year delay on implementation of a
major Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) air pollution rule
from the Obama administration. The EPA announced the delay in the
ozone pollution rule enforcement late Tuesday, saying that EPA
Administrator Scott Pruitt had notified state governors.
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/336663-epa-delays-obama-air-pollution-rule-deadline-by-one-year


Pruitt's quick strike on ozone roils greens, delights GOP.
Earlier this year, Scott Pruitt had little to say about U.S.
EPA's 2015 ozone standard during his Senate confirmation process
for becoming the agency's administrator. But he made his position
clear late yesterday by abruptly announcing his decision to delay
for a year attainment designations with the 70 parts per billion
threshold, accompanied by a suggestion that…
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2017/06/07/stories/1060055691 

CLIMATE CHANGE

Existing climate efforts expected to keep US goals on track. The
momentum of climate change efforts and the affordability of
cleaner fuels will keep the United States moving toward its goals
of cutting emissions despite the Trump administration’s
withdrawal from the Paris global accord, business and government
leaders in a growing alliance said Tuesday. New York, California
and 11 other states representing nearly 40 percent…
https://www.apnews.com/581f527033844782ae9f3a3c0c6b8c61/Existing-climate-efforts-expected-to-keep-US-goals-on-track


Rhode Island Senate passes bill to shield climate research. A
proposal that would shield climate scientists and other
university researchers from public records requests could be
heading to Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo. The state Senate
voted unanimously to pass the bill Tuesday. The House passed
companion legislation on a 58-6 vote in January.
https://www.apnews.com/1ab311d501e349d4940e4b8669562c53/Rhode-Island-Senate-passes-bill-to-shield-climate-research


French envoy: US climate exit may signal multipolar world.
France’s U.N. ambassador says President Donald Trump’s withdrawal
from the Paris climate accord may be perceived as “the birth
certificate of the multipolar world.” Francois Delattre told
reporters Tuesday that the impact of Trump’s decision goes beyond
climate change policy to the U.S. role in the world.
https://www.apnews.com/4218a4ffe921419aa25b416104c9f390/French-envoy:-US-climate-exist-may-signal-multipolar-world


Sununu says he’s not joining states’ climate change alliance. New
Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said he is doesn’t plan to join an
alliance set up by other states pledging to uphold the Paris
climate change accord. The Concord Monitor reported
(http://bit.ly/2rRWehN) the Republican governor told the
newspaper in a statement Monday that he wasn’t interested in
joining the alliance “at this time.”
https://www.apnews.com/3df3f38705c64379b94dc9e45b50aade/Sununu-says-he's-not-joining-states'-climate-change-alliance


China is now looking to California – not Trump – to help lead the
fight against climate change. Gov. Jerry Brown met with President
Xi Jinping on Tuesday, in a rare move that catapults California’s
status as a negotiator with China while the U.S. falls back on
climate change. The leaders met less than a week after President
Trump pulled the U.S. from a historic Paris climate accord…
http://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-china-global-climate-20170606-story.html


Greenhouse emissions fall for another year in California.
California has continued to chip away at its greenhouse gas
emissions even as its economy grows, according to new data
released by state regulators on Wednesday. Emissions fell by a
third of a percent in 2015, which regulators said was equivalent
to removing 300,000 vehicles from state roads for a year.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-california-emissions-keep-1496860837-htmlstory.html


Sonoma County, cities join Bloomberg-led climate action
coalition. A growing number of Sonoma County cities are signing
on to a national coalition of governments, businesses and
educational institutions formed to push back against President
Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw the U.S. from an
international climate pact.
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/7070978-181/sonoma-county-cities-join-bloomberg-led?artslide=0


Coalition Of States, Regions Fighting Climate Change Meet In
China. California has several new agreements with China and
regions within the country. Gov. Jerry Brown has signed
“memorandums of understanding” about developing new, clean
technology. 
The agreements are non-binding, but they describe a pathway for
the two countries to raise new clean technology businesses.
http://www.capradio.org/articles/2017/06/07/dispatches-from-china-coalition-of-states,-regions-fighting-climate-change-meet-in-china/


Ditching Paris had nothing to do with science. Ever since U.S.
EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt helped orchestrate the United
States' withdrawal from an international climate accord backed by
decades of scientific research, he has spent days deflecting
dozens of questions about science. The hosts of MSNBC's "Morning
Joe" yesterday tried more than 10 times to get Pruitt to answer
whether or not…
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/06/07/stories/1060055666


