What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for June 25, 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

State grants Merced money to install water meters. The state
Department of Water Resources announces $28 million for projects
around the state. The state Department of Water Resources on
Wednesday announced $28 million for 25 projects around the state
expected to save water and energy, as well as reduce greenhouse
gas emissions.
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/news/local/environment/article25448722.html

AIR POLLUTION

New Mexico coal plant owners settle with U.S. EPA over pollution.
Owners of Four Corners, a coal-fired power plant in New Mexico,
will install $160 million in technology to reduce air pollution
under a settlement announced on Wednesday by the U.S. government.
The 1,630-megawatt Four Corners plant located near Fruitland, New
Mexico, within the Navajo Nation, has been under investigation
since 2009.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/25/usa-epa-fourcorners-idUSL1N0ZB0JI20150625


CLIMATE CHANGE

Wildfires blister Alaska with increased frequency, intensity. 
Alaska residents endure the nation's harshest winters for the
reward of beautiful summer days with sunshine that lingers until
midnight. But increasingly, large wildfires have marred the
pristine outdoors, filling the skies with black smoke and forcing
people who live near forests to flee for safety.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_ALASKA_WILDFIRES_CLIMATE_TRENDS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://www.latimes.com/nation/sns-bc-us--alaska-wildfires-climate-trends-20150624-story.html


Indiana will defy Obama on climate change plan. Indiana will not
comply with President Barack Obama's plan to battle climate
change by requiring reductions in emissions from coal-fired power
plants, Republican Gov. Mike Pence said Wednesday. The proposal
as currently written, known as the Clean Power Plan, will make
Indiana electricity more expensive and less reliable and hurt
economic growth in Indiana…
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CLEAN_AIR_INDIANA?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/245968-indiana-wont-follow-epa-climate-rule-unless-significantly-improved


Parched Caribbean faces widespread drought, water shortages. The
worst drought in five years is creeping across the Caribbean,
prompting officials around the region to brace for a bone dry
summer. From Puerto Rico to Cuba to the eastern Caribbean island
of St. Lucia, crops are withering, reservoirs are drying up and
cattle are dying while forecasters worry that the situation could
only grow worse in the coming months.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CB_CARIBBEAN_DROUGHT?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


There's gold in them thar shallow California creeks, rivers.
California's prolonged drought has created opportunities for
prospectors and miners panning, sluicing, chiseling and diving
for gold. The Sacramento Bee reported (http://bit.ly/1QPTA3k)
Wednesday that gold seekers are wading into formerly deep
waterways to harvest flecks from the pea gravel and sediment in
crevices that have long been inaccessible.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CALIFORNIA_DROUGHT_GOLD_PANNING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


Big oil companies must work harder on climate, says U.N. Oil
companies should urgently intensify their efforts to fight
climate change, the United Nations climate chief said in a letter
replying to six European firms. "I would call on you to devote
urgent attention to scaling this action up and look forward to
learning about progress later in the year…
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/25/climatechange-oil-idUSL8N0ZB3FO20150625


Oil-rich Alberta lifts levy on carbon output, ups target for
cuts. Oil-rich Alberta will raise the cost of greenhouse-gas
emissions for large industrial plants and boost targets for
emission cuts as its new government took action on Thursday to
strengthen the Canadian province's environmental reputation.
Alberta is the largest source of U.S. oil imports, and its oil
sands plants are Canada's fastest-growing source of
carbon-dioxide emissions.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/25/us-canada-alberta-carbon-idUSKBN0P528U20150625


DWP to unveil plan to capture storm runoff.  It may not rain much
in Los Angeles County, but when it does, a single storm can send
up to 10 billion gallons of water surging into a vast network of
storm channels with a single destination: the Pacific Ocean. For
decades, environmental activists such as Andy Lipkis have argued
that this ritual flushing of stormwater was a form of profligacy
Los Angeles could ill afford.
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-stormwater-plan-20150625-story.html


Mono Lake's ecological crisis is a blow to wildlife, L.A. water
supply.  As this drought-stricken body of salt water recedes, the
repercussions mount: Its exposed alkaline flats are giving rise
to dust storms. A haven for endangered migrating birds has become
more vulnerable to predators. And Los Angeles' ability to divert
snowmelt from the region — which it has done for seven decades —
could be cut off.
http://www.latimes.com/science/la-me-mono-drought-20150625-story.html


