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April 16, 2018
On April 12, the Senate confirmed divisive nominee and former coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler to the number-two post at the Environmental Protection Agency. Image courtesy of wikimedia.org.
Legal experts are predicting that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt's hasty rollback of federal regulations is unlikely to stand up to court challenges. So far, six of Pruitt's actions to delay or eliminate environmental regulations established under the Obama administration have been struck down in court. EPA has also backed away from efforts to delay smog regulations and withdraw mercury pollution limits. The courts have cited a lack of appropriate justification, missed deadlines to enact policies, and the flaunting of clear legal statutes among the reasons for the reversals. In EPA's proposed rollback of vehicle emission standards, independent analysts found a lack of legal, scientific, and technical data to defend the action, meaning the request filed would be unlikely to convince a judge to allow the repeal. Former EPA policy analyst James McCargar said, "I just don’t see how [EPA provides] anything that gives a technical justification to undo the rule. The EPA has just never done anything like this.”
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New York Times
On April 12, the Senate confirmed President Trump's nominee for deputy administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. The contentious nominee, Andrew Wheeler, is a former coal lobbyist. The confirmation vote passed 53-45, with all Republicans and three Democrats (Sens. Donnelly (IN), Heitkamp (ND), and Manchin (WV) voting in favor. The trio of Democrats are facing reelection in states that lean heavily Republican. Democratic senators opposed to Wheeler argued that he has not been thoroughly vetted to hold the second-most senior position at the agency. Wheeler has gotten extra attention due to the uncertainty surrounding EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt's job security. Pruitt has come under fire from White House officials and legislators for a string of ethics and spending controversies. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) said, "I think it would be best advised to hold off on [the Wheeler] vote to see if we are voting on the acting administrator or the deputy administrator." However, Sen. Cardin admitted that Democrats had few options available to them to delay the confirmation vote.
The Hill
The Gothenberg Protocol sets limits on pollutants hazardous to public health, including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, ammonia, and volatile organic compounds. Although the protocol was established in 1999, its amended version still needs to be ratified by six more countries before it can enter into force. The protocol stemmed from the 1979 Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP), which was initiated to deal with acid rain. Thirty-two European nations, plus the United States and Canada, signed the original LRTAP convention. Eight follow-up protocols came after, the most recent of which is Gothenberg. Gothenberg expanded the number of regulated transboundary substances to include ground-level ozone, particulates (including black carbon), persistent organic pollutants, and heavy metals. The amended version of Gothenberg would reduce emissions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides and particulates by 40-45 percent by 2020 relative to 2011 levels. Since national regulations for the United States and Canada already mirrored the requirements of the Gothenberg Protocol, it was met with little fanfare and remains under the radar.
InsideClimate News
A group of countries at a gathering of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has become increasingly vocal about the prospect of implementing emission regulation for marine shipping. Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and the Bahamas are among those joining with Pacific island and northern European nations in calling for action. However, the compromise under consideration (50 percent emission reductions by 2050 relative to 2008 levels) is only half of what small island states hoped to see. A counter-proposal from European nations calls for a 70 percent cut, at a minimum. The bloc of small-island states has called for full decarbonization of the shipping sector by 2050 in support of limiting the global average temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, the European Union delegation has warned of burdensome regional regulations on ships entering its ports if the IMO does not take action. The maritime shipping industry accounts for two to three percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, but this contribution is expected to grow by as much as 250 percent by 2050 if regulations are not imposed.
Climate Home News
Heavy fuel oil (HFO) is used widely by maritime vessels due to its low cost, but the byproduct of oil refining remains one of the dirtiest fuels in use today. Concerns over the environmental impact and safety of the fuel led to it being banned from the Antarctic region in 2011, but it is still permitted in the Arctic. As the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee discusses a potential first-time agreement to limit greenhouse gas emissions from shipping, the use of HFO in the Arctic has arisen again. The committee will consider various papers on the fuel and its impacts before reaching a decision. One paper notes, “A single HFO spill could have devastating and lasting effects on fragile Arctic marine and coastal environments. Arctic shipping is projected to continue to rise, thus increasing the risk of a spill." According to the International Council on Clean Transportation, HFO was the most consumed marine fuel in the Arctic in 2015. Vessels under the Russian flag were by far the largest users of HFO in 2015.
