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newsclips -- ARB Newsclips for October 24, 2016.
Posted: 24 Oct 2016 16:44:04
ARB Newsclips for October 24, 2016. 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 $363M cap-and-trade cash goes to clean cars, transit. California will spend $363 million of the revenues from its cap-and-trade program largely on incentives aimed at putting more clean vehicles in disadvantaged communities. The amount is less than what the California Air Resources Board (ARB) originally had planned to spend on some of the efforts. The state Legislature reduced the total available for the programs for fiscal 2016-17. http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2016/10/24/stories/1060044686 Air-quality agency AQMD may scrap cap-and-trade. The agency is looking at phasing out its pollution credits marketplace to meet federal health standards. Southern California’s cap-and-trade marketplace that’s been used for 22 years to limit air pollution from the region’s top 275 industrial polluters may be scrapped. Under pressure from federal and state regulators, and a lawsuit from a coalition of environmental groups… http://www.pe.com/articles/air-816519-district-pollution.html Carbon price 'simplest' way to comply — Southwest Power Pool CEO. A regional approach based on a trading system and a price on carbon would be the most affordable way to meet the goals of U.S. EPA's Clean Power Plan should it survive legal challenge, said Nick Brown, president and CEO of the Southwest Power Pool. "When you look at a trading regime, it could be as simple as a decision made on the price in our markets for carbon. http://www.eenews.net/interactive/clean_power_plan/column_posts/1060044691 AIR POLLUTION Chemical cloud over Kansas community dissipates. A chemical spill at a northeast Kansas distilling plant released a noxious cloud of fumes Friday, forcing temporary evacuations and sending dozens of people to the hospital, including two who were in intensive care, officials said. Most of the people who went to hospitals had been released by Friday afternoon. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_KANSAS_CHEMICAL_SPILL?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Ontario fire affecting Inland Empire air quality. After a fire in Ontario shut down a section of railroad tracks Friday, the city was placed under a smoke alert, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management District. The fast-moving fire at a Southern California recycling center sent huge flames into the air Friday night and a plume of smoke that could be seen for miles. http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/2016/10/21/ontario-fire-shuts-down-railroad-tracks/92539604/ Unmetered emissions from ExxonMobil Torrance refinery lasted 5 years, brought big fine. The belated discovery that ExxonMobil’s Torrance refinery belched about double the amount of sulfur dioxide the company initially reported for five years resulted in an $8.1 million fine in 2014 from Southern California’s air pollution watchdog that was never publicly disclosed, the Daily Breeze has learned. http://www.dailybreeze.com/environment-and-nature/20161022/unmetered-emissions-from-exxonmobil-torrance-refinery-lasted-5-years-brought-big-fine What's that smell? Blame gas coming from the Salton Sea. An odor advisory has been issued by the South Coast Air Quality Management District today for the Coachella Valley due to elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide emanating from the Salton Sea. The gas is described as smelling like rotten eggs and can temporarily cause headaches or nausea, although exposure does not have any long-term health effects… http://www.pe.com/articles/hydrogen-816607-air-south.html EPA won't reconsider wood-burning stove and heater standards. EPA has rejected a petition for reconsideration of its air standards for residential wood-burning stoves and heaters released last year. The petition, filed in June 2015 by Richard S. Burns & Co. Inc., a Philadelphia-based recycler, asked EPA to rethink its ban on pellet fuels made from construction and demolition waste. In a response posted today in the regulatory docket… http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2016/10/24/stories/1060044709 ALISO CANYON On anniversary of blowout, activists vow to ‘keep fighting’ to shut down Aliso Canyon facility. On the one-year anniversary of the start of the catastrophic natural gas leak at the Aliso Canyon storage facility, environmental activists, Porter Ranch-area residents and political candidates renewed their call Sunday to “Shut. It. All. Down.” http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/general-news/20161023/on-anniversary-of-blowout-activists-vow-to-keep-fighting-to-shut-down-aliso-canyon-facility One year later: How the Aliso Canyon gas blowout continues to affect LA. The leak was plugged after four months, but the blowout and its aftermath shook the trust Angelenos placed in the utility that provides gas for home cooking and heating. It also brought harsh scrutiny of state and local regulators that were slow to act to the leak. And it undermined the sense of security that our energy sources were stable and