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California Air Resources Board News Clips for October 12, 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.

AIR POLLUTION

Calif. Proposal Would Stall Off-Highway Diesel Regs. California
would delay implementation of off-highway diesel rules under an
agreement wrought last week with a prominent trade group. The
California Air Resources Board agreed to a delay after
negotiations with the Associated General Contractors of America
(AGC) over regulations that would make about 150,000 off-highway
vehicles install soot filters and replace older diesel engines.
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2010/10/12/19

Application for Port Grants To Combat Air Pollution Available
Tuesday. Applications are available beginning Tuesday for grants
totaling $5 million benefitting health clinics, senior centers
and organizations dedicated to battling the impacts of air
pollution in Long Beach. The funds come courtesy of the Port of
Long Beach, which is doling out $15 million this year to
individuals, groups and organizations combating toxic emissions
generated by harbor industries and construction. Posted.
http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_16311352

CLIMATE CHANGE

The Coalition That Is Fighting To Defeat Prop. 23 Has A
Formidable Weapon In Its Arsenal: Republican Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has pointedly refused
to endorse fellow Republican Meg Whitman in the race to succeed
him and has stayed largely quiet on most of the major ballot
measures. But he is campaigning across the state with remarkable
passion to defeat Proposition 23, a measure that would suspend
California's landmark global warming bill, one of the signature
achievements of his administration. Posted.
http://www.mercurynews.com/elections/ci_16311902?source=rss&nclick_check=1

Billions And Billions Served: How Population Affects Climate
Change. Eight billion? Nine billion? How about 11 billion? No,
that's not the number of bedbugs in a typical New York City
hotel, but rather some guesstimates on the number of people that
will be here on Earth in the year 2050, up from today's nearly
seven billion. How will all these extra people affect climate
change? Posted.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2010/10/population-growth-urbanization-climate-change-carbon-emissions-global-warming-/1

Europe May Ease Jet Carbon Fees. The transportation chief of the
European Union said Monday that airlines based in the United
States could receive an exemption, at least in part, from
European carbon regulations if Washington moved to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions at home. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/business/global/12emit.html?src=busln

Coral Records Point To Heating Pacific Ocean. Coral records show
that the oceans are heating exactly as predicted by climate
scientists. In a forthcoming study in the journal Geophysical
Research Letters, researchers report Pacific island soft corals
reveal the "thermocline", the point where cold, deep water meets
warm surface water has gotten shallower, an indication of
decreased ocean circulation predicted by global warming models.
Posted.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2010/10/coral-climate-change/1

Volcano Blows Hole In Global Warming Fight. Ash spurs growth of
marine plants that absorbs carbon dioxide from air but events
can't be replicated. A volcanic plume of iron-laden ash from a
2008 Alaskan volcano eruption led to an unprecedentedly huge
bloom of photosynthetic ocean plankton that fed off the ash,
researchers have found. Posted.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39632361/ns/technology_and_science-science/#

It’s Red States Vs. Blue In Legal War Over EPA Rules. With
climate legislation stalled in Congress and U.S. EPA just months
away from regulating greenhouse gases for the first time, 37
states have taken sides in a court battle that could end up
steering U.S. climate policy for years. Just like the
cap-and-trade bills that narrowly cleared the House and
floundered in the Senate, challenges to the Obama
administration's climate program have highlighted a bitter divide
between industry-heavy states and their environment-minded
counterparts. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2010/10/12/1

Slowing Population Growth Could Reduce Projected Greenhouse Gas
Emissions. Slowing population growth could provide up to a third
of the greenhouse gas emissions cuts needed to avoid dangerous
climate change, a new study suggests. The world's population now
stands at 6.9 billion, and the United Nations estimates it could
swell to 9 billion by the middle of the century. Slowing that
growth could provide major climate dividends, according to the
new study, which appears in the latest edition of the Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/print/2010/10/12/4

