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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for May 9, 2016.
Posted: 09 May 2016 13:00:55
ARB Newsclips for May 9, 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 UK government accused of pursuing 'gimmicks' to tackle air pollution. Green lawyers criticise government after it emerged experts were commissioned to explore whether high-tech paint could reduce NO2 levels. Lawyers have accused the government of pursuing gimmicks to tackle illegal air pollution, after it emerged experts were…http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/may/09/uk-government-accused-of-pursuing-gimmicks-to-tackle-air-pollution CLIMATE CHANGE China's Shanghai allows use of surplus permits in extended carbon scheme. The Shanghai carbon market, one of China's pilot emissions trading schemes, will allow participants to use surplus permits from the last three years of trading to comply with emissions targets over 2016-2018, the local government said on Monday. China is preparing to launch a nationwide carbon trading scheme next year… http://www.reuters.com/article/china-carbon-idUSL3N1861W5 Why outgoing U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon was willing to bet big on a climate change deal. Ban Ki-moon, the globetrotting secretary-general of the United Nations, sat inside the Mayflower Hotel in Washington on a rainy morning this week, sounding relaxed and reflective. One floor below, the ballrooms were bustling with business leaders, academics and government officials, who had gathered for a Climate Action 2016 summit. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/05/06/u-n-chief-from-day-one-i-made-climate-change-the-top-priority/?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=5822b5d00b-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-5822b5d00b-327747457 After the Pacific Ocean swallows villages and five Solomon Islands, a study blames climate change. As the ocean rose, they had to flee. “The sea has started to come inland, it forced us to move up to the hilltop and rebuild our village there away from the sea,” said Sirilo Sutaroti, 94, a leader of the Paurata tribe, to a group of Australian environmental scientists. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/05/09/after-the-pacific-ocean-swallows-villages-and-five-solomon-islands-a-study-blames-climate-change/ New York Plans to Make Fighting Climate Change Good Business. A governor wants to lead on green energy. The state’s utilities are nervously falling in line. Young entrepreneurs are buzzing, determined to be part of the generation that finally solves climate change. To most ears, that might sound like California, where all those things and more are happening. But it also describes New York. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/10/science/new-york-plans-to-make-fighting-climate-change-good-business.html S. Florida Republicans lead their party from climate change denial. Republican Rep. Carlos Curbelo and Democratic Rep. Ted Deutch, whose South Florida districts are already enduring increased flooding, salt water intrusion and other effects of rising sea levels, are leading the first truly bipartisan congressional effort to tackle climate change. http://www.fresnobee.com/news/politics-government/article76193132.html#storylink=cpy Exxon scrambles to contain climate crusade. A green campaign to make the company pay for climate change is besieging the oil industry and its conservative allies. On Nov. 3, ExxonMobil dispatched its top lobbyists to Capitol Hill on an urgent mission — tamping down an escalating campaign aimed at making the country’s largest oil company pay a legal and political price for its role in warming the planet. http://www.politico.com/story/2016/05/exxon-climate-campaign-222920#ixzz48AyqSplp Hillary Clinton’s Plan to Combat Climate Change. If elected President, Clinton would tackle global warming via energy supplies. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, if elected president, likely wouldn’t prioritize a sweeping rule on climate, her campaign chairman, John Podesta, said Friday. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hillary-clinton-s-plan-to-combat-climate-change/ Great Barrier Reef: tourism operators urge Australian government to tackle climate change. Letter calls for rapid shift to renewable energy after natural wonder affected by worst coral bleaching event yet seen. Tourism operators have broken their silence about the worst crisis ever faced by the Great Barrier Reef… http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/may/07/great-barrier-reef-tourism-operators-urge-australian-government-to-tackle-climate-change?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=5822b5d00b-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-5822b5d00b-327747457 Governments Should Study Worst-Case Warming: U.N. A United Nations panel of scientists seeking ways for nations to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius should not dissuade governments from concentrating on bleaker scenarios of higher temperatures as well, its former chief said. Nations should be considering the potential impact of temperature rises of as much as 4 degrees Celsius (7.2 Fahrenheit)… http://www.climatecentral.org/news/governments-should-study-worst-case-warming-20325?