reliable. http://www.scpr.org/news/2016/10/21/65701/how-the-aliso-canyon-gas-blowout-changed-l-a/ Aliso Canyon leak emitted 109,000 metric tons of methane. The Aliso Canyon natural gas leak emitted 109,000 metric tons of methane into the atmosphere from late October 2015 to mid-February 2016, according to the final estimate released by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) staff. This is roughly equivalent to the annual natural gas usage of 190,000 Los Angeles homes, or the carbon dioxide emissions released from burning over 1 billion gallons of gasoline. http://yubanet.com/california/aliso-canyon-leak-emitted-109000-metric-tons-of-methane/ One Year and 97,100 Metric Tons of Methane Later: The Porter Ranch Gas Leak. This Sunday marks one year since the beginning of one of the biggest climate disasters in recent history: the Porter Ranch gas leak. Over the course of 110 days, 50 tons of natural gas poured into the atmosphere every hour from a storage well owned by Southern California Gas, forcing 15,000 residents to evacuate their homes in California’s Aliso Canyon. http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/one-year-and-97100-metric-tons-of-methane-later-the-porter-ranch-gas-leak/ Aliso Canyon Disaster One Year Later: Some Progress, But More Action Needed. When the gusher of methane pouring out of the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage field was discovered last October 23, it almost instantly transformed the sleepy Los Angeles suburb of Porter Ranch into the site of one of the biggest environmental disasters in recent history. It would ultimately take four months to stop the massive underground leak. http://www.theenergycollective.com/edfenergyex/2391192/aliso-canyon-disaster-one-year-later-some-progress-but-more-action-needed Media Alert From TVEyes Media Monitoring Suite (Aliso Canyon) KPCC FM RADIO http://mms.tveyes.com/Transcript.asp?StationID=6460&DateTime=10%2F22%2F2016+7%3A04%3A55+AM&Term=california+air+resources+board&PlayClip=TRUE CLIMATE CHANGE UN says carbon dioxide at record levels. The U.N. says the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has reached a record high. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Monday that the rise was fueled by the El Nino, an unusual weather pattern caused by the warming of the Pacific Ocean. El Nino leads to droughts in tropical regions and reduces the capacity of forests and oceans to absorb carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas blamed for global warming. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/UN_UNITED_NATIONS_GLOBAL_WARMING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT RELATED ARTICLES https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/un-weather-agency-heat-trapping-gas-surges-beyond-milestone/2016/10/24/f0a685be-99fc-11e6-b552-b1f85e484086_story.html https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/oct/24/new-era-of-climate-change-reality-as-emissions-hit-symbolic-threshold http://www.climatecentral.org/news/carbon-dioxide-400-ppm-threshold-2015-20809?utm_source=Inside+Climate+News&utm_campaign=06301d44b3-Today_s_Climate12_10_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_29c928ffb5-06301d44b3-327747457 Hundreds in Los Angeles protest climate change, North Dakota pipeline. Hundreds of people gathered in Los Angeles on Sunday to protest against climate change and show support for activists demonstrating against the construction of an oil pipeline in North Dakota. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-pipeline-climatechange-idUSKCN12O05L?feedType=RSS&virtualBrandChannel=11563 Climate Change May Trigger Next Financial Crisis, Fisher Says. Climate change could spark the world’s next financial crisis, according to Paul Fisher, who retired this year as deputy head of the Bank of England body which supervises the country’s banks. “It is potentially a systemic risk,” Fisher said Monday in an interview in Sydney. A sudden repricing of assets as a result of climate change “could be the trigger for the next financial crisis,” he added. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-10-24/climate-change-may-trigger-next-financial-crisis-fisher-says Would you accept denser, taller neighborhoods to fight climate change? San Diegans face the first tough decision in trying to realize the city’s Climate Action Plan, which calls for hundreds of thousands of commuters to ditch their cars in favor of walking, biking or using public transit. http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/environment/ Greenland Is Melting. The shrinking of the country’s ice sheet is triggering feedback loops that accelerate the global crisis. The floodgates may already be open. When water accumulates on the surface of an ice sheet, more sunlight gets absorbed, which results in more melt, in a cycle that builds on itself? This year’s melt season began so early that many scientists couldn’t believe the data they were seeing. http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/24/greenland-is-melting Pope Francis's edict on climate change has fallen on closed ears, study finds. Hailed as a significant call for action, the pope’s encyclical has not had the anticipated rallying effect on public opinion, researchers have