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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for December 18, 2013

Posted: 18 Dec 2013 14:59:10
ARB Newsclips for December 18, 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

Hospital in southwest China opens smog clinic. A hospital in
southwest China has opened a clinic for patients who are
suffering symptoms related to smog, a doctor said Wednesday,
highlighting how big a concern pollution has become for Chinese.
The dedicated clinic at the Chengdu No. 7 People's Hospital has
already treated more than 100 patients since opening last week.
One public health expert suggested hospitals may follow suit to
cash in on China's notorious smog. Posted.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_CHINA_POLLUTION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/dec/18/chinese-hospital-opens-smog-treatment-clinic/
 

Draft pollution law seeks to tackle lethal European air. EU
policymakers on Wednesday unveiled a draft law to tackle air
pollution, which every year is linked to 400,000 premature deaths
in Europe and costs of tens of billions of euros. The proposals
include new limits on emissions from power plants and industry,
as well as measures to make member states comply with existing
rules on limiting pollutants associated with asthma,
cardiovascular disease and cancer. Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/18/us-eu-air-idUSBRE9BH0DE20131218


Air pollution from burning coal hits Bosnian town.  Authorities
have ordered factories and homes to stop burning coal in a
central Bosnian town where air pollution has reached alarming
levels. Zenica is an industrial town that produces steel and
where many homes are heated by burning coal. That sometimes leads
to significant air pollution. Samir Lemes of the citizens
association Eco Forum said the concentration of sulfur-dioxide in
Zenica's air reached 1.400 micrograms per cubic meter…Posted.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/dec/17/air-pollution-from-burning-coal-hits-bosnian-town/
 

Macedonia takes precautions against air pollution.  Macedonia's
government has imposed emergency measures in four cities,
including Skopje, the capital, to address heavy air pollution
caused by traffic and wood- and oil-burning heating systems. For
the past six days, airborne particle concentrations in the cities
have exceeded the highest permissible levels during freezing
winter weather. Posted.
http://www.modbee.com/2013/12/17/3093674/macedonia-takes-precautions-against.html#storylink=cpy


Sooty air over San Joaquin Valley triggers health warning.
Dangerous soot levels continued Wednesday morning in the San
Joaquin Valley with the highest readings in Fresno, Tulare, Kings
and Kern counties.  At 8 a.m., Visalia's monitor showed 130 parts
of soot per cubic meter of air -- the threshold is 35 parts per
cubic meter averaged over a full day. Fresno, Hanford and
Bakersfield had readings higher than 100 parts per cubic meter.
Posted.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/12/17/3671901/high-pressure-front-in-fresno.html#storylink=cpy


Fires, air pollution combine for smelly, hazy day. The smoke may
have been coming from far away but the South Bay did not escape
the foul air from fires Tuesday. Many people in Santa Clara
County had to see and smell the combined forces of the Sims
Recycling center fire in Redwood City, the Big Sur fire and yet
another Spare The Air day. In San Jose, Joanna Flood walked with
a scarf around her nose and mouth. Posted.
http://www.ktvu.com/news/news/health-med-fit-science/fires-air-pollution-combine-smelly-hazy-day/ncNfL/


CLIMATE CHANGE

In Typhoon Area, Kerry Warns of Threats of a Warming Planet.
After touring miles of roofless homes and shattered shantytowns
destroyed by one of the most powerful storms ever recorded,
Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday announced that
additional American humanitarian aid would be sent to the
Philippines and described the giant typhoon as a warning of
future extreme weather in a warming world. Posted.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/19/world/asia/typhoon-haiyan-philippines-aid.html


California Prepares For Third Straight Dry Year. DWR says its
principle concern is the plight of farmers who have to operate
with much less water than they need for their crops. Bill Croyle,
DWR’s new drought manager, says the lack of water will likely
mean leaving land fallow and relying on transfers of water from
areas where it’s available to places with a critical shortage.
Posted. http://www.capradio.org/14883 

