What's New List Serve Post Display

What's New List Serve Post Display

Below is the List Serve Post you selected to display.
newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for February 24, 2015

Posted: 24 Feb 2015 15:14:55
ARB Newsclips for February 24, 2015. 

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

Oil Industry Not Buying WA Gov. Inslee's Cap-and-Trade
Plan	...gathering of oil-industry executives to take a leadership
role in fighting climate change by embracing charges on carbon
emissions.  ...	
http://insideclimatenews.org/todaysnews/24022015/oil-industry-not-buying-wa-gov-inslees-cap-and-trade-plan	

AIR POLLUTION

Report: Built-up pressure causes explosion a ExxonMobil Torrance
refinery.  An explosion at the ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance
was caused by over-pressurization in an air-pollution-control
system, according to a report released Monday. The Wednesday
morning blast that injured four contractors was prompted by
pressure in an electrostatic precipitator, which controls
particulate matter emissions from a fluid catalytic cracking
unit, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management
District. 
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/torrance-652083-refinery-revealed.html


Former Firm Build execs to pay $1.8 million to asbestos victims. 
A federal court judge has ordered three former executives of the
defunct nonprofit Firm Build to pay a total of $1.8 million to
dozens of victims who were exposed to asbestos while working for
the group, the office of U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner announced
Monday. U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill on Monday ordered
Patrick Bowman, Rudy Buendia III and Joseph Cuellar to pay the
funds, which will go exclusively toward the cost of medically
monitoring the health of the 65 people who were exposed to the
cancer-causing substance at the Castle Commerce Center’s
Automotive Training Center in Atwater. 
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/news/local/crime/article11040773.html

AIR POLLUTION: EPA denies enviro objections to Texas power plant
permits.	U.S. EPA has denied several challenges by
environmentalists to the operating...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20538007146&p=19f&v=1&x=dEOCO54JUTmnbG9P_iBaaA

Green States & Black States: Obama's Climate Plan Paints U.S. in
New Colors.	At the core of Obama's plan to control greenhouse gas
emissions from more than 1,000 power plants...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20534758077&p=19f&v=1&x=EhROg1dvjq6FNa-knb6i7g

Here's Where Ocean Acidification Will Hit the U.S.
Hardest.	...study that shows that shellfisheries across the U.S.
are more vulnerable to climate change's less considered
counterpart than previously thought....	
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/ocean-acidification-in-us-18693

Scientists Find Troubling Link Between Air Pollution And Suicide.
 Suicide may be linked to air pollution, according to new
research that finds spikes in completed suicides in the days
following peak pollution levels. The research took place in Utah,
part of the United States’ western “suicide belt.” Suicide is the
10th-leading cause of death in the United States; in Utah, it is
the eighth. Though the notion that suicide and air quality could
be linked may not seem intuitive, similar studies in South Korea,
Taiwan and Canada have also linked the two.
https://www.yahoo.com/health/scientists-find-troubling-link-between-air-111864299512.html

CLIMATE CHANGE	

Head Of U.N. Climate Change Panel Resigns Amid Harassment
Allegations.  The chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change, Rajendra K. Pachauri, stepped down today amid
allegations of sexual misconduct that have engulfed the
celebrated Indian economist and engineer.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/02/24/388715920/head-of-u-n-climate-change-panel-resigns-amid-harassment-allegations

McCarthy Seeks to Convince Governors Of Merits of Proposed Clean
Power Plan	...Association meeting, told skeptics like Wyoming
Gov. Matt Mead (R) the proposed carbon pollution limits for power
plants would not significantly increase...	
http://www.bna.com/mccarthy-seeks-convince-n17179923332/

San Mateo County looks to ditch PG&E, jump into renewable energy
movement
REDWOOD CITY -- In the latest sign that a Bay Area renewable
energy trend is picking up steam, San Mateo County is taking...	
http://www.mercurynews.com/san-mateo-county-times/ci_27583128/san-mateo-county-looks-ditch-pg-e-jump
	
