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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for January 25, 2017.

Posted: 25 Jan 2017 14:42:52
ARB Newsclips for January 25, 2017. 

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

Trump administration tells EPA to cut climate page from website:
sources. U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has
instructed the Environmental Protection Agency to remove the
climate change page from its website, two agency employees told
Reuters, the latest move by the newly minted leadership to erase
ex-President Barack Obama's climate change initiatives.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-epa-climatechange-idUSKBN15906G?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=26dd190879-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-26dd190879-327747457


The future of California's cap-and-trade program remains
uncertain as it gets its day in court. Lawyers for the state and
businesses clashed in a Sacramento appeals court Tuesday over how
much power California has to regulate greenhouse gas emissions
and whether that authority includes raising revenue for lawmakers
to spend. 
The case could determine the future of the state’s cap-and-trade
program, which requires companies to buy permits to release
greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-california-climate-court-hearing-20170124-story.html


Is it a fee or tax? California’s cap-and-trade faces tough
questions. California’s marquee climate-change program faced
tough scrutiny on Tuesday from a state appeals court judge who
seemed skeptical that the $4.4 billion raised from the state’s
cap-and-trade program complied with laws regulating taxes and
fees. “Where does this end?” Associate Justice Harry Hull asked
state lawyers at a hearing in a long-running lawsuit…
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article128494604.html#storylink=cpy


California’s Cap and Trade: Appeals Court to Decide Its Future.
Businesses looking to invalidate California’s fee for carbon
pollution take their arguments to a state appeals court Tuesday
in a case that could determine the future of one of California’s
signature efforts to combat climate change. With a central piece
of Gov. Jerry Brown’s legacy on the line, lawyers for the state
and for environmental advocacy groups will defend…
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2017/01/24/californias-cap-and-trade-appeals-court-to-decide-its-future/




Hearings begin on constitutionality of California cap and trade.
In an uncertain political landscape, cap and trade in California
faced a fresh hurdle as hearings began before an appeals court
over the constitutional legitimacy of the regime. “A long-running
lawsuit filed by the California Chamber of Commerce seeks to have
the system declared an illegal business tax that should have
required a two-thirds vote of the legislature to take effect,”…
http://calwatchdog.com/2017/01/25/hearings-begin-constitutionality-california-cap-trade/


California’s cap-and-trade faces tough questions. California’s
marquee climate-change program faced tough scrutiny on Tuesday
from a state appeals court judge who seemed skeptical that the
$4.4 billion raised from the state’s cap-and-trade program
complied with laws regulating taxes and fees. “Where does this
end?” Associate Justice Harry Hull asked state lawyers at a
hearing in a long-running lawsuit that challenges…
http://www.capoliticalreview.com/trending/californias-cap-and-trade-faces-tough-questions/

Appellate court hears arguments on cap-and-trade auction. A
Sacramento appellate court will hear oral arguments this morning
on a closely-watched lawsuit filed by CalChamber concerning the
California Air Resources Board’s cap-and-trade auction.
In 2012, CalChamber sued the ARB seeking to invalidate the
auction in violation of Proposition 13. The complaint asserts
that AB 32 does not authorize the ARB to impose fees…
http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2017/01/appellate-court-hears-arguments-cap-trade-auction/


In California, a legal battle over carbon emission auctions
(+video). An appeals court in Sacramento is set to hear a
four-year-old legal challenge to California's emissions trading
program. California Gov. Jerry Brown wants his state's
cap-and-trade program to serve as a golden example of how
industries can slash pollution. But business groups argue the
billions the program has collected through auctions amount to an
“illegal tax.”
http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/2017/0124/In-California-a-legal-battle-over-carbon-emission-auctions-video?cmpid=TW


Governor Brown tries to leverage giant new cap-and-trade deal.
Gov. Jerry Brown proposes a budget that eliminates a projected $2
billion deficit for the upcoming year. Brown wants the
Legislature, where Democrats gained a two-thirds majority in both
houses in the November election, to use that power to extend the
cap-and-trade program beyond 2020.
https://calnewseditor.wordpress.com/2017/01/24/governor-brown-tries-to-leverage-giant-new-cap-and-trade-deal/


