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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for May 16, 2014.

Posted: 16 May 2014 14:54:58
ARB Newsclips for May 16, 2014. 

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.

CAP AND TRADE

California carbon slips to $11.73 as traders eye auction. 
California's benchmark carbon contract slipped 8 cents from its
close one day earlier to settle at $11.73 a tonne on Thursday as
traders positioned themselves ahead of Friday's state-run
allowance auction, where permits are expected to clear near the
floor price.  Posted. 
http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/05/16/californiacarbon-idINL1N0O200320140516


California: Affordable housing at issue in cap-and-trade talks.
With billions of dollars forecast to flow into state coffers
under a landmark clean air act, there is a battle underway over
how to allocate the money. State Senate President Pro Tempore
Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, was in Oakland on Wednesday
promoting his plan that includes setting aside one-fifth of the
funds for affordable housing construction near transit hubs.
Posted.
http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_25772028/state-affordable-housing-at-issue-cap-and-trade
BY SUBSCRIPTION

AIR POLLUTION

EPA proposes changes to refinery emission rules. Texas
environmental advocates are applauding a new U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency proposal to reduce oil refinery pollution by
forcing operators to adopt new technology that better monitors
and controls emissions. If adopted, the rule would mark the first
change to the industry's emission standards in nearly two
decades. Posted.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_EPA_OIL_REFINERIES_RULE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2014-05-15/white-house-carbon-rules-said-to-seek-cuts-beyond-plants.html
http://www.bna.com/epa-proposes-emissions-n17179890522/  
http://www.latimes.com/science/la-na-0516-refineries-20140516-story.html

http://www.environmentalleader.com/2014/05/16/epa-targets-refineries-emissions/


Air quality monitor near I-5 in Anaheim finds higher pollution
level. The first permanent air quality monitor near a Southern
California freeway has detected elevated pollution levels, a
finding that will increase pressure on state and local officials
to address health risks facing nearly 1 million people in the
region living near busy transportation corridors. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/science/la-me-freeway-air-20140515-story.html


EPA targets oil refineries' emissions into neighborhoods. Oil
refineries would be required to cut emissions and begin
monitoring levels of toxic air pollutants at their fence lines
with neighboring communities under standards proposed Thursday by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Posted. 
http://www.latimes.com/science/la-na-0516-refineries-20140516-story.html


Officials peg West Sacramento neighborhood as region’s most
vulnerable to pollution. Ramirez’s family lives on the eastern
end of West Sacramento’s Westfield Village neighborhood, a tract
of about 5,400 residents among the city’s poorest, which state
environmental officials last month pegged on a CalEnviroScreen
map as the most vulnerable to pollution in the Sacramento region.
Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/05/16/6395057/officials-peg-west-sacramento.html


Schumer urges battle against toxic algae. U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer
urged federal regulators Wednesday to take a tougher stance
against a form of freshwater toxic algae that's becoming more
common in the state, in part due to climate change. So-called
blue-green algae produces cyanotoxins that can sicken animals and
people…Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Schumer-urges-battle-against-toxic-algae-5478988.php


Toxic smoke could blow back onshore.  Air pollution crept up past
healthy levels in Oceanside early Thursday, as fires burned
nearby, but dropped back down by late morning, air quality
experts said. Air quality monitors in Oceanside showed particle
pollution at 70 micrograms per cubic meter around midnight
Thursday, a level ranked as unhealthy…Posted.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/may/15/environment-air-quality-fire-toxics/


No surprises: More pollutant near freeway, first numbers show. 
Confirming previous scientific reports and popular assumptions,
the region’s first freeway-adjacent air-quality monitoring device
has shown that one pollutant is more concentrated next to the
freeway than farther away.  Posted. 
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/monitor-614502-quality-air.html


Air Quality Tips for San Diegans. In the wake of the wildfires in
San Diego, the air quality across the county has been impacted,
according to county officials. Thus, locals are advised to follow
a few tips to reduce their exposure to the smoke and air
pollution.
According to the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District,
air quality is currently considered less than moderate. Posted.
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Air-Quality-San-Diego-Wildfires-Health-259457571.html#ixzz31tnZ6o6Q

CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate Change to Hit Sovereign Creditworthiness: S&P. Global
warming will harm sovereign creditworthiness around the world
this century, with poorer nations the worst hit, Standard &
Poor’s Ratings Services said. Climate change is one of two
“global mega-trends” alongside aging populations that dominate
global economic risks, the agency said today in a report. It
identified the most vulnerable nations as Vietnam, Bangladesh and
Senegal. Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2014-05-15/climate-change-to-hit-sovereign-creditworthiness-s-p.html


Brown: Climate change is factor. Gov. Jerry Brown Thursday blamed
climate change for producing timber-dry conditions fueling the
infernos rampaging through San Diego County, but he was less sure
about rumors that an arsonist was on the loose.

