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newsclips -- CARB Newsclips for April 27, 2017.
Posted: 27 Apr 2017 15:47:36
CARB Newsclips for April 27, 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. CARB BUSINESS Staff from the California Department of Transportation, the California Air Resources Board, the California Energy Commission, and the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development invite you to participate in workshops to discuss implementation of the California Sustainable Freight Action Plan (Action Plan). The workshops will be held at the locations and on the dates noted below. The agencies will follow the same format and show the same presentation at each of the workshop locations. OAKLAND: May 9, 2017 LOS ANGELES: May 30, 2017 SAN DIEGO: May 31, 2017 For more information on the California Sustainable Freight Action Plan including upcoming workshops, please visit the webpage at http://www.casustainablefreight.org/ _________________________ David Cocker, PhD University of California, Riverside. Tuesday, May 16, 2017 at 10:00 a.m., PDT (WEBCAST) Sierra Hearing Room, 2nd Floor, CalEPA Building 1001 I Street, Sacramento, California Low vapor pressure-volatile organic compounds (LVP-VOCs) are a set of VOCs currently exempted for VOC content based on a combination of boiling point, vapor pressure, and/or elution time from a GC-column. This work explores evaporation rates and secondary pollutant formation from a series of individual LVP-VOCs associated with consumer products, select generic consumer products that include these LVP-VOCs, and several hydrocarbon solvents. For more go to the announcement at: http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/seminars/cocker/cocker.htm May 8, 2017: Public Workshop to discuss ARB's Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) Program. At this workshop, ARB staff will present an overview of activities taken by the CCS program in 2016, and an initial concept of a Quantification Methodology (QM) and Permanence Protocol for CCS. https://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/ccs/meetings/meetings.htm Air Resources Board staff have posted a white paper on the health benefits of physical activity and air pollution exposure while walking and bicycling for transportation. Download the White Paper: https://www.arb.ca.gov/research/vprp/physical_activity_and_health_final_161216.pdf For more information, including the White Paper and other resources, visit our Built Environment webpage: https://www.arb.ca.gov/research/vprp/vprp.htm A fact sheet summarizing this document can be found here: https://www.arb.ca.gov/html/fact_sheets/physical_activity_fact_sheet.pdf AIR POLLUTION Appeals court grants Trump request to delay mercury air pollution case. A U.S. appeals court on Thursday granted a request from the Trump administration to put litigation on hold in which states and industry groups are challenging an Obama administration pollution control rule for mercury and other toxic emissions from power plants. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-mercury-idUSKBN17T2ZC Britain loses case to delay submission of air pollution plan. The British government has failed in a legal bid to delay the publication of its plan to tackle air pollution until after the general election on June 8. The government had gone to the High Court to extend an April 24 deadline to submit its plan to improve air quality and comply with nitrogen dioxide limits set by the European Union (EU). http://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-emissions-delay-idUKKBN17T2N7 http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-39737981 Air pollution in subways is worse than you think. Looks like there’s more unfortunate subway news approaching the platform. A new study revealed that the Toronto Transit Commission has air pollution levels 10 times greater than the levels above ground. And that’s just in Canada. “We don’t really know the health risks of riding subways,” Greg Evans, lead author of the study, told Gizmodo. “It’s an understudied area.” http://nypost.com/2017/04/26/air-pollution-in-subways-is-worse-than-you-think/ Los Angeles County gets a 'C' on UCLA's latest environmental report card. Anew UCLA environmental report card gives Los Angeles County a “C” in energy use and persistent air pollution, while rating parts of the region slightly higher for addressing other challenges. The 2017 Sustainable LA Environmental Report Card for Energy and Air Quality handed the region… http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-ucla-report-20170427-story.html Air pollution plan cannot be delayed, high court tells government. Court rules that immediate publication is essential and rejects Defra’s plea to delay until after the general election. The government has been ordered to publish tough new plans to tackle air pollution after the high court rejected attempts by ministers to keep the policy under wraps until after the general election. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/apr/27/air-pollution-plan-election-campaign-bomb-court-government CLIMATE CHANGE Republicans are rethinking their disdain for the Paris accord – creating a political headache for Trump. Supporters of Donald Trump worried he has lost his appetite for poking the establishment would probably be reassured if he were to make good on his promise to swiftly kick to the curb the Paris agreement on climate change. But the promise to snub Paris is fast becoming a political albatross for the president. http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-paris-20170427-story.html The fight against climate change in California gains an unlikely ally: Republicans. Stepping further into its role as the nation’s pioneer on climate issues, California might soon clear a hurdle that has long frustrated environmental advocates: Republicans say they’re joining the fight against global warming. Assembly Republican Leader Chad Mayes (R-Yucca Valley) and some of his colleagues are taking… http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-sac-republican-climate-change-20170427-story.html DROUGHT Despite drought’s end, conservation rules were still in place in California – until now. First the drought ended. Now the last vestiges of mandatory conservation rules are over, too. California’s main water regulatory agency ended mandatory conservation regulations for urban residents Wednesday, following Gov. Jerry Brown’s official declaration that the drought ended April 7. http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article147006834.html#storylink=cpy Drought Watch: ‘Far from Over’ City, County Water Agencies Spar Over Cachuma Contract. Members of the Santa Barbara City Council were notified in no uncertain terms by assistant water director Kelley Dyer that the recent drought is “much improved, but far from over.” Thanks to this year’s Presidents’ Day weekend rain… http://www.independent.com/news/2017/apr/27/drought-watch-far-over/ FUELS Icahn's oil refiner reports plunge in biofuels bill in 1st qtr. Biofuels compliance expenses for CVR Energy's refining unit fell to the lowest level in almost five years during the first quarter, the company said on Thursday, as the U.S. government weighs an overhaul of its renewable fuels policy. The cost of compliance credits required by the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) have fallen sharply in recent months… http://www.reuters.com/article/us-cvr-energy-biofuels-idUSKBN17T39X VEHICLES Can California hit 1.5M zero-emission vehicles by 2025? The state is lagging on Gov. Brown's ambitious ZEV goal, but investment in chargers and customer education could build more market momentum. California officials are quick to praise efforts to electrify the transportation sector, but no one is sure the state can meet its goal of having 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) on the road by 2025. http://www.utilitydive.com/news/can-california-hit-15m-zero-emission-vehicles-by-2025/441020/ GREEN ENERGY The Cheap Energy Revolution Is Here, and Coal Won’t Cut It. Fifteen charts about how Trump is building a dangerous “age of plenty on steroids.” Wind and solar are about to become unstoppable, natural gas and oil production are approaching their peak, and electric cars and batteries for the grid are waiting to take over. This is the world Donald Trump inherited as U.S. president. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-26/the-cheap-energy-revolution-is-here-and-coal-won-t-cut-it 100 percent clean energy bill introduced outside capitol. A small group of environmentalists rallied outside of the Capitol building on Thursday as Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, and Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, introduced a bill designed to combat climate change. The bill, as described by the event's Facebook page, is "the most ambitious piece of climate legislation… http://www.cbsnews.com/news/100-percent-clean-energy-bill-introduced-outside-capitol/ OPINIONS Sowing Climate Doubt Among Schoolteachers. The Heartland Institute, a conservative think tank known for attacking climate science, has been mailing a slim, glossy book to public school teachers throughout the United States. The institute says it plans to send out as many as 200,000 copies, until virtually every science educator in America has one. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/27/opinion/sowing-climate-doubt-among-schoolteachers.html?hpw&rref=opinion&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-region®ion=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well&_r=1 Remember, the drought could come back next year. When it comes to emergencies and disasters, people tend to have short memories. Much of this is human nature. When something bad happens and we’re in the thick of it we generally do whatever’s necessary to deal with the situation. But once the crisis has past we want to move on with our lives. http://www.sgvtribune.com/environment-and-nature/20170426/remember-the-drought-could-come-back-next-year Why the U.S. Should Remain in the Paris Climate Agreement. Ban Ki-moon and Robert N. Stavins. In the five decades since the first Earth Day1 was celebrated in 1970, remarkable economic growth around the world has inevitably been accompanied by significant environmental challenges. While tremendous progress has been made to address concerns about air and water quality, hazardous waste, species extinction… https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/default/files/files/publication/170400_ban-stavins_vp.pdf U.S.-China Climate Relations: Beyond Trump. The days of cooperative climate change action in Washington and Beijing were short-lived. After decades of friction in the climate arena, the United States and China spent the last three years of former U.S. President Barack Obama’s second term in office building a partnership that caught even close observers by surprise. http://www.realclearworld.com/articles/2017/04/27/us-china_climate_relations_beyond_trump.html Exxon Ordered To Pay $20 Million For Air Pollution Violations At Baytown Complex. A federal judge has fined that ExxonMobil nearly $20 million for releasing 10 million pounds of pollutants into the air from its Baytown refinery and chemical complex over the past eight years. That's right, an oil company, one of the largest in the world, has actually been held accountable for polluting in Texas of all places… http://www.houstonpress.com/news/exxon-ordered-to-pay-20-million-for-air-pollution-violations-from-baytown-complex-9393634 BLOGS Youth Suing Trump Bring Climate Fight To Washington. “We are suing because none of us and none of you have time to wait,” plaintiff Kelsey Juliana said. Back home in Hawaii, Journey Zephier is a vocal opponent of the genetically modified crop industry and its extensive use of toxic pesticides. But today, the 17-year-old activist finds himself at the center of a much larger fight: climate change. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/youth-climate-lawsuit-washington_us_590202dde4b0af6d718c4595 Trump made a lot of dumb promises, but he’s following through on destroying the globe. The one area where the Trump administration has actually made considerable progress is rolling back environmental protections. On January 20, 2017, Donald Trump stood on the steps of the U.S. Capitol and was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. https://thinkprogress.org/one-hundred-days-on-planet-trump-ca135c4a5918 Lawsuit Over Diesel Pollution Challenges California's Future Clean Air Authority. If you've ever been stuck behind a big truck on a single-lane highway, you know that conventional diesel engines stink. But that exhaust is also health hazard. That's why California has strict rules on diesel engines. But a group of truckers and construction companies wants to loosen the rules. http://audio.californiareport.org/archive/R201704250850 This one's got legs: the Ontario Climate Change Solutions Deployment Corporation. On February 17, 2017, the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (“MOECC”) took another step toward implementing the goals in the Ontario Climate Change Action Plan (“CCAP”). By filing the Ontario Climate Change Solutions Deployment Corporation regulation (the “regulation”), the MOECC created a new non-share capital corporation… http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=512e731f-205d-45fa-9a78-d8cc51c2cf75 Smithsonian Scientists Examine Impact of High-Severity Fires on Conifer Forests. Study Finds that Wildfire in a Warming Climate Could Transform Portions of Forested Landscapes into Shrubland. The ability of some conifer forests to recover after severe fire may become increasingly limited as the climate continues to warm… https://nationalzoo.si.edu/news/smithsonian-scientists-examine-impact-high-severity-fires-conifer-forests Scott Pruitt’s Lack of Action on Climate Change Puts Fishermen in Hot Water. President Donald Trump and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt have repeatedly promised to save American coal miners’ jobs as a fundamental part of his agenda. Yet even as Trump and Pruitt seek to let polluters in the coal, oil, and gas industries… https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/green/news/2017/04/27/431529/scott-pruitts-lack-action-climate-change-puts-fishermen-hot-water/ Our Editors Produced 32,508 Pounds of Carbon Emissions While Skiing This Winter. We added up the miles we drove and flew to ski this year—and discovered just how terrible our obsession is for the planet. ere at Outside, we love to ski. In terms of favorite pastimes, only running and competitive margarita making come close. Yet we’re acutely aware of how harmful the sport is to the environment: the water used to make snow… https://www.outsideonline.com/2176981/calculating-carbon-footprint-our-skiing