Amid legal uncertainty, California agency proposes cap-and-trade
expansion 
Dive Brief: •The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has
proposed a plan that would raise the bar on the state’s efforts
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. •CARB’s scoping plan calls
for reducing GHGs 40% below 1990 levels by 2030, extending the
state’s carbon dioxide cap and trade program to 2030, reducing
GHGs from refineries by 20%...
http://www.utilitydive.com/news/amid-legal-uncertainty-california-agency-proposes-cap-and-trade-expansion/434691/


California Appellate Court Hears Arguments in Cap-and-Trade
Program Challenge. Court of Appeal Justices Appear Inclined to
Reject Industry’s Constitutional Attack on State’s Cap-and-Trade
Auction System. On Tuesday, the California Court of Appeal in
Sacramento heard oral arguments in the most formidable legal
challenge to the State of California’s ambitious, multifaceted
efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
http://legal-planet.org/2017/01/25/california-appellate-court-hears-arguments-in-cap-and-trade-program-challenge/


Court weighs whether cap and trade is a fee or a tax — or
'neither'. Judges considering a challenge against California's
landmark climate change laws asked pointed questions yesterday
aimed at figuring out its status under the state's tax rules.
California businesses argued in the 3rd District Court of Appeal
that the state lacks authority to conduct auctions of greenhouse
gas permits…
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/25/stories/1060048949 

AIR POLLUTION

Judge protects Chevron's assets in $9.5B pollution fight. An
Ontario judge last week protected Chevron Corp.'s Canadian assets
from being seized; dealing a blow to Ecuadorean villagers who say
the oil giant polluted their land. The ruling is the latest
development in a 24-year-old legal battle between Chevron and
Ecuadorean villagers that has played out in courtrooms around the
globe.
http://www.eenews.net/energywire/2017/01/25/stories/1060048908 

CLIMATE CHANGE
EU body: Climate change poses increasingly severe risks. The
European Environment Agency says the continent is facing rising
sea levels and more extreme weather, such as more frequent and
more intense heat waves, flooding, droughts and storms because of
climate change. The Copenhagen-based agency says that its
assessment is based on the latest trends and projections on
climate change and its impacts across Europe.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-01-25/exxon-praises-monumental-paris-agreement-in-signal-to-trump


Trump’s Climate Stance Threatens to Worsen China Relations.
President Donald Trump’s vow to pull back from climate-change
efforts endangers one of the few areas where China and the U.S.
have seen eye-to-eye, exacerbating tensions as he takes on more
contentious subjects. “There is a long history of countries that
struggle to get along, using the subject of the environment to
continue talking and build good will…
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-01-24/trump-s-climate-stance-threatens-rare-common-ground-with-china?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=f3a8c5999d-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-f3a8c5999d-327747457


California governor defiant in face of Trump agenda. Gov. Jerry
Brown forcefully defended California's efforts to curb global
warming, protect immigrants and expand health care, vowing in his
State of the State address Tuesday to fight the Trump
administration if it tries to roll back the state's
accomplishments. "California is not turning back. Not now, not
ever," he declared.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CALIFORNIA_STATE_OF_STATE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/01/24/in-a-fiery-speech-california-gov-jerry-brown-defends-climate-action-and-attacks-alternative-facts/?utm_campaign=26dd190879-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Inside
Climate News&utm_term=.e51bec25de67  

San Diego adopts urban forestry plan to boost tree canopy, slow
climate change. Neighborhoods in San Diego, especially those in
low-income and urban areas, would get significantly more trees
under a five-year “urban forestry” plan the City Council
unanimously approved on Tuesday. The proposal aims to help the
city meet the goals of its ambitious climate action plan…
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/sd-me-urban-forest-20170124-story.html

