What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for August 6, 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.

AIR POLLUTION

China to ban all coal use in Beijing by 2020. China's
smog-plagued capital has announced plans to ban the use of coal
by the end of 2020 as the country fights deadly levels of
pollution, especially in major cities. Beijing's Municipal
Environmental Protection Bureau posted the plan on its website
Monday, saying the city would instead prioritize electricity and
natural gas for heating.  Posted. 
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_CHINA_BEIJING_COAL_BAN?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/China-to-ban-all-coal-use-in-Beijing-by-2020-5670673.php

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/aug/05/china-to-ban-all-coal-use-in-beijing-by-2020/

http://ens-newswire.com/2014/08/06/beijing-bans-coal-burning-to-clear-the-air/


Residents: Restrict emissions at oil refineries. Environmental
advocates and residents living near oil refineries asked the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday to force petroleum
companies to adopt stricter emissions standards and publicly
release emissions data to help reduce communities' exposure to a
cancer-causing chemical. Posted.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_OIL_REFINERIES_AIR_POLLUTION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Texas-public-hearing-on-oil-refinery-rules-5668362.php


Singapore's ground-breaking haze law faces uphill challenge.
Indonesia's complex rules on land use and the difficulty in
prosecuting foreign businesses mean Singapore has its work cut
out bringing companies to book under its new cross-border air
pollution law. The bill, approved by parliament on Tuesday, has
won praise from politicians and environmentalists as a bold move
to tackle a decades-long problem of smoke from forest fires in
neighboring Indonesia choking the city state. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/us-singapore-haze-idUSKBN0G611P20140806


Reducing Carbon by Curbing Population. Remember the population
explosion? When population was growing at its fastest rate in
human history in the decades after World War II, the sense that
overpopulation was stunting economic development and stoking
political instability took hold from New Delhi to the United
Nations’ headquarters in New York, sending policy makers on an
urgent quest to stop it. In the 1970s the Indian government
forcibly sterilized millions of women. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/06/business/economy/population-curbs-as-a-means-to-cut-carbon-emissions.html?_r=0


CLIMATE CHANGE

For most of us, global warming has become 'normal' climate.
Global warming has been going on for so long that most people
were not even born the last time the Earth was cooler than
average in 1985 in a shift that is altering perceptions of a
"normal" climate, scientists said. Decades of climate change
bring risks that people will accept higher temperatures, with
more heatwaves, downpours and droughts, as normal and complicate
government plans to do more to cut emissions of greenhouse gas
emissions. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/us-climatechange-warming-idUSKBN0G61BC20140806

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/chi-warm-climate-norm-20140806,0,3336725.story


African negotiators urge U.S. leadership for U.N. climate deal.
African climate negotiators attending the U.S.-Africa Leaders
Summit in Washington this week said leadership from the United
States is critical to finalizing a global deal on measures to
address climate change in 2015 after years of deadlock. Officials
from Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana and
Ethiopia said they were optimistic an agreement could be
reached…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/us-africa-summit-climatechange-idUSKBN0G61UH20140806


Preparing for Climate Disasters to Get $100 Million Fund.  The
U.S. Agency for International Development and the Rockefeller
Foundation are starting a $100 million project to prepare
vulnerable communities for climate-caused humanitarian disasters
before they happen. The initiative, which will start in Africa’s
Sahel region and be announced today at the U.S.-Africa Leaders
Summit in Washington, is aimed at the droughts, typhoons and
wildfires…Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-04/preparing-for-climate-disasters-to-get-100-million-fund.html


EPA to hold climate change hearing in Portland. Officials from
the federal Environmental Protection Agency will take comments
from the public at the University of Southern Maine about the
agency's proposal to cut carbon emissions from power plants.
Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/EPA-to-hold-climate-change-hearing-in-Portland-5669729.php


Mount Rainier's climate change butterfly effect. With a pirouette
and swoosh of his net, John McLaughlin is after his quarry. Up
here in the rarefied realm of Mount Rainier's alpine meadows, the
mountain, glaciered and magnificent, seems close enough to touch.
Velvet green meadows pool with teal lakes. But McLaughlin has
eyes only for the lovely denizens of the high country:
butterflies, gliding from flower to flower. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/Mount-Rainier-s-climate-change-butterfly-effect-5672173.php


Tornado Outbreaks Could Have a Climate Change Assist.  Days with
more tornadoes have become more common over the past 60 years, a
trend that new research says could have a climate change
connection. Understanding the connection between climate change
and tornadoes, if any, is one of the most fraught areas of
research. Posted. 
http://www.vcstar.com/news/state/tornado-outbreaks-could-have-a-climate-change-assist_94344853
 