Retailers’ Climate Change Efforts Lower Costs, Operational Risks.
Retailers are ramping up their sustainability initiatives to
lower costs and operational risks, in response to global warming
and changing weather patterns, according to
PricewaterhouseCoopers’s Retail & Consumer Insights Climate
Change report. As financial costs of climate change continue to
mount, businesses are becoming leaner and smarter when
considering the long-term investments they need to make to reduce
their carbon footprint…
http://www.environmentalleader.com/2015/06/25/retailers-climate-change-efforts-lower-costs-operational-risks/#ixzz3e5tBzWNS


Judge: Students’ petition on carbon emissions should be
reconsidered. A King County Superior Court judge has ruled that
the state Department of Ecology must reconsider a petition from
young climate activists seeking a crackdown on state emissions of
greenhouse gases. Eight students who unsuccessfully petitioned
the state Department of Ecology to crack down on carbon
emissions…
http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/judge-students-petition-on-carbon-emissions-should-be-reconsidered/


House Passes Bill to Let States Ignore Obama’s Climate-Change
Rule. Under House bill, governors could opt out of power-plant
regulations. House Republicans advanced a bill Wednesday that
would let states decide whether they want to follow upcoming
Obama administration rules aimed at cutting climate pollution
from power plants.
http://www.nationaljournal.com/energy/power-plant-climate-change-opt-out-house-republicans-20150624


DROUGHT

Water conservation amid drought: Who made the grade? On April 1,
as California entered a fourth year of drought, Gov. Jerry Brown
stood in a barren field that should have been smothered in snow
and demanded a 25% cut in urban water use. To comply with Brown's
mandate, the State Water Resources Control Board developed
reduction targets that each of California's more than 400 urban
water districts must meet over the next several months.
http://www.latimes.com/science/la-me-0625-drought-report-card-20150625-story.html


State water system stretched to limit, officials say. A plan to
save endangered fish has pushed California’s fragile water system
almost to the breaking point, putting additional strain on
farmers while drawing down reservoirs at Folsom and Oroville to
historically low levels. At an informal hearing Wednesday of the
State Water Resources Control Board, federal and state regulators
acknowledged…
http://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/water-and-drought/article25425739.html#storylink=cpy


Feds Give $150 Million To Help California With Drought. The U.S.
Department of Agriculture is providing $150 million to help
California deal with the on-going drought. Most of the money,
about $130 million, will pay for federal agency watershed
restoration projects in the Sierra Nevada. The Sierra snowpack
usually provides water during the spring and summer, but the snow
had already melted by late-May this year.
http://www.capradio.org/articles/2015/06/24/feds-give-$150-million-to-help-california-with-drought/


Monterey considers alternative water sources. Monterey >> Before
much of Monterey’s grass goes brown, the City Council met
Wednesday to find ways to use as much non-drinkable water for
irrigation as possible. There weren’t a lot of great options.
Monterey could run into legal issues if it starts shipping
groundwater from one area to another…
http://www.montereyherald.com/general-news/20150624/monterey-considers-alternative-water-sources


Calif.'s quirky water rights system is showing its age.
California's method for distributing surface water is under siege
as a historic drought strains supplies and nerves. Farmers whose
water rights go back 100 years or more are being forced to cut
withdrawals to help other farmers and imperiled fish. "I've been
in this region my entire life.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2015/06/25/stories/1060020893 

FUELS

UPDATE 4-California coal divestment bill clears assembly panel. 
A bill to require California's state pension funds Calpers and
CalSTRS to sell their investments in companies that generate at
least half their revenue from coal mining passed an Assembly
committee by a vote of 5-1 on Wednesday. Pension funds are under
pressure from environmental activists to halt investing in fossil
fuels…
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/24/california-divestiture-coal-idUSL1N0ZA1N320150624


Quebec Becomes Latest Hurdle to Canada’s Plans for Oil Exports.
Across Quebec, cardboard signs are popping up on lawns depicting
a broken pipe gushing black crude. “Don’t flow near us,” they
warn in French. That sums up Benoit Pigeon’s feelings about
TransCanada Corp.’s proposed C$12 billion ($9.7 billion) pipeline
that would traverse the province on its way to connect Alberta
oil-sands fields with the Atlantic Coast.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-24/quebec-becomes-latest-hurdle-to-canada-s-plans-for-oil-exports