Report: Climate Change Rules Boost Economy In Central Valley. A
study finds that California's climate-friendly policies have
created a $13 billion economic boost to the Central Valley's
economy. The report, commissioned by the nonpartisan group Next
10, finds climate change policies in California have helped, not
hurt, the region's economy.
Next 10 founder Noel Perry said the study focused on three areas:
the state's air pollution cap-and-trade credit program; the
state's renewable energy goals…
http://www.kpbs.org/news/2017/jan/25/states-climate-change-rules-boosting-economy-centr/


Silenced Federal Agencies Violating Their Own Policies. Tuesday
marked a flurry of actions by the Trump administration that have
cut off some federal scientists from the outside world. The news,
reported by outlets including ProPublica, the Huffington Post,
BuzzFeed and the Associated Press, centers around the
Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/silenced-federal-agencies-are-violating-their-own-policies-21105?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=26dd190879-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-26dd190879-327747457


Donald Trump accused of breaking law by removing greenhouse gas
emission data from US government website. Campaigners claim there
is a legal requirement to publish information about carbon
emissions. The Trump administration broke US law when it ordered
information about carbon emissions to be removed from the
Environmental Protection Agency’s website, a leading
environmental campaigner has claimed.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/donald-trump-break-law-removing-greenhouse-gas-emission-data-us-government-website-epa-nationa-parks-a7545981.html


Even before formal death knell, Clean Power Plan is history. The
Clean Power Plan, as the world knows it, is dead. The Trump
administration has vowed to reverse the U.S. EPA regulation meant
to drive down carbon emissions from power plants. And although
environmental advocates will fight that decision in the courts,
the battle could rage on for years. During that time, many states
may pursue their own climate strategies.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/24/stories/1060048857 

Staff told to 'stand down' on axing climate page. Trump
administration officials appear to have walked back plans to
scrub climate change references from U.S. EPA's website. "We've
been told to stand down," an EPA employee told E&E News today.
That new directive comes after staff were told yesterday to
remove the agency's climate change page from its website,
worrying climate change activists and sending data specialists
scrambling to download files.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2017/01/25/stories/1060048975 

Agency told to remove climate from website — report. The Trump
administration has instructed U.S. EPA to get rid of mentions of
climate change from its website, Reuters reported late yesterday.
Communications staff were told to remove the agency's webpage on
climate change, according to two unnamed EPA staff members. The
move adds to concerns that a Trump administration will promote a
denial of fundamental science within its agencies.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/25/stories/1060048947

Tillerson's written responses on climate fail to satisfy Dems.
Former Exxon Mobil Corp. CEO Rex Tillerson, President Trump's
choice to lead the State Department, said at his confirmation
hearing that climate change is real but provided vague answers on
climate science and hazy replies about international climate
negotiations. What the oilman told senators in writing only
slightly clarified things.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/25/stories/1060048942 

DROUGHT

‘Snow drought’ ends for Mid-Atlantic ski resorts, and the cold
returns. It finally snowed again in the Mid-Atlantic ski country.
After a two-week hiatus, Old Man Winter returned, dropping almost
half a foot in the most snow-favorable areas, like Canaan Valley,
W.Va. Other notable locations were…
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2017/01/25/snow-drought-ends-for-mid-atlantic-ski-resorts-and-the-cold-returns/?utm_term=.b1e9b67cd3f4


From drought to floods, California staggers from one state of
emergency to the next. Despite rising flood waters across
California this week, the state's water regulator is not ready to
lift the drought-mandated water conservation ban just yet. When
it rains, it pours. In drought- and wildfire-scarred California,
it also snows, hails, and gusts. California Gov. Jerry Brown
declared a state of emergency Monday in 50 out of California’s 58
counties…
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2017/0125/From-drought-to-floods-California-staggers-from-one-state-of-emergency-to-the-next


DIESEL ACTIVITIES

San Pedro’s battleship upgrades from diesel to clean shore-side
power. The Battleship Iowa tourist attraction has become the
latest vessel to plug into electric shore-side power at the Port
of Los Angeles. The upgrade was unveiled at a Monday morning news
conference in San Pedro, where the World War II battleship has
been a popular tourist draw since it arrived in 2012. The ship’s
operational systems previously ran on a diesel generator.
http://www.dailybreeze.com/business/20170123/san-pedros-battleship-upgrades-from-diesel-to-clean-shore-side-power