Argentina, the current president of the G20, has endured scrutiny after removing carbon pricing from the group’s meeting agenda. Carlos Gentile, Argentina’s secretary of state for climate change and sustainable development, said that while his nation was not planning a discussion on carbon pricing, other delegations “may wish to bring up the issue during our meetings.” The next opportunity for such a discussion would be during the G20’s climate sustainability group meeting from April 17-18 and a leadership meeting in November 2018. Germany has reportedly requested that carbon pricing remain on the agenda, even though it recognizes that oil-rich countries like Saudi Arabia may continue to stymie talks. Argentina has been accused of caving to demands from the U.S. government to ditch carbon pricing, whereas Germany made sure to keep climate issues at the forefront during its presidency. Enrique Maurtua Konstantinidis, head of climate change at Argentinian NGO Fundación Biosfera, said, “Germany had the political power to stand up to the United States and push their agenda. Argentina can’t take that risk.”
Congress’ bipartisan budget bill, which became law in February, contained a little-known provision to significantly increase federal tax credits for projects using carbon capture technologies. While some energy and climate groups backed the credit, others were staunchly opposed, arguing that its promotion of “enhanced oil recovery” methods encouraged fossil fuel production. The law increases tax credits for projects that store carbon emissions by three methods: storage in geological formations underground; the use of captured emissions to manufacture products, such as concrete or biofuels; and enhanced oil recovery, which pumps CO2 emissions into depleted oil wells to recover oil not normally accessible. Respectively, the tax credits for these three methods will increase from $20 to $50 a ton within 10 years; gain first-time eligibility at $35 per ton of CO2 captured; and increase from $10 to $35 per ton for CO2 sequestered. High costs have been a major limitation to the wider use of carbon capture and storage technologies, while low oil prices have lessened the appeal of enhanced oil recovery.
Yale Environment 360
A new dataset indicates that marine heatwaves have become 34 percent more likely and 17 percent longer in duration since 1925. Overall, the number of days in a year featuring a marine heatwave has increased by 54 percent during that span. The study's lead author, Eric Oliver of Dalhousie University, said, "We can expect a continued global increase in marine heatwaves in future, with important implications for marine biodiversity." The researchers classified a heat wave as an event lasting for at least five days where daily ocean temperatures exceeded the 90th percentile of what is considered "very warm" for that time of year. The study is the first to quantify long-term changes in the frequency and length of marine heatwaves as the climate warms. Marine heatwaves have been behind mass coral bleaching events, the loss of carbon stores like seagrass meadows, mass die-offs of marine species, and changes to the range and structure of ecosystems. The heat waves can also significantly affect commercial fisheries.
Carbon Brief
According to new research appearing in the journal Nature, the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) has declined in strength by 15 percent since the mid-20th century. The record-low is problematic, since the AMOC ferries warm water from the equator into the north Atlantic, while pushing cold water back into the deep ocean. This ocean circulation contributes to Western Europe's temperate weather and is crucial for the health of New England fisheries. Researchers point to Greenland's melting ice sheets as part of the reason for the AMOC disruption. Stefan Rahmstorf of the Potsdam Institute said the disruption is "something that climate models have predicted for a long time, but we weren’t sure it was really happening. I think it is happening. And I think it's bad news." A second study found that the AMOC has slowed down over the past 150 years and is now the weakest it's been in more than a millennium. Although the papers differ in their attribution of the problem (natural versus anthropogenic causes), both concluded that the circulation has weakened.
Washington Post
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