What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for March 18, 2016. 

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

A London-based environmental law organization filed a suit to
force the U.K. government to make changes to improve the
country’s air quality, less than a year after winning a Supreme
Court order that forced ministers to revise existing plans.
ClientEarth said Friday in a statement that it filed a lawsuit
with the High Court, and will serve U.K. government lawyers with
the claim.
http://washpost.bloomberg.com/Story?docId=1376-O48E8RSYF01T01-3MCR5RTKH0QJ8RSR0I0VMUGB0R


A four-day air pollution emergency alert in Mexico City has been
lifted after authorities ordered some cars off the road and wind
conditions improved.  A four-day air pollution emergency alert in
Mexico City was lifted Thursday after authorities ordered some
cars off the road and atmospheric conditions improved. Even so,
smog on the city's northern edge reached 1.3 times acceptable
limits in the afternoon.
http://www.usnews.com/news/science/articles/2016-03-17/air-pollution-alert-for-greater-mexico-city-lifted

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2016/0318/Pollution-alert-lifted-in-Mexico-City


EPA rejects Southern California smog-fighting program as
ineffective.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has
rejected part of a smog-reduction plan by Southern California air
quality regulators, saying it has failed to cut pollution from
oil refineries and other big emissions sources as required by
federal law. The EPA says an emissions-trading program
administered by the South Coast Air Quality Management District…
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-epa-rejects-smog-program-20160317-story.html


JOBS: Potential air board Riverside office decision delayed. 
Riverside and Pomona are competing for a facility that would
replace California Air Resources Board’s El Monte offices.  The
California Air Resources Board is weighing a decision on where to
put new offices that would replace aging and overcrowded
facilities in El Monte:
http://www.pe.com/articles/air-797352-board-riverside.html 

Sustainable concrete: Carbon dioxide from power plants to be
transformed into building material. A team of scientists have
come up with a plan to reuse carbon dioxide emissions from power
stations for a new building material. This substance will then be
used in place of concrete – a material which contributes 5% of
global carbon emissions in the process of manufacturing.
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/sustainable-concrete-carbon-dioxide-power-plants-be-transformed-into-building-material-1550340


ALISO CANYON

Gas company warned of possible well failure when it sought a rate
hike in 2014. In 2014, Southern California Gas Co. asked state
officials for a rate hike to pay for an ambitious, "highly
proactive" safety program to test all 229 of its active natural
gas injection wells "before they result in unsafe conditions."
Wells in four storage fields — including its Aliso Canyon
facility near Porter Ranch — were deteriorating…
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-aliso-leak-20160318-story.html


Porter Ranch: LA County wants 'several more weeks' of subsidized
housing for the displaced. Porter Ranch residents continue to
complain about symptoms like headaches and nausea even though the
leak was capped a month ago. The county is seeking more time from
a judge to test the air before the displaced lose their
subsidized temporary housing.
http://www.scpr.org/news/2016/03/17/58646/porter-ranch-la-county-wants-several-more-weeks-of/


CLIMATE CHANGE

Arctic research vessel to spend entire year studying sea ice
decline.  Scientists hope monitoring the ice through winter, as
well as summer, will give insight into the effect of winds,
clouds, snow and sun on melt rates. A research ship will spend an
entire year adrift with the ice floes of the Arctic to better
understand the disappearance of the polar ice cap.
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/mar/17/arctic-research-vessel-spend-entire-year-studying-sea-ice-decline?CMP=twt_a-science_b-gdnscience&utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=8089180871-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-8089180871-327747457


DROUGHT

Reservoirs are getting a big boost from 'Miracle March' — but the
drought isn't over yet. So much rain has fallen in Northern
California recently that federal officials have done what would
have been unthinkable a year ago. They opened the spill gates at
Folsom Lake and let precious water tumble into the American River
as a precaution against — of all things — flooding.
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-california-drought-20160318-story.html?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=8089180871-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-8089180871-327747457


California lawmakers again headed to Australia. The first stretch
of the legislative year is over, and lawmakers are going down
under.  Seeking to impart lessons from Australia’s 15-year
“millennium drought,” the nonprofit California Foundation on the
Environment and the Economy is paying for a handful of lawmakers
to fly across the world during the Legislature’s spring recess
next week.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article66679947.html#storylink=cpy


Drought relief: state increases water supplies. State water
officials delivered more drought relief on Thursday when they
increased predicted water deliveries to 25 million Californians,
including many in the Bay Area, and 1 million acres of farmland.
The state increased its estimated deliveries this year to 45
percent of contractual requests…
http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_29653506/drought-relief-state-increases-water-supplies


California Eases Water Cutbacks.  California further eased some
water cutbacks Thursday as a rainy March lessens the state's
five-year drought. California further eased some water cutbacks
Thursday as a rainy March lessens the state's five-year drought. 
http://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-03-17/california-eases-water-cutbacks-as-drought-loosens


