Climate Change News - February 5, 2018 | Newsletter

A historic drought has left Cape Town, South Africa's water sources at dangerously low levels, leading officials to implement strict water management practices. Image courtesy of pixabay.com.

Draft White House Budget Would Slash Efficiency and Renewable Energy Programs

According to a fiscal 2019 budget draft obtained by the press, the Trump administration will propose a 72 percent budget cut from last year for the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). The White House requested $636.1 million for EERE for fiscal 2018, but the proposal was not approved by Congress. The 2019 budget proposal would shrink the office's budget even further, to $575.5 million. The budget draft also proposes a reduction in staff from 680 personnel to 450. It remains unclear to what extent these figures will be subject to further negotiation and revision, but the proposal is expected out on February 12 or later. The draft would once again propose the elimination of EERE's low-income weatherization program and state energy grants. It would also slash funding for solar energy research by 78 percent and fuel efficient vehicles by 82 percent, among other programs. Sources familiar with the negotiating process suggested the shift in fiscal priorities may be tied to Secretary Rick Perry's push to divert more funding to nuclear energy.

For more information see:

Washington Post

New Pentagon Report Assesses Climate Change-Related Risks to Military Facilities

On January 26, the Pentagon released a new report assessing climate change-related risks to U.S. installations worldwide. The report is the result of a qualitative survey of U.S. military personnel at various locations and captures current climate-related risks across six categories: flooding due to storm surge and non-storm surge events, extreme temperatures, wind, drought, and wildfire. Roughly half of the 1,684 sites surveyed reported climate-related damage. The results underscored the fact that military facilities face environmental threats beyond just storm surges and flooding. Even though the report does not address the financial costs of these vulnerabilities, it does offer insight into the specific threats facilities are facing today. The survey was begun in 2014 and has been submitted to Congress. John Conger, a former senior Pentagon official and among those who oversaw the survey, said, "It’s in the Defense Department’s interest to make investment decisions in a wise way and to make sure it doesn’t have damage to those investments."

For more information see:

Washington Post, Center for Climate and Security

Cap and Trade Gaining Momentum with State-Level Governments

Despite its origins as a Republican policy mechanism to reduce sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, cap and trade no longer enjoys the bipartisan support it once had. However, the emission reduction system has gradually picked up steam with state governors across the country. With nine active participants to date, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) is expecting to add Virginia to its ranks for the first time and re-instate New Jersey, which departed in 2012 under Gov. Chris Christie (R). From 2005 to 2016, RGGI's member states experienced a 51 percent reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from power plants and received more than $2.6 billion revenue from emission allowance auctions. RGGI states have begun exploring ways to address transportation pollution, which has since exceeded the power sector's emissions. State transportation officials have expressed interest in placing a price on vehicle fuel emissions and investing revenue in clean transit projects. According to the Georgetown Climate Center, pricing policies could reduce transportation emissions by up to 40 percent by 2030.

For more information see:

Governing Magazine

California Takes Steps Toward Expanding Electric Vehicle Fleet

On January 26, California Governor Jerry Brown signed an executive order calling for five million zero-emission vehicles to be on the state's roads by 2030, a significant increase from today's fleet of 350,000. The initiative is in addition to California's other decarbonization goals, including drawing 50 percent of its electricity from renewables and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent relative to 1990 levels – both by 2030. The order also outlines an eight-year plan to invest $2.5 billion in new electric vehicle charging stations, resulting in a nearly 18-fold increase. The auto industry has voiced its overall support for the proposal, especially because it continues to provide rebates for state residents who purchase electric vehicles. Mary Nichols, head of the California Air Resources Board, said that under the plan, zero-emission vehicles could make up 40 percent of new car sales in the state by 2030. Currently, only five percent of the state's annual vehicle sales are electric.

