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newsclips -- Newsclips for April 5, 2012
Posted: 05 Apr 2012 14:24:33
ARB News Clips for April 5, 2012. 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 Natural Disasters Tied to Unnatural Causes. Air pollution does more than make the skies hazy, with a new study suggesting the industrial ick is linked to drought, flooding and even hurricanes. The research, detailed this week in the journal Nature, suggests human activity can, and already has, driven large-scale regional climate changes. The "dirty pollution," it seems, can cause changes in the temperature of the Atlantic Ocean, which in turn drives the stormy activity, say the researchers from the Met Office, the U.K.'s National Weather Service. Posted. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46966009 House plants help make the air cleaner. We hear a lot about air pollution outdoors in Kern County. But, what about inside your home? Dust and particles sitting on your floor and furniture can affect your quality of life too. Some house plants can actually help remove harmful dirt and chemicals from indoor air. Air pollution in Kern County is something those who call this place home, know all too well. "Sometimes my allergies keep me inside the house. Posted. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46959831 Pollution Playing A Major Role In Sea Temperatures. The Atlantic Ocean, especially the North Atlantic, is peculiar: Every few decades, the average temperature of surface water there changes dramatically. Scientists want to know why that is, especially because these temperature shifts affect the weather. New research suggests that human activity is part of the cause. Scientists originally thought that maybe some mysterious pattern in deep-ocean currents, such as an invisible hand stirring a giant bathtub, created this temperature see-saw. Posted. http://www.npr.org/2012/04/04/150005074/pollution-playing-a-major-role-in-sea-temperatures CLIMATE CHANGE El Nino possible after summer, CPC says. The U.S. Climate Prediction Center raised the prospect that El Nino conditions could return after the Northern Hemisphere summer, causing adverse weather that could potentially disrupt the harvest of vital crops such as cotton, corn and soybeans. A return in the fall of La Nina's more infamous counterpart could increase rainfall, although farmers typically prefer it to the La Nina phenomenon. La Nina has been blamed for a bad dry spell in South America. Posted. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/05/us-weather-elnino-idUSBRE8340V920120405 VEHICLES Payoff for Efficient Cars Takes Years. Ed Moran’s new Toyota Prius was programmed by the dealer to make him feel good about his gas savings. A dashboard display compares the fuel consumption of the Prius and his 2001 Ford pickup truck. “Every time I go to the store it will tell me how much money I saved,” said Mr. Moran, a horticulturist in Ames, Iowa. Like more and more Americans, Mr. Moran is looking to a fuel-efficient car to help soften the financial blow of ever higher gas prices. Posted. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/05/business/energy-environment/for-hybrid-and-electric-cars-to-pay-off-owners-must-wait.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=fuels&st=cse GREEN ENERGY Folsom solar firm's projects approved in Imperial County. The Imperial County Board of Supervisors has approved a series of large solar power projects being developed by Folsom-based 8minutenergy Renewables LLC. The solar generation plant in the Imperial Valley will be built in three phases and eventually generate up to 600 megawatts for more than 200,000 households. The solar farm is being billed as the largest in the world. The project received support from the Sierra Club, Audubon California, Defenders of Wildlife and the Natural Resources Defense Council. Posted. http://www.sacbee.com/2012/04/05/4393754/folsom-solar-firms-projects-approved.html Watchdog finds Solyndra loan was 'rushed'. Federal financial experts weren't consulted on a $528 million federal loan to Solyndra until the last minute, and only then had "about a day" to complete their review, an internal watchdog concluded Wednesday. The report from the Treasury Department's inspector general found that the department's review was "rushed" and began only after the Energy Department was poised to sign off on the terms of the loan to the Fremont solar company. Posted. http://www.contracostatimes.com/business/ci_20328947/watchdog-finds-solar-energy-loan-was-rushed http://www.insidebayarea.com/business/ci_20328947/watchdog-finds-solar-energy-loan-was-rushed?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_20328947/watchdog-finds-solar-energy-loan-was-rushed http://www.modbee.com/2012/04/04/2143813/watchdog-finds-solar-energy-loan.html Utility uses waste to produce power. A Northern California utility is using a new turbine and truckloads of chicken blood, food scraps and other waste to produce more electricity that it uses. The Contra Costa Times ( http://bit.ly/HnRgv6) says Oakland's East Bay Municipal Utility District has been generating electricity from sewage gas and other waste since the 1980s. The $32 million power plant expansion unveiled this week makes use of aggressive waste collection. Posted. http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_20331698/utility-uses-waste-produce-power?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/apr/05/utility-uses-waste-to-produce-power/ OPINIONS Cleaner Fuels, Cleaner Cars. In late December, the Environmental Protection Agency drafted a set of rules that would force petroleum refiners to reduce the amount of sulfur in gasoline by two-thirds. That change would enhance the effectiveness of catalytic converters in both old and new cars, resulting in substantial cuts in soot and smog-forming pollutants from automobile tailpipes. The proposal resembles a similar measure adopted by California for cars sold inside that state. Posted. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/05/opinion/cleaner-fuels-cleaner-cars.html?_r=1 BLOGS California Cap and Trade Fraud Concerns. California’s cap and trade program allows permitted greenhouse gas emitters to receive allowances from the Air Resources Board (ARB) through auction or sale in an allowances marketplace for specific amounts of emissions, and many critics argue the system is easily susceptible to fraud. The problem is that although the ARB has its own anti-fraud rule, legal oversight committees agree that without direct action from Congress the ARB has no authority to enforce penalties or even monitor secondary markets in carbon trading, making both the marketplace and the anti-fraud rule moot. Posted. http://www.nuwireinvestor.com/articles/california-cap-and-trade-fraud-concerns-59015.aspx Chicago Leads the Way in Urban Sustainable Agriculture. The City of Chicago has been making some major leaps into sustainability. They have worked on increasing their urban green areas as well as re-purposing abandoned land into useful projects. The city also boasts more than 300 miles of bikeways, 7 million square feet of green roofs and currently has more green hotels than any city in the U.S. It is also one of the most ‘climate ready’ cities of the United States. Posted. http://www.triplepundit.com/2012/04/chicago-leads-urban-sustainable-agriculture/