What's New List Serve Post Display

California Air Resources Board News Clips for August 16, 2010.  


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/GHG’S

Global Warming Measure Could Suspend Other Landmark Environmental
Rules. A November ballot measure that would suspend California's
landmark global-warming law could also end up rolling back some
of the state's other sweeping environmental standards --
including rules that require utilities to generate a third of
their electricity from renewable sources and programs requiring
oil refineries to make cleaner-burning fuels. How broadly courts
might interpret Proposition 23 is setting off alarm bells among
Silicon Valley executives and environmental groups. Posted.
http://www.mercurynews.com/politics-government/ci_15790337?source=rss&nclick_check=1
http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/15/1777426/california-landmark-global-warming.html
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_15790337

Global Warming Skeptic Leading Charge On Solar, Renewables From
Silicon Valley. Even though he thinks man-made global warming is
unproved, T.J. Rodgers is still pioneering renewable energy at
his Silicon Valley companies Cypress Semiconductor Corp. and
SunPower Corp. Cypress has saved $75,000 a year on energy bills
by generating 75 percent of its energy from rooftop solar panels
and gas-powered fuel cells. The company is working to completely
disconnect from the energy grid by 2015. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2010/08/16/7

Feeling Abandoned By Congress, State Regulators Push For U.S.
Carbon Cap. Congress has "left state regulators in the lurch" by
failing to set new national climate policy that could guide
regulators' decisions on the fate of coal-fired electric power
generators in their states, the new chairman of a task force on
climate policy says.  Ron Binz, who heads the climate task force
of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners
(NARUC), said in an interview that U.S. EPA will provide some
help for state officials next year to fill the vacuum created by
Congress' inaction. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2010/08/16/1

Researchers Race To Catch Up With Melting, Shifting Polar
Realities. When the Petermann Glacier calved an ice island four
times the size of Manhattan earlier this month, GPS sensors
embedded in the ice and time-lapse cameras sitting on nearby rock
were watching. But scientists who put them there were caught off
guard. Traveling to northwestern Greenland to retrieve the data
that equipment recorded will cost them roughly $93,000, money
they currently don't have. Posted. 
http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/08/16/16climatewire-researchers-race-to-catch-up-with-melting-sh-44001.html?pagewanted=print
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2010/08/16/2

Official: Russian Disaster Sign Of Global Warming. Moscow —
Russia's heat wave, drought and wildfires — which have killed
dozens of people and destroyed millions of acres (hectares) of
wheat — are another indication that global warming is causing
more weather extremes around the world, a Russian official said
Monday. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/nation-world/ci_15792718
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iX-16FttPkCulMdckFjFJyOJCXlAD9HKJ1VO0
http://www.contracostatimes.com/nation-world/ci_15786060

Dan Walters: Schwarzenegger's Legacy Is On The Edge. It's fairly
evident that Arnold Schwarzenegger is now in legacy mode, trying
to close out his roller-coaster governorship on an upswing. It's
equally evident that circumstances – especially a serious
recession and an equally serious budget crisis – will make
leaving a positive legacy difficult. One casualty is
Schwarzenegger's hopes of winning voter approval in November of
an $11.1 billion water bond issue. Fearing voter rejection,
Schwarzenegger and the Legislature have delayed a vote for two
years. Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/16/v-print/2960884/dan-walters-schwarzeneggers-legacy.html

PG&E Executive Takes a Cold Hard Look at Global Warming. Peter A.
Darbee, a utility executive who is ultimately responsible for
keeping the lights on for 15 million people, has a message some
may not want to hear: "Climate change is real, it’s urgent, it's
most likely a result of human interactions and what human beings
have done in their emissions to the atmosphere, and the need for
action is now." Posted.
http://sunpluggers.com/news/pge-executive-takes-cold-hard-look-at-global-warming-0835

EMISSIONS

California Regulators Release Draft Report on Sustainable
Communities. The California Air Resources Board last week
released a draft report marking the first major milestone in
implementation of a law designed to improve how cities and
counties plan for growth and development. The draft report
proposes targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in 2020
and 2035 associated with passenger vehicle travel in the state's
18 Metropolitan Planning Organizations, including the four
largest: Southern California, San Diego, the Bay Area, and the
Sacramento region. Posted.
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.printerfriendly/id/20862

