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CAP AND TRADE

Calif. engaging in carbon-trading discussions with other Western
states. California's top climate policymaker said yesterday that
she is urging other Western states to use carbon trading to
comply with President Obama's Clean Power Plan. California Air
Resources Board Chairwoman Mary Nichols is participating in
discussions led by former Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter (D) through
his clean energy center at Colorado State University.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060023751/search?keyword=california

AIR POLLUTION

Toxic smoke scare after Vallejo metal recycling plant burns. The
Vallejo Fire Department contained a massive three-alarm warehouse
fire on Mare Island early Friday morning, but potentially toxic
smoke from the blaze was still posing health concerns to the
surrounding area, officials said. The fire was a "commercial
structure fire" at Alco Metal & Iron Company, a recycling plant
at 629 Azuar Drive.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Ferocious-blaze-at-Vallejo-metal-plant-still-6457422.php


More than hot air.  Research shows health risks in air pollution
caused by leaf blowers, but industry disputes implications. 
Blasting air at up to 185 mph, leaf blowers can whip up hazardous
particles and contaminants from the ground at speeds greater than
a Category 5 hurricane, sending them long distances. 
Epidemiological studies have long recognized the harm these
particles — including hydrocarbons from gasoline…
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2015/08/21/more-than-hot-air 

Soundscape of Palo Alto being disrupted by leaf blowers.
Gas-powered leaf blowers are banned from neighborhoods — so why
are they being used everywhere. Several days a week, Stan and
Kiyomi Hutchings relax on their brick-lined backyard patio in Old
Palo Alto. They enjoy reading under the wisteria canopy and
eating lunch on blue-and-white cotton tablecloths next to their
burbling, cherub-adorned fountain.
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2015/08/21/soundscape-of-palo-alto-being-disrupted-by-leaf-blowers


Scientists say they have found a way to transform carbon dioxide
in the air into valuable materials.  Reducing the greenhouse
emissions has been an international goal for years, but now
scientists have a solution about the carbon dioxide that is
already in the atmosphere: They want to turn them into
nanofibers.
http://www.businessinsider.com/scientist-turned-co2-into-valuable-material-2015-8#ixzz3jT4uzmDA


CLIMATE CHANGE

EU urges G20 countries to make climate goals public. The European
Union is urging major emerging industrialized powers to make
public their emissions targets ahead of a key climate conference
in December. Top EU climate official Miguel Arias Canete called
Thursday on Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia,
South Africa and Turkey to submit goals to the United Nations.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_EUROPE_CLIMATE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


Feeling the heat: Earth in July was hottest month on record.
Earth just keeps getting hotter. July was the planet's warmest
month on record, smashing old marks, U.S. weather officials said.
And it's almost a dead certain lock that this year will beat last
year as the warmest year on record, they said. July's average
temperature was 61.86 degrees Fahrenheit…
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/01a778b2b46b4304b4b98459abc416d7/feeling-heat-earth-july-was-hottest-month-record


Germany and Brazil join forces on climate change action. Germany
and Brazil committed themselves on Thursday to a joint stance on
climate change, putting the largest economies in Europe and Latin
America on the same page ahead of global climate talks in Paris
in December. Chancellor Angela Merkel and Brazilian President
Dilma Rousseff focused mainly on environmental cooperation…
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/08/21/us-brazil-germany-climatechange-idUSKCN0QQ06320150821

Gov. Jerry Brown: Climate change worsening California’s drought.
Citing a new report, Gov. Jerry Brown said Thursday that climate
change is worsening the effects of California’s four-year
drought. “New scientific reports now make it crystal clear that
climate change is already affecting California…
http://www.dailynews.com/general-news/20150820/gov-jerry-brown-climate-change-worsening-californias-drought


How small farmers are adapting to climate change.  Everyone must
play a role in helping small farmers adapt to climate change, and
chefs are uniquely positioned to do so. Recipes for change, a
campaign of the International Fund for Agricultural Development
(IFAD), features ingredients that are under threat from climatic
changes.
http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/The-Bite/2015/0821/How-small-farmers-are-adapting-to-climate-change


Clean, green New Zealand falls behind Australia on climate
change. Even the carbon tax-scrapping Australians will do more
than New Zealand to address climate change, reports Stuff.nz. 
Emission-slashing pledges by countries including the United
States have experts questioning if New Zealand’s
recently-announced climate change target…
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/aug/21/clean-green-new-zealand-falls-behind-australia-on-climate-change


