What's New List Serve Post Display

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

Beijing's air quality improving, despite winter setback, official
says.
Air quality in China's capital, Beijing, has improved over the
last two years, a senior environment official said on Friday,
despite a dramatic three-week episode of hazardous smog that drew
worldwide attention last year. The thick smog that shrouded the
city for 22 days over November and December had distorted the
picture of Beijing's environmental record since 2014, city
official Yu Jianhua told reporters.
http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL3N15T06K 

CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change threatens South American tree frogs – study.
Within 35 years, climate change is expected to shrink habitat
ranges for four South American tree frog species, according to a
recent study published in Herpetologica. Scientists examined four
frog species from the equatorial Amazonian forest to southern
pampas grasslands, modeling ecological niches and various climate
change scenarios. Their results suggest that by 2050, tree frogs
might be found in areas 14 to 52 percent smaller than their
current range.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2016/02/19/stories/1060032633 

DIESEL ACTIVITIES

Mercedes Is Sued for Violating Diesel Emissions Standards in the
U.S.
Daimler said on Friday it saw as unfounded a U.S. class action
suit brought against its Mercedes unit on claims of excessive
nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions levels. An owner of a Mercedes
BlueTEC diesel car filed a class-action lawsuit on Thursday,
accusing the carmaker of knowingly programming its Clean Diesel
vehicles to emit illegally high levels of NOx at levels 65 times
higher than those permitted by the EPA when operating in
temperatures below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, according to
consumer-rights law firm Hagens Berman.
http://fortune.com/2016/02/19/mercedes-diesel-emissions/ 

Cleaning up Valley air with natural gas off-road vehicles.
The California Energy Commission will host a public workshop in
Fresno on Monday to discuss the development of natural gas engine
technologies for off-road vehicles in the Central Valley. The
workshop will provide insight on the current off-road vehicle
market, advanced technology needs and the market potential for
natural gas-powered off-road vehicles.
http://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article61140547.html 

DROUGHT

California drought has lasting impact on the desert.
How bad is the drought? How might we measure the impact of four
years of drought on desert flora and fauna? I bring this question
up now because, to a certain extent, the drought ended with the
first wave of storms in early January. Those storms dumped nearly
three inches of precipitation on the hills and canyons of the
upper Coachella Valley and over an inch in the lower valley.
http://www.desertsun.com/story/life/home-garden/james-cornett/2016/02/19/california-drought-lasting-impact-desert/80456578/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin=


HIGH SPEED RAIL

High-speed rail operating plan pivots to Silicon Valley.
The latest business plan for California’s high-speed rail system
confirms a proposed change in direction – rumored for several
weeks – that would have the first passenger-carrying trains head
to the Silicon Valley when operations commence in the mid-2020s.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority’s draft 2016 business
plan, released Thursday evening, calls for the development of an
operating route for the statewide bullet-train system from Kern
County north through the San Joaquin Valley and then west to San
Jose.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/article61243037.html


California high-speed rail's first leg to connect Central and
Silicon valleys.
California's ambitious plan for high-speed rail service will
become reality within a decade with service between the state's
agricultural Central Valley and high-tech Silicon Valley, state
officials announced on Thursday. In an updated draft plan for the
rail line that will whisk passengers from Los Angeles to San
Francisco in under three hours by 2029, the California High-Speed
Rail Authority (CHSRA) revised downward the cost of the entire
line, to $64.1 billion from nearly $68 billion.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-rail-plan-idUSKCN0VS01R?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews


FUELS

Biofuel from Fungi: Barnyard Poop has Potential to be Broken Down
and Turned Into Energy.
Next time you pass a roadside farm, don’t hold your nose. The
source of that smell could fuel your car someday. Scientists have
found out how to harness the power of fungi from the guts of
horses, goats and sheep to break down biomass that can be used as
fuel. Researchers from the University of California, Santa
Barbara, have learned that these anaerobic gut fungi perform as
well as the best fungi engineered by industry to convert plant
material into sugars that are easily transformed into fuel. 
http://www.newsweek.com/biofuel-fungi-farm-animal-poop-energy-428623?rx=us


Related articles:
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2016/02/20160219-fungi.html 

GREEN ENERGY

California, Mexico officials meet in Holtville to discuss
renewable energy development.
The California Energy Commission and representatives from a wide
range of Mexican entities met Thursday to discuss the potential
for collaboration in both country’s efforts to accelerate the
development of renewable energy.
http://www.ivpressonline.com/news/local/california-mexico-officials-meet-in-holtville-to-discuss-renewable-energy/article_3a3978d4-d6cc-11e5-a568-5b5a31f44b60.html


Latin America Clean Energy Deals Surge Amid Rising Power Demand.
Clean-energy acquisitions in Latin America almost tripled last
year, the highest growth rate in the world, driven by favorable
national policies and growing demand for electricity, according
to PwC. The value of of renewable energy deals in the region
reached $7.6 billion, up from $2.7 billion in 2014, the
accounting and consulting company said in its annual Power &
Renewables Deals report Thursday. All mergers and acquisitions in
Latin America climbed 56 percent to $12.4 billion, trailing only
Asia Pacific.
http://washpost.bloomberg.com/Story?docId=1376-O2PBD96JIJUT01-2UR7S08BC5AEKUHJER71HHDC89


