What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for July 30, 2013. 

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

Carson poised to declare contamination 'emergency'. The Carson
City Council is poised to vote Monday on declaring a "local
emergency" as part of an effort to speed the cleanup of a
residential neighborhood that sits atop an old oil tank farm. The
resolution cites the presence of "explosive methane gas,
carcinogenic benzene and other chemicals of concern" in the yards
of the 285 homes in the Carousel tract, where investigators
discovered benzene and methane gas in 2008. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-carson-contamination-emergency-20130729,0,4126522.story


AQMD cites Santa Fe Springs treatment plant for foul odors. The
South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a violation
notice to a waste water treatment plant in Santa Fe Springs on
Monday after receiving more than 100 foul odor complaints from
residents and businesses. Air quality inspectors traced the
problem to a waste water storage tank on the property of
Ridgeline Energy Services USA, according to AQMD spokesman Sam
Atwood. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-aqmd-santa-fe-springs-20130729,0,2931933.story

http://www.sacbee.com/2013/07/29/5607016/southern-california-city-hit-with.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_23756838/southern-california-city-hit-putrid-stench
http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/07/29/3413824/southern-california-city-hit-with.html

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/jul/29/southern-california-city-hit-with-putrid-stench/


Unhealthy air advisory in Bay Area due to Oregon wildfires. 
Smoke from wildfires burning in Oregon drifted across the Bay
Area on Monday, prompting air quality officials to issue a health
advisory for the region.  The Bay Area Air Quality Management
District urged the public to limit their exposure to smoke by
staying indoors if possible with windows and doors closed, and
setting air conditioners and car vents to recirculate. Posted. 
http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_23756253/unhealthy-air-advisory-bay-area-due-oregon-wildfires?IADID=Search-www.contracostatimes.com-www.contracostatimes.com


State groups worry over environmental law reform. A coalition of
business, housing and local government leaders is warning
California legislative leaders that a plan to rewrite the state's
landmark environmental law could lead to more lawsuits and make
it harder to approve responsible projects — the opposite of what
lawmakers seeking the overhaul hope to achieve.  Posted. 
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130729/A_NEWS/130729871&cid=sitesearch
BY SUBSCRIPTION

Indoor air pollution in the developing world: The silent killer. 
Sometimes clean air is a luxury. A recent study linked outdoor
air pollution to 2.1 million deaths annually around the world.
Now a new study finds that indoor pollution from unsafe household
cookstoves may be even worse, killing as many as 4 million people
every year. The toll is especially high in the developing world,
where families are exposed on a daily basis to smoke, particulate
matter…Posted. 
http://www.mnn.com/health/healthy-spaces/stories/indoor-air-pollution-in-the-developing-world-the-silent-killer
 

Something in the air: how global warming is spreading toxic dust.
When Rose Eitmiller found a new house on Sweet Pea Lane in
Dewey-Humboldt, Ariz., population 3,613, she felt at home. She
was still mourning the death of a daughter whom she always called
"Sweetpea," and the place seemed right to her. But that move in
2004 only brought more heartache for Eitmiller. Four years later,
U.S. EPA dug up her front lawn in a successful search for
arsenic, and Dewey-Humboldt soon became a Superfund site. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059985250/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

CLIMATE CHANGE

Olympic-size 'North Pole Lake' once again turns to ice. Images of
a scientific observation buoy floating in what appeared to be an
Arctic lake near the North Pole lit up the online world in the
past week, sparking questions about whether this was a sign of
global warming. On Monday, the scientist who installed the buoy
gave a succinct answer: No. Also, the buoy was never quite at the
North Pole, oceanographer James Morison said in a telephone
interview. Its most recent location is about 300 miles away.
Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/29/us-northpole-lake-idUSBRE96S16620130729
 

Mayor's climate panel pick questioned. Environmentalists are
protesting one of Mayor Anthony Silva's proposed new appointees
to a dormant city committee that is supposed to plan how Stockton
grows for decades into the future. The City Council is scheduled
to vote on the matter tonight. Posted.
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130730/A_NEWS/307300318&cid=sitesearch
 BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY 