DROUGHT

Drought-Fueled Wildfires Burn 7 Million Acres in U.S. Sap a
forest of rain — say, for three or four years — toss in seemingly
endless sunshine and high temperatures, and you’ve got just the
right recipe for some catastrophic wildfires. Such is the story
playing out in the West, where, thanks in part to climate change,
drought-fueled infernos are incinerating forests at a record pace
from Alaska to California…
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/wildfires-burn-7-million-acres-19363?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climatecentral%2FdjOO+Climate+Central+-+Full+Feed


FUELS

U.S. ethanol nears rare premium to gasoline, threatening margins.
Benchmark U.S. ethanol prices are about to return to a rare
premium versus gasoline for the first time since January,
threatening to end a period of relatively healthy margins that
was bolstered by unexpectedly strong summer fuel demand.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/08/21/markets-ethanol-gasoline-idUSL1N10V27Q20150821?type=companyNews


Most Canada oil sands crude being produced at a loss –report.
More than three-quarters of Canada's daily output of 2.2 million
barrels of crude from oil sands is being produced at a loss at
current prices, research from analysts at TD Securities shows,
although producers are unlikely to halt operations.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/08/20/canada-oil-sands-costs-idUSL1N10V2KB20150820


VEHICLES

CMU analysis finds BEVs powered with natural gas-based
electricity have about 40% of the lifecycle GHGs of a
conventional gasoline vehicle.  According to a new lifecycle
analysis by a team at Carnegie Mellon University, a battery
electric vehicle (BEV) powered with natural gas-based electricity
achieves around an average 40% lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions reduction when compared to a conventional gasoline
vehicle.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2015/08/20150821-cmu.html 

Poll: Consumer Interest In Electric Vehicles Stagnating? Today
you’re far more likely to see an all-electric vehicle like the
Nissan Leaf or Tesla Model S on your way to work or to the store,
versus just a couple of years ago. That much is almost certainly
true. But that doesn’t mean that EVs are past a market tipping
point just yet.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1099677_poll-data-interest-in-electric-vehicles-stagnating


GREEN ENERGY

EIB issues 600 mln-euro green bond.  The European Investment Bank
issued a new 600 million-euro ($676 million) "green bond" this
week, taking its total issuance of such bonds to 10 billion
euros.  Proceeds from green bonds are aimed at funding projects
to cut greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to climate change or
expand the use of renewable energy.
http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL5N10W1AK20150821

  
Makai Builds Ocean Thermal-Energy Demo Plant in Hawaii. Makai
Ocean Engineering Inc. has built an ocean thermal-energy
conversion demonstration plant in Hawaii. The 105-kilowatt
project that cost about $5 million to construct is the world’s
largest plant to date utilizing the evolving renewable source. It
was funded by the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research, Hawaii
Natural Energy Institute and Makai.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-21/makai-builds-ocean-thermal-energy-demo-plant-in-hawaii


Homes Make as Much Energy as They Use. Will zero-net-energy homes
be the wave of the future?  Marisol Sanabria points to a small
white device about the size of her palm encased in a hard clear
plastic box. Mounted on the wall above a kitchen countertop
between a blender and a gleaming stainless steel toaster, the
device, which emits a soft purple glow from one side and red glow
on the other…
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/homes-make-as-much-energy-as-they-use/


Managing the Rise of Distributed Energy: Emerging Utility Trends.
Much has been written and discussed over the last few years
regarding the conventional utility’s “death spiral.” America’s
power generation utilities have become increasingly fearful that
a significant majority of their customers will generate their own
electricity through innovative distributed energy technologies
like rooftop solar.
http://www.theenergycollective.com/van-hilderbrand-jr/2262393/managing-rise-distributed-energy-emerging-utility-trends


Clean energy is about to start an earthbound 'space race' One of
the seminal achievements of the last century was the Space Race
and its successful culmination in putting a man on the moon. What
must have seemed like a wildly audacious plan when it was first
announced, ushered in a new era of satellites and space shuttles,
and positioned America at the forefront of a technological
revolution.
http://www.businessinsider.com/clean-energy-earthbound-space-race-2015-8#ixzz3jTGfccEu


Solar power crosses threshold, gets cheaper than natural gas.
Several large solar power plants under construction in the United
States have in the past few months promised to do something that
none has done before: offer prices equal to or lesser than that
of a natural gas-fired power plant, even as gas is abundant and
cheap.
http://www.eenews.net/energywire/2015/08/21/stories/1060023749 

