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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for September 25, 2013.

Posted: 25 Sep 2013 15:08:16
ARB Newsclips for September 25, 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.


AIR POLLUTION

Lawsuit: Pollution from fire making residents sick.  About a
dozen Slaughter residents allege respiratory problems and
diminished property values in a lawsuit filed in the wake of the
Nov. 19 blaze that destroyed the Monolyte Laboratories Inc.
chemical facility. The Advocate reports the suit, filed Tuesday
in state District Court in Baton Rouge, seeks an unspecified
amount of damages from Monolyte and several other companies.
Posted.
http://www.modbee.com/2013/09/25/2940321/lawsuit-pollution-from-fire-making.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Lawsuit-Pollution-from-fire-making-residents-sick-4841590.php


This Map Shows Where You're Most Likely To Die From Air
Pollution. A toxic type of outdoor air pollution, known as fine
particulate matter (PM 2.5), causes 2.1 million deaths worldwide
each year, according to a July study led by University of North
Carolina earth scientist Jason West. The researchers measured
human-caused air pollution around the world based on the
difference in pollution levels between 1850 and 2000. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/This-Map-Shows-Where-You-re-Most-Likely-To-Die-4841225.php


CLIMATE CHANGE

UC Davis to lead national climate change study.  The University
of California, Davis, has been awarded an $11 million federal
grant to lead a study of how to reduce the impact the nation's
transportation system has on climate change. The Sacramento Bee
reports the school was chosen this week in a national competition
by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Posted.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/sep/25/uc-davis-to-lead-national-climate-change-study/

http://www.sacbee.com/2013/09/25/5765465/uc-davis-to-lead-national-climate.html#mi_rss=Our%20Region


Alameda Point studies threat of rising sea level. Plan on moving
to Alameda Point someday? You might want to pack a swimsuit and
snorkel. Much of the former Naval Air Station - site of a
projected 1,425-home development - will be underwater by the end
of the century due to sea level rise brought on by climate
change, according to the city's draft environmental impact report
on the project released this month. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Alameda-Point-studies-threat-of-rising-sea-level-4840453.php


DIESEL EMISSIONS

California Truckers Say They're Choking on State's Emission
Rules. Truck operators in California are complaining that several
new rules issued by the state’s Air Resources Board (CARB) are
either too costly or impossible to comply with, given current
engine and fuel technology. In at least one case, industry
charges, a diesel soot filter mandated by CARB caused a major
fire in Washington state, leading to the destruction of nearly
4,000 acres of forest and grassland. Posted.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertbowman/2013/09/24/california-truckers-say-theyre-choking-on-states-emission-rules/


Black Carbon Reduction Efforts Win Bipartisan Support. U.S.
senators from both parties on Tuesday called for increased
funding to reduce so-called black carbon emissions from diesel
engines, criticizing the Obama administration for cutting a
program that provides financial incentives for owners to retrofit
or replace their equipment. The Diesel Emissions Reduction
Program was originally authorized for $200 million per year when
it was created in 2005…Posted.
http://www.law360.com/environmental/articles/474827/black-carbon-reduction-efforts-win-bipartisan-support
BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

FUELS

U.S. senator asks CFTC to look into biofuel credit pricing. The
head of the Senate Agriculture Committee asked the regulator of
U.S. futures markets on Tuesday to probe whether traders
manipulated the price of biofuel credits that soared over the
summer and were blamed for raising gasoline prices. In a letter
to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Chairwoman Debbie
Stabenow said she was concerned about "possible manipulation of
the markets for Renewable Identification Numbers," the formal
name for RINs. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/24/us-usa-agriculture-biofuels-idUSBRE98N0P720130924


NREL researchers find wind and solar power provide net benefits
to Western grid. Fossil fuel power plants that have long provided
steady baseload power to much of the West will not be
significantly affected by the integration of more solar and wind
energy on the grid, a new analysis from the National Renewable
Energy Laboratory has found. The findings, presented in phase two
of NREL's "Western Wind and Solar Integration Study," should help
dispel the notion that the addition of intermittent energy
resources like wind and solar …Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059987792/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

VEHICLES

Calif. to extend EV tax credits, build hydrogen fuel stations.
The California legislature has approved measures to raise $2
billion to extend rebates for electric vehicles and to help
develop up to 100 fueling stations over the next decade for
vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells. The legislation,
expected to be signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, would extend some
vehicle fees to help pay for the programs. The state has made its
zero emission vehicle program a cornerstone of its efforts to
reduce smog and greenhouse gas emissions. Posted.
http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130924/AUTO01/309240096#ixzz2fvRo0gC7


