Advanced Search
January 12, 2015
This image is of a video produced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to show the temperature anomalies of 2014 in the contiguous United States. To watch the whole video, click here. Image courtesty of NOAA.
On January 7, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a delay in releasing final regulations on carbon emissions from new power plants. The announcement was made by Janet McCabe, the Acting Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation. McCabe stated that the regulation for new power plants, which was due out this month, is so closely linked to the regulation for existing power plants that it makes more sense to release both final rules together. In addition, McCabe made an announcement that states that do not create their own compliance plans for the Clean Power Plan will receive a “model plan” from the EPA which will institute emissions reductions for them. The Clean Power Plan, a nation-wide proposed regulation to reduce carbon emissions from existing power plants, requires every state to submit a plan to the EPA for how they will cut emissions. McCabe stated that she expected some states will not create their own plans. “We certainly hope that every state feels like it’s in their best interest to create a plan,” McCabe stated. “But we have an obligation under the Clean Air Act, should there be states that don’t submit plans, to be sure we’re ready.” The final rules will both be published midsummer, along with the EPA’s model plan.
For more information see:
New York Times, Bloomberg
On January 9, the House passed a bill to speed up approval of Keystone XL pipeline, a controversial proposal to stretch a pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, which has been awaiting a decision from the White House for six years. Environmental groups, especially 350.org, have staged nation-wide protests against Keystone XL, citing climate change and the negative environmental impacts of extracting oil from tar sands in Alberta, Canada. On Jan. 8, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed a bill identical to the House version to approve Keystone, during a special executive session. The whole Senate will vote on the Keystone bill this week, likely during a cloture vote on Monday evening. Democrats are expected to add amendments to the bill, which may include banning any export of oil which traveled through the pipeline, adding financial incentives for renewable energy, and requiring all steel used in the project to be sourced from the U.S. These amendments are not expected to pass. On Jan. 7, the Office of Management and Budget issued a Statement of Administration Policy which states the White House will veto the Keystone XL legislation, saying it “conflicts with longstanding Executive branch procedures.” It is speculated that the Senate is a few votes shy of the 67 needed to overturn a presidential veto.
In related news on January 9, the Nebraska Supreme Court threw out a lawsuit which challenged the proposed Keystone XL pipeline route through the state. The court ruled that the three landowners who filed suit were unable to show their legal standing. While four judges out of seven supported the legal standing of the landowners, the case’s constitutional nature meant a super-majority would have been required to support the suit. “The legislation must stand by default,” stated the court’s opinion. The decision removes a major roadblock for construction of the pipeline.
The Hill, The Washington Post, Financial Post, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, CNBC
On January 5, California Governor Jerry Brown gave an inaugural address in which he outlined plans to enact broad energy and environmental reforms to address climate change. Gov. Brown called on the state to increase electricity generation from renewable energy to 50 percent, reduce petroleum fuels for transportation by 50 percent, and double the energy efficiency of existing buildings – all of which he hopes to see done by 2030. The new renewable energy target is a step up from the state’s current goal of generating 33 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Brown commented, “Taking significant amounts of carbon out of our economy without harming its vibrancy is exactly the sort of challenge at which California excels.” Gov. Brown added that California must work to manage land to better store carbon, as well as reduce emissions of methane, black carbon and other short lived climate pollutants from the state’s industries.
The LA Times, Mercury News, The New York Times, KSBW News
On January 5, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) introduced a $14.5 million pilot program to experiment with market-ready technologies which can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the New York power sector. The pilot program, Competitive Greenhouse Gas Reduction (CGGR), is funded by returns from New York's Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). NYSERDA will allot funding up to $2 million for each accepted project, with a requirement that the partner fund a minimum of 50 percent of the project themselves. They are seeking proposals from qualified technologies that demonstrate both measurable and reproducible reductions in GHG emissions, such as advanced burners and waste-heat recovery. A total of $14.5 million is available for this solicitation round, which ends on March 5, 2015. This pilot is part of a suite of initiatives New York is introducing to increase the implementation of clean energy and energy efficiency, while shoring up grid reliability and electricity affordability.
