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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for August 15, 2013.

Posted: 15 Aug 2013 12:42:54
ARB Newsclips for August 15, 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

Board to begin approving projects for California's cap-and-trade
system. California is now more than half way through the first
year of its ambitious program to cut greenhouse gases under the
landmark law: AB 32. An important part of that effort is a
cap-and-trade system that requires polluters to reduce their
carbon footprint through a combination of cutting emissions and
trading carbon credits. Carbon credits basically allow companies
to get away with a certain amount of pollution by offsetting it
…Posted.
http://www.scpr.org/programs/take-two/2013/08/15/33249/board-to-begin-approving-projects-for-california-s/


Interpol issues guide to prevent carbon trading crime.
Internationally, the carbon trading market has become one of the
biggest commodities markets in the world. It's estimated to be
worth about $175 billion dollars, which makes it a major target
for crime. So much so that Interpol, the international police
force, has just issued a guide to carbon trading crime. Posted.
http://www.scpr.org/programs/take-two/2013/08/15/33263/interpol-issues-guide-to-prevent-carbon-trading-cr/


FEATURE: Analysts say California GHG auction to clear below last
sale. California greenhouse gas allowances are expected to clear
Friday's auction below the last quarterly sale price, analysts
say. The state air quality regulator will offer "current" GHG
allowances that can be used starting in 2013, as well as a
smaller number of "future" permits valid from 2016 onward.
Vintage 2013 allowances are forecast to sell for about one dollar
less than the May auction, which saw a clearing price of $14 a
piece… Posted.
http://www.platts.com/latest-news/electric-power/washington/feature-analysts-say-california-ghg-auction-to-21421998


AIR POLLUTION

Texas company to pay $7.5M for emitting pollution. A Texas
chemical recycling and processing company has agreed to pay a
$7.5 million fine for failing to comply with state environmental
laws. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott announced Wednesday that
the fine against Gulf Chemical & Metallurgical Corp. is one of
the largest Texas Clean Air Act penalties in state history.
Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Texas-company-to-pay-7-5M-for-emitting-pollution-4732750.php


Carbon, silicon in airborne particulates increase risk of death
in US cities, study says. Certain ingredients of airborne
particulates – especially carbon – apparently increase the risk
of death in U.S. cities, according to a new nationwide study. For
decades, scientists have been trying to unravel why more people
die of heart attacks, asthma and other health problems whenever
fine particulate matter, known as PM2.5, increases. Particulates
are a mix of substances emitted by sources of combustion,
including cars, trucks, industrial plants and wood burning.
Posted.
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/newscience/2013/08/airborne-particulates/


CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change may have caused demise of Late Bronze Age
civilizations. Archaeologists have debated for decades over what
caused the once-flourishing civilizations along the eastern
Mediterranean coast to collapse about 1300 BC. Many scholars have
cited warfare, political unrest and natural disaster as factors.
But a new study supports the theory that climate change was
largely responsible. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-climate-change-late-bronze-age-civilization-collapse-20130814,0,3521236.story


NASA, JPL get set to study climate change on Earth in 2014. NASA
is getting ready to turn its scientific instruments toward our
home planet with a trio of Earth-observing missions set to launch
in 2014. The three missions will allow scientists to measure
water, wind and carbon dioxide with greater precision, and to
improve the accuracy of weather forecasts and climate change
projections. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-nasa-charles-bolden-jpl-earth-20130814,0,5858792.story


These 1,429 US Towns Could Be Destroyed By Rising Sea Levels. A
recent study has suggested that sea levels could rise by up to 23
feet within 2,000 years if we don't drastically reduce emissions
before 2100. Though effects aren't visible immediately, the
greenhouse gas emissions of today doom us to increasingly more
extreme levels of sea level rise with every passing decade. If we
waiting until 2100 to correct our ways would have devastating
effects on coastal settlements…Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/These-1-429-US-Towns-Could-Be-Destroyed-By-Rising-4733038.php


