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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for December 22, 2014.
Posted: 22 Dec 2014 14:30:59
ARB Newsclips for December 22, 2014. 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 Candlestick’s possible implosion raises dust plume health fears in Bayview. The shell of Candlestick Park may still loom over the shoreline on The City’s southeast edge, yet it’s no secret that the old stadium will be brought to its knees soon. However, the nature of that execution has some people in the Bayview-Hunters Point worried about health impacts. http://www.sfexaminer.com/sanfrancisco/candlesticks-possible-implosion-raises-dust-plume-health-fears-in-bayview/Content?oid=2914933 Fish poisoning: Spanish mackerel case a 'wake-up call' for spread of deadly toxins. Heidi Hollis was working at an RSL Club in Evans Head on the northern NSW coast back in February when she and several colleagues tucked into a lunch of Spanish mackerel. What followed was months of pain as food poisoning-like symptoms initially sent her to hospital for several days and left her with persistent nerve damage. http://www.smh.com.au/environment/fish-poisoning-spanish-mackerel-case-a-wakeup-call-for-spread-of-deadly-toxins-20141221-12ajhy.html CLIMATE CHANGE Weird weather lingers in Alaska's largest city. A week before Christmas, Alaska's largest city should look like a postcard wonderland, and the last place you'd expect to see equipment making snow. "We want Santa to bring snow, soon," Terry Goodwin said as she hit a ski trail in Anchorage on Thursday near snowmaking machines churning out the white stuff. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_ALASKA_WEIRD_WEATHER?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-12-19-03-02-13 Wheat yields to fall more than expected in warmer world. Global warming will cut average wheat yields by six percent for every degree Celsius (1.8 Fahrenheit) of temperature rise in a bigger-than-expected brake on food production in a hotter world, a study said on Monday. http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/12/22/climatechange-wheat-idINL6N0U617O20141222 In Jakarta, that sinking feeling is all too real. The Ciliwung River flows from a volcano south of the Indonesian capital, through the heart of one of the world’s most densely populated cities and almost into Jakarta Bay. Almost, because for the final mile or so of its course, the river would have to flow uphill to reach the bay. http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/12/22/uk-sealevel-subsidence-jakarta-idINKBN0K016O20141222 New climate change culprit: Beavers. We were just trying to help. Turns out the efforts of humankind to save beavers from extinction over the past century have had an eco-unfriendly side effect: The animals, whose population has rebounded, are contributing to climate change… http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/12/21/climate-change-beavers/20728405/ Lawmakers press Obama to rescind climate rule. A group of bipartisan lawmakers is urging President Obama to withdraw the administration’s climate regulation on carbon pollution from existing power plants. In a letter sent to Obama on Friday, 102 members of Congress argue the proposal would “dramatically” change the way “we generate, transmit and consume electricity in the United States.” http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/227742-lawmakers-press-obama-to-rescind-climate-rule Falling Oil Prices and the Climate Change Agenda. The latest falling oil prices to $55.96 (West Texas Intermediate), dropping from a high of $105 per barrel in June 2014, as a result of increased domestic oil production from fracking, is making the price of $150 per barrel of renewables look ridiculously expensive, not counting the wasted government subsidies in bankrupt solar power companies. http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/68501 Alberta punts on new climate regulations as Obama slams Keystone XL. The province overseeing the Canadian oil sands is delaying a decision about its carbon regulations until the middle of next year, deferring a chance to shift its existing climate policies before the U.S. Congress reconsiders Keystone XL. Previously, Alberta had been set to update its existing carbon policies this month. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060010910/print Could climate change be the Grinch that steals Christmas? The winter holidays are a time to gather together, celebrate, stuff ourselves with figgy pudding and otherwise forget all about the travails of the outside world. But much like a certain nasty green fellow who lives in the vicinity of Whoville, climate change doesn't show much respect for hallowed holiday traditions. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060010904/print Scientists discuss lessons learned during a 20-year fight with climate change deniers. Two decades ago, Benjamin Santer chose 12 words that changed his life forever: "The balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global climate." That statement was part of the 1995 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's report, and it was the first time the international scientific organization had linked human activity to climate change. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060010911/print DROUGHT Beavers could help California fight effects of drought. Three punishing years of drought have parched California streams, rivers and wetlands. One animal has the potential to restore these dry landscapes. With their industrial-strength buck teeth and flat tails, beavers and their dams offer a defense against drought. The rodents are known as ecosystem engineers. http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article4767285.html#storylink=cpy Drought: December rainfall breaks records but California needs more. Record December rainfall has shaken the dust off California’s four-year drought by piling up snowpack in the Sierras and returning flows to near-empty reservoirs. But a forecast of dry, sunny weather for the next 10 days has left drought-watchers concerned that the old weather pattern…http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/general-news/20141220/drought-december-rainfall-breaks-records-but-california-needs-more Drought, then deluge pits neighbor against neighbor over water rates in Santa Cruz Mountains. All this rain is causing a revolt in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It's a little one, in a little neighborhood of 118 households. But the tensions are deeper than the slowly rising Lexington Reservoir just below, and as turbulent as Los Gatos Creek after a month of storms. http://www.mercurynews.com/drought/ci_27178451/drought-then-deluge-pits-neighbor-against-neighbor-over?source=rss California needs 11 trillion gallons of rain to end drought, JPL says. Although December storms have provided the Southland with above-average rainfall, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists said it will still take about 11 trillion gallons of water — about 1.5 times the volume of America’s largest reservoir — to recover from California’s long-standing drought. http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_27179359/california-needs-11-trillion-gallons-rain-end-drought DIESEL EMISSIONS Royal Caribbean to cut emissions on 19 ships. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will use new pollution-reducing scrubbers to "meet or exceed" environmental standards, officials said. The company announced plans to retrofit 13 Royal Caribbean and six Celebrity Cruises ships with scrubber technology, each installation to take about eight months. http://www.usatoday.com/story/cruiselog/2014/12/22/royal-caribbean-to-cut-emissions-on-19-ships/20763529/ FUELS NY farmers lament lost opportunity for gas riches. While environmental groups are doing a victory dance over New York's decision to ban fracking, farmers such as apple grower David Johnson are grieving for dashed hopes and dreams. "I'm devastated," Johnson said after Gov. Andrew Cuomo's health and environmental commissioners announced Wednesday that they were recommending a fracking ban. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_GAS_DRILLING_DASHED_HOPES?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT West Sacramento says no to ethanol trains. The city of West Sacramento and a Texas-based gasoline company are battling over whether it’s riskier to ship large amounts of ethanol through city streets on trains or on tanker trucks – a dispute that last week spilled into court. Every day, six train cars full of the fuel additive arrive at a mixing terminal on West Sacramento’s riverfront south of Highway 50. http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article4779009.html#storylink=cpy Officials OK perks for Iowa vegetable oil plant. State and local officials have approved $3.1 million in incentives for an Omaha, Nebraska, soybean processor to build a $90 million vegetable oil refinery in northwestern Iowa. An agreement approved Friday by the Woodbury County Board will exempt Ag Processing Inc. from $2.1 million in county property taxes through 2024… http://www.sacbee.com/news/business/article4737102.html#storylink=cpy Coming in 2015: A gas price increase that consumers may or may not notice. Drivers across the central San Joaquin Valley are enjoying an ongoing drop in the cost of gasoline, with fuel prices hitting levels not seen since 2009. In a few weeks, however, the price will go up — guaranteed. It’s all part of California’s effort to combat global climate change. http://www.fresnobee.com/2014/12/20/4296341_coming-in-2015-a-gas-price-increase.