GREEN ENERGY

Atomic Goal: 800 Years of Power From Waste.  In a drab one-story
building here, set between an indoor tennis club and a home
appliance showroom, dozens of engineers, physicists and nuclear
experts are chasing a radical dream of Bill Gates. The quest is
for a new kind of nuclear reactor that would be fueled by today’s
nuclear waste, supply all the electricity in the United States
for the next 800 years and, possibly, cut the risk of nuclear
weapons proliferation around the world. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/25/business/energy-environment/atomic-goal-800-years-of-power-from-waste.html?ref=science

California lawmakers fly to Scandinavia to learn about energy.  A
delegation of nine California state lawmakers has left on a trip
to Sweden and Norway to study how the Scandinavians have advanced
environmental and energy policies. The trip is one of several
largely paid for over the years by the California Foundation on
the Environment and the Economy, a nonprofit group funded by
business and labor groups, including the oil and energy
industries. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/local/political/la-me-pc-california-lawmakers-fly-to-scandanavia-to-learn-about-energy-20130924,0,1820724.story

MISCELLANEOUS

Robert Bullard, pioneer in environmental justice, is honored by
the Sierra Club. One freezing February day in 1994, environmental
scholar and activist Robert Bullard was summoned to the White
House. He had no idea why. When he was ushered into the Oval
Office, he discovered that President Bill Clinton had invited him
to witness the signing of an executive order that would require
the federal government to consider the environmental consequences
to low-income communities before implementing policies. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/robert-bullard-pioneer-in-environmental-justice-is-honored-by-the-sierra-club/2013/09/24/88e0e882-251c-11e3-b3e9-d97fb087acd6_story.html


State Agencies Embrace $11 Mil. Initiative to Curb Greenhouse Gas
Emissions on Roads. The California State Transportation Agency
today joined the California Air Resources Board and California
Department of Transportation in announcing support for a new
national research program to support sustainable transportation.
“The California Transportation Agency is taking action to combat
climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from
transportation,” California State Transportation Agency Secretary
Brian Kelly said. Posted.
http://scvnews.com/2013/09/24/state-agencies-embrace-11-mil-initiative-to-curb-greenhouse-gas-emissions-on-roads/


OPINIONS

Warming Up for Another Climate-Change Report. Every six years, a
U.N. panel issues its findings, and the media hail them as
definitive. Skepticism may be in order. At a closed-door meeting
in Stockholm this week, each paragraph of a document written by
scientists is being projected onto large screens. Delegations
from scores of nations participate in the editing: Words will be
substituted, emphasis will be added, entire sentences may well be
inserted or deleted. Posted.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323981304579079030750537994.html?KEYWORDS=climate+change


What Should Be Done About Global Warming? There's a consensus
among leading scientists that global warming is caused by human
activity. So we asked The Experts: What—if anything—should we do
about it? This discussion relates to a recent Journal Report on
myths about renewable energy and formed the basis of a discussion
on The Experts blog on Sept. 24. Posted.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303759604579095760652498736.html#printMode?KEYWORDS=climate+change


Letters: About that climate change 'hiatus'. Re "What's this
global warming ‘hiatus’?" Sept. 23. I'm not a climate scientist
and will not attempt to argue the interpretation of the data
presented in this piece, but I do know what the word "hiatus"
means: merely a lapse in continuity — in this case, with the
extent of global warming predictions. This is by no means an
excuse to continue burning fossil fuels in lieu of using clean,
renewable energy sources. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/letters/la-le-0925-wednesday-climate-change-hiatus-20130925,0,7913594.story


Mark Buchanan: uncertainty on climate is a sign of good science. 
Scientists can’t say for sure that humans are the cause of global
climate change. They’re still a little uncertain, and that’s a
good thing. It means the science is working the way it should.
A well-educated friend of mine, a climate-change skeptic, once
told me that he didn’t believe anything coming out of the big
computer models that scientists use to reason about the complex
nonlinear feedbacks driving the Earth’s climate system. Posted.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/sep/25/tp-mark-buchanan-uncertainty-on-climate-is-a-sign/


BLOGS

Let’s Upgrade Our Insurance Policy on Climate-Change Risk.
There’s a consensus among leading scientists that global warming
is caused by human activity. What–if anything–should we do about
it? KATE GORDON: Climate change presents potentially catastrophic
risks to our economy. If you don’t believe me, ask someone who
just went through Colorado’s historic floods, or Superstorm
Sandy, or the Yosemite Rim fire. Posted.
http://blogs.wsj.com/experts/2013/09/24/lets-upgrade-our-insurance-policy-on-climate-change-risk/?KEYWORDS=climate+change