Calif. Climate Board To Heat Up Debate. San Francisco — Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger's environmental team is playing hurry-up
offense to issue controversial climate rules before his term ends
in January, even if it means wading into an Election Day thicket
with the oil industry. California's Air Resources Board (CARB) is
on track by the end of the month to release more than 1,000 pages
of proposed rules for how the state should curb greenhouse gases
at power plants and other large industrial plants. 
Posted.
http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=9DB00984-B580-CC3B-6BFFDA970349910E

Climate Change: A Summary of the Science. Climate change
continues to be a subject of intense public and political debate.
Because of the level of interest in the topic the Royal Society
has produced a new guide to the science of climate change. The
guide summarises the current scientific evidence on climate
change and its drivers, highlighting the areas where the science
is well established, where there is still some debate, and where
substantial uncertainties remain. The document was prepared by a
working group chaired by Professor John Pethica, Vice President
of the Royal Society and was approved by the Royal Society
Council. Posted.
http://royalsociety.org/climate-change-summary-of-science/

FUELS

San Diego Biofuels Company Lands $1.8M Grant. Pearson Fuels is
working on infrastructure to make it easier and cheaper to
distribute biodiesel. San Diego-based Pearson Fuels has landed a
$1.8 million state grant to help put biodiesel into more tanker
trucks. "We are going into a diesel terminal where diesel is
sold," said Pearson General Manager Mike Lewis. "We are going to
put biodiesel in there and tie it all together. “ Posted.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/oct/12/san-diego-biofuels-company-lands-18m-grant/

On The Waterfront: More Ships Apparently Attempting To Evade
State Fuel Rules. An increasing number of freight ships are
navigating around California's traditional shipping lanes in an
apparent attempt to avoid using cleaner fuels within 24 nautical
miles of the state's coastline, according to recent studies of
ship traffic. The clean-fuel rule, adopted in July 2009, was
designed to help lessen the impact of ship-generated pollution,
which is particularly prominent in port communities and along the
Santa Barbara Channel. Posted.
http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_16311342

GREEN ENERGY

California's Green-Jobs Numbers Paint A Mixed Picture. For Jerry
Brown and many of his fellow Democrats, the future of
California's struggling labor force hinges on a clean energy
industry they say is poised to take off. They picture a green
California where hundreds of thousands of people work to install
solar panels and build electricity-powered cars. Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/10/12/v-print/3097036/californias-green-jobs-numbers.html

Solar Energy Proponents Push California To Adopt 'Feed-In Tariff'
For Individual Power Producers. The arrangement would require
utilities to pay homeowners and businesses for power generated by
alternative energy installations and fed to the electricity grid.
Despite being barely one-20th the size of the U.S. and more often
overcast, Germany still manages to produce four times as much
solar-generated power. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-utility-tariff-20101012,0,2054824,print.story

Report: Business Groups Say Clean Air Act Has Been a "Very Good
Investment". U.S. businesses large and small have seen economic
gains from EPA's use of the 40-year-old federal Clean Air Act,
according to an analysis released this week that aims to counter
arguments by industry groups that the law is anti-business. The
financial benefits of clean-air reforms have outweighed their
costs by a margin of up to 40 to 1, according to the study
commissioned by the Small Business Majority and the Mainstreet
Alliance. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS212115315520101008

Project Aimed At Helping Businesses Save Money. Sacramento --
Small changes can lead to big savings for small businesses
seeking to reduce energy costs, according to Sacramento Municipal
Utility District officials. SMUD, along with the city of
Sacramento and the California Air Resources Board, launched a
Small Business Energy and Water Makeover project designed to help
small businesses weather the bad economy. Posted.
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/10/12/v-print/3097141/project-aimed-at-helping-businesses.html

