What's New List Serve Post Display

ARB Newsclips for January 28, 2015. 

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

Gov. Inslee's cap-and-trade plan makes polluters pay.  So many
people signed up to testify on Gov. Jay Inslee's sweeping
proposal to rein in greenhouse gases that Tuesday's public
hearing on the bill was continued to Thursday. About three dozen
people from across the state testified before the House
Environment Committee on a bill to cap the overall amount of
carbon emissions in the state and require major polluters to pay
for each metric ton of carbon released.
http://www.sfgate.com/business/energy/article/Inslee-s-cap-and-trade-plan-makes-polluters-pay-6043251.php


California Engages in Mature Debate Over Spending of
Cap-and-Trade Funds.  As the inane “debate” over climate change
drags on in the more benighted corners of our republic
(Washington, D.C., included), it’s becoming abundantly clear that
California is no longer the place where America’s fruits, nuts,
and loose ends come to rest. I’ve been on the periphery of the
stateside discussion of SB 375 for the past two years, so I know
that it’s not news to say that there have been many earnest,
productive discussions about it across the state.
http://www.cp-dr.com/node/3676 

AIR POLLUTION

The air pollution that's choking Asia.  At the age of 13, Tan Yi
Han could not see the edge of his schoolyard. It was 1998 in
Singapore, the wealthy city-state known for its tidy streets and
clean, green image. But for much of that particular school year,
clouds of smoke shrouded the skyline. The record-setting air
pollution, which had begun in 1997 and lasted for months, caused
a 30% spike in hospital visits. It would later be remembered as
one of southeast Asia's worst-ever "haze episodes."
http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/27/asia/asia-air-pollution-haze/ 

Study finds no link between diesel technologies, cancer. Lifetime
exposure to exhaust from modern diesel technologies is not likely
to cause cancer, according to a study released today by a
nonprofit research organization.The study exposed rats for up to
30 months to exhaust from a heavy-duty diesel engine that meets
recent U.S. EPA standards for emissions and found no evidence of
cancerous lung tumors. 
http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1060012356/feed 

CLIMATE CHANGE

The difficult art of communicating climate change to farmers. As
a sociologist, J. Gordon Arbuckle Jr. spends a lot of time
studying what shapes farmers' views and responses to climate
change. It's a subject that has not gotten much attention, even
as more research focuses on how to reduce agricultural greenhouse
gas emissions and how to make farming more resilient to the
impacts of extreme weather.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060012312/print 

Corals may be more resilient to climate change than previously
thought – study. There is some cause to be hopeful for corals in
the face of a changing climate, according to a flurry of new
research. From the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef
Studies, three recent studies touch on ways corals are coping
with climate change and offer insight into how humans can alter
their management practices to provide a helping hand.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060012393/print 

Copenhagen builds world's first climate change-adapted
neighborhood. St. Kjeld, a neighborhood in Copenhagen, Denmark,
is ready for what climate change has in store. As the first
climate change-adapted neighborhood in the world, it won't
crumble in the face of storms, floods and rising seas. "St.
Kjeld's transformation shows what can be done if you take climate
change seriously,"…
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060012389/print 

Some utilities could benefit from regional cooperation on EPA's
Clean Power Plan. An upcoming white paper from the consulting
group ICF International will show how regional emissions trading
as part of U.S. EPA's climate rule for existing power plants
could benefit electric utilities in states with tougher targets.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060012400/print 

NASA set to launch satellite Thursday that can help predict
droughts, floods and climate change.  The first NASA satellite
measuring soil moisture to predict droughts, floods and climate
change is scheduled to launch from California’s Vandenberg Air
Force Base Thursday. The $916 million investment has been in the
works for eight years and is managed by the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, based in La Cañada Flintridge.
http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/science/20150127/nasa-set-to-launch-satellite-thursday-that-can-help-predict-droughts-floods-and-climate-change


Why Bigger Snowstorms Come With Global Warming.  Winter storm
Juno is expected to dump as much as 3 feet of snow across parts
of New England early this week. Media outlets have already dubbed
the storm "a massive blizzard of epic proportions." Schools
closed their doors, grocery stores had their shelves stripped and
governors announced travel bans along most of the storm's path.
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/20150127/why-bigger-snowstorms-come-global-warming


