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CAP AND TRADE

Inslee Cap-and-Trade Bill to Open Legislative Session’s Second
Act.  If the house of origin deadline, which eclipsed Wednesday
at 5 p.m., is the unofficial starting point for the legislative
session’s second act, there’s no better curtain raiser than a
hearing in House Appropriations on Thursday afternoon for Gov.
Jay Inslee’s cap-and-trade proposal.
http://washingtonstatewire.com/blog/inslee-cap-trade-bill-open-legislative-sessions-second-act/


AIR POLLUTION

California battery recycler to close in deal with feds.  A Los
Angeles County battery recycling plant with a long history of
violations of air pollution and hazardous waste laws will close
under an agreement with federal prosecutors. The deal will result
in the "immediate and permanent" shuttering of the Exide
Technologies plant, U.S. attorney's spokesman Thom Mrozek said
Wednesday. 
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_TOXIC_RECYCLER?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


Related stories:
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-exide-plant-closure-20150312-story.html

http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/California-battery-recycler-to-close-in-deal-with-6129587.php
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/california-battery-recycler-to-close-in-deal-with-feds/2015/03/12/5521b8b2-c89c-11e4-bea5-b893e7ac3fb3_story.html

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2015/03/12/us/ap-us-toxic-recycler.html

http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_27696251/california-battery-recycler-close-deal-feds
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20150312/us-toxic-recycler


Plan to Verify Delhi Pollution Data Raises Suspicions.  This
megacity’s modest effort to warn residents about unhealthy spikes
in air pollution levels in real time may soon end, after a
decision to first send the data to be authenticated by the
central government. Some experts and activists immediately
questioned the need for such checks, accusing the government of
trying to hide — or worse, alter — data that shows Delhi’s air to
be the world’s most toxic at a time when Prime Minister Narendra
Modi is pushing for greater industrialization.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/12/world/asia/delhi-to-delay-release-of-air-quality-data.html


Norway Bets Cutting Pollution Abroad Is an Easier Battle.  Norway
is wagering it will be easier to cut carbon emissions overseas
than at home. The nation may pay about 1.5 billion euros ($1.6
billion) for emission cuts in European Union nations, or if that
negotiation fails, buy permits elsewhere under a planned global
climate deal. Norway currently expects its own greenhouse gas
levels to be about the same in 15 years, so will meet its 40
percent reduction goal by paying for curbs abroad. 
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-12/norway-bets-pollution-abroad-an-easier-battle-carbon-climate


FERC looks for consensus on form of reliability safety valve for
EPA carbon rule. With the release of U.S. EPA's final rule to
curb carbon emissions from power plants just months away, the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is trying to reach consensus
on how a so-called reliability mechanism could work to protect
needed electric generation units.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060014911/print  

CLIMATE CHANGE

New materials borrow a strategy from plants to capture more CO2.
Researchers have developed solid materials that can capture and
release carbon dioxide using less energy than conventional
chemicals used in scrubbers and smokestacks. The materials,
metal-organic frameworks, grab onto carbon dioxide at low
concentrations, densely packing it together in method that evokes
the enzyme Rubisco, which catalyzes carbon fixation in plants.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060014915/print  

EPA chief calls for 'legally binding' climate agreement, then
doesn't.  U.S. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy stepped into the
morass of U.N. negotiations yesterday, declaring that she wants
to see a "legally binding agreement" on climate change -- only to
quickly walk back the comment. Speaking at the Council on Foreign
Relations about prospects for a global accord in Paris this
December, McCarthy twice in prepared remarks said the world needs
a "legally binding agreement."
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060014918/print 

EPA Head Unbowed on Plans to Finalize Power Plant Carbon Rules
This Summer.  ...she remains unbowed in the face of attacks on
the EPA's power plant carbon pollution limits—including Senate
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's recent...	
http://www.bna.com/epa-head-unbowed-n17179923904/

'Highly vulnerable' Jamaica pleads for help to prepare for
climate change.  Jamaica's ability to prepare for climate change
is hampered by a lack of information in Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change reports and inadequate funding for adaptation
work -- a dynamic that leaves the island nation highly
vulnerable, said Orville Grey, technical officer for Jamaica's
Climate Change Division.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060014872/print

Leaked Email Reveals Who's Who List of Climate Denialists.  In
the months before the debut of the new documentary film
"Merchants of Doubt," long-time climate denialist Fred Singer
contacted more than two dozen bloggers, public relations
specialists and scientists asking for help in derailing the
documentary’s release.
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/12032015/leaked-email-reveals-whos-who-list-climate-denialists-merchants-of-doubt-oreskes-fred-singer-marc-morano-steve-milloy


