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California Air Resources Board News Clips for March 1, 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

Levels Of Soot In Valley Air Reach New Low. The San Joaquin
Valley has concluded its cleanest winter wood-burning season
since monitoring began a little more than a decade ago. The
Valley recorded fewer than 50 violations of the federal health
standard for dangerous soot -- half as many as its worst season
nearly a decade ago. But the region still had more violations for
this particle pollution than any other place in California, state
records show. Posted.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/02/28/v-print/2291004/valley-soot-violations-hit-new.html

Kern Again Posts Fewer No-Burn Days.  The eighth annual "Check
Before You Burn" wood-burning season ended Monday in Kern County
with 40 no-burn days -- one fewer than last year and 14 fewer
than the year before.  Officials from the San Joaquin Valley Air
Pollution Control District credit the program for continued
improvement in the valley's winter air quality.  Posted. 
http://www.bakersfield.com/news/local/x722101476/Kern-again-posts-fewer-no-burn-days?utm_source=widget_56&utm_medium=photo_entries_teaser_widget&utm_campaign=synapse

Update To Carbon Monoxide Rules Draws Scant Attention. At a time
when the Obama administration's expansion of air pollution rules
has become a topic of fierce debate, one of U.S. EPA's standards
has gotten an unusually mild reaction from public health
advocates and industry groups alike. At issue is EPA's update to
the existing rules for carbon monoxide, which is listed in the
Clean Air Act as one of six pollutants of particular concern.
Though the agency has tightened the standards for several other
"criteria" pollutants over the past three years -- and is headed
toward doing so for the rest of them, including smog and soot –
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2011/03/01/21

Wood-Burning Season Ends with Cleaner Air. Another "Check Before
You Burn" winter season has come to an end with the program once
again proving successful. Officials with the San Joaquin Valley
Air Pollution Control District say adherence to the "Check Before
You Burn" policy has resulted in even cleaner air across the
eight-county region. The program, which runs from November
through February, encourages residents to hold off on striking up
their fireplaces when air quality deteriorates. Posted.
http://www.kmjnow.com/pages/print_landing?Wood-Burning-Season-Ends-with-Cleaner-Ai=1&blockID=430250&feedID=806&

CLIMATE CHANGE

Study: Lodgepole Pine Gone From NW by 2080.  Grants Pass, Ore. --
Scientists predict that lodgepole pine - one of the most common
trees at higher elevations in the Cascades and Rockies - will be
largely gone from the Northwest by 2080 due to the warming
climate.  Posted. 
http://www.modbee.com/2011/02/28/1577103/study-lodgepole-pine-gone-from.html


UN Says Shorter Lived GHG Key To Slowing Global Warming.
According to a new UN study, the pace of climate change could be
cut in half if immediate measures are taken toward shorter lived
greenhouse gases. By increasing emphasis on shorter lived climate
forcers like black carbon, methane and ground level ozone, we may
be able to reverse the dangerous acceleration levels of global
warming and give the earth enough time to get back into balance. 
The study, released by the UN Environment Programme, states that
mitigation strategies for these threats should be equally
emphasized along with carbon dioxide. Posted.
http://www.examiner.com/green-business-in-seattle/un-says-global-warming-could-be-halved-with-focus-on-shorter-lived-greenhouse-ga

DIESEL EMISSIONS

Port Of Hueneme To Curb Ships' Diesel Pollution. A $9 million
utility power system is being developed at the Port of Hueneme to
comply with new regulations requiring that ships anchored at
California ports turn off their engines to limit emissions. The
vessels carry bananas and fruit from Central and South America
and, to stay refrigerated, they run diesel auxiliary engines
while docked at the port. Their engines have also powered
shipboard cranes used to unload cargo, as the Port of Hueneme
doesn't have overhead cranes. Posted.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2011/feb/28/port-of-hueneme-to-curb-ships-diesel-pollution/?print=1

Port Truckers Seek Emissions Rule Delay. Drayage trucking
companies that serve the Port of Oakland, which use primarily
owner-operators, are seeking support to delay a California Air
Resources Board mandate that requires trucks to be retrofitted
with nitrogen oxide-reduction equipment by 2014. A trade group
representing port truck operators estimates that without a
postponement in the NOx requirement 4,400 trucks of 1994-2006
model years would have to be replaced with 2007 or newer models
by January 2014. Posted.
http://www.etrucker.com/apps/news/article.asp?id=86301

GREEN ENERGY

Rush to Renewable Energy Generates 'Enormous' Financial Questions
in Europe.  LONDON -- The spectacular growth in recent years in
the number and size of renewable energy sources across the
European Union -- particularly wind and solar power -- driven by
high subsidies and government rhetoric on climate change has left
the national electricity grids scrambling to cope.  Posted. 
http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2011/03/01/01climatewire-rush-to-renewable-energy-generates-enormous-64885.html?scp=10&sq=climate%20change&st=cse


Going Green With Exchange-Traded Funds. Exchange traded funds, or
ETFs as they are commonly known, are investment funds that are
traded on a stock exchange. Investors have a wide variety of ETFs
from which to choose, from those that track a major market Index
to ETFs that track a basket of foreign currencies. Another type
of exchange traded funds are green ETFs, or those that focus on
companies that support or are directly involved with
environmentally responsible technologies, such as the development
of alternative energy or the manufacturing of green technology
equipment and devices. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/02/28/investopedia6194.DTL&type=printable