More suffering for the poor as climate change develops. Poor
countries could suffer much more from climate change than
initially expected, according to a new economic study from
Stanford University. Previous economic models did not account for
the effect of climate change on the growth of global economies,
but more recent studies show that economic success will be
impacted by global warming. 
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2015/01/27/stories/1060012321

"California Climate Change Initiatives Create Framework for
Others."  With climate change mandates stalled at the federal
level and ongoing international political struggles complicating
global climate change efforts, several U.S. states and Canadian
provinces have been at the forefront of efforts to mitigate
climate change. Not surprisingly, California has been a leader in
these efforts, most notably with its passage of the California
Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, known colloquially as "AB
32."
http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/california-climate-change-initiatives-c-85624/


STUDY: How Broadcast Networks Covered Climate Change In 2014. 
Broadcast Networks Provided The Most Climate Coverage In Five
Years. During 2014, the major broadcast networks' evening and
Sunday news programs aired a total of 154 minutes of coverage of
climate change. This was an increase from the previous year's 129
minutes and was significantly above the six-year average of about
108 minutes, but remained below the 205 minutes of coverage in
2009.
http://mediamatters.org/research/2015/01/28/study-how-broadcast-networks-covered-climate-ch/202232

DROUGHT

Earth Log: Don’t get lost in California’s fickle winter, it’s
still stuck in drought mode.  Before the coffee was ready Tuesday
morning, the rainless January went from being the driest on
record in Fresno to just another drought footnote — .09 of an
inch of rain had fallen. If more than .40 of an inch accumulates
before Saturday, January won’t even make the top 10 driest in
Fresno.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2015/01/27/4350813_dont-get-lost-in-californias-fickle.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy

DIESEL ACTIVITIES

Driven by Asia, global shipping volumes and emissions will
multiply. In the next 35 years, global shipping volume will more
than quadruple, driven in large part by increasing economic
expansion from Asia and emerging markets, according to a report
released yesterday by the International Transport Forum at the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/stories/1060012416/print 

FUELS

Big Oil Faces Time of Reckoning. Shell, BP and Others to Report
Earnings, Reveal What Role Lower Crude Prices Played On Results.
In the coming days, the world’s biggest publicly traded oil
companies will report fourth-quarter earnings, offering the best
look yet at the bite lower crude prices have taken out of Big
Oil.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/big-oil-faces-time-of-reckoning-1422395792


Can your personality explain how you feel about the Keystone XL
pipeline? On Monday, Senate Republicans came up short —
temporarily, anyway — in their push to pass legislation that
would approve the Keystone XL pipeline. Democrats successfully
filibustered the bill, but if a number of senators had not been
absent, that strategy might have failed.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/01/27/can-your-personality-explain-how-you-feel-about-the-keystone-xl-pipeline/


Obama exploration plan hits an industry slowed by pricing
uncertainty. The East Coast could become home to a booming
offshore energy industry -- but only if the price of crude oil
recovers substantially. Yesterday, the Obama administration
reissued its proposal to open up the Atlantic shoreline of the
United States to offshore drilling.
http://www.eenews.net/energywire/stories/1060012417/print 
 
Consumer confidence soars amid job surge, gas price plunge.  U.S.
consumers welcomed the new year with a surge in confidence. The
Conference Board reported Tuesday that its consumer confidence
index climbed this month to 102.9, highest level since August
2007 -- four months before the start of the Great Recession.
January's figure was up from a revised 93.1 in December.
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_27403162/consumer-confidence-soars-amid-job-surge-gas-price?source=rss


California considers replacing gas tax with per-mile charge. 
More people are driving electric cars. Gasoline cars are getting
better mileage. And California's vehicles are causing less
pollution. But all that good news is generating a major problem:
As motorists buy less gasoline, state gas tax revenues that pay
for roads have been falling for a decade, leading to more
potholes and traffic jams.
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_27387446?source=inthenews 

E3 study finds low-carbon gas fuels option for meeting Calif GHG
reduction goals.  A new study by Energy Environmental Economics
(E3) consulting suggests that low-carbon gas fuels are a viable
option for meeting California’s greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction
goals and can simultaneously help achieve pollution emission
reduction targets.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2015/01/20150128-e3.html