Argus, Nyserda
On January 4, Morning Consult released poll results finding that American voters gave both Congress and the White House failing grades across the board on energy and climate issues. Poll respondents were asked to issue a grade from A to F for the White House and Congress’s performance in 2014 on four topics: making America energy independent, the cost of your utility bill, fracking, and climate change. The average answer was a D in every category, for both branches of government. Morning Consult energy reporter, Davis Burroughs, commented on the D/D+ climate change grade for Congress and the White House respectively, “Policy wise, it’s difficult to differentiate reducing greenhouse gas emissions from climate change, but it makes a difference in the minds of voters. Polls show voters overwhelmingly agree that pursuing emissions reductions is good policy, but there’s less consensus on whether climate change is caused by humans.” The poll, conducted by Morning Consult through an online survey given December 16-19, included 1,776 registered voters.
Morning Consult
On January 2, vocal anti-environment advocate Aldo Rebelo was appointed by Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff as Brazil’s new Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation. Rebelo, formerly the Minister of Sports for Brazil, does not have a scientific background and has openly rejected climate change science. Marcio Santilli, co-founder of Brazilian environmental group Instituto Socioambiental, remarked, “At first I thought this was some sort of mistake, that he was playing musical chairs and landed in the wrong chair.” In remarks Rebelo sent to Santilli last July, Rebelo stated, “There is no scientific proof of the projections of global warming, much less that it is occurring because of human action. It is a construct based on computer simulations.” In addition, President Rousseff appointed Katia Abreu, known to favor development over conservation, as the new Minister of Agriculture. Steve Schwartzman, director of tropical forest policy at the Environmental Defense Fund, commented that to environmentalists Abreu is known as the “chainsaw queen,” and had previously led a large landowner caucus in the Brazilian Senate that furthered anti-environmental and anti-indigenous rights policies.
The New York Times, The New York Times
On December 22, a Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA) report officially named 2014 as the hottest year since records began in 1891. According to the report, 2014 had a global temperature 1.1 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th century average, due in part to a significant influx of warmer than average temperatures in the regions of Europe, the Arctic, Africa, Australia, South America, the Caribbean, western North America, and East Asia. The previous record year was 1998, with an average global temperature 0.1 degrees F over the 20th century average. 1998 was the starting point for a decade’s worth of abnormally warm years. To achieve these findings on the global average temperature, JMA researchers used a combination of ground measurements and satellites, the same style of measurement used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) in the United States, and the Hadley Center in the United Kingdom. Studies on 2014’s temperature from the three other agencies are expected to be released in the next few weeks.
Climate Central, Slate, Report
On January 6, the Bureau of Meteorology of Australia reported in its Annual Climate Statement that 2014 was the third-warmest year on record in Australia. Neil Plummer, the Assistant Director for Climate Information Services said, “Much of Australia experienced temperatures very much above average in 2014, with mean temperatures 0.91 degrees C above the long-term average.” This news comes after a record setting 2013 year where temperatures were 1.2 degrees Celsius above average. Dr. Sophie Lewis of the Research School of Earth Sciences at the Australian National University believes increasing temperatures are a result of climate change. Dr. Lewis stated, “We had our hottest spring on record in 2013 and again in 2014, and these extremes were at least 30 times more likely because of human influences, such as greenhouse gases.”
BBC News, Bureau of Meteorology
A December carbon emissions index (Cedex) report by energy consulting outfit Pitt & Sherry found a rise in Australian carbon emissions after its carbon tax was repealed in July 2014 (see Climate Change News). Pitt & Sherry reported an 11 percent increase in carbon emissions intensity since June, the last month the carbon tax was in effect. The major causes of increased emissions were attributed to the changing electricity generation power mix. Hugh Saddler, principal consultant with Pitt & Sherry, said, “It is really coal displacing hydro, particularly brown coal.” High temperatures across the country combined with below average rainfall prompted the shift from hydropower to coal in some areas. In place of the carbon tax, the Australian government has introduced a new climate agenda, the Direct Action Plan, which would pay polluters from a $2.55 billion fund to reduce emissions.