The Governator Goes Green. Arnold Schwarzenegger told you he’d be
back. Just months removed from a raucous seven years as
California governor, the global warming gladiator is about to
hopscotch around the planet in his new role as a green technology
cheerleader. Schwarzenegger will kick off his world tour Tuesday
at an Energy Department-sponsored conference in suburban
Washington, where he will try to connect the dots between energy
policy and Hollywood stars who once doubted the benefits of
weightlifting. Posted.
http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=6EFD25DB-9593-644D-B85F41B37FDA080F

House Dem Leaders Push For End To Oil Subsidies, Promote Clean
Energy. House Democrats reaffirmed President Obama's call to end
oil industry subsidies yesterday during a hearing that party
leaders called as part of their effort to present an alternative
to the GOP's economic agenda. "There are no more critical
challenges facing this Congress than these two: creating jobs and
reducing the deficit," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi
(D-Calif.), calling for "smart investments in clean energy
industries that will create new jobs for America's workers."
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/EEDaily/print/2011/03/01/5

Calif. Prods Local Government To End Snarl Of Rules Delaying
Renewables Permits. California is looking to local governments to
deliver the latest salvo in the fight against labyrinthine
permitting processes. A patchwork of regulations that are
unevenly enforced even within individual cities is adding weeks
and months to solar installers' schedules. The California Energy
Commission called Feb. 1 for suggestions on how to encourage
local governments to improve their oversight of renewable
projects in their jurisdictions. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2011/03/01/5

Schwarzenegger Delivers Muscular Pitch For Clean Energy In DOE
Stemwinder. U.S. energy policy should move beyond the debate over
global warming to sell a clean energy policy based on the
economic, health and other benefits it can offer, former
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger told a Department of Energy
gathering today. "Let's face it: If we haven't convinced the
skeptics yet, we are not going to," the Republican told an annual
meeting of scientists and innovation funders linked with the
Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2011/03/01/1

VEHICLES

Carmakers Focus On Green Power As Fuel Costs Rise. Geneva (AP) —
Just when carmakers thought it safe to roll out new models in the
wake of the economic crisis — 170 premiers are advertised for the
Geneva Auto Show opening this week — a spike in fuel prices has
cast a new shadow over the industry and redoubled attention on
green technologies. Ford Motor Co. said Tuesday it is boosting
its offering of low-emissions technologies and will have five
alternative powertrains to market in Europe by 2013. Posted.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iV6b3IHDT8Nzl40G6L4u7FL6tT0A?docId=7056dac59e4b4a4aafff35e226e96dd4
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/01/AR2011030101993.html
http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/02/28/2289794/rising-fuel-price-casts-shadow.html#storylink=misearch

http://www.modbee.com/2011/02/28/1576600/rising-fuel-price-casts-shadow.html

City’s Lengthy Push for Hybrid-Engine Taxicabs Hits a Legal Dead
End.  The Bloomberg administration has banned cars from parts of
Broadway, prohibited smoking in public parks and cracked down on
fats and salts in restaurants. But City Hall’s march toward
better living, whether its citizens want it or not, may have
finally met a yellow-hued Waterloo.  Posted. 
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/01/nyregion/01taxi.html?scp=8&sq=climate%20change&st=cse
 
OPINION

TOMEKA POWELL: Crying wolf about over-regulation.  Residents of
the San Joaquin Valley continue to suffer the health effects of
poor air quality, yet some industry groups are calling for the
elimination of regulations that protect the public. Over the past
40 years, industry representatives have made claims about the
adverse impacts from environmental regulations -- from phasing
out chlorofluorocarbons to putting catalytic converters on
vehicles to appliance efficiency standards -- that failed to
materialize.  Posted. 
http://www.bakersfield.com/opinion/community/x722101470/TOMEKA-POWELL-Crying-wolf-about-over-regulation

BLOGS

A Home for Captured Carbon Dioxide. FutureGen, the Energy
Department’s on-again, off-again pilot project for capturing and
sequestering carbon dioxide from coal-fired power plants, has
chosen a place to put this greenhouse gas: in Morgan County,
Ill., about 32 miles from a power plant in Meredosia, Ill., that
was chosen for the project. Ameren the FutureGen project would
ship carbon dioxide by pipeline from this power plant in
Meredosia, Ill., and inject it into a porous layer of rock. The
site must still pass an environmental review and, perhaps more
important, the government’s policy must be maintained long enough
to get the project done. Posted.
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/01/choosing-a-home-for-captured-carbon-dioxide/?pagemode=print

The East Anglia Climate Snatch – Not (Yet) a ‘Crime’.  David
Roberts at Grist has  posted a deconstruct of the machinations of
professional climate deniers, the failures of the press and the
staining of climate scientists’ reputations in the wake of “
Climategate.” There’s plenty worth exploring in his analysis, but
one specific point needs to be rebutted right off the bat — his
contention that the media, including yours truly, were wrong not
to call a crime a crime.  Posted. 
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/01/the-east-anglia-climate-snatch-not-yet-a-crime/


Rolls-Royce Reveals Electric Phantom. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
released a photo of the 102EX, an electric-powered version of its
Phantom ultra-luxury sedan that the company plans to unveil
during the Geneva Motor Show today at 10 a.m. ET. The car, also
known as the Phantom Experimental Electric or EE, is meant to
test not only the feasibility of battery power for an outsize
luxury car, but to help gauge potential acceptance of electric
cars among longtime  customers and potential new buyers. Posted.
http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2011/02/28/rolls-royce-reveals-electric-phantom/