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newsclips -- Newsclips for July 12, 2011.
Posted: 12 Jul 2011 12:01:41
California Air Resources Board News Clips for July 12, 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 Defending The Rural Lifestyle. A San Bernardino County supervisor is urging High Desert residents to defend their rural way of life as regional planners seek public comments on how to impose a state law that aims to reduce air pollution by encouraging higher density housing near transit centers, among other strategies to reduce reliance on the automobile. Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt acknowledges that nearly half of the High Desert workers he represents commute 40 or more miles to their jobs. Posted. http://www.pe.com/localnews/stories/PE_News_Local_D_ruralair12.3cb6bdb.html California Businesses Get New Ways To Reduce Greenhouse Gases. • Bill could increase use of public transit, vanpooling, and bicycling for commutes • ‘Will reduce workers’ commute costs by up to 40 percent’ Getting to work on the bus, a commuter train, in a van pool or even by bicycle would get new encouragement under a proposal making its way through the California Legislature. Posted. http://www.centralvalleybusinesstimes.com/stories/001/?ID=18860 EPA Closes In On Thrice-Delayed Ozone Decision. U.S. EPA has sent the White House a set of final rules to update the national air quality standards for smog, signaling that the Obama administration will make up its mind soon after pushing back the controversial decision three times. The rules received by the White House Office of Management and Budget yesterday are expected to seek a stricter limit on the acceptable amount of ozone in the air. Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2011/07/12/3 EPA Proposes Phaseout Of Bulky Vapor Nozzles At Gasoline Pumps. Following through on a promise made by the White House when it released initial agency plans for getting rid of red tape earlier this year, U.S. EPA has come out with a phaseout plan for rules that require gasoline stations to cut down on air pollution by using special nozzles on their gas pumps. EPA originally ordered some parts of the country to use vapor-recovery nozzles to trap chemicals such as volatile organic compounds, which can otherwise escape from gas tanks. Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2011/07/12/20 Navistar Sues Federal EPA. Company says agency allowing rivals to skirt Clean Air Act. Springfield — In a lawsuit filed July 5, Navistar accused EPA Director Lisa Jackson of not doing her duty to uphold the Clean Air Act, and her agency of not doing its part to protect public health. If Navistar’s claims hold true, trucks from model 2010 and beyond would not have to meet Clean Air Act standards when it comes to nitrogen oxides — chemicals best known to cause the brown haze around smoggy cities. Posted. http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/springfield-news/navistar-sues-federal-epa--1205176.html CLIMATE CHANGE FACTBOX-Carbon Trading Schemes Around The World. Companies and governments are turning to emissions trading as a weapon to fight climate change and join a carbon market worth $136 billion last year. Carbon markets trade rights to emit greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and are often seen as more politically acceptable than carbon taxes, though some governments struggle to pass enabling laws. Posted. http://uk.reuters.com/article/2010/02/11/carbon-schemes-idUKLC68557920100211 Australia PM: Carbon Tax Won't Kill Coal Industry. Australia's prime minister on Tuesday touted a $5 billion bid for one of the nation's coal miners as proof an unpopular new tax on the country's worst polluters won't cause the collapse of Australia's lucrative coal industry. Prime Minister Julia Gillard said U.S. coal company Peabody Energy Corp. and steelmaker ArcelorMittal's joint bid for Queensland state's Macarthur Coal Ltd. shows companies are not scared off by the tax. It will force the country's 500 worst polluters to pay 23 Australian dollars ($25) for every metric ton of carbon they emit. Posted. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_AUSTRALIA_CARBON_TAX?SITE=TNJAC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT AP Newsbreak: http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/australian-pm-says-massive-takeover-bid-for-coal-mine-shows-carbon-tax-wont-hurt-industry/2011/07/11/gIQAj4Mn9H_story.html http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/07/11/2461258/australia-pm-carbon-tax-wont-kill.html#storylink=misearch http://www.modbee.com/2011/07/11/1771297/australia-pm-carbon-tax-wont-kill.html http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_18459724 http://www.vcstar.com/news/2011/jul/11/australian-pm-carbon-tax-wont-kill-coal-industry/ http://www.nctimes.com/business/article_0b51bee6-10af-5ba4-a028-4259c01b94b5.html FUELS Methane Plant To Generate Power For Miramar Marines. A new power plant at the Miramar Landfill will use methane gas to generate almost half of the adjacent air station’s energy needs, Marine officials said. The military, the city of San Diego, and Fortistar Methane Group are slated to break ground Tuesday on the joint project, which is expected to provide enough renewable energy to power about 2,461 homes at Miramar Marine Corps Air Station. Posted. http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jul/11/methane-plant-generate-power-miramar-marines/ Ethanol Attacks in California Continue. Policymakers in California are once again attacking its ethanol industry. Led by California Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), she has plans in the works to limit incentives for production and use of biofuels that would cause taxes to be raised, an increase in use of foreign oil, reduce jobs, and increase pollution. According to the California Ethanol Vehicle Coalition (CEVC), Sen. Feinstein has “long harbored what many observers feel is an irrational vendetta against ethanol.” Posted. http://domesticfuel.com/2011/07/11/ethanol-attacks-in-california-continue/ Carbon Tax, Cap And Trade Better Than Current U.S. Biofuels Policies -- AEI paper The United States should drop pro-biofuel policies such as tax credits, the renewable fuel standard and import tariffs on foreign ethanol in favor of alternatives like lump-sum payments to farmers and a carbon tax or cap-and-trade system, according to a paper from the American Enterprise Institute. Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2011/07/12/8 VEHICLES AP Sources: GM To Sell Diesel Chevy Cruze in US. The Chevrolet Cruze, the most popular car in the U.S. last month, will come in a diesel version that could boost gas mileage to around 50 mpg, two people briefed on General Motors Co. product plans said Monday. A diesel Cruze would help GM meet more stringent government gas mileage requirements. It also would rival the efficiency of the popular Toyota Prius gas-electric hybrid, which gets 51 mpg in the city and 48 on the highway, according to estimates from the Environmental Protection Agency. Posted. http://www.pe.com/business/local/stories/PE_Biz_D_webonly_cruze12.3548563.html http://www.nctimes.com/business/article_47f1289b-eb25-5bb2-9e6a-377b0a1e025a.html Volkswagen Studies Twin Drive Plug-in Hybrids. Last year, the Volkswagen Group launched the VW Touareg and the Porsche Cayenne hybrids. This year it will launch two more, the Porsche Panamera and the Audi Q5, followed two more next year, the Audi A6 and A8. All of these cars are regular hybrids. Models with plugs are further away on the horizon, but they are on their way. Posted. http://www.plugincars.com/plug-hybrids-volkswagens-still-studying-twindrive-107353.html Electric Vehicle Range Extenders - A Large New Market. This article shares some of the research in the new IDTechEx report, Range Extenders for Electric Vehicles . We are in the age of the hybrid electric vehicle which is strongly outselling the pure electric vehicle in market value though not in numbers over the next decade. This is mainly due to the hybrid land vehicles replacing those with conventional powertrains for economy and reduction in pollution where performance is demanded that is still not affordably obtainable from batteries alone. Posted. http://www.electricvehiclesresearch.com/articles/electric-vehicle-range-extenders-a-large-new-market-00003576.asp?sessionid=1 GREEN ENERGY Solar Panels Still Rare, Despite Glow of $7 Power Bills. When Ed and Paula Antonio moved from a small home in Marine Park, Brooklyn, to a roughly 3,000-square-foot house in Belle Harbor, Queens, they realized that with all that space and a central air-conditioning system, their electricity costs would run much higher. So after intensive research and analysis and the bids of five contractors, they paid $72,000 to install 42 solar panels on their new roof. Posted. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/12/nyregion/solar-energy-slowly-grows-in-new-york-homes.html?ref=earth Heat And Light Over Incandescent Bulb Ban. Four years ago, Congress had the not-so-bright idea to tell Americans what kind of light bulbs they could buy. The familiar incandescent bulbs, which give off more heat than light, will be phased out beginning in January under new efficiency standards contained in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. This will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and, we are assured, save us lots of money. Posted. http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/07/11/2461287/heat-and-light-over-incandescent.html#storylink=misearch GOP Rep Hopes To Shatter His Own Lightbulb Legislation. Lately it seems that the House Republican leadership is against everything that isn't pre-approved by Big Oil or the Tea Party. Perhaps the most outlandish example of this Groucho Marx approach to public policy is the upcoming vote on the BULB Act, H.R. 2417. It would repeal the energy efficiency standards for lightbulbs established in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 [PDF] (EISA). Posted. http://www.grist.org/politics/2011-07-11-gop-fred-upton-lightbulb-efficiency-standards-legislation MISCELLANEOUS West Valley College Teaching Values With Solar Panel Project. The sun is truly shining upon West Valley College, and the newest addition to the Saratoga campus is soaking it all up. On June 1, construction began on West Valley's solar array system, and the project is expected to be fully functional by mid-October. Students and nearby residents have no doubt noticed the large white structures that now cover parking lots 4 and 5 along Fruitvale Avenue near the main entrance of the school. Posted. http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_18458156 http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_18458156 Riverdale Teacher Makes Pitch For Renewable Energy. A Fresno County school teacher who helped students to better understand renewable energy got to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the San Francisco Giants' game Sunday night at AT&T Park in San Francisco. Mary Funk, who teaches students in the fifth and sixth grades at Burrel Union Elementary School in Riverdale, was recipient of the PG&E Solar Schools Inspirational Educator of the Year award for her impact in helping students design an outdoor learning center at the school. Posted. http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/07/11/2460942/riverdale-teachers-winning-pitch.html#storylink=misearch OPINIONS EDITORIAL: Obama’s Coal Tax. New EPA rules mean 1.4 million fewer jobs, higher electric bills. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Wednesday finalized “cross-state air pollution” regulations designed to drive coal-plant operators out of business. This noxious rule will choke job creation and ensure that consumers are stricken with higher utility bills every time they switch on the mercury-filled curlicue light bulbs they also will be forced to buy. Posted. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/jul/11/obamas-coal-tax/ Time To Rev Up Mileage Requirements For Nation's Automobiles. The familiar arguments have revved up in Washington over what kind of fuel efficiency standards should be put in place for millions of vehicles scheduled to roll off U.S. assembly lines in the future. Government regulators are aiming at an industry wide average of 56.2 miles a gallon by 2025. It's a laudable goal, designed to conserve oil and protect the environment. Posted. http://www.modbee.com/2011/07/12/1771591/time-to-rev-up-mileage-requirements.html BLOGS Packed in a Box, Another Transportation Idea for Cities. As car-sharing services continue to evolve, so should the vehicles used in those programs, say James Brooks and Richard Bone, recent graduates of the Vehicle Design program at the Royal College of Art. The former classmates recently opened their own firm, Brooks & Bone, and designed a vehicle specifically for urban car-sharing services that resembles the prototypical box on wheels. Posted. http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/07/12/packed-in-a-box-another-transportation-idea-for-cities/?scp=4&sq=vehicles&st=cse Supply (Not Demand) Explains Sales Differences Between LEAF and Volt. Sales figures for the Nissan LEAF and the Chevrolet Volt are being closely watched. Since both cars represent a new breed of vehicle, the relative success of either one may possibly represent the dominant technology for years to come. Whereas the LEAF is an all-electric vehicle, the VOLT is a plug-in hybrid (more on the differences here), and as both cars …Posted. http://www.triplepundit.com/2011/07/supply-demand-better-explains-sales-figures-leaf-volt/ Michele Bachmann And Fellow Republicans Throw Weight Into “Light Bulb Freedom Of Choice Act.” Michele Bachmann and Fellow Republicans Throw Weight into “Light Bulb Freedom of Choice Act.” Republicans in the House of Representatives – in the midst of attempting to raise the debt ceiling and balance our budget – have decided to take on what some are calling the “Light Bulb Freedom of Choice Act”. Posted. http://inhabitat.com/michele-bachmann-and-fellow-republicans-throw-weight-into-light-bulb-freedom-of-choice-act/