UA: Warming pushing plants to higher elevations. University of
Arizona researchers say they've proven that climate change is
pushing plant species to higher elevations on a southern Arizona
mountain. The UA-led research team compared an extensive study of
vegetation on Mount Lemmon outside Tucson done in 1963 to a 2011
study of the same area. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/UA-Warming-pushing-plants-to-higher-elevations-4734106.php


Climate change means soft and sour apples, study finds.  A
Japanese study has found that popular Fuji apple - known for its
sweetness and crispness - has been getting mealier and sourer as
the Japanese climate warms. Some 40 years ago, the Fuji apples
that grew in orchards on Japan’s main island were full, sweet,
and crisp. Now, those apples have become one more victim of
global warming: picked today…Posted.
http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2013/0815/Climate-change-means-soft-and-sour-apples-study-finds


Scientists call for improved understanding of how climate
extremes alter nature's carbon cycle.  The forests, grasslands
and soils that cover the Earth's surface have soaked up about 25
to 30 percent of human emissions of carbon dioxide in the last 50
years. But as the climate changes, how well will these ecosystems
continue to do this? That's a question posed in a perspective
paper published online yesterday in the journal Nature.  Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059986039/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

DIESEL EMISSIONS

Air regulation may push 2018 ATV sales out of Imperial County. A
new regulation that aims to curb off-highway vehicle pollution
may prompt some manufacturers to limit OHV models available for
sale in California, a local off road-advocate said. The
California Air Resources Board regulation targets evaporative
emissions from the gas lines and tanks of OHVs and will be
implemented in 2018. Posted.
http://www.ivpressonline.com/news/local/air-regulation-may-push-atv-sales-out-of-imperial-county/article_dc78368a-04b5-11e3-a6d3-0019bb30f31a.html

CARB: Aug. 31 deadline approaching for TRU orders. Reefer owners
who haul in and out of California are being reminded of an
approaching order deadline. The California Air Resources Board is
reminding reefer owners that orders for new replacement
transportation refrigeration units and TRU generator sets must be
made by Aug. 31 to meet the state’s Dec. 31, 2013 deadline for
2006 reefers. Posted.
http://www.landlinemag.com/Story.aspx?StoryID=25579 

Three shippers were fined for violating a clean fuel regulation.
Three international shipping firms were fined by the California
Air Resources Board after failing to shift from dirty “bunker”
fuel to cleaner burning fuel when they entered into state waters.
Oslo-based Hoegh Autoliners Shipping AS Co., NCN Corp. Panama and
Singapore-based Twin Phoenix Shipping S.A. received a total of
$440,250 in fines after the board investigated their visits to
the ports of Long Beach, Los Angeles and Stockton.
Posted.
http://www.presstelegram.com/general-news/20130813/three-shippers-fined-for-clean-fuel-regulation
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130815/A_NEWS/130819950/-1/A_NEWS14
BY SUBSCRIPTION
 
FUELS

New Colorado drilling rules delayed. Colorado regulators looking
at new air quality rules for oil and gas drillers may need more
time. Colorado's Air Quality Control Commission was anticipating
possible delays at its meeting Thursday. The group is looking at
stricter air controls for an industry that is one of Colorado's
top air polluters. Environmental activists have been hoping the
commission is stricter on the industry than the agency that
regulates spills…Posted. 
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CO_DRILLING_AIR_QUALITY_COOL-?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Delays-possible-for-new-Colorado-drilling-rules-4733973.php


GREEN ENERGY

Picking up the nuclear energy bill divides the EU. European Union
rules to be published over the coming weeks could make it easier
to justify using taxpayers' money to fund new nuclear power,
which would pitch major EU powers against each other. The
European Commission, the EU executive, says its mind is still
open on the topic, but it is under pressure to set a legal
framework for state aid to nuclear projects after several member
states, including Britain, sought its guidance. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/14/us-eu-nuclear-idUSBRE97D05P20130814