Putting a Climate Context on SoCal's Flash Foods.  A confluence
of extreme atmospheric conditions over Southern California,
possibly with an assist from the intense drought in the state,
set the stage for the torrential rains and flash flooding that
washed away cars and homes in some areas like Mt. Baldy on
Sunday. And while the U.S. Southwest is expected to increasingly
dry out in a warming world, when it does rain it is more likely
to come as a heavy downpour. Posted.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/state/putting-a-climate-context-on-socals-flash-foods_37374932


DROUGHT

Calif. allows fines to force urban conservation, but cities
aren't biting yet. California is giving local governments more
authority over urban water wasters as the state's historic
drought continues, but cities are loath to exercise their new
powers. Emergency regulations went into effect last week that
allow water agencies to fine residents up to $500 per day per
wasteful activity, including washing sidewalks…Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1060004138/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

FUELS

Gasoline Rebounds From Six-Month Low as Inventories Drop.
Gasoline futures rebounded from a six-month low after a
government report showed inventories of the fuel dropped the most
in four months and demand rose. Crude oil was little changed.
Prices headed for the biggest one-day gain since June, widening
the profit refineries make from processing a barrel of crude into
the fuel. Stockpiles decreased 4.39 million barrels last week,
the most since April…Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-06/oil-prices-rebound-from-six-month-low-as-gasoline-climbs.html

http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/markets-oil-idINL4N0QC13P20140806


Boeing, South African Airways to make jet fuel from tobacco. U.S.
planemaker Boeing has teamed up with South African Airways to
develop jet fuel from a tobacco plant as part of efforts to cut
carbon emissions and promote green energy in Africa's most
advanced economy. The jet fuel will be made from a hybrid tobacco
plant known as Solaris, which will be produced by alternative jet
fuel maker SkyNRG, both companies said in a joint statement on
Wednesday. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/us-boeing-saa-jetfuel-idUSKBN0G610X20140806


Mexican Congress Approves New Rules for Oil Industry. Mexico’s
Congress approved on Tuesday a sweeping overhaul of the energy
industry that cleared the way for international giants to tap
Mexico’s rich reserves of oil and gas. The new legislation is the
centerpiece of President Enrique Peña Nieto’s plan to jump-start
economic growth by allowing competition in one of Mexico’s most
stagnant sectors. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/06/business/international/mexican-congress-approves-new-rules-for-oil-industry.html


Fracking operation must rework application. The Louisiana
Geological Survey has rendered invalid Helis Oil & Gas Co.'s
application for an Army Corps of Engineers' wetlands permit for
its proposed oil drilling and fracking project near Mandeville.
The move means Helis must submit a revised application for which
the public comment period would begin anew. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Fracking-operation-must-rework-application-5671653.php


VEHICLES

Mitsubishi Motors plans new plug-in SUV ahead of EU pollution
rules. Mitsubishi Motors Corp will launch a second plug-in hybrid
SUV in about two years time, its president said on Wednesday, as
the Japanese carmaker seeks to capitalise on higher demand for
environmentally friendly cars ahead of tough anti-pollution rules
planned in Europe in 2020. Mitsubishi started selling its
Outlander plug-in hybrid SUV in January 2013. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/mitsubishimotors-autos-hybrid-idUSL4N0QC1BX20140806


2015 VW e-Golf, 2016 Audi A3 e-tron Get Carbon Offset Program,
Offer Of Home-Solar Systems. When it comes to carbon emissions,
there's more to consider than what comes out of a car's tailpipe
(if it has one). For buyers looking to cancel out the emissions
involved in producing, delivering, and charging plug-in cars,
carbon offset programs could be the answer. Now the Volkswagen
Group has announced a carbon-offset program for its upcoming 2015
Volkswagen e-Golf electric car…Posted.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1093702_2015-vw-e-golf-2016-audi-a3-e-tron-get-carbon-offset-program-offer-of-home-solar-systems

http://www.evworld.com/news.cfm?rssid=33784 

HIGH-SPEED RAIL

Delays Persist for U.S. High-Speed Rail. On a 30-mile stretch of
railroad between Westerly and Cranston, R.I., Amtrak’s
150-mile-per-hour Acela hits its top speed — for five or 10
minutes. On the crowded New York to Washington corridor, the
Acela averages only 80 m.p.h., and plans to bring it up to
Japanese bullet-train speeds will take $150 billion and 26 years,
if it ever happens. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/07/us/delays-persist-for-us-high-speed-rail.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpSumSmallMediaHigh&module=second-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news