Public Lands May Be America's Best Climate Defense.  ...it is one
of a handful of wilderness areas in the country that have a daily
cap on the number of visitors. This wild slice of the Sonoran
Desert is...	
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/public-lands-may-be-americas-best-climate-defense-18739

A climate change group here? In Bakersfield?  The heart of
California oil country might not be the easiest place to sign up
climate-change believers who would support a new tax on the
petroleum...	http://www.bakersfieldcalifornian.com/business/kern-gusher/x1501260752/A-climate-change-group-here-In-Bakersfield


LUMBER LIQUIDATORS/FORMALDEHYDE

Lumber Liquidators to pay for safety testing of flooring. 
Retailer Lumber Liquidators said Thursday that it stands by its
products and will pay for the safety testing of laminate floors
for customers to help ease concerns. The Toano, Virginia, company
addressed concerns raised following a "60 Minutes" report said
the company's laminate flooring made in China contained high
levels of formaldehyde, a carcinogen.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_LUMBER_LIQUIDATORS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


Related stories:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/13/business/lumber-liquidators-offers-free-tests-of-flooring-for-formaldehyde.html?_r=0
http://www.sacbee.com/news/business/article13785731.html 

Lumber Liquidators: Our floors won't make you sick.  Lumber
Liquidators (LL) has a message for customers and shareholders:
The flooring company's products are safe, and it's willing to
back up that claim by testing and, if necessary, replacing them.
The retailer sought to reassure investors and customers on
Thursday after a "60 Minutes" broadcast found that some of its
laminate flooring made in China may not meet health and safety
standards. The CBS report found that some core boards from
Chinese mills had higher levels of formaldehyde emissions, which
are carcinogenic, than are permissible under California
standards. 
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/lumber-liquidators-ceo-confident-our-products-are-safe/


FUELS

Experts develop tool to distinguish emissions from different
types of oil.  Oil is not drilled, refined, shipped or burned
equally, and climate assessments should reflect that, experts
say. Though tailpipe emissions from a gallon of gasoline remain
similar whether the fuel came from shale or a deep-sea reservoir,
the paths those hydrocarbons took to the tank have significant
carbon footprints of their own.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060014910/print

GREEN ENERGY

CARB chief Nichols talks power plan changes, 'just say no'
compliance option.  What changes should U.S. EPA make to its
Clean Power Plan proposal to add clarity and flexibility on
multi-state and regional program options? During today's OnPoint,
Mary Nichols, chairwoman of the California Air Resources Board,
discusses expected changes to the power plan as the agency
prepares its final proposal. Nichols also responds to the growing
momentum surrounding the "just say no" option for state
compliance.
http://www.eenews.net/tv/videos/1951/transcript  

Report: Wind power could be 35% of supply by 2050.  The Obama
administration is setting higher goals for wind power, saying it
could supply 35% of the nation's electricity by the year 2050.
Wind power currently generates 4.5% of electricity, but that
number is expected to more than double to 10% by 2020, says a
report obtained by USA TODAY that will be released Thursday by
the U.S. Department of Energy.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/03/12/obama-wind-power-report-energy-department/70160824/


Math and Myth Clash in Senate Hearing on Clean Power Plan. 
Officials from five states weighed in Wednesday at a Senate
hearing on the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed plan to
reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Their characterizations of the
plan ran the gamut from "misguided" and "problematic" to
"workable and practical." 
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/12032015/math-and-myth-clash-senate-hearing-clean-power-plan
 

State pens pact to work with Dutch province on climate, clean
energy advances.  California and a province in the Netherlands
will work together on climate and clean energy goals, the Golden
State said yesterday. The California Energy Commission and the
Province of Noord-Holland of the Netherlands signed an agreement
"to exchange information and collaborate on innovative
transportation energy projects" that further their ambitions for
2050 greenhouse gas reductions.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060014909/print

‘Green Bonds’ for a Parking Garage?  A state agency in
Massachusetts recently sold “green bonds,” a type of debt
designed to fund environmentally friendly projects. But the money
raised from the sale won’t go to a new park, more bike lanes or a
renewable energy facility. Instead, the Massachusetts State
College Building Authority plans to use some of the funds to
build a 725-space parking garage at Salem State University near
Boston.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/green-bonds-for-a-parking-garage-1426176294?KEYWORDS=green+energy
 

BLOGS

The Problem With Delhi’s Air Pollution Readings.  New Delhi’s air
pollution problems are becoming legendary, spoken of in the same
breath as Beijing’s. A report published last year by scientists
at Yale and Columbia universities in the U.S. said India, along
with China, had the highest average exposure to fine particular,
or PM 2.5, in the world. Such small particulates can enter the
lungs and blood stream and are linked to severe health problems
including lung cancer.
http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2015/03/12/the-problem-with-delhis-air-pollution-readings/




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