Australia and California: The climate action conversation. Action
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the US and China means that
Australian climate change policy thinking is increasingly linked
to the global scene. In North America, state-level action to
implement emissions trading, reduce transport emissions and
increase renewable energy has influenced national policy, and
helps build momentum for global action. Posted.
http://www.eco-business.com/events/australia-and-california-the-climate-action-conversation/


FUELS

UPDATE 1-Cars and gasoline push Canada industrial prices higher.
Canadian producer prices rose 0.3 percent in June from May, the
first increase since February, thanks to higher prices for
gasoline and motor vehicles, Statistics Canada said on Tuesday.
Analysts surveyed by Reuters had expected the industrial product
price index to remain flat in the month, as it was in May. The
unexpected increase was due mostly to a 0.8 percent rise in motor
vehicles and other transportation equipment as auto prices jumped
1 percent. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/30/canada-economy-prices-idUSL1N0G00ED20130730


Energy secretary: Obama committed to role for coal. President
Barack Obama and the U.S. Department of Energy are committed to a
role for coal in a national energy strategy, and they've backed
it up with research spending, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said
Monday. In a visit to the National Energy Technology Laboratory
in Morgantown — the only one of the federal government's 17
national labs dedicated to fossil fuels — Moniz said the
administration has spent $6 billion on clean-coal technology with
an emphasis on the capture, storage and reuse of carbon
emissions. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Energy-secretary-Obama-committed-to-role-for-coal-4692786.php

 
VEHICLES

Lifecycle analysis of energy use and pollution from gasoline, CNG
and electric vehicles in 6 southwestern states highlights
variability of benefits.  A report for policymakers issued by the
Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP) has found that in
Arizona, Colorado and Nevada, electric vehicles offer the
cleanest ride, while in New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming that’s not
necessarily the case. SWEEP promotes greater energy efficiency in
a six-state region that includes Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New
Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.  Posted. 
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2013/07/sweep-20130729.html 

GREEN ENERGY

With EU sales likely capped, China solar firms will need new
markets. A weekend deal between Beijing and Brussels to regulate
trade in solar panels will limit Chinese firms' growth prospects
in the European Union, the world's largest solar market, and
force them to step up sales to 'emerging' markets at home and in
the United States and Japan. News of a deal - which had
threatened to boil over into a wider trade war covering wine and
steel - helped push up shares in Shanghai-listed solar panel
makers Hareon Solar…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/29/eu-china-solar-markets-idUSL4N0FZ15V20130729
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-29/china-eu-solar-panel-deal-seen-hurting-large-scale-projec.html


U.K. Green Bank Invests in Wood-to-Power Through Foresight Fund.
A fund backed by the U.K.’s Green Investment Bank channeled 20
million pounds ($30.6 million) into an energy project in Northern
Ireland that will turn wood into electricity and heat. The money
from the U.K. Waste Resources & Energy Fund, managed by Foresight
Group LLP, will help finance an 81 million-pound facility in
Lisahally that will produce enough electricity for more than
25,000 homes a year, the GIB said today in an e-mailed statement.
Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-30/u-k-green-bank-invests-in-wood-to-power-through-foresight-fund.html
 

China’s Spending on Renewable Energy May Total 1.8 Trillion Yuan.
 China’s spending to develop renewable energy may total 1.8
trillion yuan ($294 billion) in the five years through 2015 as
part of the nation’s efforts to counter climate change, according
to a government official. China may invest another 2.3 trillion
yuan in key energy-saving and emission-reducing projects, Xie
Zhenhua, vice chairman of the National Development and Reform
Commission, said today at a conference in Beijing. Posted.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-30/china-s-spending-on-renewable-energy-may-total-1-8-trillion-yuan.html
 

