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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for May 21, 2015.
Posted: 21 May 2015 15:00:00
ARB Newsclips for May 21, 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. AIR POLLUTION Rich world should help emerging countries cut pollution: Glencore chairman. Rich countries should help developing countries like India limit their carbon emissions by supporting the building of more expensive but cleaner energy plants, Glencore chairman Tony Hayward said on Thursday. Hayward said that India, where hundreds of millions of people have no access to electricity… http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/21/us-climatechange-business-carbon-idUSKBN0O615I20150521 Paris Hit by Air Pollution Spike, Halves Cars on Roads. Paris will cut the number of cars on the road in half beginning Monday and is making public transit free to combat a spike in pollution that has obscured even the Eiffel Tower under a smoggy haze. The mayor's office announced Saturday that only cars with odd-numbered plates will be permitted to drive Monday, as well as any electric or hybrid vehicles and any vehicles with more than three people. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2015/03/21/world/europe/ap-eu-france-pollution.html AK Steel to pay $1.35M for alleged violations at plant. An Ohio-based steelmaker has agreed to pay $1.35 million to settle environmental violations at a Dearborn plant alleged by the federal government and state of Michigan. The agreement with AK Steel was announced Wednesday by the U.S. Justice Department, which says the violations of the Clean Air Act occurred under the previous owner of the plant. http://www.sfgate.com/news/science/article/AK-Steel-to-pay-1-35M-for-alleged-violations-at-6277571.php Honolulu ordered to fund 3.1MW PV plant for air pollution violations. Authorities in Hawaii’s capital, Honolulu, have been ordered to finance a US$16 million solar system as a penalty for failing to curb air pollution from a city landfill site. The US Environmental Protection Agency said the City and County of Honolulu had not installed the necessary measures to collect and control methane and other air pollutants from its Kapaa landfill site by a 2002 deadline. http://www.pv-tech.org/news/honolulu_ordered_to_fund_3.1mw_pv_plant_for_air_pollution_violations Air regulator group to release much-anticipated 'menu' of Clean Power Plan options. The association of state air regulators who are charged with writing carbon-reduction proposals under U.S. EPA's Clean Power Plan today will release an extensive 465-page encyclopedia of 25 core compliance options. The National Association of Clean Air Agencies, which represents 41 states and more than 100 local agencies… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2015/05/21/stories/1060018941 CLIMATE CHANGE UN climate fund passes financing threshold with Japan deal. The U.N.'s fund for climate aid to developing countries says it now has enough cash to kick off projects before a key climate summit in Paris. Green Climate Fund officials said a Japanese commitment Thursday of $1.5 billion pushed the fund's resources beyond the threshold at which they can start financing projects in developing countries. http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_UN_CLIMATE_FUND?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT OTHER RELATED STORIES http://www.sacbee.com/news/nation-world/article21553035.html Oil Giants Band Together to Add Voice to Climate Debate. Europe’s largest oil companies are banding together to forge a joint strategy on climate-change policy, alarmed they’ll be ignored as the world works toward a historic deal limiting greenhouse gases. Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Total SA, BP Plc, Statoil ASA and Eni SpA are among oil companies that plan to start a new industry body… http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-20/oil-giants-band-together-to-add-their-voice-to-climate-debate http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/21/climatechange-business-paris-idUSL5N0YC3Q920150521 Agriculture and Cattle Ranching Threatening Global Rainforests. The Brazilian city of Altamira used to be in the middle of Amazon forest. Not anymore, not after decades of deforestation. Now it’s a two-hour drive to the nearest native forest areas still standing. The view along the way is mostly pastures, with a few tall nut trees surrounded by cattle. Lots of cattle. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-21/agriculture-and-cattle-ranching-threatening-global-rainforests Energy divestment campaigns a 'red herring', says Shell CEO. Royal Dutch Shell Chief Executive Ben van Beurden on Thursday slammed as a "red herring" calls for investors to divest from energy companies as part of the fight against climate change. Van Beurden singled out the "Keep it in the Ground" campaign led by British newspaper The Guardian that aims at keeping charitable funds from investing in fossil fuels. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/21/shell-climate-idUSL5N0YC3ZH20150521 'Top 10' new species includes cartwheeling spider, 'chicken from hell'. Some 18,000 species, great and small, were discovered in 2014, adding to the 2 million already known, scientists said on Thursday, as they released a "Top 10" list that highlights the diversity of life. he 10 are "a reminder of the wonders awaiting us," said Quentin Wheeler, president of the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry… http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/21/science-species-idUSKBN0O61AZ20150521 Scientists: This is what it would take to keep the world super safe from global warming. The world is busy trying to achieve a global warming goal that some think we’re not on course to achieve, and that some scientists worry may not be enough to prevent some troubling scenarios — like significant sea level rise. That goal is limiting warming to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/05/21/this-is-what-it-would-actually-take-to-keep-the-world-super-safe-from-global-warming/ The surprising links between faith and evolution and climate denial — charted. For a long time, we’ve been having a pretty confused discussion about the relationship between religious beliefs and the rejection of science — and especially its two most prominent U.S. incarnations, evolution denial and climate change denial. http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/05/20/this-chart-explains-why-faith-and-science-dont-have-to-be-in-conflict/ Ironically, air conditioning could be the thing fueling future global warming. There's a memorable episode of Comedy Central's Broad City in which our spunky (and in this instance, sweaty) protagonists Abby and Ilana go to great lengths to track down an air conditioning unit, traversing a sweltering New York City with schemes including sneaking into a NYU dorm and seducing college students to steal a window unit. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/05/20/air-conditioning-environment-statistics/27586469/ Cold weather is much deadlier than extreme heat, study says. Extreme heat waves like the one that killed more than 70,000 Europeans in 2003 may be the most visible examples of deadly weather, but cold days actually cause more deaths than hot ones, a new study says. After examining more than 74 million deaths that occurred in 13 countries from 1985 to 2012, researchers calculated that 7.3% of them could be attributed to cold weather and 0.4% to hot weather. http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-cold-hot-weather-deaths-20150520-story.html 1.5C climate goal still in reach, say scientists. World must embrace deeper emissions cuts, biofuels and carbon storage in last stab at limiting long term costs for planet, study says. Odds are long on the planet pinning down temperatures below a 1.5C rise on pre-industrial levels by the end of the century. http://www.rtcc.org/2015/05/21/1-5c-climate-goal-still-in-reach-say-scientists/#sthash.8yzy00kQ.dpuf IMF: Fossil Fuels Subsidies Are $5.3 Trillion A Year If Climate Costs Included. Climate change doesn't just present an environmental threat to human populations, it also has a tangible economic impact. Governments must invest in measures to combat climate change, and deal with its effects as well as the general consequences of societies that depend on the combustion of fossil fuels to run their economies. http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1098408_imf-fossil-fuels-subsidies-are-5-3-trillion-a-year-if-climate-costs-included Shell investors question company's record on climate change. Royal Dutch Shell shareholders voted at the annual general meeting to require the company to assess whether its activities line up with international climate goals and efforts to limit warming to 2 degrees Celsius. A resolution was passed by 150 investors to ban corporate bonuses given for activities that cause environmental damage… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2015/05/21/stories/1060018916 32 companies produce about a third of world's man-made greenhouse gases – study. About one-third of annual global greenhouse gas emissions comes from the operations of 32 energy companies and the use of their products, according to a report released yesterday. Published by Thomson Reuters, with data from the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) and the Climate Accountability Institute (CAI)… http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2015/05/21/stories/1060018943 DROUGHT Feds providing $50M for Western water-saving projects. The U.S. government will invest nearly $50 million in water conservation and reuse projects in 12 drought-stricken Western states, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell announced Wednesday. "It is absolutely critical that states and the federal government leverage our funding resources so that we can make each drop count," Jewell said at a wastewater purification plant in Los Angeles. http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_DROUGHT_WATER_PROJECTS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Once-parched Texas city orders evacuation due to floods. A North Texas city that a few months ago was in a drought so severe that it had to recycle sewage water for drinking ordered residents on Thursday to evacuate certain areas due to flooding. Wichita Falls, about 125 miles northeast of Dallas, issued a mandatory evacuation order for hundreds of residents in vulnerable neighborhoods due to rising water levels on the Wichita River. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/21/us-usa-weather-texas-idUSKBN0O61VP20150521 Protesters want Sacramento Nestle plant to stop bottling water. Concerned that precious California water is going out of state during the state's ongoing drought, several dozen protesters were at the Nestle bottling plant in south Sacramento Wednesday to urge the company to cease bottling water. The demonstration was peaceful. http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/local/south-sacramento/2015/05/20/protesters-want-sacramento-nestle-bottling-plant-to-stop-bottllng-water/27658959/ DIESEL ACTIVITIES 11% of Boston Public Schools bus fleet to run on propane. Boston Public Schools will operate 11% of its bus fleet with Blue Bird propane autogas buses, starting with the 2015-2016 school year. The school district is purchasing 86 Blue Bird Propane Vision school buses, and hopes to convert more of their diesel fleet to propane buses in the future. Like many urban cities, Boston has implemented mandates for reducing tailpipe emissions. http://www.greencarcongress.com/2015/05/20150521-boston.html