Climate change: The warmest November worldwide since 1880.
November was a hot month for planet Earth. Government scientists
reported Tuesday that last month set a heat record. They say it
was the warmest November on record, across Earth, since
record-keeping began in 1880. The National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration says average global temperature, for
water and land surfaces combined…Posted.
http://www.csmonitor.com/layout/set/r14/Environment/Latest-News-Wires/2013/1218/Climate-change-The-warmest-November-worldwide-since-1880


Georgetown Climate's Arroyo and Pacyniak discuss state
recommendations on emissions standards. How can U.S. EPA craft
its existing source rule for power plants to maximize flexibility
for stakeholders? During today's OnPoint, Vicki Arroyo, executive
director of the Georgetown Climate Center at Georgetown Law, and
Gabe Pacyniak, an institute associate at the Georgetown Climate
Center, discuss a letter sent to EPA this week by 15 states
offering recommendations for the upcoming power plant rule.
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/tv/videos/1761/transcript BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

A warming planet will soon produce scattered but more severe and
lasting water shortages – study. Water shortages already put
stress on people's lives in many countries today. Climate change
due to unabated greenhouse gas emissions is likely to confront 40
percent more people with chronic water scarcity within a few
decades. A group of scientists at research institutes worldwide
drew this conclusion by using an unprecedented number of impact
models. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1059992044/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

FUELS

U.S. lawmakers want hearing on natural gas methane emissions.
Democratic lawmakers concerned about the growing U.S. reliance on
natural gas for electricity on Tuesday called for a congressional
hearing on emissions of methane - a potent greenhouse gas - from
oil and gas production. Henry Waxman, the top Democrat on the
House of Representatives' energy and commerce panel, and Bobby
Rush, chairman of the House energy and power subcommittee…Posted.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/17/usa-climate-methane-idUSL2N0JW1DS20131217
.

EPA cites 62 Richmond violations by Chevron. The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency notified Chevron on Tuesday that
the company could face fines of $37,500 for every day it fails to
rectify 62 regulatory violations the agency has identified since
the smoky Richmond refinery fire last year. In a letter that
marked the first step in fining Chevron for the Aug. 6, 2012 fire
that sent 15,000 people to hospitals complaining of breathing
problems…Posted.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/EPA-cites-62-Richmond-violations-by-Chevron-5072914.php


HIGH-SPEED RAIL

Fresno soil drilling prepares for high-speed rail construction.
Geologists began drilling holes and collecting soil samples
Tuesday in downtown Fresno in preparation for the first stages of
construction on California's proposed high-speed train project.
The first soil borings by Earth Mechanics Inc. took place along H
Street, under the Stanislaus Street overpass that spans H Street,
the Union Pacific Railroad tracks and G Street. Posted.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/12/17/3672421/soil-drilling-begins-in-fresno.html#storylink=cpy


GREEN ENERGY

Baucus proposal replaces dozens of energy breaks with credits for
'clean' fuel, electricity. The Senate's top tax writer unveiled a
radical proposal today to eliminate dozens of deductions, credits
and other incentives for the energy industry and replace them
with two provisions designed to promote clean electricity and
transportation fuels and another credit for carbon capture and
sequestration. Posted.
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059992076/print BY
SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

Algae converted to crude oil in less than an hour, energy
department says. The day when planes, trucks and cars are
commonly revved up on pond scum may be on the near horizon thanks
to a technological advance that continuously turns a stream of
concentrated algae into bio-crude oil. From green goo to crude
takes less than an hour. The goo contains about 10 percent to 20
percent algae by weight. Posted.
http://www.nbcnews.com/science/algae-converted-crude-oil-less-hour-energy-department-says-2D11762083


MISCELLANEOUS

$1.1B California paint ruling may prompt new suits. Paint makers
could face a surge of lawsuits after a California state court
judge ordered three companies to pay $1.1 billion to help
government agencies get rid of lead from an estimated 5 million
homes in the state. The ruling, while preliminary, was a rare
loss for an industry that had turned back some 50 lawsuits filed
nationwide over the last 25 years by public agencies seeking
billions of dollars to remove lead-based paint from homes…Posted.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_LEAD_PAINT_COURT_BATTLE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


