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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for May 24, 2013.

Posted: 24 May 2013 12:04:27
ARB Newsclips for May 24, 2013. ARB Newsclips for May 24, 2013

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

U.S. carbon tax could boost revenue, curb climate change –
report. A tax on carbon dioxide emissions could help the United
States mitigate climate change while significantly increasing
government revenue, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office
said this week. President Barack Obama supports plans to price
carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, tailpipes and
factories that have been blamed for worsening climate change.
Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/23/usa-carbon-tax-idUSL2N0E323B20130523


California’s Third Cap And Trade Auction Sells Out, At Record
Price. Seems like someone forgot to tell California that cap and
trade was dying an untimely death. The state’s third carbon
allowance auction was held last week, and businesses snapped up
all available 2013 permits, setting a record price level in the
process. In addition to the 2013 permits, over three-quarters of
advance allowances for 2016 were sold to businesses. With just
over six months left until California links up to Quebec’s cap
and trade market through the Western Climate Initiative…Posted.
http://cleantechnica.com/2013/05/24/californias-cap-and-trade-system-keeps-getting-stronger/#OT37RWjXzqTkS223.99


Quebec environment minister Blanchet previews carbon auction with
California. As California moves forward with a Jan. 1 linkage
date to the Quebec carbon market, what hurdles still exist as
they prepare for the first joint auction? During today's OnPoint,
Yves-François Blanchet, Quebec's minster for sustainable
development and the environment, discusses the impact linking
systems will have on broader efforts to expand the use of
market-based mechanisms to address climate change. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/tv/videos/1691/transcript BY SUBSCRIPTION
ONLY

E.U. needs higher CO2 price and climate targets for 2030,
officials say. The European Union needs to come up with a fix for
the low price of carbon permits if it wants to meet its climate
targets and encourage investments in green energy, energy
industry executives and politicians said at a conference in
Denmark. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059981746/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change: Environmentalists question whether Gov. Jerry
Brown's actions match his rhetoric. The world is fast approaching
a tipping point after which the damage caused by climate change
can't be undone, Gov. Jerry Brown told a technology summit
Thursday. "Five years from now, it's over," unless we change our
ways sooner, he said. Some environmentalists, however, say
Brown's actions don't match his rhetoric -- particularly his
recent decision to divert $500 million in cap-and-trade fee
revenues…Posted.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_23309305/enviromentalists-question-whether-gov-jerry-browns-actions-match?source=rss&utm_source=feedly

http://www.contracostatimes.com/california-budget/ci_23309303/enviromentalists-question-whether-gov-jerry-browns-actions-match?IADID=Search-www.contracostatimes.com-www.contracostatimes.com


DIESEL EMISSIONS

California port cargo terminals will deliver shore power to
ships. PierPass Inc announced that all 13 international cargo
terminals at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach CA
will be ready to deliver shore power to ships at berth by the end
of 2013. This investment will significantly reduce air pollution
in and around the ports.  
Infrastructure to supply shore power—also known as cold ironing
or Alternative Marine Power (AMP)—is being installed in support
of clean air initiatives led by the two ports and the California
Air Resources Board (CARB). Posted.
http://refrigeratedtrans.com/2010-emissions/california_port_cargo_terminals_will_deliver_shore_power_0524/


FUELS

Ethanol’s Discount to Gasoline Narrows as Inventories Stay Low.
Ethanol’s discount to gasoline narrowed as the highest output
rate in 11 months failed to replenish stockpiles of the biofuel.
The spread, or price difference, contracted 0.14 cents to 19.97
cents a gallon at 10:57 a.m. New York time. A May 22 Energy
Information Administration report showed stockpiles have fallen
in 15 of the 20 weeks of this year. osted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2013-05-24/ethanol-s-discount-to-gasoline-narrows-as-inventories-stay-low.html
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-05-22/ethanol-s-discount-to-gasoline-narrows-on-stockpile-withdrawals
 

State Department Releases Keystone Pipeline Comments. The U.S.
State Department released about 100,000 public comments it has
received on TransCanada Corp. (TRP)’s proposed Keystone XL
pipeline, the first batch of more than 1.2 million submitted to
the agency on the project. The comments on a draft environmental
impact study were posted yesterday on a government website a
month after the State Department reversed an earlier decision not
to release them. Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-24/state-department-releases-keystone-pipeline-comments.html


FracFocus Drillers’ Registry to Create Chemicals Database.
FracFocus, the website drillers use to disclose chemicals in
hydraulic fracturing, is revamping its system next week to let
regulators for the first time search and aggregate the
information. The industry-backed system, which is used by
drillers such as Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and Anadarko Petroleum
Corp. (APC), is resolving a criticism from environmental groups
by converting the online information into a database of chemicals
used in individual wells that can be analyzed…Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2013-05-23/fracfocus-drillers-registry-to-create-chemicals-database.html