Planting 'climate smart' agriculture in the U.S. -- a difficult
but vital chore	The agricultural sector cannot afford to ignore
climate change.	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20534540265&p=19f&v=1&x=xU5G2HLrFTOIqMGXzNZhGA

SCIENCE: Climate change may be to blame for frigid
Northeast.	Biting winds and frigid temperatures terrorizing the
Northeast can be linked to climate change, according to
scientists at Rutgers and Wisconsin...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20534540390&p=19f&v=1&x=bwPTPYOw65VngnqFkBZijw
	
BUSINESS: Companies begin to teach climate advocates how to
reduce CO2.	...head-turning results about the company's carbon
footprint after tallying its greenhouse gas emissions, which came
from HP's supply chain, the...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20544267515&p=19f&v=1&x=EIUwPwWWS3-czGpVpoBFDA	

CLIMATE: Grijalva probes other scientists for ties to fossil
fuels.	...sources of income for scientists who have challenged
the scientific consensus on climate change or who are affiliated
with groups that do.	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20544293137&p=19f&v=1&x=raLy2o5ChPQSzIaIPllkyg

2 Harvard Law profs back EPA in Clean Power Plan lawsuit.	...U.S.
EPA's defense last week in a lawsuit challenging the agency's
proposed greenhouse gas standards for power plants.	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20538008264&p=19f&v=1&x=WhbZue7Y80M6e_9_-TUzjA

Fighting Back Against Climate Change.	...aimed at deliberate,
large-scale intervention in the climate system to counter global
warming'' -- is a possible tourniquet that might crudely
blunt,...		Climate Change
Climate change may flatten Santa Cruz's famed surfing
waves	...parallel to the coast rather than toward it. This
change, coupled with dramatic sea level rise, could eradicate
today's surfing spots. Scientists...	
http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_27584934/climate-change-may-flatten-santa-cruzs-famed

What do Drought, Record Heat, Chilling Temperatures and Massive
Snow Add Up To?	...people feel safe jumping out of their
second-story windows in Boston?        Climate change, quite
possibly.     Scientists are trying hard to...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20534419959&p=19f&v=1&x=hHKRfJ0jwwWaTyYKTg7IgQ
	
Talk of oil prices leads to regulatory discussion. ...the well
stimulation technique known as hydraulic fracturing, laws
limiting greenhouse gas emissions, the likelihood of new
groundwater
regulations...	http://www.bakersfieldcalifornian.com/business/kern-gusher/x1559713538/Talk-of-oil-prices-leads-to-regulatory-discussion

A Lesson For Harvard Students: Fossil Fuel Divestment Won't Save
The Planet.	...ability of students to study and thrive free from
the threat of catastrophic climate change, and to future damage
to the university's physical...	
http://www.forbes.com/sites/lorensteffy/2015/02/23/why-harvards-fossil-fuel-divestment-wont-save-the-planet/

Climate Change Impacts Absent from FEMA's Redrawn NYC Flood
Maps.	...of New York's flood risk, because they don't factor in
the effects of future climate change. Scientists say that by the
2080s, sea levels off...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20537285146&p=19f&v=1&x=2ahfh4u3u8VdSYIZsPR9xg
	
FEMA Will Require States to Examine Climate Risks in Disaster
Planning.	...Management Agency is about to make a significant
shift in the way it handles climate change.    FEMA will soon
require states to examine the impacts...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20537285135&p=19f&v=1&x=s30zmui4ib4DFbVt4CFYSg

U.K. on Track to Meet Its Renewable Energy Targets. 	The U.K. is
on track to meet its renewable energy goals, with wind power
substituting...	
http://insideclimatenews.org/todaysnews/23022015/uk-track-meet-its-renewable-energy-targets

Technology changing the climate debate.	...down in history as the
moment when technology transformed the debate about climate
change. Instead of an argument about "the science"
indicating...	
http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article11058203.html

Scientific Journals Alerted to Fossil Fuel Funding of Contrarian
Climate Studies.	...Credit: Screenshot from the Heartland
Institute's International Conference on Climate Change/July 2014.
   A watchdog group alerted nine scientific...	
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/23022015/scientific-journals-alerted-fossil-fuel-funding-contrarian-climate-studies