U.S. West Coast refiners snap up Russian crude cargoes. Refiners
on the U.S. West Coast and Hawaii have stepped up purchases of
Russian crude, taking advantage of a narrow gap between U.S. and
global prices to guard against a seasonal shortage of Alaskan
supply, trade and industry sources said. Up to four tankers were
expected to carry nearly 3 million barrels of Russia's ESPO
crude…
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/25/us-oil-usa-russia-idUSKBN0P40JQ20150625


DIESEL ACTIVITIES

EPA SmartWay Plans to Expand Programs, Leadership Worldwide.
Staffers running SmartWay, the federal Environmental Protection
Agency’s voluntary program that promotes truck fuel economy and
emissions reduction, have global ambitions and plan to expand
their activities in response to anticipated steep growth in
transportation. SmartWay now deals with truck, rail and barge
transport in the U.S.
http://www.truckinginfo.com/news/story/2015/06/epa-smartway-plans-to-expand-programs-leadership-worldwide.aspx
 

VEHICLES

Battery Second Use Offsets Electric Vehicle Expenses, Improves
Grid Stability. Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) have the
potential to dramatically drive down consumption of carbon-based
fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but the relatively
high price of these vehicles — due in large part to the cost of
batteries — has presented a major impediment to widespread market
penetration.
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/articles/2015/06/battery-second-use-offsets-electric-vehicle-expenses-improves-grid-stability.html


New Home Electric-Car Charging Station Chooses Greenest Power.
Electric cars produce no tailpipe emissions, but their low
overall carbon footprint can still be reduced even further. The
cleaner the power source used to charge an electric car, the
cleaner the car becomes to operate. However, for most owners,
determining where the electricity used to charge their cars is
coming from can be difficult.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098873_new-home-electric-car-charging-station-chooses-greenest-power


The Wheel Thing: Re-imagining how cars are manufactured.
Automakers have shown great success in minimizing or eliminating
tail pipe emissions. All-electric vehicles produce none, of
course, and gasoline-powered engines are radically cleaner than
they were just a decade ago. But now, some people are pointing to
the manufacturing process as the next frontier.
http://www.scpr.org/programs/take-two/2015/06/25/43400/the-wheel-thing-re-imagining-how-cars-are-manufact/


The Six Most Efficient Electric Cars. Electric cars are the most
efficient types of automobile made, and the ones we’ve listed
below were selected as those nationally available in the U.S.
However, now that’s been said, we’ll admit the subject of “most
efficient” current-model all-electric cars is nearly a moot point
because our listed electric vehicles (EVs) are the only electric
cars available nationwide.
http://www.hybridcars.com/the-6-most-efficient--electric-cars/ 

2016 Chevrolet Cruze Sedan Unveiled; 40-MPG Highway Rating
Promised. More than a year after it was first unveiled in China,
a considerably different 2016 Chevrolet Cruze compact sedan was
launched last night for North America and other markets.
Following a typically drawn-out teaser campaign…
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098872_2016-chevrolet-cruze-sedan-unveiled-40-mpg-highway-rating-promised


GREEN ENERGY

GE invests in $348 mln windfarm after Australian subsidy deadlock
ends.  General Electric Co said it will help fund a $348 million
Australian windfarm, the country's third largest, after political
leaders ended a deadlock over state subsidies that had stalled
the $13 billion industry for over a year. GE, Swiss private
equity firm Partners Group Holding AG…
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/25/australia-renewables-windfarms-idUSL3N0ZB2F620150625


Proposed solar farm would power about 1,200 homes. Green Mountain
Power and a solar power firm are proposing to build the utility's
largest solar farm, in eastern Vermont. The utility and groSolar
want to construct a 4.9-megawatt solar farm on 50 acres of open
space just south of the Southeast State Correctional Facility in
Windsor. GMP spokeswoman Kristin Carlson says the solar arrays
would generate enough electricity to power about 1,200 homes.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2015/06/25/3695463_proposed-solar-farm-would-power.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy


Cuba wants clean energy. Can the U.S. deliver?  As Cuba attempts
to end half a century of isolation, another momentous shift is
happening. The communist island is making earnest plans to clean
up parts of its fuel supply, moving from crude oil to a portfolio
of wind, sun and sugar cane. The United States is the dominant
energy provider in the Caribbean and has more renewable energy
expertise than almost anyone.
http://www.eenews.net/energywire/2015/06/25/stories/1060020853

Power from the tides, long a dream, begins to show some muscle in
Europe, Canada. Backers of tidal power technology say 2015 is
going to be a big year on the road to commercialization.
Utility-scale projects in France, the United Kingdom and Canada
all show promise, with turbine manufacturer OpenHydro touted as
the first company likely to get two machines deployed together in
the water and connected to the grid.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2015/06/25/stories/1060020855 

Bill to extend tax advantages to renewables gets new lifeline.
Bipartisan members of the House and Senate reintroduced
legislation yesterday that would extend the use of tax-advantaged
corporate structures to renewable energy and low-carbon power
projects. The lead Senate sponsor, Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.),
described his "Master Limited Partnerships Parity Act" as a
"modest modification" of the tax code.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2015/06/25/stories/1060020855 

MISCELLANEOUS

ARB to honor winners of 2014 Haagen-Smit Clean Air Awards. The
California Air Resources Board (ARB) announced yesterday that it
will be holding a special ceremony on Thursday for the three
winners of the 2014 Haagen-Smit Clean Air Award. The award is
given to those individuals who have made outstanding
contributions to improving air quality.
http://www.examiner.com/article/arb-to-honor-winners-of-2014-haagen-smit-clean-air-awards


Gov. Jerry Brown signs new $167.6-billion state budget. Gov.
Jerry Brown signed a new $167.6-billion budget Wednesday that
expands child care, boosts funding for public schools and opens
the state's public healthcare program to children in the country
illegally, but leaves some key issues unresolved. The new
spending plan includes a $115.4-billion general fund and takes
effect July 1.
http://www.latimes.com/local/political/la-me-pc-jerry-brown-signs-california-budget-20150624-story.html

http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article25423657.html


Look up drought report cards for California’s urban water
districts. To address California's multiyear drought, Gov. Jerry
Brown ordered a 25% cut statewide in urban water use by 2016.
Individual urban water districts, depending on their level of
water use, have been ordered to reduce water consumption between
4% and 36%. Districts with a history of heavy water use must cut
more, and those that have used less will be required to reduce
less. http://graphics.latimes.com/drought-report-card/ 

How to save energy and still beat the summer heat. When it's 115
degrees outside and the thought of leaving your air-conditioned
home fills you with dread, saving energy is probably the last
thing on your mind. And that's OK. But even when you're cranking
the AC, there are ways to cut down on your energy bill — not to
mention limit your contribution to climate change — without
breaking a sweat.
http://www.desertsun.com/story/life/2015/06/24/save-energy-still-beat-summer-heat/29215161/


OPINIONS

On climate change, will Christians follow Pope Francis or Rush
Limbaugh?  Few American Christians let their faith get in the way
of their politics. They simply ignore church teachings or find
creative ways to interpret biblical passages to justify their
political views. That is why I don’t expect the new encyclical
from Pope Francis to cause much of a shift in people’s opinions
about climate change.
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-climate-francis-or-rush-20150624-story.html


Climate change is a moral issue. With the release of his
encyclical, Pope Francis has issued a moral challenge to all
people of the world. As the Catholic bishops of three dioceses in
Northern and Central California, we join our voices with his in
calling for urgent action to care for “our common home.” Please
join us in reading and prayerfully considering Laudato si’ over
the coming weeks.
http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-ed/soapbox/article25435690.html#storylink=cpy


Editorial: Protecting all of California's water. Rivers and
streams in California and much of the rest of the West are
different from those in other parts of the nation. It's not
uncommon for streams here to swell with winter rain and spring
snowmelt but dry up completely in the summer. The Los Angeles
River is a good example. Even in the wetter northern part of the
state, watercourses that continue to flow in summer are so rare…
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-clean-water-rule-20150625-story.html
 