“Despite what you may hear in Washington, climate change is a
factor,” he told CNN. “This is not about theory. It’s not about
politics. This is about fires on the ground, people’s homes.”
Posted.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/may/15/brown-climate-change-is-factor/


Tropical storms shifting paths; impact of climate change debated.
Hurricanes and typhoons are migrating from the tropics toward the
North and South poles, a new study finds. In the past 30 years,
the total number of storms has remained about the same in the
tropics, said lead study author Jim Kossin, a climate scientist
with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's
National Climatic Data Center. Posted.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/tropical-storms-shift-paths-toward-poles-impact-of-climate-change-debated/


State plans to double down in fight against climate change.
California is raising its game against climate change as the
stakes get higher, girding for a long-term battle with carbon
dioxide that will stretch through at least 2050. The state is
planning to bring more of its regulatory muscle to bear on
greenhouse gases, working to set a "midterm" 2030 emissions
target, and is preparing to broaden its focus on electric-sector
emissions…Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059999697/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

As El Niño potential increases, summer outlook warms for West
Coast – NOAA. If Californians can see through the wildfire smoke
and across parched farmland through to their next wet season,
they may find some relief. The potential for an El Niño, which
tends to bring strong winter storms to much of the state, has
continued to increase as summer approaches, scientists with the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported
yesterday. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059999695/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

Scientists pledge to study Amazon's carbon sink potential if CO2
levels increase 30%. An international group of scientists
announced Wednesday that they will embark on a decadelong study
to determine the Amazon's capability to store carbon dioxide
should global concentrations of the greenhouse gas increase by 30
percent. Tropical forests have the potential to store vast
quantities of carbon dioxide in the air. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059999677/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

Climate change could rid Ariz. of Joshua trees. Climate change
may be pushing Arizona's Joshua trees north, and the U.S.
Geological Survey has sent a researcher to investigate. Todd
Esque, a research ecologist, is inspecting and measuring the
trees at Grapevine Mesa Joshua Trees Forest in Mohave County to
figure out whether they'll face the same fate as those he's been
examining in Nevada. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059999676/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

Absent climate policies, widespread use of natural gas is
unlikely to curb greenhouse gases – study. An oft-heard comment
about America's natural gas boom is that it has led to a
reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Insofar as natural gas
replaces coal in electricity generation, this claim is probably
true. But step back and look globally and into the future, and
widespread use of natural gas fails to significantly alter the
world's current global warming trajectory, a new study finds.
Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059999696/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

DROUGHT

Drought, Hurricane Bigger Threat to World’s Top Companies.
Drought, hurricanes and rising seas are becoming more significant
threats to the world’s biggest companies and the risk is
accelerating, according to the Carbon Disclosure Project.
Companies planning for various threats related to climate change
say they’re grappling now with about 45 percent of the potential
risks, or will be within five years…Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2014-05-16/drought-hurricane-bigger-threat-to-world-s-top-companies.html


Feinstein: Environmentalists no help on California drought.
Washington -- Sen. Dianne Feinstein will try to fast-track
farm-friendly drought legislation through the Senate over the
objections of environmentalists, who the senator complains have
done nothing to help her adapt California's aging water system to
deal with climate change and the addition of millions of thirsty
residents. Posted.
http://www.sfchronicle.com/science/article/Feinstein-Environmentalists-no-help-on-5481560.php


100 Percent of California Now in Highest Stages of Drought. It
might not seem possible, but California's drought just got worse.
According to Thursday’s release of the U.S. Drought Monitor, 100
percent of the state is now in one of the three worst stages of
drought. Posted.
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/california-severe-drought-or-worse-17444


FUELS

Biofuel groups take aim at EPA methods in U.S. blending quota
cuts. Nearly three dozen advanced biofuel companies including
DuPont and Spain's Abengoa appealed to President Barack Obama on
Thursday to rethink the methodology for setting U.S. biofuel
blending quotas. In their letter, a copy of which was seen by
Reuters, 33 suppliers of "advanced" biofuels such as lower-carbon
ethanol made from corn stovers…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/15/epa-rvo-final-rule-idUSL1N0O114720140515?feedType=RSS