 
Intermittent Nature of Green Power Is Challenge for Utilities.
The 21 turbines at the Kingdom Community Wind farm in Vermont
soar above Lowell Mountain, a testament in steel and fiberglass
to the state’s growing use of green energy. Except when they
aren’t allowed to spin at their fastest. That has been the case
several times in the farm’s short existence, including during the
record July heat wave when it could have produced enough
much-needed energy to fuel a small town. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/15/business/energy-environment/intermittent-nature-of-green-power-is-challenge-for-utilities.html?ref=science


50 shades of window? 'Smart glass' blocks heat, light at flip of
switch. Drop that window dressing -- that frame could soon go
bare. Researchers say they have created a new kind of "smart
glass" – one that can, at the flip of a switch, block heat and
still stay transparent, or grow dark to reduce the sun’s glare.
This material, described online Wednesday in the journal Nature,
could one day help slash energy costs and reduce pollution from
buildings like the glass monsters that tower out of urban
cityscapes. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-smart-glass-blocks-heat-tint-dark-electricity-switch-20130814,0,7674149.story

http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/New-Smart-Windows-Let-In-Light-But-Keep-Out-The-4733025.php


Air board accepting applications to recognize green California
businesses. The California Air Resources Board is accepting
applications through Nov. 1 for its fourth CoolCalifornia Small
Business Awards Program. The awards recognize small firms that
integrate positive environmental practices and sustainability
into their business practices, including reduced energy use,
water conservation and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions.
Posted.
http://www.modbee.com/2013/08/14/2862953/air-board-accepting-applications.html#storylink=cpy


How green the Valley. Even after seven years, there's no graying
of the Green Team. In fact, the Greater Stockton Chamber of
Commerce's popular Green Team San Joaquin, which helps businesses
become more environmentally friendly while also boosting their
bottom lines, is now expanding to include the entire San Joaquin
Valley. Posted.
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130815/A_BIZ/308150314/-1/A_NEWS14


2 Projects Fall to San Bernardino County's Solar Moratorium. San
Bernardino County's moratorium on solar projects in
unincorporated areas is already making its mark on the landscape
-- or more accurately, keeping marks from being made. Canadian
developer Coronus Solar has just backed out of agreements to sell
power from two mid-sized solar facilities near Twentynine Palms
that have been stalled by the moratorium. Posted.
http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/solar/photovoltaic-pv/san-bernardino-solar-moratorium-is-working.html


World solar prices will keep dropping, but U.S. costs will stay
relatively high – report. The installed price for solar
photovoltaic (PV) systems is likely to continue its precipitous
decline, but the speed and scale of that decline will depend on
fixing solar's "soft costs," according to a report out this week
from the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory. Installed prices for commercial and residential PV
systems in 2012 fell by about 6 to 14 percent from the prior
year…Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059986030/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

OPINIONS

Energy Test for Obama. “Cut Emissions? Congress Itself Keeps
Burning a Dirtier Fuel” (news article, Aug. 9) framed the battle
about whether the Capitol Power Plant burns coal as a test of
President Obama’s climate policies. A much better test is at hand
with a coal-fired power plant that is partly government-owned. 
The Department of the Interior has a one-quarter interest in the
Navajo Generating Station in Arizona. About 40 times the size of
the Capitol Power Plant…Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/15/opinion/energy-test-for-obama.html?_r=0


Edison's San Onofre PR: Readers aren't buying it. Southern
California Edison wants you to feel (and help pay for) its pain
in shutting down the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station.
Judging by the letters we've received so far in reaction to
Edison's full-page ad in Monday's Times saying as much, readers
are feeling neither sympathetic nor financially generous. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinion-la/la-ol-san-onofre-shutdown-edison-pr-mailbag-20130814,0,1401010.story