DROUGHT

Is drought the new normal for Southern California?	...weather
cell, drawing more moisture into the deep tropics and broadening
areas of drought at higher latitudes, according to a new study.  
 The U.S. west,...	
http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-climate-drought-california-20150223-story.html

DROUGHT: Dry conditions in Calif. eased slightly by winter
storms.	...rivers, or heavy storms, have dropped about a foot of
water in some parts of California, modestly easing the ongoing
drought, experts said Thursday.	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20534540503&p=19f&v=1&x=AP5mvTc2Sq-pGaad0MjjZg

Water thefts on the rise in California.	As California's drought
drags on, officials are cracking down on thieves...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20538361231&p=19f&v=1&x=0eE_sxCVuN49FMKJ7jeFoA

It may seem like a healthy dose of rainfall for L.A., but it's
not.	...rain or a big storm or two in Los Angeles can make it
seem as though Southern California is getting a healthy dose of
rainfall.    But in fact, the city's...	
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-0224-rain-totals-20150225-story.html

WEATHER: Rain didn't help drought.	Weekend storms that brought
much-needed rain to Southern California wasn't enough to help the
drought.    Two days of rain...	
http://www.pe.com/articles/water-760930-california-percent.html

Sacramento to speed up water meter installations.	...installing
water meters in every home and business in the city. Citing
severe drought conditions that show no signs of letting up,
utilities officials...	
http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/city-beat/article11040677.html

FUELS

E.P.A. Issues Stiffer Rules on Vehicle Fuel Ratings.  After two
years of imposing increasingly stiff penalties on automakers that
overstate their fuel economy ratings, federal regulators on
Monday said they would tighten guidelines used in determining the
mileage advertised to consumers. Next year, automakers will face
stricter rules for conducting a crucial test or face an audit by
the Environmental Protection Agency and potential penalties. The
rules for the test had not been updated in over 10 years.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/24/business/energy-environment/epa-issues-stiffer-rules-on-vehicle-fuel-ratings.html?ref=energy-environment&_r=0


5 ways the Keystone saga could end.  President Barack Obama plans
to veto Congress’ Keystone XL pipeline bill soon after he gets it
Tuesday — yet that’s just the beginning of the unpredictable next
phase in the project’s journey through the Washington wringer. A
veto could doom the congressional push for Keystone, since
Republicans lack the votes for an override. But the White House
and State Department still must decide the larger question of
whether to allow construction of the $8 billion Canada-to-Texas
heavy-oil pipeline, and that means both supporters and opponents
will be making a final push in a lobbying feud that has already
devoured years and tens of millions of dollars.
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/02/keystone-xl-pipeline-five-ways-ending-115437.html


Cow Manure to Ethanol Plant Switches On in California’s San
Joaquin Valley.  The San Joaquin Valley has become America’s
breadbasket over the past few decades. Products including
pistachios, almonds, citrus, stone fruit, cotton, and grapes are
grown here and distributed all over the United States and are
exported around the world. Tulare County, about a three-hour
drive north of Los Angeles, recently surpassed nearby Fresno
County to become the wealthiest agricultural county in the U.S.
Home to 450,000 people, Tulare is also the top dairy producing
country in the U.S. That means a lot of cows, which means a lot
of manure, and in turn, all that agricultural activity has
contributed to a region that has one of the worst air pollution
records in the country. Furthermore, effluent from cow waste is a
huge threat to what already are the San Joaquin Valley’s stressed
watersheds.
http://cleantechnica.com/2015/02/24/cow-manure-ethanol-plant-switches-californias-san-joaquin-valley/


BIOFUELS: DOE to provide $10M for advanced technology
projects.	The Department of Energy said Friday that it would
provide $10 million to seven...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20538008340&p=19f&v=1&x=7ocjlwuOO1To8mE67OfDHg