FUELS

Exxon Praises ‘Monumental’ Paris Agreement in Signal to Trump.
Exxon Mobil Corp., the U.S. oil giant that’s facing
investigations over what it knew and when about climate change,
sees the Paris agreement to mitigate global warming as a
“monumental” achievement, according to a top executive. The
company supports the December 2015 Paris accord as a “very
meaningful and constructive process,” William M. Colton, Exxon’s
vice president for corporate strategic planning… 
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-01-25/exxon-praises-monumental-paris-agreement-in-signal-to-trump


California Agencies Report on Build-Out of Hydrogen Stations. The
California Energy Commission (CEC) and California Air Resources
Board (CARB) have released the annual Joint Agency Staff Report
on A.B.8: 2016 Assessment of Time and Cost Needed to Attain 100
Hydrogen Refueling Stations in California. As reported, the
analysis updates the time and cost assessments to design, permit…
http://ngtnews.com/california-agencies-report-on-build-out-of-hydrogen-refueling-stations
 
http://cafcp.org/blog/cec-and-arb-release-joint-staff-report-2017


‘Huge’ coal-to-gas switch drives down EU power emissions.
Europe’s power-sector CO2 emissions fell 4.5% in 2016 after a
“huge” switch from coal- to gas-fired generation, according to
new analysis. The figures are jointly published by the thinktanks
Sandbag and Agora Energiewende today. They show coal generation
across the EU falling by 94 terawatt hours (TWh), down 12% on a
year earlier. Gas output was up 101TWh, a 20% increase (see
chart, below).
https://www.carbonbrief.org/huge-coal-gas-switch-drives-down-eu-emissions


Enviros, now on the outs with White House, look to the courts.
President Trump yesterday began making good on his promises to
boost the oil and gas industry, signing memos reviving two
controversial pipelines that have become the face of the climate
movement and officially kicking off a war with environmentalists.
Trump directed the State Department to expedite its approval of
the Keystone XL oil pipeline that would connect Canadian oil
sands with U.S. refineries.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/01/25/stories/1060048946

GREEN ENERGY

France issues record $7.5 billion in 'green bonds'. France has
issued a record 7 billion euros ($7.5 billion) in so-called green
treasury bonds, a boost to efforts to generate investment in
clean energy. The French government celebrated the higher than
expected demand for Tuesday's bond issue. President Francois
Hollande called on others to follow France's example.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_FRANCE_GREEN_BONDS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


MISCELLANEOUS

Trump admin orders EPA contract freeze and media blackout. The
Trump administration has instituted what it described as a
temporary media blackout at the Environmental Protection Agency
and barred staff from awarding any new contracts or grants.
Emails sent to EPA staff since President Donald Trump's
inauguration on Friday and reviewed by The Associated Press
detailed specific prohibitions banning press releases…
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/APFN_US__TRUMP_AGENCIES_CRACKDOWN?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-epa-idUSKBN15822X
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal-agencies-ordered-to-restrict-their-communications/2017/01/24/9daa6aa4-e26f-11e6-ba11-63c4b4fb5a63_story.html?utm_term=.63b705fe193e

http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/EPA-contract-freeze-media-blackout-leave-states-10882102.php

http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/environment/2017/01/24/california-objects-trumps-freeze-epa-grants/97021102/

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Gag-order-freeze-put-on-EPA-other-federal-10881372.php


The Latest: National park’s climate tweets go viral. The Latest
on President Donald Trump (all times local): Three
climate-related tweets sent out by Badlands National Park have
been deleted after they went viral on Twitter, sparking debate
over whether the park was defying the Trump administration. The
South Dakota park posted tweets Tuesday that accurately quoted
climate science data…
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/the-latest-trump-repeats-unproven-claim-of-illegal-votes/2017/01/23/3235326c-e1da-11e6-a419-eefe8eff0835_story.html?utm_term=.ca2bcdef03db


