What's New List Serve Post Display

January 19 2009. 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.

CLIMATE CHANGE

Butterflies struggling with climate change and development. It
doesn't take much to send a butterfly fleeing. Just a
several-degree rise in average temperatures over three decades
led to a dive in the number of the colorful, fluttering insects
thriving in the brisk environs of the high Sierra Nevada,
according to a new study from UC Davis. Posted.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_14217108
http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_14217108

US, UN officials see hope for binding climate deal. UNITED
NATIONS—The nonbinding Copenhagen Accord is at a critical moment
that will decide whether it becomes a mandatory treaty for
cutting greenhouse gases, the top U.S. climate official said
Thursday. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/nation-world/ci_14194583

Senate Not Seen Passing Climate Bill In 2010. U.S. Senator Byron
Dorgan said on Tuesday he did not think the Senate would pass
climate change legislation this year, but instead would focus on
separate energy legislation that would require more electricity
supplies to be generated from renewable sources and expand
offshore drilling into the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2010/01/19/us/politics/politics-us-senate-climate.html


Silicon Valley Rocks Climate World With New Breed of Software.
Only a few years ago, businesses wanting to track their
greenhouse gas emissions had few choices. Their main option was a
simple spreadsheet with pages and pages of numbers. Now,
companies and governments can turn to software that allows them
to input emissions data, analyze it in fancy charts and receive
recommendations on how to cut heat-trapping gases from operations
large and small. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/01/19/19climatewire-silicon-valley-rocks-climate-world-with-new-19922.html


Editorial: Reacting to EPA extortion. The battle to combat
global warming may face a significant setback in Washington this
week. Moderate Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, wants the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency to back off its threat to enforce
greenhouse gas regulations. We hope she's successful. The EPA
recently declared that greenhouse gases are a threat, giving the
agency authority to regulate them. Posted.
http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/epa-229755-climate-warming.html

VEHICLES

Going 'green' puts electric car dealer in the red. BERKELEY —
Even in one of the greenest cities in America, Green Motors
couldn't survive. Berkeley, a city which for years has held high
ranks on environmental organization's annual lists of
eco-conscious do-gooders, was ranked as the second greenest city
in the United States last year by MSN.com. It was the first city
to ban plastic foam, the first city to ask residents to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050, and the first
city to offer help with solar financing. Posted.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_14202270

Waste Hauler Is Fined $307,200 for Emissions Violations. The
California Air Resources Board fined Burrtec Waste Industries,
Inc. $307,200 in November for emissions violations during 2005
and 2006. An ARB investigation showed Burrtec Waste Industries,
Inc. of Fontana failed to properly inspect its diesel vehicles,
the board said. Posted.
http://www.fontanaheraldnews.com/articles/2010/01/14/business/doc4b4f4d9930b1d956316477.txt
               
http://www.landlinemag.com/todays_news/Daily/2010/Jan10/011110/011410-04.htm
 

Oakland Truckers Get More Time To Find Retrofit Funding. The
California Air Resources Board has given some Oakland area
truckers another three weeks to line up funding for diesel
filters and to access Port of Oakland terminals before new air
quality rules kick in. Posted.
http://www.cunninghamreport.com/news_item.php?id=1157 

AIR QUALITY

Green Q&A: How eco-friendly is the fashion industry? Q Can you
enlighten us on the environmental impact of the fashion industry?
As I understand it, the industry overall is no friend to the
environment. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/bay-area-living/ci_14184406

County’s Green Efforts Lagging. An environmental report issued
yesterday raised questions about why San Diego County lacks a
comprehensive push to address concerns that have bubbled for
decades, including lackluster recycling, coastal water pollution
and greenhouse-gas emissions. Posted.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/jan/19/countys-green-efforts-lagging/


Cupertino's Lehigh Cement Permit Renewal on Hold for New EPA
Standards. A permit renewal that outlines all federal regulations
for the Lehigh Cement Plant's operation is on hold as regulatory
officials wait to add tough new federal emission standards to the
voluminous operating permit. Posted.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14193540?nclick_check=1

