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February 1, 2016
Last week, from Arkansas to New Hampshire, 103 million people were affected by a Category 4 snowstorm which dumped 2-24 inches of snow across the region. Washington, DC, was strongly impacted, and its local Federal Government offices were closed for several days last week, as were EESI's offices. For those who wonder at record-setting snowstorms happening as the planet's average temperatures rise, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has a great article. This image of U St. in Washington, DC, after the blizzard is courtesy of Ted Eytan.
On January 13, the Senate began consideration of Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Sen. Maria Cantwell's (D-WA) bill S. 2012, the Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2015, a bipartisan energy bill that focuses on energy efficiency, supply, accountability and infrastructure, as well as land conservation. Lawmakers have submitted 190 amendments, with 11 noncontroversial amendments approved by January 29. Amendments in the pipeline for consideration include offerings to stop the Clean Power Plan, an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation on carbon emissions from existing power plants, and to block the White House's coal-leasing freeze on public lands. Sen. Murkowski commented that there is "genuine interest on both sides to see a bill pass and seeing a good bill passed," and that they would likely have a final vote on the bill this Thursday.
For more information see:
The New York Times, Morning Consult, Politico Morning Energy
On January 25, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) could employ “demand response,” a regulating strategy that incentivizes using less energy, saving money and cutting greenhouse gas emissions. The Supreme Court was considering FERC Order 745, which FERC issued in 2011 to require electricity market operators to pay the same amount for energy efficiency as they do for energy generation, if the transaction passes a "net benefits test" that indicates it will save consumers money. The idea behind demand response is that consumers who decrease their energy consumption during peak times, when electricity is most expensive, are compensated by wholesale market operators, curbing wholesale rates and preventing grid breakdowns. Paul Elsburg, a spokesman for Exelon Corporation, commented, "We support demand response as a valuable tool for our customers to manage their energy costs."
The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, Supreme Court
On January 26, officials from 29 states filed a stay application with U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to stop the rollout of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Clean Power Plan, after an appeals court in the D.C. circuit declined to issue a stay last week. "While we know a stay request to the Supreme Court isn't typical at this stage of the proceedings, we must pursue this option to mitigate further damage from this rule," stated West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey. In the request, the states argued the Clean Power Plan (a regulation on carbon emissions from existing power plants) was forcing states to put a lot of resources into unnecessarily creating compliance plans, because the rule will be overturned by broader litigation efforts. EPA and the Obama Administration can issue a response to the stay application before the Supreme Court takes action.
Reuters, E&Enews, Scotusblog
On January 28, California Senators approved a bipartisan bill to stop Southern California Gas Company's extraction of natural gas from 18 wells similar to the Aliso Canyon well, which has been leaking gas since October 2015 and caused 3,000 families to relocate from the surrounding area. The 18 wells the bill would temporarily close all use the same 1950s-era design as the leaking Aliso Canyon well, and would be put on hold until the Division of Oil, Gas & Geothermal Resources states that they are not at risk of leakage. If the Division finds the wells to be unsafe, they will be permanently closed down. State officials had already placed a moratorium on SoCal Gas Co.'s operations; this legislation puts the moratorium into law. The California Public Utilities Commission is also studying the possibility of permanently retiring the Aliso Canyon natural gas site.
Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times
On January 26, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau committed to include greenhouse gas emissions and upstream impact assessments in the environmental review of oil pipelines and liquefied natural gas (LNG) export projects. "Upstream" effects include the increased incentive to produce more oil and LNG when a project is completed. Trudeau said the new rules will be released in the next few days. "What we are going to roll out very soon . . . is to establish a clear process which will consider all the greenhouse gas emissions tied to a project," Trudeau stated. His administration also has been working on a plan to add these new requirements to currently ongoing environmental reviews.
Reuters
On January 28, actor and environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio had a private audience with Pope Francis to discuss collaboration on climate action. A spokesperson for DiCaprio said he and the Pope want to "work together to address the immediate need for major action to stop the devastating impacts of climate change from leaving permanent scars on our planet." During the meeting, DiCaprio gave Pope Francis a book with paintings from Hieronymus Bosch, a 15th century Dutch painter who created a triptych "Garden of Earthly Delights" which DiCaprio admired as a young boy. "Through my child's eyes [Bosch's painting] represented a planet – the utopia that we'd been given . . . and in the third panel we see a blackened sky that represents so much to me of what's going on in the environment today."
Los Angeles Times
On January 25, a new study was published in Nature finding that recent record-breaking warm years are extremely likely to have been caused by anthropogenic climate change. The study, by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), found that without human burning of fossil fuels, there is a very small chance that 13 out of the 15 warmest years on record would have all occurred after the year 2000. Using statistical analysis in combination with observational data and advanced climate computer models, scientists found that the odds of this warming occurring in the absence of human activity to be between one in 5,000 and one in 170,000. “Natural climate variability causes temperatures to wax and wane over a period of several years, rather than varying erratically from one year to the next,” stated lead author Michael Mann, professor of meteorology and director of the Earth System Science Center at Penn State.
Nature, Science Daily
On January 25, a study in Nature Climate Change found that updating and consolidating regional power grids into a national grid with high-voltage, direct current (HVDC) power lines could significantly boost the amount of renewable energy on the grid without the use of energy storage. Using existing technology to update the grid would allow utilities to cut up to 80 percent of the electricity sector's carbon dioxide emissions from 1990 levels, by 2030. Renewable energy such as solar and wind is intermittent, only generating power when the wind blows or the sun shines. While storing extra energy is the most commonly proposed solution to renewable energy's intermittency, the researchers found that creating a national HVDC grid would also smooth out that intermittency as power could move rapidly to where it is needed – while reducing the average cost of electricity.
Science, Nature
On January 27, Physicians Scientists & Engineers (PSE) published a report finding that the Clean Power Plan must consider upstream emissions of methane from natural gas operations, or risk falling far short of achieving its target of a 32 percent reduction in power sector carbon emissions from 2005 levels by 2030. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that half of the emissions reductions in the Clean Power Plan will come from shifting coal to natural gas power generation between 2005 and 2013. However, natural gas projects release methane, a potent greenhouse gas 84 times more powerful than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period, and the study stated that EPA underestimates these emissions, potentially offsetting a significant proportion of the emissions reductions realized by reducing coal use. The study says EPA must use accurate estimates to ensure it does not erode the Clean Power Plan's climate benefits.
PSE: Healthy Energy
SEC Criticized for Lax Enforcement of Climate Risk Reporting
It’s Not Just Flint: the Environmental Justice Issues in Poor Communities Around the Country
Vietnam to Phase Out Coal Use
Pennsylvania Allocating $2 Million to Help Laid-Off Coal Workers
Over 40 Groups Lobbied Congress to Stop Clean Power Plan
Don't Count on Coal Bankruptcies to Reduce Coal Glut
Authors: Taotao Luo and Anthony Rocco
Editor: Laura Small
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