Intended showcase of clean-coal future hits snags. Last November,
Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz rode an elevator to the top of the
11-story scaffolding surrounding Southern Co.’s new coal-fired
power plant here and gazed out over the Mississippi flatlands.
Below him lay a new lignite coal mine, new storage facilities and
a glimmering maze of steel. The beauty of it all was this:
Sixty-five percent of the plant’s carbon dioxide…Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/intended-showcase-of-clean-coal-future-hits-snags/2014/05/16/fc03e326-cfd2-11e3-b812-0c92213941f4_story.html


Can Green Diesel Wean the U.S. Off Oil? A Louisiana refinery
ramps up production of a biofuel that could power everything from
Jettas to jetliners.  When it comes to kicking the United
States’s oil addiction by substituting biofuels—mobility
methadone—the nation has repeatedly fallen off the wagon. For
instance, the U.S. last year was supposed to have produced 1.75
billion gallons of cellulosic biofuels to meet a Congressional
mandate set back in 2007. Posted.
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/05/can-green-diesel-get-america-off-oil/370957/


BLM hearing sparks a debate on the agency's role in regulating
methane. How many regulations are enough to successfully curb
America's methane emissions? It depends on whom you ask.
Representatives from environmental groups and the fossil fuel
industry sharply disagreed on the Bureau of Land Management's
role in regulating venting and flaring from oil and gas wells on
public lands at an information session held yesterday in
Washington, D.C. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059999698/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

VEHICLES

Carnage on China Roads Shows Dark Side of Electric Bikes.
Electric bicycles are China’s answer to the Prius because they’re
green, they’re zippy and they’re cheap. They’re also emerging as
a safety hazard in a country where road accidents are the biggest
killer of young people. As Chinese cities impose car quotas to
fend off record pollution, more residents are turning to
rechargeable electric cycles. Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2014-05-15/carnage-on-china-roads-shows-dark-side-of-electric-bikes.html


Tesla CEO Elon Musk: Gigafactory will take battery production 'to
another level' Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk said Tuesday that Tesla
will partner with several companies besides Panasonic for its
planned "gigafactory" for battery production, painting a portrait
of a facility resembling a massive industrial park and saying
that there eventually will be a need for several more. Posted.
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_25761219/tesla-ceo-elon-musk-gigafactory-will-take-battery


80 Days Around The World In Zero Emissions Vehicles (2016). In
April of 2016, an 80 day around the world race open only to zero
emissions vehicles will begin, inspired by the classic Jules
Verne novel. This new race takes to heart the original work’s
focus on new technology subverting the status quo, as teams land
and sea without burning any fuel. Posted.
http://cleantechnica.com/2014/05/16/zero-emissions-vehicles-80-day-around-world-race-2016/#wSpRkoKvBB9kCePu.99
Read more at
http://cleantechnica.com/2014/05/16/zero-emissions-vehicles-80-day-around-world-race-2016/#wSpRkoKvBB9kCePu.99


GREEN ENERGY

Should energy be taxed? Dean Elliott and others offer insight.
The energy industry in the United States is booming, according to
Dean Elliott, the owner of Dino Operating, LLC, a company that
works in refurbishing oil fields and shallow drilling. The
country is on track to become the top producer of oil by 2016,
according to the International Energy Agency. Already, the U.S.
is the largest producer of natural gas. Posted.
http://www.examiner.com/article/should-energy-be-taxed-dean-elliott-and-others-offer-insight-1


MISCELLANEOUS

Want to test drive an electric car? Check out this free event. 
The public is invited to test drive a variety of electric cars
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday in San Francisco in a free event
co-sponsored by Bay Area transportation and air pollution control
agencies.  The free test drives are available on a first-come,
first served basis to licensed drivers at the Marina Green
Triangle along Marina Green Drive at Marina Boulevard, across
from a Safeway store.  Posted. 
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_25772386/want-test-drive-an-electric-car-check-out


Fracking's Air Pollution Drives Couple From Their Home of 23
Years. 'We're not anti-drilling at all...It's just causing me a
lot of medical issues, and I can't have it.' After 23 years
living on the South Texas prairie, Lynn and Shelby Buehring are
looking for a new home, far from the fumes, traffic and noise of
the Eagle Ford Shale boom. Posted.
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/20140516/frackings-air-pollution-drives-couple-their-home-23-years


OPINIONS

Climate Change: Prophets and Deniers. To the Editor: Re
“Scientists Warn of Rising Oceans From Polar Melt” (front page,
May 13): Compounding the tragedy of the collapsing West Antarctic
ice sheet is the fact that the possibility was foreseen more than
three decades ago. It was, for example, one of the warnings in
the 1981 climate change assessment issued by the Council on
Environmental Quality during the Carter administration. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/15/opinion/climate-change-prophets-and-deniers.html?_r=0