UCSD gets $7.2m for trimming energy waste.  The University of
California San Diego is being rewarded for wasting less energy,
accepting $7.2 million in energy efficiency incentives funded by
local utility customers. The incentives apply to 30 assorted
projects at UC San Diego. Associated energy savings are the
equivalent of taking 5,000 cars off the road and cutting power to
4,000 homes, said San Diego Gas & Electric, the utility that
administers state efficiency incentives for San Diego and
southern Orange counties. Posted.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/jul/30/tp-ucsd-gets-72m-for-trimming-energy-waste/


MISCELLANEOUS

EarthTalk: States create their own transportation plans. Dear
EarthTalk: Three regions in California recently implemented
transportation plans as part of a statewide strategy for cutting
greenhouse gas emissions. Can you explain? -- Bill Oakes, Reno,
Nev. Americans are becoming increasingly concerned about global
warming even as Washington politicians continue to debate whether
or not to mandate emissions cutbacks. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/EarthTalk-States-create-their-own-transportation-4695220.php


CEQA Overhaul Supporters Not Happy with Current Proposal. As
negotiations over a potential overhaul of California’s landmark
environmental law enter their final weeks, supporters of
rewriting the California Environmental Quality Act say the
current proposal falls short of reform. Democratic Senate Leader
Darrell Steinberg has promised to find the right balance as he
rewrites the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA.  He
wants the law to continue to protect the state’s environment, as
supporters urge, but no longer be abused, as critics complain. 
Posted.
http://www.capradio.org/articles/2013/07/29/ceqa-overhaul-supporters-not-happy-with-current-proposal/


OPINIONS

Ethanol, Fuel Prices, Consumers and Regulatory Cost. Ethanol RINs
don't raise the cost of gasoline but new EPA sulfur standards
will. Regarding your editorial "The Ethanol Tax" (July 20):
Renewable Identification Numbers aren't raising gas prices
because RINs are free. RINs are the compliance mechanism oil
companies use to demonstrate they have met their renewable fuel
obligation. Refiners receive a free RIN for every gallon of
ethanol purchased by a producer. Posted.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323829104578622674169974506.html


The drying of the West. Dams and other engineering helped provide
water throughout the arid region for decades. It's no longer
enough. John Wesley Powell, whose legendary descent of the
Colorado River in 1869 brought the one-armed explorer fame and
celebrity, worried about America's westward migration. The
defining characteristic of Western lands was their aridity, he
wrote, and settlement of the West would have to respect the
limits aridity imposed. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-debuys-colorado-river-20130730,0,1587847.story


Hey corporations and your D.C. lackeys -- mitts off California.
Oh, how they love that siren song of states’ rights -- until they
don’t like hearing us singing it. In a disturbing story, my
Washington colleague Evan Halper chronicles how some D.C.
regulators and big corporations -- like the ones that pollute the
air and the water in the name of unfettered capitalism, the ones
that are cavalier about worker safety and animal welfare…Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinion-la/la-ol-corporations-dc-lackeys-mitts-off-california-20130729,0,3323058.story


Smoking: The menthol debate misses the point. Nearly every
attempt to regulate cigarettes is frustrated by the tenet that
smoking is a choice adults should be granted. In 2009, a new law
authorized the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to regulate
cigarettes and reduce their terrible toll on the nation's health.
Even though less than 20% of adult Americans smoke, it's still
the No. 1 cause of preventable death. Posted.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-smoking-20130726,0,6367429.story


Letter: No comparison in debate on climate. Malcolm J. Sherman's
letter ("Models don't show climate emergency," July 16) argues:
"The failure of climate models to predict the last 15 years
supports those who have been saying we don't face a climate
emergency." Sherman quotes German meteorologist Hans von Storch
saying, "If things continue as they have been, in five years at
the latest, we will need to acknowledge that something is
fundamentally wrong with our climate models. Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Letter-No-comparison-in-debate-on-climate-4692367.php


Reform the ethanol mandate. The federal corn ethanol mandate is
prima facie evidence that the law of unintended consequences is
always in effect. Once heralded as a way to help farmers, reverse
climate change and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil,
the mandate to blend up to 15 billion gallons of corn ethanol
into gasoline every year has hurt more farmers than it has
helped, increased greenhouse gas emissions and been rendered
irrelevant by new fuel efficiency standards. Posted.
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/07/reform-theethanol-mandate-94876.html#ixzz2aY0kO1E4

