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California Air Resources Board News Clips for November 12, 2009.



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.

New Solar Panel Promises Cheaper Power. The roof of a North
Sacramento plastics factory will host the biggest West Coast
installation of a new type of solar panel. The technology, built
by Fremont's Solyndra Inc., uses racks of solar cells roughly the
size and shape of long fluorescent light tubes. The shape allows
the panels to harvest sunlight from any angle, including what's
reflected from the white rooftops common on large commercial
buildings. The technology promises to cut the cost of solar
power. Posted. http://www.sacbee.com/378/story/2320164.html

Teens Work On Artificial Tree Towers' To Help Environment.
Kansas City, Mo. -- When is a tree that acts like a tree not a
tree at all? When it's a metal tower that absorbs, transforms and
stores carbon dioxide and is made by two teenage math and science
whizzes as a research project on climate change. Tyler Clark, 17,
of St. John, Kan., and Ben Davis, 16, of Wichita, Kan., both high
school juniors attending the Kansas Academy of Mathematics and
Science at Fort Hays State University, expect to build what are
being called "artificial tree towers." The towers will reduce the
carbon footprint and play a role in slowing global warming.
Posted. http://www.sacbee.com/702/v-print/story/2318804.html

Rules Allowing Forest Clearcuts Must Go, Group Tells Air Board.
Clearcutting in Sierra Nevada timberland will do nothing to
protect the planet from climate change, an environmental group
contends. The Center for Biological Diversity is asking the state
to rescind new rules that allow the practice as part of
climate-friendly forestry. The rules aim to increase the amount
of carbon that is absorbed by trees rather than drifting into the
atmosphere, where it could contribute to global warming. Posted.
http://www.modbee.com/local/v-print/story/930381.html

Editorial Notebook: Don't Be A 'Blofeld' With A Leaf Blower.
Autumn is supposed to be a season of quiet splendor, a time to
reflect on the rhythms of nature as leaves fall from their
boughs. Yet reflection is difficult when some guy with a
gas-powered leaf blower is kicking up a storm of choking dust.
It's a cloud that many of us encounter regularly while walking
and bicycling through the city. Some in leafy Sacramento have
suggested an all-out ban on leaf blowers. I'm not ready to go
there yet. But given the season, it may be a good time for a
sneak preview of a book I'm drafting, titled "Leaf Blowing for
Dummies." Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/v-print/story/2320074.html

Poop Power. Fire Up Ol’ Bessie, Ma, We’re Gonna Save The Planet!
Eat manure for money? Sounds gross, but that’s exactly what the
bacteria at Tollenaar Holstein in Elk Grove are doing, and it’s
paying off for owners Jon and Tami Tollenaar. They’ve got 2,000
head of cattle on their 300-acre ranch, but not as many cow
patties as you might think. That’s because much of the animal
waste is processed in an anaerobic digester that converts cow
manure into energy. Fuel produced by the machine feeds a
generator that provides more than enough electricity for the
dairy’s operations. Surplus power is sold to SMUD, and the
proceeds now account for 5 percent of the dairy’s revenue.
Posted.
http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/PrintFriendly?oid=1317547

SLO County Employees Could Work From Home. Working from home
will likely be an option for San Luis Obispo County employees
starting next year. With a 5-0 vote Tuesday, the Board of
Supervisors directed administrative office staff to create
countywide policies for employee telecommuting and flexible work
schedules for possible implementation next year. Utilizing
alternative work schedules will help reduce greenhouse gas
emissions to 1999 levels by 2020 as mandated by the state.
Posted.
http://www.santamariatimes.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_2ee6cae4-ce96-11de-87af-001cc4c03286.html

Low-Emission Technologies Need Assist From Policymakers –
Report. Several low-emission technologies have the potential to
transform the transportation sector within five years if
policymakers and regulators can help clear hurdles to commercial
markets, according to a new report. The report, released Tuesday
by the consulting firm Accenture, identifies 12 technologies --
including algae-based biofuels, next-generation internal
combustion engines and electrification -- that it considers most
likely to quickly transform the fuels sector. But those
technologies will need help, the report says. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2009/11/12/6