VEHICLES

Are Electrics The New Internet? BMW Super Bowl Ad Argues Yes. 
Electric-vehicle advocates long have needed to change the way
Americans look at battery-powered cars, which now amount mainly
to toys for the luxury set. Plunging gasoline prices aren’t
making EVs any more attractive to rank-and-file consumers
either.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dalebuss/2015/01/27/are-electrics-the-new-internet-bmw-super-bowl-ad-argues-yes/


GREEN ENERGY

Solar power booming in American Southwest.  5 hours south of San
Francisco, the Topaz Solar Farm is complete and has begun
supplying power to Pacific Gas & Electric. Covering an area of 10
square miles (1/3 the size of Manhattan) and composed of millions
of solar panels, the facility will generate 550 megawatts of
electricity – enough to power 160,000 average size American
homes. The $2.4 billion dollar installation is owned by a
subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate owned by
Warren Buffett.
http://ecomento.com/2015/01/28/solar-power-booming-in-american-southwest/

OPINIONS

Climate urgency can be L.A.’s opportunity: Guest commentary. 
Gov. Jerry Brown made it clear in his State of the State address
that climate change is a major priority. His three climate goals
promise to transform California: by 2030 half the state’s
electricity will come from renewable power, by the same year
homes and buildings will be 200 percent more efficient, and in
the next 15 years the state will reduce its use of petroleum by
half.
http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/opinion/20150127/climate-urgency-can-be-las-opportunity-guest-commentary


Letter: RGGI helped our town. One terrible bill being presented
at this time in Concord is a regressive and irresponsible bill
designed to repeal New Hampshire’s participation in the
nine-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. If approved, it
would bring losses of income for our state and greatly needed
help for our residents, towns and businesses. Please contact your
state representatives and ask them to respect the needs of New
Hampshire citizens by voting no on HB 280.
http://www.concordmonitor.com/opinion/15390533-95/letter-rggi-helped-our-town


BLOGS

Dystopian Reality of China’s Smog Captured in ‘Airpocalypse’ App.
 China’s notorious smog can feel like a physical manifestation of
the country’s political repression: suffocating, censored and
potentially lethal. On many days, the sun is hidden behind a
pale, brown veil of coal dust and other pollutants that is
visible from space and smells like a chemical spill on fire. 
http://sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/01/28/dystopian-reality-of-chinas-smog-captured-in-airpocalypse-app/


There's More Global Warming Coverage on Your Television.  Here's
some good news: According to a new study, the major broadcast
news networks are covering climate change more than they have in
years. Now here's the bad news: Much of that coverage includes
misleading arguments from commentators who reject the scientific
consensus that humans are warming the planet.
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2015/01/climate-change-cbs-nbc-abc-fox

E-Cigarettes Could Face Major Bans In California.  On the heels
of a study that found electronic cigarettes may expose users to
high levels of formaldehyde, the California senate has introduced
a bill that would define the controversial devices as tobacco
products and treat them as such. Filed Monday by state Sen. Mark
Leno (D-San Francisco), the bill would subject e-cigarettes --
battery-powered tubes that vaporize liquid nicotine instead of
burning tobacco -- to the state’s existing anti-smoking laws,
effectively banning "vaping" in workplaces, schools, restaurants,
bars, hospitals, public transit and everywhere else traditional
cigarettes are forbidden.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/26/california-e-cigarette-ban-vaping_n_6551336.html?ir=Los+Angeles&ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000065


Is BMW i3 Electric Car Selling Better In U.S. Than Germany?  One
of the notable features of last year's electric-car sales was the
strong, and so far sustained, sales of the radical new BMW i3
electric car. The little plastic-bodied battery-electric vehicle
from Munich, with its odd coach doors and its rear electric
motor, sold more than 1,000 cars a month in four of the eight
months last year it was on sale. The total of 6,024 i3s delivered
put BMW's first electric car in sixth place among the 21 plug-in
vehicles on sale in the U.S.
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1096520_is-bmw-i3-electric-car-selling-better-in-u-s-than-germany





California is in a drought emergency.
Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.