Visions Taking Shape For Proposed Cleantech Corridor In Downtown
L.A. The Southern California Institute of Architecture invited
entrants to offer new ideas for the four-mile stretch of land
next to the L.A. River. Companies have also been asked to submit
proposals. Visions are developing of what the proposed CleanTech
Corridor might look like when it begins to emerge in downtown Los
Angeles. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/environment/la-me-clean-tech-corridor-20101012,0,6515662.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fnews%2Fscience%2Fenvironment+%28L.A.+Times+-+Environment%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Solar Saudi Arabia? Almost daily, news releases from the
governor's office and Department of Interior flood my e-mail
in-basket crowing about renewable energy projects in Inland
deserts. Gov. Schwarzenegger and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
congratulate themselves for fast-tracking solar generating plants
in San Bernardino County's Mojave, and the Riverside County and
Imperial County deserts. They're patting themselves on the back
so hard, it must hurt. Posted.
http://www.pe.com/columns/cassiemacduff/stories/PE_News_Local_D_cass12.2d8ca53.html

Sierra Club Slams Gov. Mcdonnell's Va. Energy Plan. The Sierra
Club said Monday that Gov. Bob McDonnell is pursuing an "old
energy" path and recommended that Virginia develop incentives to
encourage solar and wind power development and conservation. The
Sierra Club report, titled "Power Failure: How Virginia is Losing
the Competition for Clean Energy Jobs," was released on the eve
of McDonnell's three-day conference to promote his bid to make
the state the East Coast energy capital. Posted.
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9IPLDP80.htm

U.S. Solar Industry Reports Strong Growth. The U.S. solar
industry is experiencing significant growth this year despite the
sluggish economy, according to a new report from the industry's
main trade group. Solar electric installations in the first six
months topped 340 megawatts, putting the country on track to
install at least 944 megawatts or as many as 1.13 gigawatts by
year's end, the Solar Energy Industries Association and GTM
Research say. Total installations in 2009 were 441 megawatts.
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2010/10/12/16

State-By-State Report on Clean Energy Actions. Over the past two
years, states have continued to lead the nation on a path to a
cleaner and more secure energy future--especially in the areas of
energy efficiency and clean electricity--according to a new
report released by the National Governors Association Center for
Best Practices (NGA Center). "This report shows that every state
and territory is working to advance clean energy in some way,"
said John Thomasian, director of the NGA Center. Posted.
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/21214

Adopted 33% Renewable Standard In California. Starting from 2020,
every electricity distributor must ensure a 33% production from
renewable sources, like wind energy, Concentrating Solar Power
and photovoltaic. California’s regulatory authorities approved
the new Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS), thus
establishing that by 2020, 33% of final electricity needs must be
met using renewables. The previous RPS, issued in November 2008,
envisaged a 33% share by 2030, the new target having been
proposed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger exactly one year ago.
Posted. http://www.evwind.es/noticias.php?id_not=7794

MISCELLANEOUS

Safety: Scrutiny for Hair-Straightening Treatment. A popular
hair-straightening treatment is under scrutiny after lab tests by
Oregon’s occupational health agency found significant levels of
formaldehyde in a smoothing solution made by the beauty company
Brazilian Blowout. The state agency says it had the solution
tested when salon workers in the Portland area complained of
nosebleeds, breathing problems and eye irritation. The company
disputes the findings. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/health/research/12safety.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print

Obama Talks Transportation Infrastructure. President Obama Monday
pushed for action on infrastructure investment in order to create
jobs and improve the country's long-term competitiveness and
efficiency, touting his plan introduced last month that calls for
a $50 billion up-front investment and creation of an
infrastructure bank. 
The infrastructure focus coincided with the release of a report
from the Treasury Department, "An Economic Analysis of
Infrastructure Investment." Posted.
http://www.truckinginfo.com/news/news-print.asp?news_id=71880

Arnie's Template For A Greener Russia. There’s more to
Schwarzenegger than Skolkovo – California’s out-going governor is
already preparing for life after office with a drive to promote
the environment. And in Moscow’s Higher School of Economics he
outlined his ideas on energy efficiency to students, highlighting
the green legacy of his regime in the US. California’s dreams
come true. Schwarzenegger said at the conference that California
is becoming a world leader in energy efficiency and environmental
programmes. Posted.
http://www.mn.ru/local/20101012/188119512.html

