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California Air Resources Board News Clips for February 18, 2011.


California Air Resources Board News Clips for February 18, 2011.


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

CA Biomass Plants Fined for Air Violations.  California, USA -- A
pair of biomass power plants touted for the clean energy they
would provide California's Central Valley will pay some hefty
fines for polluting the region's air, regulators said this week. 
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and San Joaquin Valley
Air Pollution Control District ordered Ampersand Chowchilla
Biomass LLC and Merced Power LLC to pay a combined civil penalty
of $835,000 to resolve alleged violations of local regulations
and the federal Clean Air Act.  Posted. 
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/02/ca-biomass-plants-fined-for-air-violations


Renewable energy plants fined for Clean Air Act violations.  San
Joaquin Valley has some of the worst air quality in the United
States.  Two Central Valley biomass plants have agreed to pay
more than $830,000 in fines for violating the Clean Air Act, the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced yesterday. 
Posted. 
http://californiawatch.org/dailyreport/renewable-energy-plants-fined-clean-air-act-violations-8734


Hot Question: Why can farmers still burn in their fields? 
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — As the San Joaquin Valley struggles to
clean up serious air pollution, farmers are still allowed to burn
in their fields. The sight of plumes of smoke raises questions
for residents, but growers say they face lots of restrictions and
do a lot less burning.  Posted. 
http://www.bakersfieldnow.com/news/local/116444679.html 

CLIMATE CHANGE

SLO County officials meet with public on climate change.  San
Luis Obispo County is trying to do its part to eliminate
emissions blamed for global warming.  Leaders are putting
together a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which are
held responsible for causing heat to build up in the atmosphere. 
County officials met with people in the community tonight for a
brainstorming session, outlining their plan and asking for the
public's input.  Posted. 
http://www.ksby.com/news/slo-county-officials-meet-with-public-on-climate-change/


SCENARIOS-Risks, opportunities in the carbon markets.  Several
carbon dioxide (CO2) registries in the European Union have been
the target of cyber attacks in recent weeks, with reported thefts
of around 3.3 million CO2 permits.  The criminal investigation
into the thefts is drying up spot trade in the EU's Emissions
Trading Scheme (EU ETS) -- the bloc's chief mechanism to fight
climate change -- as participants are wary of handling stolen
permits.  Posted. 
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/18/energy-carbon-risk-idUSLDE71H0UP20110218


'Carbon Nation': Exclusive Preview Featuring Van Jones (VIDEO). 
Environmental documentaries are beginning to flood theaters, but
viewers frequently walk away with one question on their minds -
what is the solution?  Enter "Carbon Nation," a new documentary
focused less on climate change problems, and more on solutions to
fix our warming world.  Posted. 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/18/carbon-nation-video-preview_n_824544.html


Movie review: 'Carbon Nation'.  Although it contains its moments
of doom and gloom about the potential effects of climate change,
the excellent documentary "Carbon Nation" is an inspiring look at
the many recent advances in clean energy and green technologies. 
Posted. 
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/reviews/la-et-carbon-nation-review-story,0,6885208.story

DIESEL EMISSIONS

CA trucking organization sues CARB over trucking reg.  A
California trucking organization filed suit this week against the
California Air Resources Board in an effort to halt the most
expensive trucking rule the agency has implemented on trucks. 
The California Dump Truck Owners Association says federal law
pre-empts CARB’s Truck and Bus Regulation, and is asking a
federal judge in Sacramento for an injunction on enforcement of
the rule.  Posted. 
http://www.landlinemag.com/todays_news/Daily/2011/Feb11/021411/021711-01.shtml
 

School Bus Industry Helps Save Clean Diesel Funding.  After news
got out of the proposed cut to funding for the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency’s Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA),
industry partners rallied together to keep the program alive.  A
coalition of environmental, public health, industry, and state
and local government groups formed to oppose the proposed
amendment, which was defeated last evening in bipartisan House
vote of 73 to 352.  Posted. 
http://www.stnonline.com/home/top-stories/3142-school-bus-industry-helps-save-clean-diesel-funding