Oil leasing dispute heads to federal court. A dispute over
greenhouse gases from oil and gas drilling will head to federal
court in Montana as attorneys for the government and the industry
face off against environmentalists who say too little is being
done to reduce emissions that contribute to climate change. The
legal quarrel was scheduled to land in court on Friday, amid
increasing efforts by environmentalists to target emissions from
burning fossil fuels and …Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/business/energy/article/Oil-leasing-dispute-heads-to-federal-court-4542886.php#ixzz2UE9erR4h


Gas boom called hype. A natural gas drilling boom unleashed by
hydrofracking will begin to recede before the end of the decade,
and prices will climb as producers push for exports to shore up
profits against lower prices caused by a temporary domestic glut,
two energy experts said Thursday. Dreams that natural gas from
hydrofracking — a process that injects water and chemicals deep
underground to break up gas-bearing shale rock formations…Posted.
http://www.timesunion.com/business/article/Gas-boom-called-hype-4544302.php#ixzz2UE94c3cq


Americans having their say on divisive Keystone pipeline plan.
Jobs, say hundreds of thousands of people. Pollution, say
hundreds of thousands of others. They say that's what a proposed
oil pipeline would bring into the country, as it transports crude
from massive deposits in Canadian tar sands to refineries and
ports in the United States.  
The Keystone XL pipeline has triggered a gush of comments from
Americans for and against its construction. Posted.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/24/politics/keystone-pipeline-comments/index.html

 
Nation's biggest coal-producing state gets new gas-fired power. A
utility in Wyoming, the country's No. 1 producer of steam coal
for power plants, is betting against coal as a fuel for future
electricity generation. Black Hills Corp. said this week it had
broken ground on a new 132-megawatt gas-fired plant that will
supply electricity to roughly 110,000 customers in Wyoming's
capital city and 20 smaller communities in Wyoming, Montana and
South Dakota. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059981745/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

Fossil fuel divestment campaign grows, but will it work? Fossil
Free, a student-driven campaign to divest from fossil fuels, has
grown to more than 200 colleges, including Harvard, Stanford and
Yale, but many doubt it will have an impact on the industry.
Unlike apartheid, which was targeted in earlier divestment
campaigns, ready alternatives to fossil fuels are not as
accessible. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059981751/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

New rules to address fracking on Indian lands. H Hydraulic
fracturing on Indian land may become more difficult under new
rules proposed by the Department of the Interior and the Bureau
of Land Management.  The Interior Department on May 16 issued new
draft rules for hydraulic fracturing on public and Indian lands.
Fracturing, or "fracking," is the process of drilling and
injecting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals into the ground
at high pressure to crack shale formations and unlock oil and
gas. Posted.
http://www.navajotimes.com/politics/2013/0513/052313fra.php 

VEHICLES

Prius leads 2013 California car sales; domestic brands make
gains. The Toyota Prius hybrid was the bestselling vehicle in
California during the first quarter of this year, narrowly
outpacing Honda’s redesigned Accord sedan. Toyota posted sales of
15,661 of the hybrids, leading the Accord’s sales of 15,369 cars.
The Honda Civic was third with sales of 14,918, according to data
compiled for the California New Car Dealer’s Assn. by auto
research firm R.L. Polk & Co. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-prius-leads-california-car-sales-20130523,0,4417256.story
 

Chevrolet's hottest Cruze sedan is the diesel. Chevrolet says not
only will the Cruze diesel be the most fuel-efficient version of
the compact sedan, it's also the quickest -- something not
normally associated with diesels. It will accelerate from
standstill to 60 miles per hour in 8.6 seconds, says Gary Altman,
chief engineer of the car. Gasoline models take longer, the
slowest being the Cruze Eco, which burns up 10 seconds reaching
60 mph. Posted.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2013/05/23/chevrolet-cruze-diesel-vw-jetta/2356221/


Gasoline, Diesel, Hybrids And Plug-Ins: The Efficiency Leaders.
It's official: Cars really are getting more efficient. Not that
there isn't a long way still to go, but virtually every month
statistics emerge to suggest the average fuel efficiency of
vehicles in the U.S. has gone up another few fractions of a
percent. There are still winners and losers though, so we decided
to think positive and look at the winners--just what are the most
efficient gasoline, diesel, hybrid and plug-in vehicles available
right now? Posted.
http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013/05/24/gasoline-diesel-hybrids-and-plug-ins-efficiency-leaders/#ixzz2UEHkV5z0


Camarillo to install 2 electric vehicle charging stations. 
Camarillo will install two charging stations for electric
vehicles at the Metrolink station starting next month.  The
stations will be financed through a $10,000 grant from the
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District and $5,000 from
Reconnect California, funded by the California Energy Commission
and Clipper Creek Inc.  The city will have to maintain and
operate the charging stations for at least five years. Posted. 
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2013/may/23/camarillo-to-install-2-electric-vehicle-charging/