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy Oil’s 50% Drop From 2014 High Stokes Faith in Rally. The slump in oil that drove U.S. prices down as much as 50 percent from this year’s high is spurring the most bullish bet by hedge funds in four months. Speculators expanded their net-long position in West Texas Intermediate crude by 14 percent in the week ended Dec. 16, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data show. http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-12-21/oil-s-50-percent-drop-from-high-of-2014-stokes-faith-in-a-rally-energy Santa Comes Early at Pump With Gasoline's Drop to Lowest Since 2009. The average price of regular gasoline at U.S. pumps slid to the lowest level since May 15, 2009, dropping 24.68 cents in the two weeks ended Dec. 19 to $2.4713 a gallon, according to Lundberg Survey Inc. Prices are 79.05 cents lower than a year ago, according to the survey… http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-12-21/u-dot-s-dot-gasoline-falls-to-2-dot-4713-a-gallon-in-lundberg-survey Obama Says Keystone Pipeline Will Have Little Impact on U.S. Gas Prices. The President's comments come as Republican leader Mitch McConnell has said his party's first act in the new Senate would be to pass a bill fast-tracking approval of the $8 billion project. U.S. President Barack Obama said on Friday that construction of the Keystone XL pipeline to transport crude oil from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast…http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/obama-says-keystone-pipeline-will-have-little-impact-on-u-s-gas-prices/ Fracking Fumes: Where There's a Well, All is Not Well. Emissions from oil-and-gas production pose a significant threat to human health, and immediate steps must be taken to reduce exposure to the toxic pollution, according to an analysis of scientific studies by the Natural Resources Defense Council. http://insideclimatenews.org/news/20141222/fracking-fumes-where-theres-well-all-not-well?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=2fee720a14-InsideClimate_News12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-2fee720a14-327749509 VEHICLES Tesla to Install First Battery Swap Facility. Battery Swaps Would Be Faster Than Charging But Come With Cost. Tesla Motors Inc. said Friday in a corporate blog post that it will install its first battery swap facility in California and invite some owners of the Model S electric sedan to participate at a “cost slightly less than a full tank of gasoline for a premium sedan.” http://www.wsj.com/articles/tesla-to-install-first-battery-swap-facility-1419020657 Researchers look beyond tailpipes to check emissions of green vehicles. Alternative passenger vehicles like electric or biofuel-powered cars are thought to be less environmentally harmful than their gasoline-guzzling counterparts. But their fuel still can have significant impacts on carbon emission levels as well as on human health. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060010899/print GREEN ENERGY Energy-Storage Plans Gain Ground in California. In an unusual competition in California, proposals for energy storage systems beat out hundreds of bids to construct new power plants as a way to meet peak power needs. Southern California Edison has retired its San Onofre nuclear reactors and is planning to retire natural gas units with environmentally troublesome cooling systems. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/22/business/energy-environment/california-picks-energy-storage-over-some-new-power-plant-bids.html?_r=2 Californians pay for Bay Bridge flaws, but wind farm recoups costs from same contractor. This is a tale of two projects. One – the $6.5 billion San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge – is the largest public works project in state history. (More specifically, its $2 billion suspension-span segment.) The other – the $1.8 billion Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm in the North Sea off Suffolk, England – is one of the world’s biggest wind-energy projects. http://www.sacbee.com/news/investigations/bay-bridge/article4748610.html#storylink=cpy Sunflower Floating Solar Power Plant In Korea. South Korean PV module manufacturer SolarPark Korea has supplied modules to the first floating solar PV power plant in the country, the prototype Sunflower Solar Power Plant, which uses a tracking and rotating system. According to SolarPark Korea, the tracking system rotates the PV plant so that the modules face the most sun throughout the day. http://cleantechnica.com/2014/12/21/sunflower-floating-solar-power-plant-korea/ Changing human behavior could go a long way in curbing building emissions, researchers say. An LED light bulb won't save much energy if it's left on all night. And an airtight home won't cut your heating bill if someone leaves a window open. Without changes in behavior, even the most energy-efficient technologies will have a negligible impact on utility bills and greenhouse gas emissions. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060010907/print OPINIONS An upside of high-speed rail? It's more traveler friendly than flying. In the holiday spirit, here's something cheerful to say about the California bullet train if Gov. Jerry Brown ever gets it assembled: It would be a whole lot more passenger-friendly than demeaning air travel. No torturous, long security lines. No stripping off your belts and shoes. No pat-downs or X-rays. No inhuman stares. No re-dressing. Instead, Welcome Aboard. http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-bullet-train-20141222-column.html Amid climate change, what's more important: Protecting money or people? At the latest round of international climate talks this month in Lima, Peru, melting glaciers in the Andes and recent droughts provided a fitting backdrop for the negotiators' recognition that it is too late to prevent climate change, no matter how fast we ultimately act to limit it. They now confront an issue that many had hoped to avoid: adaptation. http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-1222-boyce-climate-change-adaptation-costs-20141218-story.html The answer on human-caused climate change is in. As our planet warms, scientists and the general public are increasingly asking if human-caused climate change influences the extreme weather events we see all around us. Until recently, the answer was always “we don’t know yet.” Today, the answer is increasingly “yes.” Earth is in a remarkable transition from a world in which human influence on climate… http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-ed/soapbox/article4703142.html#storylink=cpy OTHER VIEWS: A slight deal is better than no deal on climate. Ever since negotiators failed to agree on a climate accord in Copenhagen five years ago, diplomats have been trying for a big, international do-over. Talks in Lima, Peru, this month put this effort on track to conclude an agreement in Paris next year. The trade-off is that the accord will be insufficiently ambitious and difficult to enforce… http://www.bakersfieldcalifornian.com/opinion/national-voices/x34742063/A-slight-deal-is-better-than-no-deal-on-climate Guest commentary: Southern California and conservation: Respecting water's limits. This paper recently questioned Southern California's commitment to water conservation based on a single month ("Southern California's Sad Conservation Record" -- Dec. 13). Had the editorial examined roughly 50 years of Southern California's conservation performance -- success over the past generation and plans for no additional supplies from Northern California… http://www.insidebayarea.com/opinion/ci_27166097/guest-commentary-southern-california-and-conservation-respecting-waters Harper’s ‘green shift’ leaves us guessing: Editorial. When Parliament resumes the opposition should try to pin Stephen Harper down on just what he’s prepared to propose to our major trading partners, to fight climate change. Putting a price on Canada’s carbon emissions to help save the planet? Prime Minister Stephen Harper has always shot down the idea of a “job-killing carbon tax.” http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/2014/12/22/harpers_green_shift_leaves_us_guessing_editorial.html Our View: That old familiar refrain: Rain is nice, but it’s not enough. This rain is helping a lot, but the fact that it's helping a lot isn't really helping us cope with the drought. Twisted thinking, yes, but true. It's a common refrain every time a storm system moves over the area and drops a good deal of moisture and we do a news report about the weather phenomenon: "It's a nice rain, but the drought is not over." http://www.appeal-democrat.com/opinion/our-view-that-old-familiar-refrain-rain-is-nice-but/article_ca6e60a8-88e0-11e4-9a6c-c3446e1b40b1.html CEQA Reform Should Separate Legit Complaints from Project Haters. The response I hear most often when the subject of reforming the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) comes up is a heavy sigh. Everyone thinks it should happen, but no one’s especially confident that it will. That’s unfortunate, because while California was ahead of the curve when it passed CEQA in 1970… http://voiceofsandiego.org/2014/12/19/ceqa-reform-should-separate-legit-complaints-from-project-haters/ BLOGS We need strong national methane rules. Here's how we get there. New York’s statewide ban on fracking is a vindication for communities around the country that have been hit hard by unconventional natural gas production, writes Fred Krupp, Environmental Defense Fund’s president, in a Dec. 22 op-ed piece in The Washington Post. It demonstrates what can happen when oil and gas producers erode public trust by brushing aside legitimate questions… http://blogs.edf.org/energyexchange/2014/12/22/we-need-strong-national-methane-rules-heres-how-we-get-there/ Climate change by the numbers: The cold data that drove a record-hot year. Is it hot enough yet? Will 2015 finally be the year we do something? 