In This Case, Zero Is A Good Target For Gas Emissions. Shasta
County is a tiny part of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions
problem, transportation planners say. So the greater Redding area
will play a minor role in the proposed solution to that problem —
at least in the near future. The California Air Resources Board
will ask Shasta County to hold the line on its car and small
truck emissions per capita during the next decade while it
requests substantial cuts for the major metropolitan areas.
Posted.
http://www.redding.com/news/2010/aug/14/in-this-case-zero-is-a-good-target/?print=1

Xcel Energy Unveils Plan To Cut Plant Emissions. Denver -- Xcel
Energy is proposing to spend $1.3 billion to convert coal-fired
power plants to natural gas and close a plant to comply with a
new Colorado law aimed at cutting pollution from power plants.
Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/13/AR2010081305835.html

Teams Set Off On Global 'Zero Emissions' Race. Geneva—Two
drivers, three wheels, $350 and zero carbon emissions. That's how
Australian father-and-son team Nick and Jason Jones hope to
circle the globe in their custom built electric vehicle. The duo
joined teams from Germany and Switzerland on Monday for the start
of a round-the-world race aimed at showcasing green technologies.
Posted. http://www.contracostatimes.com/nation-world/ci_15793492

ENERGY/GREEN ENERGY

Calif. Leads In Clean Energy, But Challenges Loom. First of five
stories on renewable energy in California. California has always
been ahead of the curve when it comes to renewable power, and the
state's clean energy business is flourishing. One of the first
large-scale wind farms in the country was built just outside the
Bay Area at the Altamont Pass, and this year, California
regulators are reviewing twice as many renewable power contracts
as last year. More of those projects are coming online, including
a 16-acre solar farm outside of Sacramento a few weeks ago.
Posted.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129128750

PG&E Demands Revisions To 33 Percent RPS. California's largest
utility is pressing for changes to a 33 percent renewable
portfolio standard that lawmakers in Sacramento had hoped to pass
by the end of August, when the state's legislative session ends.
With the clock ticking on the session and the pressure mounting,
Pacific Gas and Electric Co. sent a letter to Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger (R) and Democratic leaders over the weekend that
outlines several points of opposition to S.B. 722, which would
enact a 33 percent RPS. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2010/08/16/20

Labor-Enviro Alliance Plans Cross-Country Push For Climate
Action. Labor and environmental interests will launch a
cross-country bus tour today pushing for Senate action on clean
energy jobs. Saying they are unwilling to accept inaction on
climate legislation, BlueGreen Alliance members will hold events
in 30 cities starting with a rally today at a steelworkers union
hall in Carson, Calif., a Los Angeles County suburb. "America has
a clear unemployment crisis and 30 million people who need jobs,"
said David Foster, executive director of BlueGreen Alliance. "We
have no national strategy on putting people back to work."
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2010/08/16/6

City Officials Think LA Might Fall Short Of Green Initiative
Goals. The day he was sworn into office in 2005, Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa proclaimed his desire to see Los Angeles become "the
greenest big city in America." As mayor he committed to boosting
the city's renewable energy portfolio, promised to make traffic
flow faster to reduce emissions and launched the Million Trees
L.A. initiative to literally make the city greener. Posted.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_15775393

VEHICLES
Back-Seat Driver: Prius Will Lose California Diamond Lane Luster.
Toyota Prius drivers, prepare to move over. Your days of riding
solo in carpool lanes are numbered. The yellow stickers that gave
high-mileage hybrid cars diamond lane access the past five years
will no longer be valid next year. They will be replaced by
stickers for a new, even more exclusive generation of
eco-friendly cars. Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/16/v-print/2960933/back-seat-driver-prius-will-lose.html