GREEN ENERGY

Solar plane completes second leg of cross-country flight in
Texas. A solar airplane that developers hope to eventually pilot
around the globe landed safely on Thursday in Texas, completing
the second and longest leg of an attempt to fly across the United
States powered only by the sun. The spindly experimental
aircraft, dubbed Solar Impulse, touched down at Dallas/Forth
Worth International Airport shortly after 1 a.m. local time,
logging 18 hours and 21 minutes in the air to cover 823 nautical
miles from Arizona. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/assets/print?aid=USBRE94M0XX20130523 

Germany Told to Spread Green Energy Costs More Fairly. Resentment
at rising energy costs resulting from Germany's drive into
renewables has already become an issue in the run-up to federal
elections. But now Chancellor Angela Merkel is also fielding
international criticism as the International Energy Agency warned
Friday that rising power prices threaten to erode public support
for green energy. "Recent increases in electricity costs have put
low-income households, in particular, under pressure, while large
consumers have been shielded from the surcharge…Posted.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324659404578503071449008336.html#printMode


US Senate energy panel chairman reintroduces electricity storage
bill. The chairman of the US Senate Energy and Natural Resources
Committee has reintroduced a bill aimed at boosting the
development of variable renewable power sources, including solar
and wind, through new tax incentives for storage technologies. 
Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, reintroduced Thursday the
Storage Technology for Renewable and Green Energy Act (S. 1030)
along with Susan Collins...Posted.
http://www.platts.com/RSSFeedDetailedNews/RSSFeed/ElectricPower/21071684


Urban policies may be the key to adaptation. Economists say there
is still no definitive link showing that "greening" cities spurs
economic growth. But a study out yesterday finds certain policies
-- like energy efficiency retrofits and a well-run public transit
system -- are more likely to increase jobs and local production
and attract skilled workers. The report from the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) finds that national
policy guidelines…Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059981747/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY 

Recurring GOP bill updated to include wind tax credit phaseout. A
House Republican has updated his recurring energy bill this year
to include a phaseout of a key renewable energy tax credit,
marking the first inclusion in formal legislation of an idea the
wind industry floated last year. Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas)
introduces his "no more excuses" energy bill every Congress,
outlining a lengthy wish list of policies for oil, natural gas,
nuclear and renewable energy, including calls to allow expanded
oil drilling on federal lands and waters and to extend targeted
renewable electricity and alternative fuel tax credits. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981798/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

OPINIONS

Wind energy is cost-effective job creator. The recent letter "The
true cost of biofuels" (May 21) misstates the facts on the
economics of renewable energy, particularly the wind industry. A
wise investment is one that delivers solid growth and is
strategically positioned for the future. Wind energy succeeds on
both counts. The American wind industry has experienced 30
percent average annual growth over the past five years, bringing
jobs and economic development to our nation's rural areas.
Posted.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/may/24/wind-energy-is-cost-effective-job-creator/#ixzz2UETv6iXZ


Letters: Politics and climate catastrophe. Re "Oklahoma twister
'was a monster,'" May 21 It is heartbreaking to read of homes
destroyed, lives upended, children killed and hundreds left
homeless. We know that, without effective action to combat
climate change, these events will become more frequent. And yet
the political leaders of Oklahoma are right-wing ideologues who
either reject the idea of global warming or question its effects
on weather catastrophes. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/letters/la-le-0523-thursday-tornado-20130523,0,1454446,print.story


Obama can't wait for Congress to see reality of climate change.
President Barack Obama should spend his remaining years in office
making the United States part of the solution to climate change,
not part of the problem. If Congress sticks to its policy of
obstruction and willful ignorance, Obama should use his executive
powers to the fullest extent. We are out of time. With each
breath, every person alive today experiences something unique in
human history: an atmosphere containing more than 400 parts per
million of carbon dioxide. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/eugene-robinson-obamas-mission-on-climate-change/2013/05/23/fee2f5a2-c3e7-11e2-914f-a7aba60512a7_story.html
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/05/24/5444640/obama-cant-wait-for-congress-to.html#storylink=cpy

Vote against fracking, a costly source of energy. Re "Bid to halt
fracking in state builds momentum" (Forum, May 12): Our
"environmentalist" Gov. Jerry Brown sees a "great opportunity" in
fracking for oil three miles down, much of it along our coast.
The proposed regulations have been quickly slapped together by
some legislators who are just learning about this process (from
whom?) and by the state agency under fire from the EPA for
"overlooking" fracking entirely. Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/05/24/5442921/fracking-bills-in-appropriations.html#storylink=cpy