VEHICLES

3 challenges Tesla faces as shareholders meet. Tesla Inc. is
riding high as it hosts its annual shareholders’ meeting Tuesday.
Shares are trading at record levels, and Tesla has surpassed
General Motors and Ford in market value. It’s about to introduce
its first mass-market electric car, the Model 3 sedan, as well as
a line of solar panels that look like roof tiles.
https://www.apnews.com/01e9b8147edf460baa2fd90a80617fe5/3-challenges-Tesla-faces-as-shareholders-meet


Tesla says new law will prohibit direct sales in Louisiana.
Electric car company Tesla says it will be unable to sell cars
directly in Louisiana, under a bill Gov. John Bel Edwards signed
into law. Tesla enthusiasts had urged the Democratic governor to
veto the legislation, but it was on a list of signed measures
released by Edwards’ office Tuesday. The electric car brand is
sold through a direct-to-customer model…
https://www.apnews.com/030979576b3a49b19b3f9189d5a3e7bf/Tesla-says-new-law-will-prohibit-direct-sales-in-Louisiana

CA: Marin Electric Vehicle Projects Get $240K Jolt. Almost a
quarter of a million dollars will go toward green vehicle
technology in the coming fiscal year under a plan approved by
Marin transportation officials. The projects that will share
$240,000 beginning July 1 include an electric bus pilot program,
$75,000; electric vehicle charging stations at Sonoma-Marin Area
Rail Transit stops, $35,000; and public charging stations,
$55,000.
http://www.masstransitmag.com/news/12341238/marin-electric-vehicle-projects-get-240k-jolt


Tesla envisions up to 20 'Gigafactories' worldwide. Tesla Inc.
will open as many as 20 large factories worldwide as it makes
multiple models of electric cars and batteries to store energy,
co-founder and CEO Elon Musk said yesterday. Speaking at a
shareholder meeting at the company's headquarters in Palo Alto,
Calif., Musk outlined a vision of the company as far larger…
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/06/07/stories/1060055663

China passes U.S. as world's top EV market. Electric vehicle
sales are surging but could still fall below increasingly
ambitious goals if incentives aren't maintained, according to the
International Energy Agency. The number of EVs on the road jumped
to 2 million in 2016, more than doubling from 2015, according to
the Global EV Outlook 2017.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2017/06/07/stories/1060055688 

VOLKSWAGEN

VW independent monitor: Company is trying to change.  The
independent monitor overseeing Volkswagen’s efforts to prevent a
repeat of its diesel emissions scandal said Tuesday that his
“initial impression” is that the company is making a serious
effort to change its ways. Former U.S. deputy attorney general
Larry Thompson must certify the policies and practices Volkswagen
is putting in place to ensure compliance with anti-fraud and
environmental laws.
https://www.apnews.com/d789678c2933484586b42667e4b9ab22/VW-independent-monitor:-Company-is-trying-to-change


GREEN ENERGY

After Trump blasts Paris accords, NC may expand solar power.
Conservative Southern lawmakers on Tuesday moved to extend the
growth of renewable energy in North Carolina, just days after
President Donald Trump said the U.S. would exit the Paris climate
agreement because curbing fossil fuels would hamper the economy.
State House members introduced legislation negotiated between…
https://www.apnews.com/6b1643f49711493c8cbc17f0e2d2dc0f/After-Trump-blasts-Paris-accords,-NC-may-expand-solar-power

Hawaii solar energy programs for low-income families failing.
Hawaii Gov. David Ige’s plan to make solar energy available to
the masses by creating a community program has not taken off
after two years of deliberation. This has led to the state’s
wealthy residents being the ones reaping solar benefits, the
Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported (http://bit.ly/2rHifxS).
https://www.apnews.com/f19da7e1c10848c28821745849e4ae06/Hawaii-solar-energy-programs-for-low-income-families-failing


NC House poised to rewrite state solar laws. A major rewrite of
the state's renewable energy policy is on its way to the House
floor later this week, but skeptics say it's moving too quickly
and with too little public consideration. House Bill 589, which
was announced by a news release from Speaker Tim Moore's office
Monday afternoon, cleared the House Energy Committee in a little
over 30 minutes Tuesday morning. 
http://www.wral.com/house-poised-to-rewrite-state-solar-laws-/16745374/


California regulators weigh whether the state needs more power
plants. California energy officials are, for the first time,
rethinking plans to build expensive natural gas power plants in
the face of an electricity glut and growing use of cleaner and
cheaper energy alternatives. The Los Angeles Department of Water
and Power announced Tuesday that it has put a hold on a
$2.2-billion plan to rebuild several old natural gas power
plants…
http://www.latimes.com/sdhoy-california-regulators-weigh-whether-the-state-needs-more-power-plants-20170606-story.html