Congress should not oppose biofuels. They create jobs and help
the environment. No fuel at scale today comes close to equaling
ethanol’s ability to prevent American cars and trucks from
spewing pollutants from their tailpipes. Unfortunately, one of
the most important incentives for the growth of biofuels is now
under attack by misguided lawmakers and Big Oil. If Americans are
serious about curbing climate change, they need to use less
gasoline and more clean-burning biofuels, such as ethanol.
Posted.
http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2013/0730/Congress-should-not-oppose-biofuels.-They-create-jobs-and-help-the-environment


Why methane hydrate could soon become more controversial than
fracking. Natural gas buried in Arctic permafrost could be an
economic boon — but it could also drastically accelerate climate
change. Asia's seemingly unquenchable thirst for energy — lead by
China's industrial expansion and Japan's quest to replace nuclear
— has scientists constantly rooting around for new sources. Now,
the region is zeroing in on methane hydrate, a crystalline form
of natural gas buried in…Posted.
http://news.yahoo.com/why-methane-hydrate-could-soon-become-more-controversial-124600611.html


BLOGS

Another View on Gas Drilling in the Context of Climate Change.
I’ve received a “Your Dot” contribution on gas leaks and global
warming from Louis A. Derry, an associate professor in the earth
and atmospheric sciences department at Cornell University. It’s a
critique of one element in “Gangplank to a Warm Future,” an Op-Ed
article by Anthony R. Ingraffea, a professor of engineering at
Cornell who is a prominent foe of expanded gas drilling using the
bundle of methods commonly known as “fracking.” Posted.
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/29/another-view-on-fracking-in-the-context-of-climate-change/?_r=0
 

Ford Recalls 33,000 C-Max Cars. Ford said it would recall about
33,000 of its 2013 C-Max models after tests by the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that the vehicles did
not meet federal safety standards for head protection in a crash.
The vehicles affected by the recall – hybrid and electric models
– were built in Wayne, Mich., between Jan. 19, 2012, and June 26,
2013, and do not have the optional panoramic roof. Posted.
http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/30/ford-recalls-33000-c-max-cars/


ChargePoint debuts multiple-port EV charging station.
Electric-vehicle charging-station maker ChargePoint continues to
edge its way closer to the gas-station model with its debut of
the CT4000 model, which the company says can serve multiple
vehicles working off of a single circuit. ChargePoint, formerly
known as Coulomb Technologies, says its new product can supply
electricity to more vehicles and is cheaper to install than
previous units. Posted.
http://green.autoblog.com/2013/07/29/chargepoint-debuts-multiple-port-ev-charging-station/#continued
 

GM execs fired over fraudulent India emissions testing.  General
Motors hadn't had a recall in India since 1995. That changed when
it was discovered that certain employees were playing tricks with
local emissions testing in order to ensure passing grades for
engines. Posted.
http://www.autoblog.com/2013/07/29/gm-executives-fired-for-auto-emissions-cheating-in-india/


Our Shared Stake in Clean Air, Livable Climate. President Obama's
plan to take action on climate change is a critical step in
protecting communities and our health. It is also a moral
obligation we have to our children and future generations. We
commend his leadership in putting forth his climate plan and
especially for directing his administration to control industrial
carbon pollution from power plants. Reducing carbon pollution
from its largest source is not only common sense…Posted.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/trip-van-noppen/our-shared-stake-in-clean_b_3671373.html


Could greenhouse gases turn Earth into Venus?  How will the world
end? A giant meteor? Zombie apocalypse? Death Star target
practice!? One scientist thinks our planet’s death knell is going
to be climate change, on an epic, terrifying scale … but,
fortunately, not the kind we need to worry about.  The “runaway
greenhouse” — which is thought to have happened on Venus in the
past — is basically a climate change worst-case scenario…Posted. 
http://grist.org/climate-energy/could-greenhouse-gases-turn-earth-into-venus/