Fix For Civic Hybrids' Dying Batteries May Hurt Gas Mileage,
Acceleration. Honda says its software patch, which limits the
role of the electric motor while boosting use of the gasoline
engine, prolongs battery life but 'is not a financial decision.
'When Honda Motor Co. rolled out its latest-generation Civic
hybrid, it was sold as the automaker's green car of the future.
Posted.
http://articles.latimes.com/print/2010/aug/14/business/la-fi-honda-20100815
http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/2010/08/16/10/

HIGH SPEED RAIL

Who will pay for California's High-Speed Rail System? For the
next minute, imagine yourself at a car dealership. You're
strapped for cash but find a sleek new ride and ask the salesman
for a deal. He quotes you a number that's four times what you
have in the bank. And, he warns, even that price isn't fixed --
there's no guarantee you won't pay more in the end. Posted.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_15746975

NOISE POLLUTION

Trying to Dial Down the Volume of Noise Pollution. Hong Kong —
Car exhaust: Pollution. Oil slicks: Pollution. Toxic fumes:
Pollution. But noise? Yes, noise, too, is a form of pollution,
often little recognized and regulated. Mostly man-made, it bears
potential health and environmental hazards in much the same way
that physical pollutants do. “Noise,” said Alex Jochelson,
principal consultant for P.C.C.D., an acoustical and
environmental engineering consulting firm based in Sydney, “is
one of the most complex and least understood forms of pollution.”
Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/16/business/energy-environment/16iht-green.html?_r=1&src=busln&pagewanted=print

DIESELS

Help For California Drayage Trucks Nears Passage. Certain
small-business trucking operations in California could soon have
another opportunity to qualify for grants to bring their trucks
into compliance with new emissions regulations. The full Senate
could soon vote on a bill that would make available $20 million
for drayage trucks that have yet to comply with the California
Air Resources Board’s drayage truck regulation. If approved by
the Senate, the bill would advance to the Assembly. Posted.
http://www.landlinemag.com/todays_news/Daily/2010/Aug10/080910/081310-05.htm

EPA To Release Draft Emission Limits For Heavy Trucks. The Obama
administration is preparing to issue new fuel economy standards
and the first-ever greenhouse gas limits for large trucks and
buses. U.S. EPA and the Transportation Department sent draft
rules Friday to the White House regulatory review office that
would limit heavy-duty vehicles' emissions under the Clean Air
Act and boost fuel economy standards for medium- and heavy-duty
trucks, according to a federal website that tracks new rules.
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2010/08/16/2

OPINION: Yuba County Supervisors Split On Whether To Support Dan
Logue-Written Proposition 23, Which Would Suspend The AB32
Climate Bill: "Logue's bill is just as draconian as AB32. It
set's a ridiculously high standard to actually implement AB32 (4
consecutive quarters of 5% unemployment or lower, which has only
happened a couple times in the last 30 or so years) which means
it could be a decade or more before it ever gets implemented.
Based on that, I'll be voting against it. If Logue had simply
written a more reasonable restriction, I might be in favor of it,
but what he proposes is tantamount to not implementing it at
all." Posted.
http://www.appeal-democrat.com/news/ab32-98113-gay-marriage.html

BLOGS

Report: Honda's Civic Hybrid Software Fix Hurting Real-World Mpg
For Some. Late last week, we heard that Honda was updating the
software in all 2006 through 2008 Civic Hybrids sold in the U.S.
to prevent the batteries from wearing out sooner than expected.
At the time, Honda spokeswoman Christine Ra told Bloomberg that
the fix would not impact the car's fuel economy or performance.
But is this the case? Posted.
http://green.autoblog.com/2010/08/16/report-hondas-civic-hybrid-software-fix-hurting-real-world-mpg/

TWC's Stu Ostro Talks Weather-Climate Links. Extreme weather has
dominated world headlines recently, with a record-smashing heat
wave in Russia as well as deadly flooding in Pakistan that may
rank as that country's worst natural disaster. Here at home,
we've endured a sizzling summer, and NOAA announced last week
that 2010 is still on track to be the warmest year on record
(although La Nina may knock it back a rank or two). Posted.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitalweathergang/2010/08/one_meteorologists_view_of_ext.html