Clean energy advocates in Beijing shrug off Trump's effect.
International clean energy officials are brushing off President
Trump's decision to exit the Paris climate agreement, saying that
momentum is on the side of renewable energy. Attendees at the
Clean Energy Ministerial in Beijing this week are still
optimistic about the world's ability to transition to clean
energy…
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/06/07/stories/1060055623


Meet the designer of Trump's solar wall. When reports surfaced
late yesterday that President Trump was floating the idea of a
border wall covered in solar panels, many observers found it hard
to take seriously. "I mean, it's physically possible. It seems
politically silly," said Michael Webber, deputy director of the
University of Texas' Energy Institute. "This is a bizarre way do
solar power, and it's a bizarre way to build a wall."
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/06/07/stories/1060055662


Nev. makes its claim to be America's green leader. Many states
make claim to the title of America's clean energy leader. Few
states have a case like Nevada. Silver State lawmakers passed 11
energy bills before the clock ran out on the legislative session
in Carson City on Monday. Among the approved measures: a plan to
restore net metering for solar panel-owning homeowners, a
proposal to boost the state's renewable portfolio…
https://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/06/07/stories/1060055660


MISCELLANEOUS

85 percent of the top science jobs in Trump’s government don’t
even have a nominee. Presidents invariably encounter key moments
where they need to rely on scientific expertise. George W. Bush
faced an anthrax attack after 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. Barack
Obama faced the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and the Ebola outbreak.
Now President Trump has made a momentous decision about climate
change.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/06/06/trump-has-filled-just-15-percent-of-the-governments-top-science-jobs/?tid=ss_tw&utm_term=.11a191e0aeee


OPINIONS

Our View: Trump surrenders U.S. leadership on climate change.
These are the only nations that have turned their backs on the
most important global agreement to address climate change, the
Paris climate accord. The United States was the leader in forging
the agreement in 2015 and 195 nations signed it, including every
industrialized power, from Western Europe to Russia, India and
China.
http://www.postbulletin.com/opinion/our_view/our-view-trump-surrenders-u-s-leadership-on-climate-change/article_64c05219-cc30-5c00-bee0-ca4266bc98cf.html


The other reason to shift away from coal: Air pollution that
kills thousands every year. When President Donald Trump announced
on June 1 that he had decided to withdraw the United States from
the Paris climate accord, he asserted that staying in the pact
would prevent our nation from further developing its fossil fuel
reserves. Critics understandably have called this a setback for
global efforts to curb greenhouse gas pollution.
https://theconversation.com/the-other-reason-to-shift-away-from-coal-air-pollution-that-kills-thousands-every-year-78874


BLOGS

An American Leader Is in China Right Now Signing All These
Climate Deals. It Is Obviously Not Trump. Pandas! Fanfare! The
Great Hall of the People! Oh my! Chinese President Xi Jinping met
this week with a powerful American leader who believes climate
change is real and wants to open the economic floodgates for
US-China cooperation on green tech. I’m not kidding.
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2017/06/an-american-leader-is-in-china-right-now-signing-all-these-climate-deals-it-is-obviously-not-trump/


Solar energy powers millions of green jobs. Energy is the
lifeblood of our society. Uninterrupted streams of electrons
power the production of the goods we consume, heat and light our
homes, fuel our vehicles, power our gadgets and increasingly
drive local jobs. We do not have to sacrifice those benefits or
jobs to the dirty fossil fuel industry.
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/energy-environment/336357-solar-energy-offers-millions-of-green-jobs-powered-by


Military still fretting climate change despite Trump’s global
actions. The Defense Department and the military services are
doing their best to keep their heads above water. That’s not a
figurative statement. Just days after President Donald Trump
announced the United States will leave a landmark global pact to
fight climate change…
https://federalnewsradio.com/defense-news/2017/06/military-still-fretting-climate-change-despite-trumps-global-actions/


Oil Companies Invest To Protect Billion-Dollar Assets Along
Louisiana's Vanishing Coast. Sarah Mack pilots her 24-foot boat
to the edge of a grassy salt marsh in southern Louisiana to bring
a slow-moving, $90 billion crisis to life. Tierra Resources, a
wetland restoration company, planted plastic poles at the edge of
the marsh more than a year ago.
http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2017/06/07/oil-companies-louisiana-coast


Could climate change shut down the Gulf Stream? The 2004 disaster
movie "The Day After Tomorrow" depicted the cataclysmic
effects—superstorms, tornadoes and deep freezes— resulting from
the impacts of climate change. In the movie, global warming had
accelerated the melting of polar ice, which disrupted circulation
in the North Atlantic Ocean, triggering violent changes in the
weather.
https://phys.org/news/2017-06-climate-gulf-stream.html#jCp