Oregon May Get Rid of Ethanol in Gasoline.	...Fuel Standard that,
in part, mandates the amount of ethanol in the nation's gasoline.
The issue could even turn into a major point in upcoming
elections....	
http://insideclimatenews.org/todaysnews/23022015/oregon-may-get-rid-ethanol-gasoline

Business leaders to share insights at Modesto forum.	...leaders
Dan Costa and Mike Zagaris won't try to explain conditions such
as cheap gasoline prices or what's driving the nation's economic
recovery. At a...	
http://www.modbee.com/news/local/article11049509.html

Gasoline Prices Rise For Second Time Since June in Survey. The
average price of regular gasoline at U.S. pumps rose for the
second time since June, climbing 13.2...	
http://www.ttnews.com/articles/basetemplate.aspx?storyid=37468
	
GREEN ENERGY

Bill Gates and Other Business Leaders Urge U.S. to Increase
Energy Research.  The government is spending far too little money
on energy research, putting at risk the long-term goals of
reducing carbon emissions and alleviating energy poverty, some of
the country’s top business leaders found in a new report. The
American Energy Innovation Council, a group of six executives
that includes the Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and the General
Electric chief Jeffrey R. Immelt, urged Congress and the White
House to make expanded energy research a strategic national
priority.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/24/us/top-us-business-leaders-urge-increased-energy-research.html


San Mateo County looks to ditch PG&E, jump into renewable energy
movement.  In the latest sign that a Bay Area renewable energy
trend is picking up steam, San Mateo County is taking a close
look at buying its own power on the open market, instead of
relying on PG&E, in a bid to lower its greenhouse gas emissions.
The county is exploring whether to establish a community choice
aggregation program, which allows local governments to create
their own energy portfolios that rely more on alternative sources
like wind and solar and less on fossil fuels. On Tuesday, the
board of supervisors will vote on allocating $300,000 toward a
technical study of the proposal.
http://www.mercurynews.com/san-mateo-county-times/ci_27583128/san-mateo-county-looks-ditch-pg-e-jump


Japan Panel Proposes Solar Tariff Cut of as Much as 16% on
Costs.	Japan is considering reducing the incentives for
developers of solar power projects by as much as 16 percent to
reflect lower operating...	
http://insideclimatenews.org/todaysnews/24022015/japan-panel-proposes-solar-tariff-cut-much-16-costs

FLORIDA: Solar campaign brings in unlikely conservative groups.	A
campaign to make it easier for the solar power industry to take
root in Florida is gaining the support...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20538007154&p=19f&v=1&x=oJc1VAUVEApKw2zi0FPXPQ

Public input ends for renewable energy plans in the desert, but
not happily.	...Sugarman/KPCC    State officials have been
seeking public comment on a plan to focus renewable energy
development on about 10 percent of southern California's...	
http://www.scpr.org/news/2015/02/23/49992/public-input-ends-for-renewable-energy-plans-in-th/
	
MISCELLANEOUS

Residents express concerns over new vineyard.  Plans for 40 new
acres of vineyard atop a hill abutting Hidden Valley Lake homes
is causing a stir in the community as some residents seek the
county’s help in creating stricter mitigations to protect their
quality of life. Major concerns with the development include its
potential effects on Hidden Valley’s water quality and long-term
quantity, as well as air quality. Some residents are also
expressing grievances with how the county’s initial study of the
project has written off these potential effects of the
development as less than significant.
http://www.record-bee.com/general-news/20150223/residents-express-concerns-over-new-vineyard

San Francisco residents relying less on private
automobiles.	...transit partly because they are "a little bit
more self-conscious" about their greenhouse gas footprint.    But
mostly she suspects the city's "unbearable"...	
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-0224-california-commute-20150224-story.html

OPINION

Policing the Online Climate Conversation.	“Many climate-change
alarmists seem to claim that all climate change...
http://www.forbes.com/sites/tomzeller/2015/02/24/policing-the-online-climate-conversation/	

OTHER VIEWS: Gas tax plan should spread to more
states.	...raising revenue, gas taxes create incentives
forconservation, which reduces air pollution and carbon
emissions.Instead, Congress has been resorting...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20540643685&p=19f&v=1&x=jEXKA87AxzM2SB91tnEC5w