What It's Really All About: Solar For The 99%. Though rooftop
solar is starting to make inroads into California's less-affluent
communities, most of the state's millions of low- and
moderate-income residents still have to pay their utility bills
without much help from the sun. But a non-profit solar installer
is trying to change that a little bit at a time. Last week, that
"little bit" was two struggling households in Palmdale. Posted.
http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/commentary/solar-for-the-people-in-palmdale.html?utm_source=feedly


BLM approves major project that critics say threatens Calif.
Condors. The Obama administration announced today it has granted
final approval of the Alta East Wind Project in Southern
California that includes a first-ever authorization allowing the
project proponent to injure or kill an endangered condor during
the 30-year life of the project.
The Bureau of Land Management's announcement that it has approved
a record of decision (ROD) and plans to issue a right of way
grant authorizing the 153-megawatt project touched off a wave of
concern among environmental groups. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059981817/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

BLOGS

Energy Journal: The Troubled Nightmare of Keystone’s Pipe Dreams.
It’s hard to tell what’s longer: the Keystone XL pipeline or the
battle to build the Keystone XL pipeline. The pipe would connect
Alberta’s oil-sands region with refineries and ports along the
U.S. Gulf Coast. The back-and-forth on whether to approve it has
been going on for more than five years. In that time, the pipe
has become more than just a pipe. It has become a symbol both of
the new North American energy boom and of a burgeoning
environmental movement. Posted.
http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2013/05/24/energy-journal-the-troubled-nightmare-of-keystones-pipe-dreams/tab/print/


Sac City students show energy-saving creativity to save money.
Student teams from 13 schools in the Sacramento City Unified
School District will offer their proposals for making their
campuses more environmentally sustainable as part of Project
Green Showcase on Thursday. Projects deemed viable will be in
line for $1 million in Measure Q bond money set aside for green
school initiatives. Posted.
http://blogs.sacbee.com/report-card/2013/05/sac-city-students-show-energy-saving-creativity-to-save.html#storylink=cpy


Kaiser goes for the gold: LEED certification for all major
projects. Kaiser Permanente, the Oakland-based healthcare giant,
plans to score LEED gold certification for all its new major
projects going forward — a move signaling that the green building
movement is gaining traction outside of the hot spots like the
Bay Area. In San Francisco, achieving LEED certification is about
as impressive as getting a driver’s license when you turn 16:
everybody does it. Posted.
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/blog/real-estate/2013/05/kaiser-goes-for-the-gold-leed.html?ana=RSS&s=article_search&utm_source=feedly&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bizj_sanfrancisco+(San+Francisco+Business+Times)


China's Air Pollution: Is The Government Willing To Act?  Denise
Mauzerall arrived in Beijing this year at a time that was both
horrifying and illuminating. The capital was facing some of its
worst pollution in recent memory, and Mauzerall, a Princeton
environmental engineering professor, was passing through on her
way to a university forum on the future of cities.  "I took the
fast train from Beijing to Shanghai, and looking out the window
for large sections of that trip, you couldn't see more than 20
feet," Mauzerall recalled.  Posted. 
http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2013/05/24/186246634/chinas-air-pollution-is-the-government-willing-to-act


Support for climate action is the new normal in U.S.  Pick 100
Americans at random and line them up. Ask those who think the
country shouldn’t do a damned thing to rein its greenhouse
emissions to please step forward.  Guess how many would do so? 
Six.  Just six out of every 100 Americans believe there is
absolutely no need for the U.S. to take action to reduce its
emissions to help combat climate change.  That’s according to the
latest survey result from an ongoing project that tracks public
attitudes towards climate change. Posted. 
http://grist.org/news/support-for-climate-action-is-the-new-normal-in-u-s/
 

Climate change will be slower than thought, study shows – or does
it?  For anyone who loves to eat chocolate, drink lots of lovely
espresso coffee or quaff plentiful amounts of red wine, there's
much comfort to be sought from scientific studies.  You can pick
the studies saying you'll live long and prosper from your chosen
potions and ignore the caveats or contradictory warnings. You
might also forget to check back to see if any follow-up studies
were done that might spoil your fun.  Essentially, you fall foul
of what's known as "single-study syndrome" …Posted. 
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/planet-oz/2013/may/24/study-climate-change


Big New Investments in Wind Energy Across the Country and Around
the World. After spending last weekend at the Heartland Coalfield
Alliance's retreat in the Illinois coal basin region, I'm more
inspired than ever. Listening to such amazing, committed people
talk about their tireless work to move beyond coal was really
exciting. These activists know the potential for clean energy in
their region -- especially wind power. And there has been some
blockbuster news about wind in recent days. Posted.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mary-anne-hitt/big-new-investments-in-wi_b_3326344.html?view=print&comm_ref=false

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