GREEN ENERGY

Obama Budget Counters Republican Measure; Long Budget Fight
Expected.  Dueling spending plans collided yesterday, with
President Obama releasing a fiscal 2012 budget that Republicans
mocked for increasing clean energy funding. Today, they prepare
to launch their epic spending cuts in the House.  Posted. 
http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2011/02/15/15climatewire-obama-budget-counters-republican-measure-lon-77720.html?scp=4&sq=diesel%20emissions&st=cse


ARRA “most important piece of clean energy legislation in our
nation’s history”: analysts.  In Washington, Bracken Hendricks
and Jorge Madrid, of the Center for American Progress, published
an essay in Grist arguing that the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was “the single most important piece of
clean energy legislation in our nation’s history”.  Posted. 
http://biofuelsdigest.com/bdigest/2011/02/18/arra-most-important-piece-of-clean-energy-legislation-in-our-nation%E2%80%99s-history-analysts/


Berkeley's Inter-City Services Offers Green Job Training for
California Job Markets.  What job sector should people turn to in
this rough economic time? A recent report from Next 10 and
Collaborative Economics finds that the green job sector is
growing at a rate three times than that of any other industry in
California. The Bay Area leads the state for green job growth,
expanding by 8 percent between January 2008 and 2009. For those
ready to join the rapidly growing green sector, Berkeley's
Inter-City Services, Inc. (ICS), a forward-looking vocational
training facility, now offers progressive green technology and
green job programs, including LEED certification training and
solar installation programs.  Posted. 
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/02/18/prweb8141312.DTL

BLOGS

GOP Budget Takes Aim at The Environmental Issue Country Thinks Is
Most Important.  The Republican budget proposal being debated in
Congress right now would slash funding for many programs that
safeguard public health and the environment.  These cuts and
other outright bans on certain EPA activities would stop the
agency from doing its job in countless ways, chief among them:
reducing water pollution. Posted. 
http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/dbeckman/gop_budget_attacks_americans_t.html

When Pollution Becomes a Public Health Issue.  Rosa Perea spends
many days struggling to help her five-year old son, Yousef
Abdallah, control his severe asthma. Her Chicago neighborhood is
home to numerous polluting industries—most of which emit soot and
smog pollution.  Posted. 
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/02/when-pollution-becomes-a-public-health-issue.php

Moran Amendment to kill diesel funding fails.  I’m happy to
report that Representative Jim Moran’s (D-VA) amendment to H.R.
1, which would have eliminated funding for the Diesel Emissions
Reduction Act (DERA) program, failed last night.  In a roll call
vote on the floor, 352 members voted against the amendment in a
bi-partisan show of support for this program that has provided
state and local governments with federal funds to help reduce
diesel emissions from school buses, port trucks, construction
equipment, farm engines and other dirty diesel vehicles in
communities across the nation since 2005.  Posted. 
http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/rkassel/moran_amendment_to_kill_diesel.html


Is Fashion Week Smoking?  As I reported in Thursday’s Times, many
residents of the neighborhood around Lincoln Center are less than
thrilled with what Fashion Week has wrought: the noise and smell
of diesel generators powering the tents for the runway shows.  A
video filmed on Jan. 31 by a helpful neighbor as the fashion
village was being noisily erected at Damrosch Park before Fashion
Week’s Feb. 10 start documented the scene as the generators were
turned on.  Posted. 
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/18/is-fashion-week-smoking/?scp=4&sq=air%20pollution&st=cse


You Will Be Assimilated (if You Wish).  In Thursday’s paper, I
reported on two new studies linking increases in extreme
precipitation to greenhouse gases released by humans. As I
mentioned in the piece, one of those studies was based on
analysis performed with computer time donated by the public. 
Posted. 
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/17/you-will-be-assimilated-if-you-wish/