What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for December 21, 2012. 

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.

AIR POLLUTION

EPA imposes new pollution limits on boilers, cement plants.  The
Environmental Protection Agency finalized rules late Thursday to
curb pollution from industrial boilers and cement plants,
agreeing to give industry additional time for compliance and
easing some emissions limits from earlier proposals.  The new
rules, which have been enmeshed in a fierce regulatory and legal
fight for more than a decade, drew criticism from
environmentalists. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/epa-imposes-new-pollution-limits-on-boilers-cement-plants/2012/12/21/4ba43d6c-4aec-11e2-b709-667035ff9029_story.html
http://www.enn.com/pollution/article/45374/print 
http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2012/12/21/2  BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY 

Appeals upholds EPA authority over emissions. An appeals court on
Thursday denied a request from industry groups to rehear a case
in which the court upheld the Environmental Protection Agency’s
climate change regulations. The industry challenge failed to win
a majority vote by judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
D.C. Circuit for an en banc (before the entire bench) rehearing
of Coalition for Responsible Regulation v. EPA, which sought to
challenge the EPA’s power to address greenhouse gas emissions.
Posted.
http://www.politico.com/story/2012/12/appeals-upholds-epa-authority-over-emissions-85381.html#ixzz2FiLoE7kr


No-burn days likely to double by 2014. Fireplace burning could be
severely restricted much sooner than initially proposed, and
people with cleaner-burning wood and pellet stoves are likely to
get more leeway than they do now, air quality officials decided
Thursday. The number of no-burn days in Stanislaus County is
expected to more than double for people with open-hearth
fireplaces by 2014, two years earlier than expected, officials
unanimously decreed with the landmark vote after hours of
testimony from opposing sides. Posted.
http://www.modbee.com/2012/12/20/2504353/no-burn-days-likely-to-double.html#storylink=misearch
  BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

Fire officials issue carbon monoxide alert. In anticipation of
stormy weather accompanying the official arrival of winter,
Sacramento Fire Department officials urge residents to check
their carbon monoxide detectors and make sure they have one on
each level of their home. Often referred to as the silent killer
because it is odorless, colorless and lethal, carbon monoxide can
be found in gases released when fuels such as charcoal, gasoline,
propane, wood, oil and methane burn incompletely. Posted.
http://www.modbee.com/2012/12/21/2504356/fire-officials-issue-carbon-monoxide.html#storylink=misearch
 BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY
CAP AND TRADE

Edison Snafu Skews Demand in First California Carbon Sale.
California, the world’s ninth- largest economy, has Edison
International (EIX) to thank for selling all of its carbon
permits in the state’s first auction. The company unintentionally
bid for twice as many allowances as were for sale. Edison, owner
of the state’s second-biggest power utility, submitted a proposal
in the wrong format and offered to buy 21 times more allowances
than it wanted on Nov. 14, documents obtained by Bloomberg show.
Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2012-12-20/edison-snafu-skews-demand-in-first-california-carbon-permit-sale.html


Cap and trade dividend for ratepayers. Twice each year, all
California households will collect a small "climate dividend"
from money raised by the state's new global warming cap-and-trade
system, utility regulators decided Thursday. The dividend will be
worth an estimated $20 to $40 and will appear as a credit on
utility bills, possibly starting in mid-2013. The idea won
unanimous approval from the California Public Utilities
Commission as part of a broader plan to use some of the revenue
from cap and trade. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Cap-and-trade-dividend-for-ratepayers-4136343.php#ixzz2FiGYQn00

http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_22233824/residential-utility-customers-see-climate-dividend?IADID=Search-www.contracostatimes.com-www.contracostatimes.com
 
http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_22233824/residential-utility-customers-see-climate-dividend?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com


DIESEL EMISSIONS

Judge dismisses Calif. bus, truck pollution suit. A federal judge
has dismissed a trucking association's lawsuit against new rules
aimed at reducing truck and bus pollution in California. The suit
left the court's jurisdiction when the Environmental Protection
Agency approved California's plan to reduce emissions, including
the rules for trucks and buses that will go into effect Jan. 1,
U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England in Sacramento ruled
Wednesday. Posted.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/dec/20/judge-dismisses-ca-bus-and-truck-pollution/#ixzz2FhrUgXHy
 
http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_22235562/judge-dismisses-ca-bus-and-truck-pollution-lawsuit?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com
  
http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_22235562/judge-dismisses-ca-bus-and-truck-pollution-lawsuit?IADID=Search-www.contracostatimes.com-www.contracostatimes.com

http://news.yahoo.com/correction-pollution-regulation-story-183810969.html
 http://www.seattlepi.com/news/science/article/Correction-Pollution-Regulation-story-4136612.php#ixzz2FiXmIeL5
 



FUELS

In-state gas pipeline planners revise project. A proposal for an
in-state natural pipeline that could carry North Slope natural
gas to communities from Fairbanks to south-central Alaska has
been revised to eliminate the transport of natural gas liquids,
which will have the effect of lowering tariffs for customers in
Fairbanks. Carrying natural gas liquids such as ethane, propane
and butane was previously considered desirable because they could
be sold at a premium…Posted.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/dec/20/in-state-gas-pipeline-planners-revise-project/#ixzz2Fhsg79DI
 