found. The pope’s call for action on climate change has fallen on closed ears, research suggests. A study by researchers in the US has found that right-leaning Catholics who had heard of the pope’s message were less concerned about climate change… https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/oct/24/pope-franciss-edict-on-climate-change-has-fallen-on-deaf-ears-study-finds Alan Jones launches Great Barrier Reef site after criticising 'global warming hoax'. Australian radio hosts broadcasts show critical of climate ‘alarmists’ from Cairns before launching the Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef website. A new Great Barrier Reef conservation site has been launched by the Australian broadcaster Alan Jones, who has declared that climate change was a hoax and said the reef was “fine”. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/oct/25/alan-jones-launches-great-barrier-reef-site-after-criticising-global-warming-hoax The Business of Pricing Carbon. More companies worldwide are turning to internal carbon pricing as an effective tool to spur the transition to low-carbon technologies, and C2ES is helping organizations to explore this frontier through a new working group to share best practices. By putting a price on the carbon pollution associated with business activity, companies can account for their operations’ climate impact… http://www.theenergycollective.com/manjyot/2391198/the-business-of-pricing-carbon DIESEL ACTIVITIES Phase 2 emissions, fuel standards to tighten regs on tractor-trailers set for publication. A Final Rule to establish new emissions and fuel economy standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles is expected to be published in the Federal Register Tuesday and will take effect toward the end of December. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued the Final Rule of the Phase 2 greenhouse gas emissions… http://www.ccjdigital.com/phase-2-emissions-fuel-standards-to-tighten-regs-on-tractor-trailers-set-for-publication/ FUELS Ethanol futures pulled higher on tighter oil supplies. Ethanol and gasoline markets have continued to make significant counter-seasonal surges in October. A strong drawdown in crude oil supplies in the last few weeks of the month drew support and has been the driver of these recent rallies. Gasoline supplies have eroded lower through much of October, putting the focus not as much on current demand… http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/13832/ethanol-futures-pulled-higher-on-tighter-oil-supplies VEHICLES The Electric Highway: Why California is sputtering along. The day Brian Feeney walked into a Palm Springs dealership to buy a new Nissan Leaf, he was fulfilling the dream of state policy-makers to entice Californians to break off their love affair with gas-guzzling cars. But the amount of meticulous research that went into Feeney’s purchase was identical to the amount of carbon emissions his all-electric Leaf would spew into the atmosphere: zero. http://www.bakersfield.com/news/the-electric-highway-why-california-is-sputtering-along/article_e2f5f991-4f86-5958-b45b-8eefe6aadb9a.html GREEN ENERGY New Green Energy Could Change the Way We Move. Footsteps Generate Power in Inexpensive Flooring Material. Wood pulp, a common waste material, could allow homeowners and communities to create their own energy by just walking around. UW–Madison associate professor Xudong Wang, graduate student Chunhua Yao, and their collaborators published the details of this amazing new technology… http://www.smobserved.com/story/2016/10/24/business/new-green-energy-could-change-the-way-we-move/2152.html Duke Energy wants to add green-energy projects in western North Carolina. Duke Energy said Monday it wants to add 400 megawatts of solar and other renewable energy in North Carolina, mainly in the regions west of Raleigh. A request for proposals by Duke Energy Carolinas, the utility that serves Charlotte and the western half of the state, will help it meet the state’s 2007 green-energy mandate. http://www.newsobserver.com/news/business/article110142377.html#storylink=cpy How did Germany get its energy transition right? Germany is well recognized as an international leader in renewable energy today, but that wasn’t always the case. Its transition from coal and nuclear power started two decades before the first major renewable energy policy initiatives were passed. From Germany’s dramatic renewable energy transition to its recent decision to reduce support for renewable energy… https://www.greenbiz.com/article/how-did-germany-get-its-energy-transition-right Target Hits Bullseye As Top 2016 US Corporate Solar Installer. Target has hit a solar energy bullseye. The Minneapolis-based retail giant topped all other American big businesses going solar, according to a new report from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). In the 2016 Solar Means Business report, Target knocked out former champion Walmart. https://cleantechnica.com/2016/10/23/target-hits-bulls-eye-top-2016-us-corporate-solar-installer/ ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE Brawley hosts 7th annual environmental summit. Hundreds of people attended the 7th Annual Environmental Health Leadership Summit in Brawley