Denmark Invites 191 Leaders To UN Climate Talks. Copenhagen,
Denmark - Denmark sent invitations Thursday to 191 world leaders
to attend next month's U.N. climate conference in Copenhagen,
officials said. The invitations, signed by Danish Prime Minister
Lars Loekke Rasmussen, were dispatched through diplomatic
channels. "Your personal attendance is a pivotal contribution to
a successful outcome" of the Dec. 7-18 conference, said the
letter from Loekke Rasmussen, who will chair the talks aimed at
reaching a new global accord to replace the 1997 Kyoto Protocol
to curb emissions of greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.
Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/11/12/international/i054901S77.DTL&type=printable
http://www.contracostatimes.com/nation-world/ci_13770692

Building A Business Around A Transportable, 'Green' Refinery. To
some, the word "biodiesel" evokes memories of college stunts -- a
few starry-eyed students collecting grease at a local restaurant
before sputtering cross-country in a van. A small company based
in California has other ideas: It wants to build small refineries
that can bring the fuel -- and electricity -- to billions of
rural people who may not even have access to the grid. According
to the International Energy Agency, about 1.5 billion people, or
1 in 5, have no access to electricity. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2009/11/12/4

Study Claims Up To $13B In Profits For Farmers In Cap And Trade.
Farmers hold divided views on how climate policies will affect
their bottom line, a fact that has injected itself deeply into
the debates on Capitol Hill. A new University of Tennessee study
predicts profits -- up to $13 billion a year -- in a
cap-and-trade plan, provided the right incentives fall into line.
Except for rice, eight of nine major crops, including soy, wheat
and corn, would benefit from the program over the next 15 years,
it found. "Agriculture comes out a winner, environmentally and
economically, in this scenario. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2009/11/12/5

Melting Ice Could Aid In Offsetting Global Warming – Study. The
melting ice in Antarctica has opened a new area of sea where tiny
marine plants have bloomed and are absorbing extra carbon from
the atmosphere, according to a group of British scientists. "We
need to factor this natural carbon absorption into our
calculations and models to predict future climate change," said
Lloyd Peck of the British Antarctic Survey. "So far, we don't
know if we will see more events like this around the rest of
Antarctica's coast, but it's something we'll be keeping an eye
on." Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2009/11/12/7

Editorial Roundup: Excerpts From Recent Editorials. Lexington
(Ky.) Herald-Leader, on climate change: It's easy to see why
people don't want to believe that global warming is real or that
we can do anything about it. ... Climate change is real, though,
and judging from the loss of polar ice, it's advancing even
faster than scientists predicted. ... Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/nation-world/ci_13762735?nclick_check=1

NBC Enlists Prime-Time Programs In Green Message. New York—NBC
gives new meaning to the phrase "green screen" next week,
spreading a pro-environmental message across five of its
prime-time entertainment programs. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/entertainment/ci_13761900

Carbon Capture Projects Around The World. A quick survey of
carbon capture projects and efforts around the world. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/business/ci_13754133

Warming Drives Off Cape Cod's Namesake, Other Fish. Portland,
Maine—Fishermen have known for years that they've had to steam
farther and farther from shore to find the cod, haddock and
winter flounder that typically fill dinner plates in New England.
Posted. http://www.contracostatimes.com/business/ci_13769701

Tiny Car Has Big Potential. The tiny Nano cars made by India's
Tata Motors are starting to hit the road in that country after a
land dispute forced the relocation of the car's manufacturing
plant and delayed its launch. Analysts say the Nano could rock
the international auto industry and put millions of new Indian
drivers on the road. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/11/AR2009111127526.html

Pollution Penalties. In a strategy laid out in draft form
Monday, the Obama administration listed possible punishments for
states in the Chesapeake Bay watershed that miss their deadlines
for reducing pollution. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/09/AR2009110903172.html