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newsclips -- Newsclips for November 25, 2014
Posted: 25 Nov 2014 11:40:35
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. CAP AND TRADE 56 countries seek carbon capture incentives in next climate deal Fiscal incentives for carbon capture should be part of the global climate change agreement that replaces the Kyoto Protocol, 56 countries belonging to the U.N. Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) said in a statement on Tuesday. The recommendation by the UNECE member states puts the issue formally on the table for a meeting of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris in December 2015, which aims to agree a legally binding treaty to replace Kyoto. http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/25/us-climatechange-lima-carboncapture-idUSKCN0J90UW20141125 AIR POLLUTION Air pollution costs EU up to $235 billion: EU agency Air pollution, chiefly from coal-fired power plants, cost society up to 189 billion euros ($235 billion) in 2012 - equal to the gross domestic product of Finland, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said in a report published on Tuesday. The agency provides research to guide EU policymakers, who are reconsidering proposals put forward last year by the European Commission, the EU executive, to tighten laws on air quality. http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/11/25/us-eu-pollution-idUSKCN0J90XK20141125 EPA rejects a Texas clean-air plan, orders pollution upgrades on some big coal plants The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday rejected parts of a key Texas clean-air plan, setting up a conflict with deep implications both for the state's electricity mix and air quality across much of the country. The partial rejection of Texas' regional haze plan, a federally required strategy for reducing pollution that causes hazy skies, would require 15 coal-burning generating units at eight Texas power plants to install or improve controls that limit emissions of sulfur dioxide. http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article4124706.html#storylink=cpy L’Oreal USA fined $146,500 for illegal, air polluting hair care products L'Oreal USA S/D Inc. has just paid a $146,500 fine for selling products that did not meet air quality regulations, according to an announcement by the California Air Resources Board (ARB) today. The explanation for the penalty is sure to support arguments made by many that California's regulatory climate is out of control and not friendly to business. http://www.examiner.com/article/l-oreal-usa-fined-146-500-for-illegal-air-polluting-hair-care-products Wood burning ban in effect Tuesday and possibly Thanksgiving Day Wood fires will be banned in the Bay Area Tuesday, and could be prohibited on Thanksgiving Day too as weather conditions create poor air quality this week. Bay Area air pollution regulators called a Spare the Air alert for Tuesday, and said it's... http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_27004315/wood-burning-ban-effect-tuesday-and-possibly-thanksgiving CLIMATE CHANGE GOP wants more electric reliability assurances for climate rule Republican lawmakers are calling on energy regulators to get more involved with the Obama administration’s climate rule for power plants. Top energy legislators in the House and Senate said they’re concerned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) hasn’t done enough to protect electricity reliability in the proposed rule. http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/225231-gop-wants-more-electric-reliability-assurances-for-climate-rule Neither rain nor snow nor heat sways views on climate science Think that people in upstate New York will more strongly believe climate change is upon us after an early November blizzard dumped 7 feet of snow, which then was turned to slush by spring-like temperatures? Think again. Freaky seasons and drastic weather anomalies do little to convince most people that climate change is real - political ideology does much more, according to a study published online Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change. http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-politics-bias-climate-change-20141124-story.html The Oil Lobby's Playbook Against California's Climate Law Created by the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), one of the most powerful oil and gas lobbies in the U.S., the slides and talking points comes from a Nov. 11 presentation to the Washington Research Council. The Powerpoint deck details a plan to throttle AB 32 (also known as the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006) and steps to thwart low carbon fuel standards (known as LCFS) in California, Oregon, and Washington State. http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-11-25/revealed-the-oil-lobbys-playbook-against-californias-climate-law FUELS EPA Won’t Finalize Renewable Fuel Standard in 2014, Cites Lengthy Delays ...Precedent Avoided Though renewable fuels producers said further delay is only adding uncertainty that hampers new investment, particularly in advanced biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol, they viewed the EPA's action as a win because the agency hasn't yet set a precedent of using its Clean... http://www.bna.com/epa-wont-finalize-n17179912489/ Would ethanol help the environment? Obama administration can't decide As President Obama looks to take legacy-defining actions while facing a hostile Congress, one of his more challenging decisions involves what goes into the fuel tanks of America’s cars. For months, the administration has dismayed innovators and environmentalists with its skepticism of requirements that gasoline contain escalating amounts of ethanol. The untidy politics of ethanol -- an additive that has done a great deal to bolster the corn industry but has fallen short in delivering marketplace innovations -- have bedeviled the Environmental Protection Agency and put Obama at odds with longtime allies on the left. http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-pn-obama-ethanol-20141124-story.html OPINION Committed to Carbon Goals Since the early 1990s, the consensus view in the climate science community has been that if the world is going to escape the most catastrophic consequences of climate change, it needs to keep the average global temperature from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius, compared with preindustrial levels. A few years ago, the Presidential Climate Action Project issued a report in which it estimated that to meet that goal, global carbon dioxide emissions would need to be reduced by 60 percent by 2050 — and the industrialized world would need to reduce its emissions by 80 percent. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/25/opinion/joe-nocera-committed-to-carbon-goals.html What the GOP Congress might mean for climate change In the aftermath of the Republican takeover of Congress, several events bear watching, especially as eyes turn toward 2016 and the presidential and senatorial races. To start off, there is the elevation of the Senate’s chief climate change denier, James Inhofe of Oklahoma, who's preparing to chair (for the second time) the committee that deals with global warming — the Environment and Public Works committee. http://www.pri.org/stories/2014-11-25/what-gop-congress-might-mean-climate-change BLOGS Beijing Considers How to Harness the Wind to Blow Away Pollution When Beijing experiences bouts of pollution that blacken the skies and burn the lungs, residents often joke that the Chinese capital needs to build giant fans to clear out the toxic air. Mountains to the north and west help trap smog in the city, and a stiff breeze from Mongolia is the surest way to ensure somewhat cleaner air. http://sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/11/24/beijing-considers-how-to-harness-the-wind-to-blow-away-pollution/ What people think about climate change around the world, in one map This map, from Sophie Yeo at Responding to Climate Change, rounds up surveys and polls from around the world since 2009 that look at views on climate change from abroad. For example, some 84 percent of people in Argentina think climate change is caused by humans, according to a poll from marketing research firm Ipsos MORI. In Bangladesh, that percentage drops to 31%, with 46% believing it's caused by God or natural causes, according to The Asia Foundation's 2012 Climate Change Perception Study. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/11/24/what-people-think-about-climate-change-around-the-world-in-one-map/ Preparing for COP20 On December 1st, the 20th Conference of the Parties (COP20) will commence in Lima, Peru to continue attempts to draft a global treaty on climate change. It has been 25 years since the international community called for action on greenhouse gases, 26 since climate scientist... http://www.huffingtonpost.com/diane-husic/preparing-for-cop20_b_6214020.html?utm_hp_ref=climate-change Renewable Energy Farms Spread Through California Deserts ...swatches of desert land in California that, combined, make up the largest wilderness area in the Lower 48. It's also about to become host to the biggest renewable-energy projects in the world. Already, 13 of them are built or on the way. There's the Desert Sunlight Solar Farm , under construction... http://www.newsweek.com/renewable-energy-farms-populate-california-286644 California is in a drought emergency. Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.