We know the drill, and don't like it.	...as the nation strives to
expand alternatives to dirty fossil fuels and stem greenhouse-gas
pollution, tapping reserves off the East Coast isn't...	
http://www.fresnobee.com/2015/02/23/4393098/we-know-the-drill-and-dont-like.html

Growing Corporate Power Counters Climate-Change Action, So
Reframe Debate, Book Suggests.	...economic system itself be the
main obstacle to the world collectively addressing climate
change? DON'T MISS: Will Biofuels Growth...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20534950390&p=19f&v=1&x=0bIpHUI0hYFwhUl50nENIA

Diversifying Fuel Sources Makes Good Sense.  Since President
George W. Bush declared in his 2006 State of the Union speech
thatou “America is addicted to oil,” our nation has seen a
renaissance of its renewable energy industry. And since
California adopted its Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) several
years later, our state has
been in the forefront of the shift to renewable fuels.
http://sandiego.cityandpress.com/node/9166191 

Toni Atkins: How California can improve its transportation
infrastructure.	...improvements is drying up. Cars have become
more efficient and more vehicles use no gasoline at all. That's
terrific, but it also means revenues collected...	
http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_27583084/toni-atkins-how-california-can-improve-its-transportation

J. WINSTON PORTER: Renewables need competition, not more
government subsidies.	...the state's electricity be produced by
renewables by 2030. He also called for gasoline to be reduced to
50 percent of the state's vehicle fuel by the...	
http://www.bakersfieldcalifornian.com/opinion/hot-topics/x1559713551/Renewables-need-competition-not-more-government-subsidies

What we can learn from British Columbia's carbon tax	...has had a
carbon tax. It is, on its own terms, a resounding success —
carbon emissions are falling even as the economy continues to
grow.    Not only...	
http://news.vocus.com/?a=20538389420&p=19f&v=1&x=LOoUUr54iiI7ixUJIxvhmA

BLOGS

Preventing Sea Level Rise in New York City. While Cleaning the
Air in India and China	 Last week, the New York City Panel on
Climate Change predicted a hot and stormy future for the city
that...	http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steven-cohen/preventing-sea-level-rise_b_6734948.html

United States to Provide Air Quality Data Overseas.	...EPA
Administrator McCarthy Sign Agreement to Launch Innovative
International Air Quality Program [State Department photo/ Public
Domain]    Yesterday,...	
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/barbara-a-finamore/united-states-to-provide_b_6735722.html?utm_hp_ref=green

Will China Overtake The U.S. In Electric-Car Sales This
Year?	...car), Guangzhou Auto Show [photo: ChinaAutoWeb] Enlarge
Photo Modern plug-in electric cars have been on sale in the U.S.
since December 2010,...	
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1096924_will-china-overtake-the-u-s-in-electric-car-sales-this-year

Changing the Climate Narrative.  If we wonder why the
international community has labored for 20 years without reaching
a final agreement to confront global warming, we might consider
what the dominant narrative has been. It has been mostly about
constraining progress and apportioning limits. 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-s-becker/changing-the-climate-narr_b_6737078.html

Industrialized Countries To Start Unveiling Climate-Change
Strategies. This Week	On Wednesday, the European Union will
unveil its post-2020 climate-change strategy, kicking off a
40-day period during which...	
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/forest-trends/industrialized-countries_b_6742256.html

FCO Power advances Printed Fuel Cell SOFC stack for residential
systems in existing apartments.	...Power is progressing with the
development of its next-generation solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC)
stack for residential fuel cell systems...	
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2015/02/20150224-fcopower.html
Making the Mirai fuel cell vehicle.	...Plant, which first began
production in 1959, to mark the production of the Mirai fuel cell
vehicle, which the company launched in November 2014,...	
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2015/02/20150224-mirai.html

New York City Climate Change.	...has long endeavored to be a
leader in environmental advocacy, the reality of climate change
in our lives can no longer be ignored.    Alexa Van...	
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/new-york-city-climate-change/




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

ARB What's New

preload