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climatecentral%2FdjOO+Climate+Central+-+Full+Feed Scientists create new model to map warming-related threats. Global warming could reshuffle forests in North America as southern species move north, and now scientists have create a model to map out the changes. Subtropical species could colonize the forests of the Cascade Mountain range on the United States-Canada border. The U.S. Gulf Coast's woodlands could start looking more like Cuba, and Texas like the hot, dry… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2016/05/09/stories/1060036867 Senate leader promises 'concerted push' to cement GHG target. California lawmakers hope to enshrine greenhouse gas policies through 2030, as renewed anxieties surface about the state's legal footing. The head of the state Senate said last week that he would resume efforts to pass S.B. 32, a bill by state Sen. Fran Pavley (D) setting 2030 emissions targets that floundered… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2016/05/09/stories/1060036892 DROUGHT California Eyes Conservation Changes as Drought Eases. Drought-stricken California is taking a look at its strict water conservation measures after a welcome rainy winter in parts of the state. State water officials were expected Monday to propose revising conservation rules that initially called for a 25 percent savings and were later eased to 20 percent. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/05/09/us/ap-us-california-drought.html 10 percent of state out of drought, report says. A new drought report says all but 10 percent of California is locked in drought – but that's actually good news. A weekly U.S. drought monitor released Thursday shows just under 90 percent of the state is locked in moderate to exceptional drought. That's the first time since early 2013 that even that small percentage of the state has been ranked drought-free. http://www.ocregister.com/articles/drought-377173-ocprint-francisco-state.html CALIFORNIA DROUGHT: Governor Brown orders continued water cutbacks. Brown says drought is a regular occurrence and water conservation must be a part of everyday life. Saying the drought is not over despite the rain and snow we had this year, Gov. Brown has extended his water-cutback orders, establishing longer-term water conservation measures, including permanent monthly water use reporting… http://www.pe.com/articles/water-802376-brown-orders.html EBMUD may end drought surcharges. Many East Bay water customers may soon see the end of drought financial pain: a 25 percent emergency surcharge on water bills. Saying they have enough water this year, East Bay Municipal Utility District managers recommend that the water board vote Tuesday to abolish the surcharge tacked on… http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/general-news/20160507/ebmud-may-end-drought-surcharges Middle East drought in historical perspective. A recent study released by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) concludes that the current drought that began in 1998 in the eastern Mediterranean Levant – which includes Cyprus, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Turkey – is the region’s worst dry spell since 1100 C.E. NASA scientists reconstructed our regional drought history… http://www.enn.com/ecosystems/article/49520 DIESEL ACTIVITIES CARB unveils plan to require 'near zero emission' trucks.; If you thought scientists tasked with cutting emissions in California were above using cow farts to power big rigs, you’d be wrong. The world’s most powerful truck emissions regulator has crafted a plan to do what truck makers, freight industry leaders and environmental organizations haven’t been able to do: drastically reduce emissions while making goods movement more efficient. http://www.landlinemag.com/Story.aspx?StoryID=31104#.VzC3t00UWUl Air district, manufacturers to work on developing zero-emission trucks. The regional air quality agency that oversees Inland skies has received $23.6 million in funding for a program to develop and demonstrate zero-emission short-haul trucks that originate at seaports and use several freight corridors. The project includes several other California air-quality agencies… http://www.dailynews.com/environment-and-nature/20160508/air-district-manufacturers-to-work-on-developing-zero-emission-trucks FUELS Canada's Oil Output Spared Fire Damage Seen Able to Rebound. Canada oil-sands producers including Suncor Energy Inc. could resume production within a week after the threat subsides from wildfires that cut as much as 40 percent of the region’s output. A quick restart depends on whether companies managed shutdowns properly and if power and pipeline infrastructure is unscathed… http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-09/canada-s-oil-output-spared-fire-damage-seen-able-to-bounce-back?