FUELS Global Bioenergies and Cristal Union form JV to produce renewable isobutene. Global Bioenergies, a developer of one-step fermentation processes for the direct and cost-efficient transformation of renewable resources into light olefins, and Cristal Union, the 4th largest European beet producer, have formed IBN-One, a joint venture to build and operate the first plant in France converting renewable resources into isobutene. http://www.greencarcongress.com/2015/05/20150521-gbi.html SANTA BARBARA OIL SPILL Oil sopped up from California coast rises to 7,700 gallons. Officials say more than 7,700 gallons of oil has been raked, skimmed and vacuumed from a spill that stretches across 9 miles of California coast - just a fraction of the crude that escaped from a broken pipeline. Coast Guard Lt. Jonathan McCormick says additional crew members and boats will be added to the cleanup effort Thursday along the Santa Barbara coast. http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CALIFORNIA_OIL_SPILL?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Latest on California oil spill: Governor declares emergency. Gov. Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency in Santa Barbara County over the coastal oil spill. The move Wednesday night from the governor frees up emergency state funding and resources to help in the cleanup efforts. http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CALIFORNIA_OIL_SPILL_THE_LATEST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Around-the-clock cleanup effort under way on oil-fouled California beach. Cleanup teams labored on Thursday for a third day to remove patches of crude petroleum that stained a California beach and fouled offshore waters from a pipeline rupture that may rank as the biggest oil spill to hit the Santa Barbara coastline in more than four decades. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/21/us-usa-california-oilspill-idUSKBN0O52MY20150521 Extent of California Oil Spill Being Assessed. The oil spill in Santa Barbara County could be as large as 105,000 gallons in worst-case scenario. The oil spill in Santa Barbara County, Calif., could be as large as 2,500 barrels, or 105,000 gallons, in a worst-case scenario outlined Wednesday by the burst pipeline’s operator, which estimated 500 barrels may have reached the water. http://www.wsj.com/articles/california-oil-cleanup-starts-as-brown-declares-emergency-1432214330 When it comes to wildlife, no way to warn them away from oily waters. Authorities can urge people to stay away from the oil spill off the Santa Barbara County coast. But there is no way to warn wildlife to stay away. Video and photos on social media show dolphins swimming off the shoreline at Refugio State Beach with an oil slick in the background, a sea lion resting exhausted around blackened rocks and pelicans gliding gracefully above the water’s surface. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-probe-california-coastal-oil-spill-pipe-excavation-20150521-story.html Pipeline operator in Santa Barbara oil spill has a bad safety record. Plains Pipeline, the large Texas-based company responsible for the pipe that ruptured in Santa Barbara County, has accumulated 175 safety and maintenance infractions since 2006, according to federal records. A Times analysis of data from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration shows Plains' rate of incidents per mile of pipe is more than three times the national average. http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-oilspill-pipeline-20150521-story.html LUMBER LIQUIDATORS Lumber Liquidators CEO quits, catching company off guard. Lumber Liquidators CEO Robert Lynch has abruptly quit the company that is embroiled in an investigation over products imported from China. Shares tumbled 15 percent in morning trading Thursday. The company said Lynch resigned "unexpectedly" and declined to provide more details on the resignation when asked by The Associated Press. http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_LUMBER_LIQUIDATORS_CEO_RESIGNS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT VEHICLES Obama Scales Back Overly Ambitious Goals for Electric Car Use. President Barack Obama's long-standing goal to have a fully fuel-efficient government fleet and 1 million plug-in vehicles on the road will not be met. With little fanfare, the president in March scaled back the ambitious goals laid out in his 2009 executive order that mandated the million units on the road by 2015 as it became clear that technology and consumer interest were not keeping pace with his ideals. http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-05-21/obama-scales-back-overly-ambitious-goals-for-electric-car-use Fiat Chrysler To Use Aluminum, Electric Motors To Boost Fuel Economy. The company will have to shell out billions over the next decade to develop fuel-efficient cars. How about a plug-in Jeep Grand Cherokee? Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne is thinking about it. For years, the auto maker has owned the market for large SUVs and trucks, but now it is facing a quandary… http://www.wsj.com/articles/fiat-chrysler-to-use-aluminum-electric-motors-to-boost-fuel-economy-1432127520?KEYWORDS=EMISSIONS HIGH-SPEED RAIL China may have edge in race to build California's bullet train. Chinese state firms are poised to be strong contenders in the race to make high-speed trains that will sprint between Los Angeles and San Francisco, part of a $68 billion project to bring the service to the United States for the first time. While "bullet train" manufacturers from Germany, Japan, South Korea, and France… http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/21/us-california-rail-china-idUSKBN0O60FT20150521 GREEN ENERGY Saudi Oil Minister Says World Can’t Abandon Fossil Fuels. Ali al-Naimi says it doesn’t make economic sense to switch to investing in solar energy in the short term. Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said on Thursday that he sees a great future for solar power but that the world can’t abandon fossil fuels in the short term. Mr. Naimi, speaking on a panel in Paris, addressed questions about whether the world’s oil-and-gas companies should move on to other forms of energy in the face of climate change… http://www.wsj.com/articles/saudi-oil-minister-says-world-cant-abandon-fossil-fuels-1432222315?KEYWORDS=CLIMATE+CHANGE MISCELLANEOUS What do you really get for a $7,000 Tesla home battery? Elon Musk, the star CEO of the electric car company Tesla Motors and the rocket company SpaceX, staged an elaborate event last month to unveil a new product. Not a sleek new luxury car. Not a rocket that can ferry people to Mars. A home appliance - a battery - that can be mounted on a garage wall and ignored. http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_ON_THE_MONEY_TESLA_BATTERY?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT OPINIONS Notable & Quotable: President Obama. ‘Around the world, climate change increases the risk of instability and conflict.’ From President Obama’s commencement address Wednesday at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn.: Around the world, climate change increases the risk of instability and conflict. Rising seas are already swallowing low-lying lands, from Bangladesh to Pacific islands, forcing people from their homes. http://www.wsj.com/articles/notable-quotable-president-obama-1432161506?KEYWORDS=CLIMATE+CHANGE The High Cost of Dirty Fuels. A new report from the International Monetary Fund makes a compelling case for why countries should end subsidies for fossil fuels: It would save millions of lives. Governments subsidize energy in many ways. Some countries sell gasoline and diesel at prices lower than the cost of producing or importing those fuels. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/21/opinion/the-high-cost-of-dirty-fuels.html?_r=0 Riding Water Slides in a Drought. At 11 A.M. on Saturday, May 9th, four days after California’s water board approved restrictions designed to cut water use by twenty-five per cent in urban areas, passed in response to the state’s severe drought, Northern California’s biggest water park, Raging Waters, in San Jose, opened its gates for the season. http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/the-water-park-in-a-drought BLOGS Electric Vehicles to Get Free Rein on Beijing Roads. Buyers of electric cars in China are getting yet another boost — freedom on Beijing’s roads. In a fresh effort to promote battery-powered electric cars, the city government of Beijing will exempt these cars from a policy limiting the number of vehicles on roads during rush hours. http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2015/05/21/electric-vehicles-to-get-free-rein-on-beijing-roads/?KEYWORDS=AIR+POLLUTION How climate change makes the world more violent. Natural scientists agree that the climate is changing and that humans bear some of the blame. Social scientists are now attempting to assess the economic and political price societies are likely to pay for turning up our planet’s thermostat. The security policy community is especially eager for an answer. In the academy, the debate over climate change… http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2015/05/21/the-threat-to-security-from-climate-change-may-be-even-more-prevalent-than-previously-thought/ Dear Renewable Critics: Hanergy's Collapse Has Little To Do With Solar. The rapid rise and strange fall of Hanergy Thin Film has investors scratching their heads for an explanation. The stock surged in 2013 and 2014 on announcements that the company, which started as a hydropower firm, planned on making solar cars and opening 1,500 “experience” centers to teach Chinese consumers the wonders of renewable energy. http://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelkanellos/2015/05/21/dear-renewable-critics-hanergys-collapse-has-little-to-do-with-solar/ We Need To Support All Types Of Solar: Utility-Scale, Rooftop, Community, And More. Solar energy is booming – and you needn’t look further for proof of its success than Brian H. Potts’ recent op-ed in the Wall Street Journal. When a utility lawyer like Potts is arguing for what type of solar energy our country should be investing in –utility-owned, large-scale solar versus customer-owned, rooftop – you know this renewable energy resource has gone mainstream. http://www.forbes.com/sites/edfenergyexchange/2015/05/21/we-need-to-support-all-types-of-solar-utility-scale-rooftop-community-and-more/?ss=energy Can cities, businesses, and other new climate actors help bridge the emissions gap? As the international community continues to struggle to advance a global climate change agenda, new kinds of climate actors are increasingly working to pick up the slack. Hopes are high that cities, regional coalitions, and businesses — or non-state and sub-national actors, in wonk-speak… http://grist.org/science/can-cities-businesses-and-other-new-climate-actors-help-bridge-the-emissions-gap/ Energy Dept. announces new technology can unlock wind energy development in all 50 states. Today, we heard a major announcement from the nation's highest ranking energy official who unveiled maps showing potential for wind energy development in all 50 states. At the WINDPOWER 2015 Conference & Exhibition, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz revealed a new report showing that technology improvements that allow wind turbines… http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-kiernan/energy-dept-announces-new_b_7313992.html California is in a drought emergency. Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.