The Sydney Morning Herald, Pitt & Sherry Carbon Emissions Index
On December 29, a NASA-led study was published in the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, revealing that tropical rainforests can be credited for much higher carbon dioxide (CO2) absorption than previously thought. The study found that tropical rainforests account for 1.4 billion metric tons of CO2 absorption, out of the total global 2.5 billion metric tons of CO2 absorbed each year. The findings show that warm tropical rainforests are greater CO2 sinks than colder boreal forests located in northern regions such as Canada and Siberia, because forests can absorb carbon dioxide at faster rates when temperatures are higher. Lead author of the report David Schimel of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory commented, “This is good news, because uptake in boreal forests is already slowing, while tropical forests may continue to take up carbon for many years.” The study pioneered methods of comparison of carbon dioxide absorption estimates, using ecosystem and atmospheric models, satellite images, and experimental forest plot data.
NASA, Science Times, Pioneer News
On January 6, Honeywell announced the full-scale commercial launch of HFO-1234ze, a low global warming potential (GWP) replacement aerosol propellant, insulating agent and refrigerant. Produced at the Honeywell Fluorine Products facility located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the new material has already seen global customer interest. Unlike previous aerosols such as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), some of which are thousands of times more powerful than carbon dioxide (CO2) at warming the atmosphere, HFO-1234ze warms the atmosphere an equivalent amount to CO2. Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal stated his support for the Baton Rouge product expansion, saying it will uphold the positive business climate and job opportunities of the state. The latest HFO-1234ze is non ozone-depleting and non-flammable, as well as being more climate-friendly. At a White House-sponsored event in September, Honeywell announced its overall initiative to increase production of low GWP materials, coupled with a steep reduction in production of high-GWP HFCs by 2020. Honeywell estimates the initiative will eliminate over 350 million metric tons in CO2-equivalents by 2025.
NOLA, Contracting Business
A December 9 study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found warmer oceans absorb and store smaller amounts of organic carbon, an important mechanism in regulating global climate. On the ocean’s surface, carbon dioxide (CO2) is absorbed by small marine organisms such as phytoplankton as they undergo photosynthesis. Once these organisms die and sink deeper into the ocean, the carbon can be stored for hundreds of years. However, researchers found that as ocean temperatures rise, these small organisms that absorb carbon die before they can sink deeper into the ocean. This carbon is subsequently re-released and able to enter the atmosphere as CO2. Dr. Chris Marsay, lead study author and Postdoctoral Associate at the University of South Carolina, Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, stated, “This would potentially result in reduced storage of carbon dioxide by the oceans, effectively acting as a positive feedback mechanism, with less atmospheric carbon dioxide being removed by the oceans.”
Carbon Brief, National Academy of Sciences
A study from University College London's Institute for Sustainable Resources, published January 8 in Nature, mapped the global distributions of known fossil fuels reserves which would need to be left unused in order to avoid a 2 degree Celsius increase in global temperatures. The study listed the following fuel reserve shares that would need to go untapped to meet the climate target: 82 percent of coal reserves, mostly in the United States, Australia, and Russia; 49 percent of natural gas reserves, mostly located in China, India, Russia and the Middle East; and 33 percent of oil reserves, largely held in Canada and the Middle East. The report points out the well-known contradictions of business and governments making commitments to combat climate change while exploiting natural resources. Study co-author Dr. Paul Ekins stated, “In 2013, fossil fuel companies spent some $670 billion on exploring for new oil and gas resources. One might ask why they are doing this when there is more in the ground than we can afford to burn.”
The Guardian, Reuters, Study
=====================
1. Former Treasury Secretary Argues Low Oil Prices Have Opened Door for Carbon Tax
2. Pope Francis to Issue an Edict on Climate Change in March
3. Aviation Industry Predicted to Triple Its Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2050
4. Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) Says He Believes Climate Change is Happening and Human-Caused
Events
2015 NASEO Energy Policy Outlook Conference - February 3-6, 2015 in Washington D.C.
NASEO's 2015 Energy Policy Outlook Conference will focus on the energy and economic opportunity in modernizing the nation’s energy infrastructure—electric grid, pipelines, buildings, and transportation—to achieve a more resilient, sustainable, and energy efficient future. The need to modernize our aging energy infrastructure is among the most important global competitive challenges facing the United States. Registration is now open--be sure to get your registration in before January 16, to get the discounted price. You may register here: http://energyoutlook.naseo.org/registration. For more information, please visit: http://energyoutlook.naseo.org/.
EESI is a sponsoring organization of this event.
Authors: Samuel Beirne, Caitlin Madera, and Emily Jackson
Editor: Laura Small
Top-Rated Climate Nonprofit – 4-Star Charity