California SWP Will Deliver Most Water Since Drought Began.
California farmers and urban areas that rely on the State Water
Project will receive the largest allocation of water since 2012.
The California Department of Water Resources announced Thursday
that it plans to meet 45 percent of requests for deliveries. It’s
a major increase from December, when the state planned to fulfill
only 10 percent of requests.
http://www.capradio.org/articles/2016/03/17/california-swp-will-deliver-most-water-since-drought-began/


California congressmen try to talk Uncle Sam out of taxing turf
rebates. After months of debate about whether rebates for
water-saving measures are taxable, two members of Congress from
California have introduced a bill that would clarify that they
are not. As part of a statewide push to manage the drought,
Californians have received rebates from water districts for
tearing out their lawns or installing water-saving devices.
http://www.scpr.org/news/2016/03/17/58633/ca-congressmen-try-to-talk-uncle-sam-out-of-taxing/


El Niño brings some relief to parched East Porterville. Recently
El Niño has been making its presence known a bit, at least in
Northern California. A series of storms there has rapidly filled 
some reservoirs – the one at Lake Shasta is actually above
average for this time of year. But what does this mean for
California's ongoing drought?
http://www.scpr.org/programs/take-two/2016/03/18/47291/el-nino-brings-some-relief-to-parched-east-porterv/


FUELS

Ethanol's Quest for More Room in Gas Tanks Gets Push in Chicago.
The U.S. ethanol industry’s push for more room in the gasoline
tanks of the nation’s cars got a boost in Chicago, where 43
stations will start selling gas with a higher blend of the
biofuel. Gasoline retailer Thorntons Inc. said Friday in a
statement it will introduce fuel with an ethanol content of as
much as 15 percent, known as E-15, at the stations this month.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-18/ethanol-s-quest-for-more-room-in-gas-tanks-gets-push-in-chicago


Biodiesel from engineered sugarcane more economical than from
soybean. A techno-economic analysis by a team from the University
of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University has determined that biodiesel
produced from oil from genetically modified lipid-producing
sugarcane (lipid-cane) is much more economical than biodiesel
produced from soybean oil.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2016/03/20160318-lipidcane.html 

VEHICLES

Is this 1896 horseless carriage the world's very first hybrid
car? The Toyota Prius may have started the era of modern hybrid
cars when it debuted in Japan in 1997, but it was far from the
first hybrid vehicle. Ferdinand Porsche actually designed a
handful of hybrid and electric cars with Vienna-based carriage
builder Jacob Lohner and Company, starting in 1898. But there's
another vehicle that predates even that effort.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1102929_is-this-1896-horseless-carriage-the-worlds-very-first-hybrid-car


San Diego Car2Go car-sharing service drops electric Smarts for
gasoline models.  When Car2Go launched its car-sharing service in
San Diego about five years ago, its entire fleet was composed of
electric cars. It was a move that made San Diego officials smile,
as the city is undertaking an ambitious plan to cut carbon
emissions.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1102918_san-diego-car2go-car-sharing-service-drops-electric-smarts-for-gasoline-models


Volvo throws its weight behind CCS quick-charging standard for
electric cars. Every electric car sold in the U.S. except Tesla
uses the same 240-Volt charging socket for overnight or public
charging that takes a few hours. But three different and
incompatible standards exist for DC fast charging, making the
installation of pricier high-powered charging stations more
complicated.
http://bakersfieldnow.com/news/auto-matters/volvo-throws-its-weight-behind-ccs-quick-charging-standard-for-electric-cars


VW RECALL

Ex-Porsche Executives Acquitted of Market Manipulation in
Volkswagen Bid.
Prosecutors had alleged two executives concealed their intention
to gain control of Volkswagen. A court acquitted two former top
executives of Porsche SE, finding them not guilty of market
manipulation related to the company’s botched 2008 takeover
attempt of Volkswagen AG.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/porsche-executives-acquitted-of-market-manipulation-in-volkswagen-bid-1458293491


Inhofe accuses EPA of electric car 'favoritism' in VW deal. The
head of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is
accusing U.S. EPA of using the Volkswagen AG emissions scandal to
achieve Obama administration electric vehicle targets. Sen. James
Inhofe (R-Okla.) wrote a letter to Administrator Gina McCarthy
yesterday in response to reports that the agency was considering
requiring Volkswagen …
http://www.eenews.net/eedaily/2016/03/18/stories/1060034248 

HIGH-SPEED RAIL

High-speed rail construction takes on higher profile in Fresno. 
Contractors are picking up the pace of construction on the first
stage of California’s high-speed train system, with cranes,
bulldozers and other heavy equipment at work at several sites in
and around downtown Fresno. Major construction on the first
29-mile section began last summer on a viaduct over the Fresno
River and Highway 145 east of Madera.
http://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/high-speed-rail/article66750582.html#storylink=cpy