How should Washington act on climate change? Your Say
Interactive. Climate change remains a low priority for many
Americans. The White House this month released the National
Climate Assessment, a report that warns of floods at several
coastal airports and other damaging effects of climate change.
But for Americans, dealing with global warming nears the bottom
of their priorities, above only dealing with global trade issues,
which ranked lowest. Posted.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2014/05/15/global-warming-climate-change-your-say/9115659/

Glenn Kessler: Sen. Reid fails fact-check.  While the Koch
brothers admit to not being experts on the matter, these
billionaire oil tycoons are certainly experts at contributing to
climate change. That's what they do very well. They are one of
the main causes of this.  Posted.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2014/05/15/3929115/sen-reid-makes-up-his-own-facts.html?sp=/99/274/
 BY SUBSCRIPTION

LETTER: Agency working to mitigate impacts. The op-ed by John
Husing, “Demographics key to Inland Empire job growth” (Opinion,
May 13), mistakenly creates an impression that efforts to attain
healthful air are incompatible with a strong economy. The South
Coast Air Quality Management District is working to bring about
economic growth and cleaner air. Contrary to Husing’s op-ed, the
SCAQMD is not proposing a rule that would force new warehouses to
pay fees to offset truck trips. Posted.
http://www.pe.com/articles/air-694599-pollution-california.html 

Bringing climate change home. Last week, while the city's parks
were teeming with birders watching the spring migration and the
lilac and wisteria were just starting to bloom, the National
Climate Assessment report was issued. A comprehensive work
prepared by a team of 300 scientists and climate experts and
extensively reviewed, it makes an imposing trilogy…Posted.
http://www.examiner.com/article/bringing-climate-change-home 

BLOGS

How to Laugh at Climate Change. In the nineteen-thirties, the
literary theorist Kenneth Burke proposed what he called the
“comic frame”—the view, he wrote, of “human antics as a comedy,
albeit as a comedy ever on the verge of the most disastrous
tragedy.” Tragedy marches inexorably toward the end, but comedy
keeps us guessing at our fate. Christina Foust, a communications
professor at the University of Denver, points out that climate
science, and climate news…Posted.
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/elements/2014/05/the-comedy-of-climate-change.html


Global warming fight: California’s next steps. California must
double its pace of cutting greenhouse gases after 2020 — slashing
emissions from factories and power plants, freight trains and
farms — in order to meet its long-term global warming goals,
according to a state plan to be released Friday.
California-Greenhouse Gases.JPEG-08548. The steps proposed by the
California Air Resources Board go well beyond the already
aggressive moves California has made to fight climate
change…Posted.
http://blog.sfgate.com/energy/2014/05/16/global-warming-fight-californias-next-steps/

There’s no practical fix for climate change. Missing from the
climate-change debate is the recognition that we have no
solution, says Robert Samuelson in The Washington Post. With no
practical replacement for fossil fuels, and no government willing
to risk economic fallout by curtailing their use, and global
emissions on the rise in developing countries…Posted.
http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion/theres-no-practical-fix-for-climate-change/29083/


EPA Proposes to Limit Cancer-Causing Toxic Air Pollution From
Petroleum Refineries. Yesterday, EPA proposed new standards to
limit toxic air pollution from petroleum refineries. EPA’s
proposal is good news for millions of Americans, since about 90
million Americans live within 30 miles of a refinery, and many
live near more than one. There currently are about 150 petroleum
refineries in the country, located in over 30 states. Posted.
http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/jwalke/epa_proposes_to_limit_cancer-c.html


Soot Pollution Limits Unanimously Upheld in Court, Continuing
Clean Air Victory Streak. Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the D.C. Circuit unanimously upheld the Environmental
Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) particulate matter (soot) pollution
standard, ruling that EPA’s decision to strengthen the standard
in 2012 was firmly grounded in science and the law. The ruling
also upheld EPA’s new requirement that states install air quality
monitors near heavy traffic roads, where soot pollution levels
can spike. Posted.
http://blogs.edf.org/climate411/2014/05/16/soot-pollution-limits-unanimously-upheld-in-court-continuing-clean-air-victory-streak/#sthash.4uDxBbsL.dpuf

Why carbon emissions are material for transportation companies.
Federal law requires companies to disclose material information
through various standardized forms and the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) explicitly has noted that this includes
extra-financial factors that may affect investment outcomes.
Furthermore, institutional investors and asset managers have a
fiduciary duty to consider all material issues when making
investment decisions. Posted.
http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2014/05/15/why-carbon-emissions-are-material-transportation-companies





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