GREEN ENERGY

UPDATE 1-Britain energy market abuse penalties to include jail
terms. The British government has proposed penalties including
potential prison terms for people who manipulate the gas and
electricity markets. Energy regulators can currently investigate
and fine people found breaching rules on energy market abuse but
cannot send them to prison or impose a criminal record. The
government wants to widen those powers to safeguard consumers
from unfair practices…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/britain-energy-penalties-idUSL6N0QC1QW20140806


Butt batteries: Scientists store energy in used cigarette
filters. Scientists in South Korea say they have found a way of
converting used cigarette butts into a material capable of
storing energy that could help power everything from mobile
phones to electric cars. In a study published on Tuesday in the
journal Nanotechnology, researchers from Seoul National
University outlined how they transformed the used filters…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/06/cigarette-butts-energy-idUSL6N0QC4ZS20140806


Russia May Be Losing Influence Over European Energy Markets. The
Ukraine crisis is unlikely to produce many benefits. But it could
serve as a kind of stress test to see whether Europe’s approach
to energy policy is working. The European authorities have been
far more interventionist than their American counterparts on
energy, with the objectives of reducing carbon emissions and
promoting energy security. Now along comes an international
imbroglio in which energy is playing an outsized role. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/07/business/international/russia-may-be-losing-influence-over-european-energy-markets.html


U.S. moves to cash in on African economic promise. When Kevin
Smith and his partners started a solar energy firm in Santa
Monica in 2008, they expected to sell their technology to
advanced economies in Europe and the United States. But much of
the action has been in a part of the world Smith initially wrote
off: Africa. Not only are some of SolarReserve's biggest projects
in South Africa, but by year's end the continent is also likely
to generate the bulk of the company's sales. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-us-africa-business-20140806-story.html#page=1


California’s alternative energy arc on the agenda.  Alternative
energy is big business in Sacramento. Don’t believe us? Take a
look at the agenda for today’s Advanced Energy Economy summit, a
convening of public officials and firms invested in clean,
efficient and innovative energy sources. Among the attendees will
be billionaire kingmaker Tom Steyer, who has become a national
figure for bankrolling environmental causes and candidates.
Posted. 
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/08/06/6607850/am-alert-californias-alternative.html#storylink=cpy
 

Cap-and-trade skeptic Perea exits alternative energy panel. It
would have made for a delicate situation: a panel on California’s
alternative energy future, featuring a state Assembly member who
has been vocally questioning part of the state’s landmark
emissions-reducing program. No longer. Averting a potentially
awkward scenario, Assemblyman Henry Perea, D-Fresno, withdrew
from a panel discussion planned as part of an alternative energy
trade group’s Sacramento summit. Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/08/06/6609824/cap-and-trade-skeptic-perea-exits.html#storylink=cpy


California adding solar energy at fast clip. California's solar
energy capabilities grew by 48 percent last year as homeowners
tacked on rooftop panels and utilities tapped into giant
renewable power plants in the desert, says a study released
Tuesday. The research group California Environment calculated
that California had installed about 5.7 gigawatts of solar
generating capacity at year's end, comparable on a sunny day to
the output of five large nuclear reactors. Posted.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/aug/06/solar-energy-boom-unabated/
  

San Bernardino County Supervisors reject Apple Valley solar farm.
 County supervisors on Tuesday affirmed a Planning Commission
decision to prohibit the building of a solar farm in Apple
Valley, concurring that the project did not comply with
development standards and that the site was poorly located.
“Renewable energy projects must be carefully and thoughtfully
located. This is not the right location for this project,”
Supervisor Robert Lovingood said in a statement following
Tuesday’s meeting. Posted.
http://www.sbsun.com/government-and-politics/20140805/san-bernardino-county-supervisors-reject-apple-valley-solar-farm


MISCELLANEOUS

Sacramento leaders: Risk of oil train explosions needs to be
acknowledged. Sacramento area leaders say the city of Benicia is
failing to acknowledge the risks of explosions and fires that
could happen if the Bay Area city approves Valero’s plan to run
crude oil trains through Northern California to its refinery. The
accusation, in a draft letter released Tuesday by the Sacramento
Area Council of Governments…Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/08/05/6607840/sacramento-leaders-oil-trains.html#storylink=cpy


OPINIONS

Ruminating cattle and leaky gas pipelines: Kemp. Supporters of
natural gas promote it as a clean “bridge fuel” between the
coal-and-oil dominated energy system of the present and the
zero-emissions system of the future based on renewables and
nuclear power. Burning gas rather than coal in a power plant
produces roughly half the carbon dioxide emissions and sharply
reduces airborne pollution from mercury and other heavy metals.
Switching to gas from coal could therefore slow the rise in
global temperatures as well as produce significant health
benefits. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/04/us-climatechange-usa-methane-idUSKBN0G40AY20140804