Science and its Enemies on the Left: An Update. Scientific
integrity and scientific progress continue to take a beating from
the Left. In Part I of my series of essays on Science and its
Enemies on the Left, I looked at the toll of junk science,
quackery and anti-technological Luddism and the role of the
social and political Left in promoting all three [1Posted.
http://newledger.com/2010/10/science-and-its-enemies-on-the-left-an-update/print/

OPINION

Letters: On Prop. 23, Water District And More. Position against
Prop. 23 is off-target. The U-T’s endorsement of a “no” vote on
Proposition 23 is just plain crazy (Editorial, Oct. 11). The U-T
talks about this measure being a “law.” All Proposition 23 says
is to insist that enactment of AB 32 wait until California can
afford it. That’s it. It doesn’t stop green energy development.
AB 32 is scheduled to be enacted in 2012. Does the U-T really
think California will be ready for significantly higher utility
rates and gasoline pump prices? Posted.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/oct/12/letters-on-prop-23-water-district-and-more/

Stephen Moore: California's Green Nightmare. It's hard to know
where the fairy tale of "green jobs" first came from. It was
probably a clever marketing scheme by radical environmentalists
who realized that their anti-growth climate change agenda wasn't
going to sell among the American electorate if workers realized
how many jobs would be eviscerated by the new taxes and
regulation. Posted.
http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/green-270608-jobs-california.html

OPINION: Prop. 23 Bad For California. I hope all Star readers are
aware that two Texas oil companies have paid for a ballot
proposition to benefit them and hurt California health,
environment and economics. That’s right: Texas oil is trying to
buy passage of Proposition 23 because, face it, the proposition
helps Texas oil but hurts California. Passing Proposition 23
would increase pollution and damage our health. Posted.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2010/oct/11/prop-23-bad-california/?print=1

Thomas Friedman: The Governator Is Not Happy. Sacramento, Calif.
— The Terminator, aka the Governator, is not happy. And you
shouldn't be either. What has Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of
California incensed is the fact that two Texas oil companies with
two refineries each in California are financing a campaign to
roll back California's landmark laws to slow global warming and
promote clean-energy innovation, because it would require the
refiners to install new emission-control tools. Posted.
http://www.postbulletin.com/newsmanager/templates/localnews_story.asp?z=12&a=473464

OP-ED: In Defense Of Wood Heat. On these sunny but not hot
October days, it's almost a pleasure to toil in the woodpile in
my back yard. My firewood is delivered to me bucked (cut to
16-inch stove length), but I still need to split it and stack it.
Even in moderation, this work can lead to an aching back and sore
muscles. Posted.
http://www.hcn.org/articles/in-defense-of-wood-heat/print_view

BLOGS

An Undersea Trench for Wind Power? In Tuesday’s paper, I write
about a proposal for a 350-mile undersea cable system that would
carry energy from numerous Atlantic wind farms back to shore. It
presents some interesting technical twists. One is the form of
the electricity. Our onshore electric grid uses the familiar
alternating current, the form in which electricity comes out of
the socket on the wall. Posted.
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/an-undersea-trench-for-wind-power/?pagemode=print

Google Backs Offshore Wind Power Project. Google is backing a
plan to lay undersea cables to connect offshore windmills off the
mid-Atlantic coast, a step the Internet giant hopes will boost
wind power as an energy source. The $5-billion offshore wind
power transmission line will stretch 350 miles from New Jersey to
Virginia and could supply enough wind energy to serve about 1.9
million households. But the ambitious project faces hurdles.
Posted.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2010/10/google-backing-offshore-wind-power-project.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheTechnologyBlog+%28Los+Angeles+Times+Technology+Blog%29

Slowing Population: Would It Curb Climate Change? Ever since
belching smokestacks arose during the Industrial Revolution,
greenhouse gases and human population have climbed in lockstep to
higher and higher levels. And while scientists warn that humanity
must dramatically slash future carbon-dioxide emissions to avert
extended droughts, floods and other climate catastrophes, they
have generally avoided a rigorous examination of how slowing
population growth would help. Posted.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2010/10/global-warming-overpopulation-climate-change.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GreenspaceEnvironmentBlog+%28Greenspace%29
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2010/10/population-climate-change-gas-emissions/1