OTHER RELATED STORIES
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/12/16/6006973/judge-paint-companies-to-pay-calif.html#storylink=cpy
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/1-1B-California-paint-ruling-may-prompt-new-suits-5070503.php
 

Former DOE Secretary Chu joins board of carbon capture firm.
Former Energy Secretary Steven Chu, who once called coal "my
worst nightmare," is getting into the "clean coal" business by
joining a carbon capture company's board of directors. Inventys
Thermal Technologies of Vancouver, British Columbia, is promoting
what it calls a novel and cheaper method of capturing carbon
dioxide emissions from coal- and natural gas-fired power plants.
Posted. http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1059992071/print
BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY

OPINIONS

EDITORIAL: Put the brakes on ethanol racket.  The nation needs a
more sensible approach to energy and environmental issues than a
heavy reliance on corn-based ethanol. Congress should end the
mandate to mix corn ethanol into the nation’s fuel. A handout to
the agriculture industry is not an acceptable substitute for
thoughtful federal policies. Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.,
and Tom Coburn, R-Okla., last week introduced a bill to eliminate
the corn ethanol mandate. Posted.
http://www.pe.com/opinion/editorials-headlines/20131217-editorial-put-the-brakes-on-ethanol-racket.ece

BLOGS

White House to get aggressive on climate change? Republicans are
rightly outraged this morning because new White House counsel0r
John Podesta compared the GOP to a “cult worthy of Jonestown” in
an interview earlier this fall that Politico published today.
Podesta has since apologized. Beyond this flap, there is some
important news in the piece about Podesta: He agreed to the job
on the condition that he be allowed to oversee an aggressive
climate change agenda via executive action. Posted.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2013/12/18/white-house-to-get-aggressive-on-climate-change/


Signs of Baby Steps on Stanching Wasteful Flaring of Natural Gas.
 I hope you’ll read “Applying Creativity to a Byproduct of Oil
Drilling in North Dakota,” a valuable Clifford Krauss feature on
baby steps taken by the oil and gas industry to stanch the
wasteful, polluting flaring of natural gas from the country’s
booming Bakken oil fields in North Dakota. (There’s no
infrastructure for storing or transporting the gas and the oil is
the quarry, given its much higher price.) Posted.
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/12/18/baby-steps-on-stanching-u-s-flaring-of-natural-gas/?_r=0
 

AIR POLLUTION: Bad air again prompts burn ban.  Regional air
quality officials have issued a home fireplace burning ban for
Wednesday, Dec. 18, in the Inland counties as well as Orange
County and Los Angeles areas because of anticipated unhealthful
levels of soot and other particle pollution. “It’s mostly because
of the stagnant conditions we are having, particularly
overnight,” said Sam Atwood, a South Coast Air Quality Management
District spokesman. Posted.
http://blog.pe.com/air-quality/2013/12/17/air-pollution-bad-air-again-prompts-burn-bad/
 

NYC mayor Bloomberg signs bill requiring 20% of all parking
spaces to be EV 'charger ready'. At least it's not in any way
difficult to find a parking spot in Manhattan. If it was, New
York City's new plan to make at least 20 percent of the
off-street parking throughout the five boroughs accessible to a
plug-in vehicle charging station would be really onerous. Oh,
wait. The largest city in the country is now mandating that
owners of parking lots, parking garages and other off-street
parking areas have enough electrical juice to supply a fifth of
the spaces with charging stations.Posted.
http://green.autoblog.com/2013/12/17/nyc-mayor-bloomberg-signs-bill-requiring-20-of-all-parking-spac/
 

Toyota Prius named best value, Nissan Armada worst by Consumer
Reports.  Thinking about buying a Toyota Prius but can't figure
if the initial purchase cost will be offset in the long run
enough to make it a smart buy? Then you're probably reading these
words on AutoblogGreen and not on Autoblog. But beyond that,
Consumer Reports has some good news for you. For the second year
in a row, CR has named the Prius the best value on the market.
Posted.
http://www.autoblog.com/2013/12/18/consumer-reports-best-value-toyota-prius-worst-value-nissan-armada/


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