DOE to issue $25M funding opportunity for next generation of
electric machines; NGEM II.
The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy (EERE) intends to issue, on behalf of the
Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO), a $25-million Funding
Opportunity Announcement (DE-FOA-0001467) entitled “Next
Generation of Electric Machines: Enabling Technologies.” EERE
plans to issue the FOA around March 2016. 
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2016/02/doe-to-issue-25m-funding-opportunity-for-next-generation-of-electric-machines-ngem-ii.html


MISCELLANEOUS

Pro 710 Freeway tunnel advocates fail to elect member to air
quality board.
What was billed as a clash between advocates of cleaner air
versus those favoring fewer government regulations, as well as
between groups in favor and against a 710 Freeway tunnel, ended
quickly Thursday in a victory for environmentalists and other
entities opposed to the freeway extension. South Pasadena City
Councilman Michael Cacciotti, from a city actively opposed to the
710 completion for over 40 years, was reappointed to the
four-county South Coast Air Quality Management District governing
board Thursday, handily defeating first-time challenger Rosemead
City Councilman Steven Ly.
http://www.dailynews.com/environment-and-nature/20160218/pro-710-freeway-tunnel-advocates-fail-to-elect-member-to-air-quality-board


Vegetation burn day planned near the Salton Sea.
Motorists driving in the Niland area are advised that the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service’s fire division will be conducting a
controlled burn of about 60 acres of land near the Salton Sea
between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., today. Coordinators are planning a
low, slow burn that can be easily controlled while maintaining
clear visibility along Highway 111. The burn will occur at a
section of the managed marsh, which is located west of Highway
111 between McDonald and Hazard roads south of Niland.
http://www.imperialvalleynews.com/index.php/news/imperial-valley-news/7775-vegetation-burn-day-planned-near-the-salton-sea.html


BLOGS

Supreme Court's Stay on Clean Power Plan Won't Stop Energy
Revolution.
The Supreme Court's decision last week to stay President Barack
Obama's Clean Power Plan may delay implementation of that
particular program. But it won't halt the revolution underway in
the electric power sector. Although we need federal policies to
accelerate our country's transition away from dirty fuels, the
U.S. is already well on its way to moving toward an economy that
provides cleaner and more reliable energy options, as well as
more personal control over our utility bills.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-tercek/supreme-courts-stay-on-cl_b_9264516.html


Wind is ‘no-regrets’ solution for governors seeking affordable,
clean energy.
In case you missed it, a new accord announced this week by a
bipartisan group of 17 governors pledges to accelerate the growth
of clean energy, including wind power and other new technologies,
as a way to build “a new energy future.” The accord says creating
this new energy path will result in “more durable and resilient
infrastructure, and enable economic growth, while protecting the
health of our communities and natural resources.”
http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/energy-environment/269877-wind-is-no-regrets-solution-for-governors-seeking


The Forgotten Climate Solution.B
Let's face it: technological innovation is attractive. It has
solved so many of our problems that people have come to view
technology as the key to improving society. The world of policy,
big business, investment, and venture capital mirrors (and often
leads) this perspective. Tech companies dominate the top 10 of
the world's most innovative companies, according to Boston
Consulting Group's most recent report. More broadly, perhaps part
of the appeal of "innovation" is that we implicitly associate it
with economic progress, at least since the second half of the
20th century.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/justin-adams/the-forgotten-climate-sol_b_9262420.html


Artist creates exquisite, hand-crafted coral to send a message
about climate change.
It can take over 10,000 years for a coral reef to grow from tiny
larvae into a massive, vibrant landscape. For
scientist-turned-artist Courtney Mattison, building a coral reef
doesn’t take that long, but it sure is a long process — many
audiobooks long, in fact. Mattison, a Denver-based artist who has
been using ceramics to call attention to ocean issues for years
now, recently unveiled an enormous installation: a
larger-than-life tour through coral and its biggest enemies:
rising sea levels, higher temperatures, and of course, humans.
http://grist.org/living/artist-creates-exquisite-hand-crafted-coral-to-send-a-message-about-climate-change/


The EPA and the Balrog.
There was always something suspicious about the Supreme Court's
key 2007 decision on climate change, Mass. v. EPA, that gave the
Environmental Protection Agency authority to regulate carbon
dioxide under the Clean Air Act. How could a majority right wing
court that always backs big business possibly have ruled that
carbon dioxide was a pollutant? Why would the conservative
Roberts court put in place the foundation of a strong national
climate policy -- the Clean Power Plan -- that later led to a
strong global agreement on climate? It always seemed too good to
be true.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/auden-schendler/the-epa-and-the-balrog_b_9265602.html




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