ENERGY

Schwarzenegger plans to exempt 'green' tech manufacturing
equipment from sales tax. To strengthen "green" manufacturing in
California, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has introduced a plan to
make businesses that make clean technology exempt from paying
sales tax on their equipment. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_14219650

Green Firms Balk at Coalition's Lobbying Effort. An organization
representing some of California's biggest carbon polluters is
working to alter the state's landmark law to curb global warming,
while claiming to represent several "green" environmental
companies that have since left the coalition after learning of
its recent actions. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/18/MNJP1BHODT.DTL#ixzz0d4uhmCO4


Calif. Scientist Fostered Simple Method to Save Energy: Use
Less. When octogenarian Arthur H. Rosenfeld vacates his
utilitarian office at the California Energy Commission this week,
one of his final tasks might seem of little consequence: He'll
turn off the lights. But that simple act - some would say
compulsion - has transformed California into a world leader in
energy efficiency. Posted.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/environment/story/989371.html   
http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/news/2010/jan/14/bc-env-calif-energyla-_-business-1650-words/?business&business-wire


FUELS

California Toughens Up Biofuel Standards. Californian regulators
this week approved tough new standards governing the carbon
intensity of bioethanol that will force producers to account for
the lifecycle emissions that result from the production of
biofuels. The Californian Air Resources Board (CARB) said the new
Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) will reduce the carbon intensity
of transportation fuels used in California by an average of 10
per cent by the year 2020, by forcing bioethanol producers to
measure the emissions that result from the production,
transportation, and land use changes associated with biofuels.
Posted.
http://www.businessgreen.com/business-green/news/2256188/california-firms-biofuels


Turning Grease Into Green Fuel. A local company that produces
green-friendly biodiesel from used fryer grease and vegetable oil
could become the latest casualty in the healthcare battle. The
U.S. Senate, having finally passed its version of healthcare
reform on Christmas Eve, adjourned for the year, leaving myriad
tax issues still on the table – including a critical tax credit
extension for biodiesel producers. Without it, producers can't
make a profit and the industry staggers. Posted.
http://www.sandiego.com/green/turning-grease-into-green-fuel 

LETTERS

Letters: Halt carbon law. f there is any state government
activity that should be stopped to meet the $20 billion budget
shortfall, it is the implementation of AB32, The Global Warming
Solutions Act of 2006. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/opinion/ci_14183102

Letters: Tax money wasted. Funding for the Air Quality District
should be rescinded or at the very least dramatically reduced.
Sixty inspectors, driving 60 cars around the Bay Area looking for
a smoking fireplace and industry smoke stacks is a criminal waste
of dollars when everyone is searching for ways to reduce a $20
billion state shortfall. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/opinion/ci_14192635?nclick_check=1

BLOGS

Cap-and-Trade Proceeds for Residents? A California family of
four could receive more than $1,000 every year if a proposal
floated by state officials is approved. The recommendation,
adopted by the state Economic and Allocation Advisory Committee
last week, would send money from the state’s new cap-and-trade
program back to residents. Posted.
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/cap-and-trade-proceeds-for-residents/


Carbon Credit Cash for Californians? A key advisory committee is
suggesting(PDF) that Californians should collect as much as 75
percent of the allowances from selling pollution allocations
under California’s Climate Change Proposal. When the state starts
auctioning pollution allowances from the cap & trade law,
officials expect to bring in $5 billion a year between 2012 and
2014, and then $12 billion starting in 2015, the report said.
Posted. http://www.nctimes.com/app/blogs/wp/?p=6730

Arnold Schwarzenegger on Obama: The year in energy policy. On
Tuesday night, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will join a
panel, along with former Secretary of State George Shultz, to
talk about President Obama's first-year record on energy policy.
The moderated question-and-answer session is part of an Energy
Task Force conference at Stanford's Hoover Institution, a
conservative think-tank. Posted.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2010/01/arnold-schwarzenegger-barak-obama-energy-policy.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GreenspaceEnvironmentBlog+%28Greenspace%29