BLOGS

Beijing Hopes to Keep Skies Bluer for Regional Forum. Beijng’s
air-quality index on Monday fell to some of its lowest levels all
year – in the single digits for two hours — after rain swept away
most of the city’s air pollution. If the government had its way,
the index, which averages about 174, would remain fixed at those
famously low levels for the rest of the month. The city plans to
heavily reduce the use of government vehicles for two
weeks…Posted.
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2014/08/06/beijing-hopes-to-keep-skies-bluer-for-regional-forum/


Will climate change worsen Ebola outbreaks? The Ebola outbreak is
“out of control” in parts of West Africa, says the head of the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Could climate change
hasten the spread of the deadly virus?  Perhaps, but the linkages
are complicated, according to limited scientific literature on
the topic. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2014/08/05/will-climate-change-worsen-ebola-outbreaks/


Big oil launches Twitter attack on ARB regarding Cap and Trade
program. Big oil has taken to social media to challenge
California authorities to explain recent statements related to
climate change regulations. In a series of several "tweets" on
social media site Twitter yesterday and today, the Western States
Petroleum Association (WSPA) accused staff of the California Air
Resources Board (ARB) of misleading the public about how
transportation fuels, consumers…Posted.
http://www.examiner.com/article/big-oil-launches-twitter-attack-on-arb-regarding-cap-and-trade-program


GM Finally Is Embracing Diesel Market With New Plans,
Projections. General Motors GM +0.57% finally has drunk the
Kool-Aid when it comes to clean-diesel power. It plans on adding
an array of new diesel passenger models to its Chevrolet Cruze
diesel, and executives have embraced even the optimistic
projections of diesel advocates when it comes to forecasting the
expansion of the market. The company’s endorsement of the future
of diesel power…Posted.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dalebuss/2014/08/06/plans-projections-show-that-gm-finally-is-embracing-diesel-market/


How Ontario Won the War on Coal. It didn’t even need a carbon tax
or cap and trade. Canadians aren’t known for boastfulness.
Recently, though, the government of Ontario couldn’t help beating
its chest a little. In April, eight months ahead of a schedule
plotted 11 years ago, Ontario’s energy ministry announced the
closing of the Thunder Bay coal-generating plant, on the shores
of Lake Superior. Posted.
http://www.slate.com/articles/business/the_juice/2014/08/ontario_s_war_on_coal_how_a_heavily_populated_heavy_industry_canadian_province.html


The plain bad economics of today’s energy prices.  Andrew Steer
says that it is bad economics to not tax pollution and
congestion, and refutes opposing claims that an energy tax is
“government overreach” or would have a negative impact on the
poor.
http://www.eco-business.com/opinion/plain-bad-economics-todays-energy-prices/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Aug+6+newsletter+-+EB+mag+issue+2&utm_content=Aug+6+newsletter+-+EB+mag+issue+2+Version+A+CID_699a2abb64d3dcc33c69f8b509d26791&utm_source=Campaign%20Monitor&utm_term=READ%20FULL%20STORY


Linde spending $4.3 million on two new hydrogen stations in
California.  If California is going to sink millions upon
millions to expand its hydrogen-refueling infrastructure,
shouldn't at least some of that infrastructure be operated by a
company that actually produces hydrogen fuel? Why, yes, and
that's the case with Linde North America. The company has
announced it will build two publicly-accessible hydrogen stations
in Northern California…Posted.
http://green.autoblog.com/2014/08/06/linde-4-million-new-hydrogen-stations-california/
  

Why Battery Electric Vehicles Will Beat Fuel Cells. Fuel cells,
like gasoline hybrid power-trains, are at best a stop-gap measure
in the electrification of the automobile industry. The best case
mass, volume and cost projections for fuel cells do not match the
current state of the art li-ion batteries. As batteries become
cheaper with higher power densities, faster charge times and more
charging cycles, any business case for fuel cells will completely
disappear. Posted.
http://green.autoblog.com/2014/08/05/why-battery-electric-vehicles-will-beat-fuel-cells/


Pollution: You Can Help Stop It. What do you think of when you
hear the word pollution? What i think of is the Earth and how
nasty it is, and how people are treating it like it is worthless.
Everyone lives on Earth so everyone needs to take care of it.
Think of Earth like a bedroom, some people keep their bedroom
clean and some people keep their bedroom dirty. The people who
keep their bedroom clean are the ones who litter the least.
Posted.
http://lakewoodobserver.com/read/2014/08/05/pollution-you-can-help-stop-it




California is in a drought emergency.
Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.