MISCELLANEOUS

WORLD LOGISTICS CENTER: Warehouse center could face lawsuits. 
One Inland environmental group vows to sue to stop the warehouse
complex; others consider going to court.  The leader of an Inland
environmental group said Thursday it will sue Moreno Valley over
its approval the previous night of the World Logistics Center
megawarehouse complex that would cover more than 4 square miles
of the city’s east side. 
http://www.pe.com/articles/city-777653-environmental-benzeevi.html?page=1


OPINIONS

Our View: Smoke is ugly; invisible ozone is a greater danger.
When you see something that looks like a bruise in the sky, it’s
not a good sign. But that’s how it looked Wednesday – yellowish,
brown and thick – as smoke from the Tesla fire gathered in a huge
cloud hanging low in the sky from Manteca to north Modesto. You
could see it from Livingston and Oakdale.
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/opinion/editorials/article31675316.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.modbee.com/opinion/editorials/article31675277.html 

Carbon tax a boondoggle (letter). Here’s another reason why
taxpayers should vehemently oppose a carbon tax: no
accountability. Billions of dollars are wasted regularly by
incompetent government bureaucracies; boondoggles are the norm,
not the exception. Earlier this month, the AP reported that in
both a Health & Human Services audit and a Government
Accountability Office (GAO) report…
http://www.ydr.com/letters/ci_28673866/carbon-tax-boondoggle-letter


Apple And Google Pour Billions Down A Green Drain. Business has
been captured by climatism, the belief that humans are causing
dangerous global warming. Leading companies announce plans to
reduce carbon dioxide emissions, purchase renewable energy, use
vehicle biofuels, and buy carbon credits. But there is no
evidence that commercial policies to “fight” climate change have
any measureable effect on global temperatures.
http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/21/apple-and-google-pour-billions-down-a-green-drain/#ixzz3jTBV7yhx


Letter: Ozone pollution poses serious dangers. By now, the public
should be used to opponents of more protective air pollution
standards making inflated claims about cost (“Obama’s new ozone
rules will cost Michigan jobs” ). Every time our nation has set
new standards to limit dangerous air pollution, we’ve heard the
same arguments, and they’re proven wrong time and time again.
http://www.detroitnews.com/story/opinion/2015/08/21/letter-ozone-pollution-dangerous/32078637/


BLOGS

EPA's Methane Policy: Statistically Trivial For The Planet And
Terrible For The Economy. The Environmental Protection Agency
wants to protect civilization from methane.  Methane is,
essentially, natural gas.  And is it ever “natural.”  Nature
gushes the stuff, constantly and everywhere.  Methane is emitted
by cattle, termites…
http://www.forbes.com/sites/markpmills/2015/08/21/epas-methane-policy-statistically-trivial-for-the-planet-and-terrible-for-the-economy/

EPA Methane Rule: A Good Start Toward Meeting Administration's
Landmark Goal. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency took a
big step this week, announcing the nation's first methane
pollution standards for the oil and gas industry. But to
understand the impact of these new draft rules, it's important to
look at what they do - and what they don't…
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-brownstein/epa-methane-rule-a-good-s_b_8020824.html

Sunlight Activates Smog-Causing Chemicals in City Grime.  The
grime on city buildings and may actively contribute to urban air
pollution. Christopher Intagliata reports. In recent years big
cities have seen lower rates of crime. But there’s still plenty
of grime. Combustion from cars, factories and fires spews out
nitrogen oxides. Those compounds react with sunlight and air to
form ozone—the main ingredient in smog.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/sunlight-activates-smog-causing-chemicals-in-city-grime/


Faith in the Face of Climate Change.  Among the more recognised
names that will be occupying the stages at this year's Greenbelt
festival over the August Bank Holiday, will be a little known
Filipino priest called Father Herbert Fadriguella.  The likes of
choral multi-instrumentalists The Polyphonic Spree and the
protest ballads of Grace Petrie will draw the crowds at Boughton
House…
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/joe-ware/faith-in-the-face-of-climate-change_b_8015650.html


Six Lessons Learned About the Politics of Climate Change. Over
the past few weeks, every Democratic candidate running for
president has discussed climate change in a major speech and made
climate solutions a central part of their platform. Republican
candidates continue to use stock phrases like "I'm not a
scientist," but at least they are talking about climate change.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/heather-taylormiesle/six-lessons-learned-about_b_8021936.html





California is in a drought emergency.
Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.