California analyst: High-speed rail lacks spending details. 
California’s independent legislative analyst says a new $64
billion high-speed rail business plan lacks important details.
The Legislative Analyst’s Office on Thursday said lawmakers
should require more detailed planning on the cost, scope and
schedule of each high-speed rail segment. It says the project’s
business plans are hard to compare.
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/rail-708680-north-first.html 

GREEN ENERGY

Cameron Faces Rebellion by at Least 16 Tories Over Solar Tax. At
least 16 U.K. Conservative Party lawmakers plan to rebel against
government plans to raise sales tax on solar panels and
insulation materials, taking a stand against measures imposed by
the European Union.
http://washpost.bloomberg.com/Story?docId=1376-O48RFVSYF01Z01-1E5CT6AL0M4B67571DCJP4LCVD


Japan's first solar trusts set to list on new infrastructure
market. Four solar power plant operators are poised to sell the
first shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's nascent infrastructure
market, opening an avenue of funding for the renewable energy
industry and bringing green assets to individual investors.
http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL4N16J3AA 

Once a Darling, Spanish Solar Company Abengoa Faces Reckoning. 
Announcing government support for clean-energy projects,
President Obama hailed a Spanish company, saying its new solar
technology would supply tens of thousands of American homes with
renewable power, while spurring local employment.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/18/business/international/once-a-darling-spanish-solar-company-abengoa-faces-reckoning.html?_r=0


Wind-and-solar messaging roars on despite rule freeze. The wind
and solar industries say they aren't changing their messaging
strategies while the Clean Power Plan remains frozen pending a
flurry of litigation. Industry advocates say that they'll
continue to meet with states to push their technologies as
affordable, reliable and job-creating, regardless of what happens
with the Obama administration rule.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2016/03/18/stories/1060034290 

OPINIONS

REFILE-COLUMN-India's thirst for gasoline helps spur global oil
demand: Kemp. India's gasoline consumption is surging and has
become one of the fastest-growing components of global oil
demand. With other parts of the global economy struggling,
continued growth in gasoline consumption in India, together with
the United States and China, has become one of the most important
indicators for global oil prices.
http://www.reuters.com/article/india-gasoline-kemp-idUSL5N16Q3EX


Automakers Need a Hybrid Approach to Emissions Targets: Gadfly.
Booming SUV sales are driving down average gas mileage, as
Americans opt for fuel-intensive trucks in lieu of cars. But that
doesn’t mean the end of the road for fuel efficiency targets. The
Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration want the average fuel economy for vehicles
in the U.S.
http://washpost.bloomberg.com/Story?docId=1376-O48PUO6S972K01-3E3NPJ02AFRDT1KDVIQJAC3RCD


Dan Walters: California bullet train a moving target for
analysis. Those charged with building California’s north-south
bullet train system have been more or less making it up as they
go along. Preliminary construction is underway on a 118-mile
stretch of track in the San Joaquin Valley, but what, if
anything, happens after that section – from Madera to a field
near Shafter – is finished has been, to put it charitably,
uncertain.
http://www.fresnobee.com/news/politics-government/article66746237.html


Congress needs to clear the air about ‘secret science’: Susan
Shelley. If you saw a school bus engulfed in flames on the side
of the road, you probably wouldn’t think the fire was caused by
an air pollution regulation. But in all likelihood, it was. In
2008, the California Air Resources Board adopted the Statewide
Truck and Bus Rule, which said diesel engines manufactured before
2010 could not be operated on state roads…
http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/opinion/20160318/congress-needs-to-clear-the-air-about-secret-science-susan-shelley

Levin: Low Carbon Fuel Standard Puts Orange County in the
Driver’s Seat. On long California road trips, it is not uncommon
to spot herds of cows from afar, perched on rolling hills. While
you may see cattle and think nothing of it, I see a future
opportunity to fuel our vehicles and power our homes and
businesses. My employer, FuelCell Energy, manufactures clean fuel
cell power plants that produce electricity, heat…
http://voiceofoc.org/2016/03/levin-low-carbon-fuel-standard-puts-orange-county-in-the-drivers-seat/


BLOGS

It’s Official: February Was The Warmest Month On Record. “It is
yet another warning of the urgency of reducing global carbon
emissions.”  February shattered all-time monthly heat records,
government agencies confirmed this week, inching global
temperatures closer to the 2 degrees Celsius threshold at which
some of climate change’s effects will be beyond repair.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/february-warmest-month-record_us_56eada6be4b09bf44a9c946c?ir=WorldPost§ion=us_world&utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=8089180871-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-8089180871-327747457




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