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=5822b5d00b-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-5822b5d00b-327747457 Saudi Minister Has Task of Easing Dependence on Oil. He was known as the “maestro,” the man whose every word was dissected by oil traders and moved markets. For two decades, Saudi Arabia’s oil minister, Ali al-Naimi, was the architect of Saudi and OPEC cartel policies, including the one that has now sent the price of oil into a deep collapse. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/09/business/saudi-minister-has-task-of-easing-dependence-on-oil.html Cattle grazing, biofuel crops could replace sugar production. Hawaii company Alexander & Baldwin is considering cattle grazing and crops used to make biofuels as it phases out sugar production at the state's last sugar plantation. The company held a conference call with investors last week covering topics like a grazing trial on the island and weighing the possibility of leases for large-scale ranching. http://napavalleyregister.com/business/cattle-grazing-biofuel-crops-could-replace-sugar-production/article_51e41e36-a254-528f-89b2-ff68c58a8a5b.html Mobil's Chief Executive Warned of CO2 From Oil Sands Fuels in 1982. Concerned that carbon-heavy fuels would speed up global warming, the CEO put his trust in the United Nations and federal scientists to point the way to solutions. The CEO of Mobil Corporation warned in 1982 that burning Canadian oil sands fuels could lead to a buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere with calamitous effects. http://insideclimatenews.org/news/09052016/mobil-oil-chief-executive-warned-climate-change-co2-oil-sands-fuels-tar-sands-1982-exxon VEHICLES California Invites Power Utilities Into the Car-Charging Market. In California, more than 200,000 electric cars are on the road. But Governor Jerry Brown wants to raise that number to 1.5 million by 2025. Getting there requires figuring out something oil companies had to deal with a century ago: how to keep cars juiced up. “Nobody’s going to buy an electric car unless they see charging equipment… http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-05/california-invites-power-utilities-into-the-car-charging-market Another study confirms electric cars have lower carbon emissions, in Minnesota this time. It's a very reasonable question: electric cars themselves have no tailpipe emissions, but what about the power plants used to recharge them? After more than a dozen studies and five-plus years of plug-in car sales, we know the answer. http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1103820_another-study-confirms-electric-cars-have-lower-carbon-emissions-in-minnesota-this-time World's first fuel-cell car-sharing program to launch in Germany. Car-sharing services have become increasingly popular over the past few years, and many of them operate fleets of battery-electric cars. Now, a German company believes it's time to pair this new approach to car use with hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. The Linde Group—which manufactures and distributes industrial gases… http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1103841_worlds-first-fuel-cell-car-sharing-program-to-launch-in-germany Tesla projects total 2016 sales of 80,000 to 90,000 electric cars. Tesla Motors projects sales of 80,000 to 90,000 electric cars in 2016, and now believes it will produce 500,000 cars per year by 2018, rather than 2020. Those two goals were revealed during Tesla's first-quarter earnings call last Wednesday, and would take the company a long way from the 50,000 cars it delivered in 2015. http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1103846_tesla-projects-total-2016-sales-of-80000-to-90000-electric-cars VW RECALL VW Shares Up on Activist Investor Demands for Restructure. TCI’s demands for change add to the criticism of the car maker’s handling of the emissions scandal. Volkswagen AG shares jumped nearly 4% on Monday, outpacing Frankfurt’s broader blue-chip index, as traders took heart from activist investor TCI’s demands to restructure the company. http://www.wsj.com/articles/vw-shares-up-on-activist-investor-demands-for-restructure-1462808246?mod=pls_whats_news_us_business_f GREEN ENERGY EUROPE POWER-Spot lifted by low renewables, strong consumption. European spot electricity prices for next-day delivery rose on Monday, lifted by increased demand and lower supply from solar and wind energy sources, while the year-ahead position gained alongside oil. Power consumption in Germany is expected to rise by about 2 gigawatts (GW) on Tuesday and by about 1 GW in France after… http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL5N1862CN The 10 Worst States for Solar Power. These states could produce a ton of clean energy, but they're choosing not to. A lot has been said already about the success of the states that are leading the adoption of solar energy. There's plenty to celebrate, as solar installations smash records and as the industry grows 12 times faster than the US economy. http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2016/05/10-worst-states-solar-power Storage top obstacle to island's quest for energy independence. Best known for its resorts and white sand beaches, the Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba is also making a name for itself as a leader in renewable energy. The country has set an ambitious target of getting 100 percent of its power from renewable sources by 2020. Its leaders say by the end of next year the island will be halfway to that target. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2016/05/09/stories/1060036870 OPINIONS RPT-COLUMN-Brazil's fuel consumption falls as economy shrinks: Kemp. Brazil's consumption of gasoline and diesel is falling as the country's commodity-driven boom falls apart and the economy shrinks. Brazil's gasoline sales grew at an average annual rate of nearly 7 percent between 2004 and 2014 while diesel use was up by more than 4 percent per year. http://www.reuters.com/article/brazil-oil-kemp-idUSL5N1833ZF?feedType=RSS&feedName=rbssEnergyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FUSenergyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Energy%29 Why this could finally be the election where climate change matters. Donald Trump, now the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has said that “I’m not a big believer in man-made climate change.” Hillary Clinton, meanwhile, is a strong proponent of climate change action, and a supporter of continuing President Obama’s policies on the matter… https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/05/09/why-this-could-finally-be-the-election-when-climate-change-matters/ Gulf Coast Climate Risks. To the Editor: Re “Resettling the First American ‘Climate Refugees’ ” (“Carbon’s Casualties” series, front page, May 3): It’s the poorest who are on the front lines of our fight against climate change around the world, and Louisiana is no exception. This historic federal investment into community-based approaches to helping these families adapt to climate change will have to be replicated across the globe. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/09/opinion/gulf-coast-climate-risks.html?_r=0 Dan Walters: Water rights will be next big California fight. After years of drought, winter’s rain and snow storms generated close to a normal supply of water for California. As winter turned to spring, the Bureau of Reclamation announced allocations to farmers. Rice growers and other farmers in the Sacramento Valley… http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/politics-columns-blogs/dan-walters/article76119407.html#storylink=cpy Paying to pollute through cap-and-trade is not a tax. Consider this scenario: An industrial facility purchases a permit at a state-run auction so it can legally emit 1 ton of pollution in California. Although the company is regulated under a statewide program to cap and steadily reduce emissions from large sources, it’s not required to buy the permit. http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/california-forum/article75264292.html#storylink=cpy Water Is the Climate Challenge, Says World Bank. How will climate change affect you? Probably through water. That’s the major message of a new World Bank report that finds the way governments treat water can have a profound effect on the economy. Good water management could lead to a six percent increase in global GDP by 2050… http://www.environmentalleader.com/2016/05/09/water-is-the-climate-challenge-says-world-bank/#ixzz48BHGC3fw Big oil and renewables were once arch enemies. That’s suddenly changing. If you think about it, fossil fuel companies moving into renewables makes a lot of sense. They already have expertise in generating energy, and getting it from A to B efficiently and cost-effectively. Large oil profits have paid for investment in the development of expertise… http://qz.com/678825/big-oil-and-renewables-were-once-arch-enemies-thats-suddenly-changing/ BLOGS Climate Change for the Impatient: A Nuclear Mini Ice Age. Everyone has heard about climate change caused by fossil fuels, which threatens to raise Earth’s average surface temperature by about 3-5°C by the year 2100 unless we take major steps toward mitigation. But there’s an eerie silence about the other major climate change threat… http://www.huffingtonpost.com/max-tegmark/climate-change-for-the-im_b_9865898.html US carbon emissions drop, now 12% below 2005 levels. Transition from coal to natural gas gets most of the credit. US carbon emissions were down slightly in 2015, continuing a period in which economic growth has been accompanied by relatively flat emissions. Compared to 2005, however, the current numbers represent a 12 percent drop. http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/05/us-carbon-emissions-drop-now-12-below-2005-levels/ California's search for greener semi-trucks gets a bit more real. The quest for a cleaner semi-truck has been a long one, and there's no real end in sight. The EPA's SmartWay Transport Partnership (SmartTruck) has been working for years to increase the fuel efficiency of the ubiquitous good haulers. California is, as usual, about to step in front with a new method of greening up the fleet. http://www.autoblog.com/2016/05/06/california-greener-semi-trucks/ California is in a drought emergency. Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.