Closed-loop concept could be the future of sustainable animal
farms. Dr. Eunsung Kan sees his concept of a closed-loop dairy
farm, which reuses wastewater, emits zero waste and powers itself
on manure, as the future of sustainable animal farming. 
Kan, a Texas A&M AgriLife Research chemical and environmental
engineer in Stephenville, said his concept could change the way
dairies, swine and poultry farms deal with manure…
https://phys.org/news/2017-01-closed-loop-concept-future-sustainable-animal.html#jCp


OPINIONS

The end of California's drought is much closer after recent rain.
Local reservoirs rising rapidly in response to the barrage of
rain, but we still have a ways to go to overcome effects of
drought. You know the answer already. No, the drought isn’t over
in Southern California – even with this burst of insane amounts
of rain the last five days, Alex Tardy, a National Weather
Service meteorologist in San Diego, said Monday, Jan. 23.
http://www.pe.com/articles/drought-823822-water-tardy.html 

The growing need for boardroom climate competency. Large
institutional investors, concerned about portfolio risks stemming
from the effects of global warming, are calling for
climate-competent boards and directors as part of their fiduciary
responsibility to preserve and enhance the long-term value of
their investment assets. Despite the anticipated rollback of
climate related governmental policies such as the…
http://www.pionline.com/article/20170125/ONLINE/170129925/the-growing-need-for-boardroom-climate-competency

Why California’s EPA waivers matter: The air we breathe. The
reason that Congress, back in 1970, granted California authority
to go beyond federal standards is that California had the worst
air pollution in the nation. It had already taken aggressive
action in 1967 under Gov. Ronald Reagan to address the persistent
smog that was choking the Los Angeles Basin, regularly triggering
red-flag alert days…
http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2017/01/californias-epa-waivers-matter-air-breathe/


Cap and Trade Nightmare. As Ontario rang in the New Year, the
Liberal government’s cap-and-trade scheme came into play in the
background, thus setting the stage for another crippling blow to
the wallets of working class Ontarians, and Ontario’s economy.
Canada ratified the Paris Agreement in October of 2016,
officially setting plans in motion to combat climate change.
http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ur/story/1223965 

BLOGS

Five Far Reaching Opportunities to Modernize California Natural
Gas Policy.  As he settles into his final two years as
California’s longest-serving Governor, Jerry Brown has limited
time to finalize his energy and climate policy legacy. Meanwhile,
with a new crop of state legislators and two new appointees at
the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), California has
a fresh set of actors…
http://blogs.edf.org/energyexchange/2017/01/24/five-far-reaching-opportunities-to-modernize-california-natural-gas-policy/


Endangered Species: How Environmental Rollback Could Hit Forest
Owners Hard. A few years back, the Yurok people of California
started tapping carbon markets to save their forest; they’ve
since raised millions from companies like Chevron, Tesoro, and
Calpine Energy Services by doing so – and they’re not alone. In
2015, owners of farms and private forests across the country
earned $63.2 million…
http://www.ecosystemmarketplace.com/articles/endangered-species-environmental-rollback-hit-forest-owners-hard/


In California, the Future Is Still Electric. At every level, the
state is ramping up for widespread electric vehicle adoption. And
it’s ready to throw down with President Trump. No question about
it: The next four years will darken U.S. action on climate
change. In a meeting yesterday with automakers where he promised
to roll back environmental regulations, President Donald Trump
declared, “I am, to a large extent, an environmentalist.”
http://www.citylab.com/commute/2017/01/in-california-the-future-is-still-electric/514199/


CDC Postpones Climate Change Conference: Is Trump Administration
To Blame? The CDC postponed a summit, scheduled for February
2017, on climate change and its effects on public health. The
event had been programmed before President Donald Trump's
inauguration, but it was voluntarily delayed two days after his
mandate. The president's administration never asked explicitly
for this move.
http://www.techtimes.com/articles/194195/20170125/cdc-postpones-climate-change-conference-is-trump-administration-to-blame.htm#sthash.rMeKtMvv.dpuf



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

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