2014 was hot. Almost certainly the hottest year on record, and the latest point on a graph that’s been trending upward since we first began pumping heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. http://www.salon.com/2014/12/22/climate_change_by_the_numbers_the_cold_data_that_drove_a_record_hot_year/ Why Climate Change Isn’t a Sputnik Moment. Military technology can’t innovate us out of this one. Here we go again. Another year, another inconclusive climate change summit. The grim reality haunting the talks that recently wrapped up in Lima, Peru, is that any targets, goals, or agreements will ultimately depend on a transformation of the world energy system. http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2014/12/climate_change_isn_t_a_sputnik_moment_why.html This is the kind of climate bill Congress should pass (but won’t). The Senate’s two leading climate hawks, Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and Brian Schatz of Hawaii, are pushing a bill that would make the U.S.’s climate policy rational and coherent. The climate-denying Republicans controlling Congress won’t pass it, of course, but it’s important to keep the conversation going. http://grist.org/climate-energy/this-is-the-kind-of-climate-bill-congress-should-pass-but-wont/ Pacific winds change the speed of global warming, says new study. The strength of the trade winds that cross the Pacific can affect how quickly the planet warns, new research suggests. By analyzing the chemical makeup of corals in the tropical Pacific, researchers have found that changing wind patterns affected how quickly the Earth warmed during the last century. http://www.carbonbrief.org/blog/2014/12/pacific-winds-change-the-speed-of-global-warming-says-new-study/ The 10 Worst Environment And Climate Media Fails Of 2014. This year was a big one for environment and climate news. America moved to limit greenhouse gas emissions from coal plants for the first time. China entered into a historic climate deal with the U.S., and 100 governments signed off on the most comprehensive report on climate science yet. http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/12/22/3603714/climate-media-fails-2014/ Tesla Battery Swapping, EPA Carbon Regulations, Another 2016 Chevy Volt Teaser: Today's Car News. Today we've got news of a pilot program for Tesla Model S electric-car battery swapping, a delay for EPA regulations that would limit carbon emissions from power plants, and yet another teaser for the 2016 Chevrolet Volt electric car. http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1096021_tesla-battery-swapping-epa-carbon-regulations-another-2016-chevy-volt-teaser-todays-car-news Siemens unveils first series production EV with RACE architecture and system. Siemens has unveiled the first electric series production vehicle with the central electronics and software architecture RACE. (Earlier post.) This technology, developed in the research project of the same name, replaces the entire control system with standard hardware and a kind of “operating system for automobiles.” http://www.greencarcongress.com/2014/12/20141222-siemens.html Toyota Mirai Test Drive, Tesla Drag Race, Cleaner Electric Cars: The Week In Reverse (Video). Which promise made by electric-car maker Tesla Motors took 18 months to come to fruition? And what's the 2016 Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle really like to drive? Friday, we had a brief exclusive on the first Tesla battery-swapping station, which will open next week in Harris Ranch, California. http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1095981_toyota-mirai-test-drive-tesla-drag-race-cleaner-electric-cars-the-week-in-reverse-video ETH team develops catalytic process to make lactic acid from glycerol biodiesel byproduct; 20% lower CO2 than fermentation pathway. Researchers at ETH Zürich developed an eco-friendly cascade process to make large amounts of lactic acid from glycerol, a waste by-product in the production of biodiesel. Polylactic acid (PLA) is a promising alternative for making plastics, as it is biodegradable and made from renewable resources. http://www.greencarcongress.com/2014/12/20141222-eth.html 2014-2015 Mercedes Diesel Models Recalled For Possible Oil Leak. Mercedes-Benz is recalling certain 2014 and 2015 BlueTec diesel vehicles to address an issue that could potentially lead to hazardous oil leaks. The recall of 4,871 E 250 BlueTec sedans and GLK 250 and ML 250 BlueTec SUVs is meant to repair a loose chain-tensioner gasket. http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1096010_2014-2015-mercedes-diesel-models-recalled-for-possible-oil-leak California is in a drought emergency. Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.