Wanted: A Climate Solution for Developing Countries. There’s a
consensus among leading scientists that global warming is caused
by human activity. What–if anything–should we do about it? ROBERT
RAPIER: Although climate change will continue to be a topic that
arouses passions on both sides, it is indisputable that the world
is conducting a giant experiment on the global atmosphere for
which the ultimate outcome is unknown. Posted.
http://blogs.wsj.com/experts/2013/09/24/wanted-a-climate-solution-for-developing-countries/?KEYWORDS=climate+change


Is Natural Gas ‘Clean’?  The question is whether the natural gas
“revolution,” which is a real thing — production is up about a
third since 2005 — is also a good thing. One reason natural gas
is called “clean” is because it emits 50 percent less carbon
dioxide than coal when you burn it. Thus it’s seen by some as a
“bridge” fuel until zero-carbon-producing renewables can take
over. But natural gas isn’t clean in the way that solar is clean.
It’s clean-er than coal. It’s better than the worst; that’s all.
Posted.
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/09/24/is-natural-gas-clean/?_r=0


Good News for the Climate: Electric Vehicles Posting Record Sales
Across the Nation. Plug-in electric vehicles (EVs) posted record
sales numbers in August, with the Chevy Volt and Nissan LEAF both
boasting their best sales month ever. This is good news for a
technology that is an important part of getting our nation on
track to cut our oil use in half and tackle global warming.  As
more EVs hit the streets, we get a clearer picture of the plug-in
car market. Posted.
http://blog.ucsusa.org/good-news-for-the-climate-electric-vehicles-posting-record-sales-across-the-nation-252


Regional Greenhouse Gas Effort Eyed As National Model. As the
Obama Administration drafts rules to control carbon emissions
from power plants, advocates say there is a proven model in the
Northeast for the nation to follow. The focus now is on a
market-based system that Vermont helped create called the
Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. The Environmental Protection
Agency last week announced new greenhouse gas reduction standards
for new gas and coal-fired power plants. Posted.
http://digital.vpr.net/post/regional-greenhouse-gas-effort-eyed-national-model


Wheelies: The Fire Sale E.V.’s Edition.  Electric cars: for sale,
cheap. That is, in essence, what two resellers are saying about
leftover cars from Coda Automotive – reborn as Coda Energy after
it filed for bankruptcy this year. After the company took a
nose-dive, the resellers bought up the rest of the E.V.’s and
parts that Coda had in stock. Posted.
http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/09/24/wheelies-the-fire-sale-e-v-s-edition/
 

MADRE FIRE: Unhealthful air drifting into San Bernardino
Mountains.  Smoke from the Madre Fire is burning above Azusa is
drifting east and could result in unhealthful air quality in the
western San Bernardino Mountains, say air district officials. The
South Coast Air Quality Management District issued health
advisories Tuesday, Sept. 24, for areas in the San Gabriel Valley
and the San Bernardino Mountains.  Air quality may reach the
unhealthy range or higher in these areas. Posted.
http://blog.pe.com/air-quality/2013/09/24/wildfire-unhealthful-air-drifting-into-san-bernardino-mountains/
  BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY 

RENEWABLE ENERGY: Ivanpah project completes first test.
BrightSource Energy Inc. officials were celebrating a first
successful test today, Sept. 24, of the Ivanpah Solar Electric
Generating System in northeast San Bernardino County. The “first
sync” was an output of energy between the plant’s Unit 1 and the
power grid, company officials said in a news release. Power
generated during the test will go to Pacific Gas and Electric,
which has a power purchase agreement at Ivanpah. Posted.
http://blog.pe.com/environment/2013/09/24/renewable-energy-ivanpah-project-completes-first-test/
BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

RFA: ethanol cuts gas prices by up to $1.50 a gallon. The
Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is giving us up to 2.6 trillion
reasons why blending ethanol with the US fuel supply are a good
thing for the economy. Citing former Ford and Carter
administration energy advisor Philip Verleger, the RFA estimates
that gas would be between 50 cents and $1.50 more per gallon than
its costs today. Posted.
http://green.autoblog.com/2013/09/25/rfa-ethanol-cuts-gas-prices-by-up-to-1-50-a-gallon/


Air Pollution Deaths: NASA Map Illustrates Where Fine Particle
Matter Is The Most Deadly. Air pollution may be to blame for
millions of deaths per year, but which countries are the worst
offenders? Based on data unveiled in a study on air pollution
deaths earlier this year, a new NASA map illustrates the nations
with the highest rates of premature mortality due to air
pollution. The map -- which compares data from Jan. 1, 1850, and
Jan. 1, 2000…Posted.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/24/air-pollution-deaths-countries-at-risk-nasa-map_n_3982535.html?view=print&comm_ref=false



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