What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for October 28, 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

Modular Air Filtering Towers Could Solve China’s Air Pollution
Along with its economical rise, China also recorded a boom on its
automotive sector, with over 20 million cars being bought there
in 2013 alone. Add the fact that most of those cars are used in
urban environments, the country’s success relying on energy
created by burning coal, thousands of factories spewing
uncontrolled emissions and you get the idea about what kind of
air pollution problems some of the cities are confronted with.
http://www.autoevolution.com/news/modular-air-filtering-towers-could-solve-chinas-air-pollution-88230.html


NPS seeks public thoughts on air pollution in national parks
The National Park Service (NPS) is opening a new public comment
period on its plan to survey visitors about how well they can see
in national parks. NPS is following up on a pilot study it did
two years ago to see how people perceive the effects of air
pollution on non-urban national parks and wilderness areas. It is
seeking permission from the Office of Management & Budget to
conduct a broader follow-up survey.
http://www.examiner.com/article/nps-seeks-public-thoughts-on-air-pollution-national-parks



CLIMATE CHANGE

UN expert: Keep up hope amid climate change battle
A top U.N. climate change expert urged world governments Monday
not to be overcome by hopelessness as they negotiate a new
agreement to fight global warming.    Rajendra Pachauri, chairman
of the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate...	
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2014/10/27/3316646/un-envoy-keep-up-hope-amid-climate.html?ihp=0&sp=%2f99%2f177%2f507%2f349%2f

Naomi Oreskes Imagines the Future History of Climate Change
“Without spoiling the story,” she told me, “I can tell you that a
lot of what happens — floods, droughts, mass migrations, the end
of humanity in Africa and Australia — is the result of inaction
to very clear warnings” about climate change caused by humans. 
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/28/science/naomi-oreskes-imagines-the-future-history-of-climate-change.html?ref=earth&_r=0

US military refuses to be 'too late' on climate change
...comprehending the deadly purpose of a potential enemy. Too
late in realizing the mortal danger. Too late in preparedness.
Too late in uniting all possible forces for resistance."   
Today, as we pass another global heat record, we run the risk of
being too late on climate change, endlessly debating causes at
the expense of sensible actions. Just as we have underestimated
recent threats, such as the Islamic State and a revanchist
Russia, we are in danger of underestimating those threats that
follow a changing...
http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article3413993.html




HIGH-SPEED RAIL

Bullet train just a blur in California governor's race
...presided over a series of key political and legal victories
related to high-speed rail over the last two years, including
securing the $6-billion appropriation in 2012, winning a
commitment from the Legislature to allocate 25% of the state's
revenue from future greenhouse gas fees to the project and
repelling a court challenge to the validity of spending plans.   
But there are a number of ongoing challenges that could affect
costs and schedules.    
http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-campaign-train-20141028-story.html




FUELS

California Energy Commission to award up to $3M for advanced
biofuel projects	
The California Energy Commission's Alternative and Renewable Fuel
and Vehicle Technology Program (ARFVTP) announced (PON-14-602)
the availability of up to $3 million in grant funds for biofuels
projects that are in the early/pre-commercial technology
development stage. This solicitation is emphasizing
transformative technology solutions to significant biofuels
industry problems that increase yields, productivity, or cost
effectiveness...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2014/10/20141028-cec.html 



VEHICLES

Electric-car drivers trading gas for solar power
Owners of electric vehicles have already gone gas-free. Now, a
growing number are powering their cars with sunlight.  Solar
panels installed on the roof of a home or garage can easily
generate enough electricity to power an electric or plug-in
gas-electric hybrid vehicle. The panels aren't cheap, and neither
are the cars. A Ford Fusion Energi plug-in sedan, for example, is
$7,200 more than an equivalent gas-powered Fusion even after a
$4,007 federal tax credit.
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/usnews/ci_26813925/electric-car-drivers-trading-gas-solar-power




GREEN ENERGY

Next steps for desert renewable energy planning: public meetings
Last month, state and federal officials released a plan to carve
out more than 31-hundred square miles of desert for projects like
solar arrays and wind farms. The Desert Renewable Energy
Conservation Plan also seeks to designate another chunk of
scrubland as nature preserves.    Now there's public comment –
and public meetings. Officials have scheduled a series of
presentations in the counties affected by the Plan.
 http://www.scpr.org/news/2014/10/27/47631/next-steps-for-desert-renewable-energy-planning-pu/




UC Merced sets goal of 100 percent renewable energy by late 2016

...Solar Field in 2009. The campus plans to expand its solar farm
and install panels on rooftops, which could help the campus get
100 percent of its energy from renewable resources by 2016.    UC
Merced leaders say the campus could be completely powered through
renewable energy by the end of 2016, sooner than originally
planned.    The campus already gets about 15 percent of its power
from its solar panels, and will get 60 percent from a Fresno
County solar site in the next couple of years.    The
University...
http://www.modbee.com/2014/10/27/3613986/uc-merced-sets-goal-of-100-percent.html?sp=%2f99%2f1623%2f2307%2f



OPINION

China Won't Breathe Easy Until Port Pollution Solved
As President Barack Obama and Asia-Pacific leaders gather in
Beijing for the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
summit, climate change and air pollution will undoubtedly be on
the agenda. This summit provides an important opportunity for
these leaders to address one of the most significant, and largely
unregulated, sources of toxic air pollutants and black-carbon
emissions in Asia: ports and shipping systems. 
http://www.livescience.com/48494-china-considering-cleaning-up-shipping-and-port-pollution.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Livesciencecom+%28LiveScience.com+Science+Headline+Feed%29




BLOGS

California Energy Strategists Push for 100% Clean Energy, Without
Fossil Fuels or Nuclear Power
...session that could have national and global implications.   
Many in the assemblage had come to brainstorm about how to
leverage California's model energy policies to spur faster
Federal action to protect the climate. Predictably, participants
sought to boost renewable energy use in California and increase
the state's reliance on energy efficiency. Some were determined,
however, not just to slash California's greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions, but to eliminate them altogether
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-j-berger/california-energy-strateg_b_6051616.html?ir=San+Francisco&utm_hp_ref=san-francisco


Will falling gas prices be bad for the climate?
...prices, was trading below $85 per barrel. That translates into
cheaper prices at the pump. From Sept. 15 to Oct. 20, average gas
prices in the U.S. slid from $3.49 per gallon to $3.21. “Lower
oil prices could pose a challenge for the transition to
post-carbon sustainability,” says Anthony Perl, a professor at
Simon Fraser University in British Columbia who researches the
intersection of transportation, cities, and the environment. “I
would liken it to hitting the snooze alarm on our wake-up call. 
http://grist.org/business-technology/will-falling-gas-prices-be-bad-for-the-climate




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