The Real Science On Climate Change, Again. My colleague Tom Toles
came into my office a couple of weeks ago asking for sources on
climate science, particularly ones that are brief, accessible and
fair -- documents that he could reference in his unending battle
against the climate skeptics in his comments section. Among other
places, I pointed him to The Economist's recent assessment of
climate science, which only made Tom grimace because it's behind
a paywall. Posted.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/postpartisan/

On Science And Politics: Should They Mix? As the midterm election
looms, the arguments over hot-button political issues are
reaching a boil. Just last week, Michael E. Mann -– a professor
in the meteorology department at Penn State University and
director of the Penn State Earth System Science Center -– wrote
an op-ed in the Washington Post saying that politicians have
distracted and misled the public when it comes to scientific
facts, particularly where climate change data are concerned.
Posted.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/10/politics-science-mixing-climate-change-stem-cell-research.html

Pat Toomey: Human Activity Might Not Be Main Cause Of Global
Warming. As many people have already pointed out, some of the
leading beneficiaries of this season of Tea Party craziness are
Republican candidates who hold extreme views on specific issues
but nonetheless come across as moderate and reasonable when
compared to the likes of Sharron Angle and Christine O'Donnell.
Posted.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2010/10/toomey_global_warming_may_not.html

Faulty Pollution Science in California? Think Again. It’s easy to
get carried away with faulty science claims with the significant
changes of late to the California Air Resources Board’s diesel
emissions inventory and to estimates of the health impacts of air
pollution.  Posted.
http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/dbailey/faulty_pollution_science_in_ca.html

Prop 23 Debate: You Say You Want A Green Revolution – Just Not
Yet. In 2006, California lawmakers passed the landmark Global
Warming Act, which mandated that greenhouse gas emissions be cut
to 1990 levels by the year 2020. Supporters envision that, as its
provisions take effect, the transition away from oil and into
cleaner fuel sources will energize the state by creating a new
‘green’ economy in California. Posted.
http://www.scpr.org/programs/airtalk/2010/10/12/prop-23-debate-you-say-you-want-a-green-revolution/

California's Green Job..."Fairy Tale"? So, The American Spectator
has a story about green jobs in California this week. Operative
paragraph:...where are all the green jobs? A new 2010 study by
the University of California-Berkeley comes to the sobering
conclusion that "the green economy accounts for just 1 percent of
California's jobs." That's right: of the roughly 15 million
California workers, only about 159,000 have green jobs (and this
was an expansive definition of green jobs, including trash
sorters at the dumpsters). Posted.
http://www.scpr.org/blogs/mollyblog/2010/10/11/californias-green-jobfairy-tale/

Stockton Diocese Critical Of Prop. 23. The Catholic Diocese of
Stockton is critical of Proposition 23, a measure on the November
ballot that would suspend California's 2006 law calling for
significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Bishop
Stephen Blaire, addressing poor air quality in much of the
diocese, issued a statement calling upon voters "to engage in
serious moral reflection on our common responsibility for
stewardship of the environment." Posted.
http://www.kcra.com/politics/25355836/detail.html

Behind The Wheel: Toyota Prius Plug-In - A Viable Green
Technology That Doesn't Save Money For Now. With all the hype
around the upcoming semi-electric Chevrolet Volt and fully
electric Nissan Leaf, too little has been said recently about the
Toyota Prius Plug-in due out in 2012. In preparation, Toyota is
operating an experimental fleet of 163 Prius Plug-ins, and the
company is lending these to municipalities and universities in
order to raise awareness. Toyota lent us one, too. Posted.
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/cars/2010/10/behind-the-wheel-toyota-prius-plug-in-mpg-a-viable-green-technology-that-doesnt-save-money-for-now.html