JOHN COX: The private sector is finally getting a seat on the
bullet train. To its critics, California’s high-speed rail
project has exemplified an outsize government project draining
taxpayer money with little concern for the cost efficiencies that
are a hard fact of life in the private sector. But something
happened this week that could not only undercut that view…
http://www.bakersfield.com/News/2015/06/24/The-private-sector-is-finally-getting-a-seat-on-the-bullet-train.html

Benefits of electric cars. As a proud electric vehicle owner for
almost two years I was glad to see your June 21 front page story,
“Sparking Interest.” It did leave out a couple important
advantages of EV's, however, No. 1 being the 120-plus MPGe (miles
per gallon gasoline equivalent). I have gotten up to almost 200
MPGe. To add to that savings is the lack of maintenance.
http://www.bakersfield.com/News/Opinion/2015/06/25/Benefits-of-electric-cars.html


We can set pace, impose carbon fee. The pope's encyclical
presents a dilemma for the wealthy, such as those in the United
States. While climate change is still considered a debatable
issue here, it is a stark reality in many poor countries from
Bangladesh to Micronesia. Our everyday habits are causing them
much pain. Maybe it is time for us to think of ourselves as part
of the world and not exceptional and separate from the rest of
the world.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_28374299/june-25-letters-editor


Water to be hot topic at Knights Ferry meeting. Water and the
drought are the hottest topics in California. So it’s likely the
conversation could get a little heated tonight at the Knights
Ferry Community Center.  Stanislaus County Supervisor Bill
O’Brien, Oakdale Irrigation District General Manager Steve Knell,
county groundwater manager Walt Ward and at least one
representative of the county’s most visible hedge-fund farming
operation…
http://www.modbee.com/opinion/article25463722.html#storylink=cpy


BLOGS

Everything You Should Know about Taxing Carbon. Climate change is
hot. From the pope’s encyclical to the upcoming United Nations
conference in Paris, leaders are debating how to slow and
eventually stop the warming of our planet. We economists think we
have an answer: put a price on carbon dioxide and the other gases
driving climate change.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/beltway/2015/06/25/everything-you-should-know-about-taxing-carbon/


Dear Pope: To Tackle Climate and Poverty, Take a Hard Look at
Black Carbon. In his watershed encyclical released last week,
Pope Francis describes the two defining issues of our time --
climate change and poverty -- as essentially linked: "[A] true
ecological approach ... must integrate questions of justice in
debates on the environment, so as to hear both the cry of the
earth and the cry of the poor."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonathan-mingle/dear-pope-to-tackle-clima_b_7638764.html


American Apathy.  Why are Americans out of step with most of the
world in acknowledging that global warming is a major threat to
mankind and largely a product of human activity? A 2013 Pew
Research Center survey found that majorities abroad in both
industrialized and developing nations were more concerned than we
are about the climatic condition of the planet. It is a division
of opinion that persists to this day.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/edward-flattau/american-apathy_b_7655226.html?utm_hp_ref=climate-change


EPA to hear testimony from hundreds on renewable fuels plan.  A
federal proposal to reduce the amount of renewable fuels required
in gasoline would have a stifling impact on the ethanol industry
and goes against the intentions of Congress when it set the
standards eight years ago, opponents of the suggested changes
said.
http://fuelfix.com/blog/2015/06/24/epa-to-hear-testimony-from-hundreds-on-renewable-fuels-plan/
 

States Can Take the Lead in Reducing Methane Emissions from
Natural Gas. Natural gas can offer climate and public health
benefits, but its production too often leaks methane, a heat
trapping gas that is at least 34 times as potent as carbon
dioxide. Estimates show that natural gas production sites leak
from 1 percent to 10 percent or more of their methane.
http://www.wri.org/blog/2015/06/states-can-take-lead-reducing-methane-emissions-natural-gas


How Much Oil Does the World Have Left? The short answer to the
question posed is….a lot. Or at least way more than many groups
and people out there want you to believe. Today, the world is
swimming in oil, and prices have been sliced in half over the
past year. “Peak oil” theory for production is predicated on the
work of legendary geologist M.King Hubbert, who in 1956 employed
his now famous/infamous “Hubbert curve” to predict U.S. petroleum
production would peak in 1970.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/judeclemente/2015/06/25/how-much-oil-does-the-world-have-left/




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