Burning pipeline fire sign of Nigeria's woes. The gasoline
pipeline burns unstopped near a village close to Nigeria's
sprawling megacity of Lagos, shooting flames into the air as
leaking fuel muddies the ground. All around it, the ground is
littered with plastic jerry-cans, used by those who hacked into
the line to steal the fuel within. The pipeline explosion here in
Ije Ododo shows the ongoing problems oil-rich Nigeria faces.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/dec/21/burning-pipeline-fire-sign-of-nigerias-woes/#ixzz2FhtLA5M0

Towards cheaper and better EV batteries: Sulphide or Magnesium? 
Latest research in alternatives to a conventional lithium-ion
battery focuses on components made from magnesium and sulphide.
Laboratory results indicate that the abundance and chemical
properties of these materials could help bring a cheaper battery
with more than 300% higher energy density to market in the not so
distant future.  The cost and performance of electric car
batteries are considered by many as the major barrier to faster
uptake of EVs. Intensive research in the field of battery
chemistry points to some promising alternative solutions. Posted.
 http://www.cars21.com/news/view/5096 

VEHICLES

Hotels that charge your batteries. What do the InterContinental
in Chicago, the Loews Vanderbilt in Tennessee, the Hollywood
Hotel, most Kimpton's hotels and all of Starwood's Element hotels
have in common? They all boast onsite electric vehicle (EV)
charging stations. Although EV ownership represents just a tiny
slice of the car market - plug-in hybrid electric vehicles
(PHEVs) like the Chevrolet Volt, extended range EVs and
all-electric vehicles…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/21/uk-hotels-electric-vehicles-idUSLNE8BK02B20121221


MISCELLANEOUS

Calif. regulators order utility to shoulder part of pipeline
safety costs. California regulators are enlisting ratepayers to
help pay for a $2.2 billion upgrade to Pacific Gas and Electric
Co.'s gas pipeline system in the wake of a 2010 explosion that
killed eight people. Investors will shoulder about 45 percent of
the cost to inspect nearly 800 miles of pipeline under a measure
passed by the California Public Utilities Commission. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/energywire/print/2012/12/21/3  BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

BLOGS

Empathy as a Path to Climate (and Energy) Progress. David Roberts
at Grist yesterday posted a deeply moving essay about using
empathy as a means to take on tough issues. He built the piece
around President Obama’s heartfelt reaction and response to the
Connecticut elementary school massacre and, followed by Joe Romm,
noted the lack of any such response from the president or society
on the greenhouse buildup despite the risk posed by human-driven
climate change. Posted.
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/20/empathy-as-a-path-to-climate-and-energy-progress/?ref=earth
 

Fewer Americans Say Their Actions Can Slow Climate Change.
Americans may be buying more compact fluorescent light bulbs
these days, but they are less likely to set their thermostats low
during the winter than they were four years ago and have less
confidence that their actions will help to curb global warming,
according to a new survey. The Yale Project on Climate Change
Communication and George Mason University’s Center for Climate
Change Communication found that the proportion of people who say
their own energy-saving actions…Posted.
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/20/fewer-americans-say-their-actions-can-slow-climate-change/?ref=earth


 Why Renters Use More Electricity. Why do people buy inefficient
refrigerators and clothes washers when spending a little more for
an efficient one would save them money over time through lower
electricity or water bills? There are a variety of reasons, but
one that is persistently cited is that people are not necessarily
buying these appliances for themselves. Often the buyer is a
landlord, and the user is a tenant who does not make the choice
but faces the consequences because he receives the energy bill.
Posted.
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/20/why-renters-use-more-electricity/?ref=earth


Air District Board Approves Amendments to Permit Regulations –
Standards Tightened for Fine Particle and Greenhouse Gas
Emissions. This week, the Bay Area Air Quality Management
District’s (BAAQMD) Board of Directors approved a series of air
quality rule amendments that strengthen the agency’s core air
permitting regulations, which they say will reduce emissions and
better protect public health. The rule amendments include new
provisions that will further reduce emissions of fine
particles…Posted.
http://blog.sfgate.com/incontracosta/2012/12/21/air-district-board-approves-amendments-to-permit-regulations-%E2%80%93-standards-tightened-for-fine-particle-and-greenhouse-gas-emissions/

Climate Change: President Obama's FDR Moment. 2012 was a historic
year for climate disasters. Between a devastating drought, raging
wildfires and the superstorm Hurricane Sandy, millions of
Americans saw the very real toll that climate disruption is
having on our country. But it's not just extreme weather events -
according to data from NOAA, 2012 is on track to be the hottest
year ever for the contiguous United States. As we enter 2013,
President Barack Obama faces a major challenge on how to address
climate disruption. Posted.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frances-beinecke/climate-change-president_b_2341543.html?view=print&comm_ref=false