For more information see:

Mercury News

Cape Town Faces Potential Crisis as Water Reserves Begin to Run Dry

After a three-year drought, Cape Town’s water supply is running dry, and could reach what public officials are calling “Day Zero” by April. South African officials have confirmed the gravity of the situation, stating that the city is at risk of severe water shortages and may end up shutting down water pipes to homes and businesses. At that stage, the city's four million residents will have to receive water at 200 managed collection points. This comes somewhat as a surprise since Cape Town has had an excellent record of water management and environmental policies. Only a few years ago, dams were full to the brink, and the city was awarded a special prize for its water management successes in 2014. However, part of the problem may lie in this prior water abundance. The amount of water Cape Town held was so secure that it postponed looking for other new sources. The city’s six dams are dependent on rainfall and their capacity is now down to 26 percent during the region's worst drought in more than a century.

For more information see:

New York Times

Report: EPA's Industrial Emission Factors in Need of Major Overhaul

The emission factors EPA relies on to guide its work are in need of revision, according to critics and former agency personnel familiar with the metrics. The factors are values that allow regulators to estimate the atmospheric emissions from power plants, refineries, and other industrial sites. The values are meant to portray average emissions from specific industrial activities, but they are now being used in the permitting process to dictate how much pollution a facility can actually emit. Retired EPA engineer Jim Southerland, who helped develop the factors, said, “These factors were not intended for permits.” EPA itself had previously said around half of the sites under scrutiny would release more than half the emissions predicted by its models. EPA currently uses 22,693 emission factors, but admits most are unreliable, rating 62 percent as "below average" or "poor." These unreliable metrics can influence air quality reports, risk assessments, and federal and state rulemaking decisions. EPA's internal watchdog has called out the agency over the course of decades to do more to address issues with the emission factors.

For more information see:

Center for Public Integrity

EPA Administrator Had Personal Hand in Scrapping EPA’s Climate Change Websites

According to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt was personally involved in the removal and editing of many of the agency’s web pages on climate change. Among the sites lost were 200 webpages for assisting state, local, and tribal communities with climate mitigation and adaptation, as well as resources meant for younger audiences that got more than a million page views a month. Pruitt became particularly interested in wiping out public information on the Clean Power Plan (CPP), six months before the repeal of the rule was officially proposed. The potential repeal of the CPP involves a large-scale public comment process, which the EPA will be administering through April 26, 2018. However, advocates have argued that the absence of information on EPA's website has made it more difficult for people to submit comments. On January 29, a group of 12 environmental and legal organizations called for Pruitt to recuse himself from the final decision on the CPP, due to his apparently pre-meditated desire to discard it regardless of the public's input.

For more information see:

CNN, Inside Climate News

EPA Administrator Pruitt Receives Party-Line Review of Job Performance So Far

On January 30, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt testified before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. It was his first testimony before a Senate committee since his confirmation hearing a year ago. Pruitt faced stiff questioning from Democratic members on issues including Superfund site clean-ups, the proposed repeal of the Clean Power Plan, and the agency's use of scientific data. Meanwhile, Republicans generally praised Pruitt's performance and his repeal of regulations thus far. When questioned about whether he would seek to repeal or replace the EPA's climate change endangerment finding, Pruitt replied there was "no decision or determination on that," leaving the door open for future actions. The 2009 endangerment finding declares greenhouse gases a threat to the public health and welfare of Americans and underpins EPA's climate policies. Pruitt received further criticism for using agency resources to host a future "red team-blue team" debate meant to cast doubt upon established climate science.

For more information see:

CNBC, Pacific Standard

Research Shows Seaweed Could Help Buffer Shellfish from Climate Impacts

The Pacific shellfish industry, worth more than $100 million, has been suffering from the effects of climate change for a few years now. Oceanic acidification, a byproduct of anthropogenic carbon emissions, threatens shell-forming marine organisms (such as oysters), which are sensitive to pH changes. Growing concern over the issue has seen a Bay Area oyster farm inviting a team of scientists to study the effects of acidification. In addition to day-to-day monitoring of the situation, the farm is home to pioneering research that focuses on the use of aquatic plants to protect the oysters. Just like plants on dry land absorb carbon dioxide for photosynthesis, “the plants under water are doing the same thing,” says UC Santa Cruz marine biology professor Kristy Kroeker. Theoretically, by absorbing the CO2, the seagrass slightly lowers the acidity of the surrounding seawater. Kroeker says more research is needed in order to establish whether this technique can work in different locations and at different times of the year to safeguard shellfish.

For more information see:

NPR