on Saturday. State officials, regional and local leaders gave updates on work relating to the Salton Sea as well as other environmental issues that they said posed a threat to public health. Organizers said this was a unique opportunity for Imperial Valley residents to talk with state officials about how the environment affected their families. http://www.kyma.com/news/imperial-county/brawley-hosts-7th-annual-environmental-summit/130846721 OPINIONS The good and bad news on climate change. GOOD NEWS — kind of. So far this year, the country’s energy-related greenhouse-gas emissions are running at their lowest level in a quarter-century, the U.S. Energy Information Administration announced this month. Federal experts project that, at year’s end, the country’s climate tab will be the smallest since 1992, continuing a downward trend since its peak during… https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-good-and-bad-news-on-climate-change/2016/10/22/0b6e2204-90b0-11e6-9c52-0b10449e33c4_story.html?utm_term=.81a9aedbd607 The largest methane leak in U.S. history began one year ago at Aliso Canyon. What have we learned since then? ne year ago, state oil and gas officials received a report of a small, routine methane leak at the Aliso Canyon underground natural gas storage field in the hills north of Porter Ranch. But as it turned out, the leak was neither small nor routine. http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-aliso-canyon-20161023-snap-story.html Why are we sending precious water downstream for fish in the middle of a drought? Here's why. California is not merely a political jurisdiction drawn on a map. Even without the human artifice of state lines, it exists as a physically and ecologically distinct place, characterized and enriched by iconic species that live only here — the California condor, the giant sequoia, the golden trout, the coast live oak and hundreds of others. http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-salmon-20161021-snap-story.html Aliso Canyon 1 year later: How a massive gas leak left its mark on Porter Ranch. First came a whiff like rotten eggs, wafting through parts of Porter Ranch. Then came reports of headaches, vomiting and nosebleeds from families living within large homes along its meandering streets. School kids were getting sick. Even dogs were falling ill. http://www.dailynews.com/environment-and-nature/20161022/aliso-canyon-1-year-later-how-a-massive-gas-leak-left-its-mark-on-porter-ranch Issue of climate change conspicuously, stunningly absent from debates. Through three debates that addressed many issues, moderators ignored the most important question facing humanity: how to address climate change. Although tens of thousands of citizens asked members of the media to pose a climate question, the moderators “choked” (to use Hillary Clinton’s term for… https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/letters/2016/10/23/issue-climate-change-conspicuously-stunningly-absent-from-debates/eV8HWsYp7WiHfpLWRP1xhK/story.html BLOGS The Environmental Justice Argument Against Measure A. The campaign for Measure A was busy this week sending one mailer to Democrats greenwashing their flawed initiative by citing an Astroturf “environmental coalition” that popped up just in time for the election, while in another mailer to Republicans they signaled that conservatives should vote for A because environmentalists and labor oppose it. http://sandiegofreepress.org/2016/10/environmental-justice-argument-against-measure-a/ Addressing Another Energy Miracle: Ethanol From Carbon Dioxide. People love their energy miracles. If a university or company claims they can make fuel from air or from water, along comes the inevitable hype proclaiming that this is just the sort of breakthrough we need to meet our energy needs in a way that doesn’t increase greenhouse gas emissions. http://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapier/2016/10/21/addressing-another-energy-miracle-ethanol-from-carbon-dioxide/?commentId=blogAndPostId%2Fblog%2Fcomment%2F4126-756-272#690b384a1db2 Carbon dioxide levels signify 'new era' of global warming. The Earth permanently passed a global warming threshold last year that alarms climate scientists and has profound consequences for everyone alive today — particularly young people looking forward to the future. According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), observatories around the world found that in 2015 and 2016, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere… http://mashable.com/2016/10/24/earth-passed-global-warming-threshold/#U_n.x9X.lmqh Greenhouse Gas Levels Breaking All Records. The World Meteorological Organization reports the level of carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere has reached a record high this year, driven in part by the powerful El Nino event, which started in 2015 and continued well into 2016. According to WMO, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere reached 400 parts per million for the first time in 2015 and surged to new records this year. http://www.voanews.com/a/greenhouse-gas-levels-are-breaking-all-records/3563583.html California is in a drought emergency. Visit www.SaveOurH2O.org for water conservation tips.