Frogs, toads are essential part of ecosystem Re "Field hearing on
amphibians was a stacked deck" (Editorials, Aug. 10): As the
holder of Master's degrees in environmental studies and marine
biology, I am a staunch defender of our wildlife and its habitat.
Even as mundane as most people would think, frogs and toads are a
vital part of the food chain and must be protected in order that
climate change itself is not affected. Posted. here:
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/08/15/5651197/endangered-species-act.html#storylink=cpy


Quality air to breathe. THE ISSUE The oppressive smog problem in
urban areas of China should serve as inspiration for Americans to
protect the quality of air we breathe. Those who complain of
government regulations in the United States should take note of
the latest news out of China. China, the world’s No. 3 tourist
destination, is seeing a sharp decline in tourism partly because
its air pollution has become so bad. Posted.
http://www.timesdaily.com/opinion/editorials/article_753d8ce0-052d-11e3-88f9-10604b9ffe60.html


Carbon offsetting for Clean Energy Summit? Uhhh, no. The
attendees at this year’s National Clean Energy summit took many a
gas-guzzling plane, cab and SUV to make it to Las Vegas’ Mandalay
Bay Resort, where they spent Tuesday comparing notes on the
latest commercial technologies to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions. Sound ironic? Perhaps. But for now, conference
organizers suggest, it is just one of the opportunity costs of
getting the fledgling clean energy business going. Posted.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/aug/15/carbon-offsetting-clean-energy-summit-uhhh-no/


BLOGS

Is the Internet Good for the Climate? I gave the opening talk
(and song) this morning at ScienceOnline Climate, a two-day
meeting exploring the role of Web communication in fostering
engagement on climate change research and its implications for
society. You can watch the sessions here and follow the
discussion on Twitter via #ScioClimate. Read on for a few
reactions to my talk, in which I posed the question “Is the
Internet Good for the Climate?”…Posted.
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/15/is-the-internet-good-for-the-climate/


Brave new world: Americans are learning to live with climate
change. The Great American Road Trip — it’s a rite of passage, a
national pastime, and increasingly, a tool for spreading the word
about looming climate catastrophe. Each summer, a motley parade
of veggie buses, vintage motorcycles, and bicycles circulates
around the country, its participants out to preach the gospel of
green living, and perhaps learn a thing or two in the process.
Posted.
http://grist.org/climate-energy/brave-new-world-americans-are-learning-to-live-with-climate-change/


AB 32’s Scoping Plan is a Tale of Two Energy Futures  For a
window into two vastly different visions of our state’s future,
take a look at the comments filed last week as part of the AB 32
Scoping Plan update process. The 2008 Scoping Plan lays out the
approach that California will take to achieve its goal of
reducing emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, and this is the first
5 year update. Posted.
http://blogs.edf.org/energyexchange/2013/08/14/ab-32s-scoping-plan-is-a-tale-of-two-energy-futures/#sthash.MPb8phw6.dpufhttp://blogs.edf.org/energyexchange/2013/08/14/ab-32s-scoping-plan-is-a-tale-of-two-energy-futures/#sthash.MPb8phw6.dpuf


Is your power 'renewable'? What day is it? One of the most
prominent parts of the state's broad effort to curb greenhouse
gas emissions is the "Renewable Portfolio Standard" -- in a
nutshell rules that force electric utilities to reduce use of
fossil fuels and increase non-polluting renewables. So what's
renewable? You'd think that'd be a simple enough question. Are
you digging up fuel that you only get to use once? Are you
emitting CO2 and other climate-altering gases? Posted.
http://blogs.redding.com/bross/archives/2013/08/is-your-power-r.html#sthash.ehmNciBg.dpuf


State Faces Battle With Oil Industry Over Proposed New Fracking
Regulations. The next four weeks will determine how aggressively
California regulates the controversial oil-drilling technique
known as hydraulic fracturing. And as state Sen. Fran Pavley
points out, “four weeks is a long time, legislatively.” The
energy industry is watching these developments closely and with a
degree of apprehension. Posted.
http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/2013/08/13/california-fracking-regulators/

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