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Senate energy bill: first skirmish over US greenhouse-gas regulation
By Mark Clayton
As Congress struggled to shape new energy legislation this week, an equally important fight was shaping up: whether the United States will begin to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions.
The prospects for such regulation began to emerge this past April when, in a setback for the Bush administration, the US Supreme Court affirmed that the Environmental Protection Agency had the legal authority to regulate emissions. The wrangling this week over the Senate energy bill represents the first skirmish over what could quickly become a full-blown battle over measures to slow climate change.
Senate energy bill: first skirmish over US greenhouse-gas regulation
By Mark Clayton
As Congress struggled to shape new energy legislation this week, an equally important fight was shaping up: whether the United States will begin to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions.
The prospects for such regulation began to emerge this past April when, in a setback for the Bush administration, the US Supreme Court affirmed that the Environmental Protection Agency had the legal authority to regulate emissions. The wrangling this week over the Senate energy bill represents the first skirmish over what could quickly become a full-blown battle over measures to slow climate change.
By the end of the month, the EPA could announce findings that would require it to crack down on emitters of greenhouse gases, says a source familiar with discussions between the White House and EPA.
That may explain why the White House threatened last Friday to veto the energy bill unless it contained a seemingly minor provision to give the Department of Transportation (DOT) authority over auto fuel-economy standards rather than the Environmental Protection Agency. But the language would have effectively stripped the EPA of all authority to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions, thus nullifying the high court's decision in April.
Besides eliminating the EPA as a regulator, such a measure would have also gutted efforts by California and 16 other states to enforce carbon-dioxide emissions requirements for vehicles, environmental legal experts say. Yet a federal court ruling Wednesday upheld California's measures.
"The recent statement of administration policy [threatening a veto] certainly took sharp aim at reversing the Supreme Court's decision confirming EPA's power to regulate global-warming pollution under the Clean Air Act," said Vickie Patton, deputy general counsel for Environmental Defense, a Washington group.
The Senate at press time seemed poised to pass a stripped-down version of the energy bill, which would boost the auto-fuel standards for the first time since the 1970s under the EPA's auspices, as well as boost biofuels. But it would not include controversial measures that would have increased the tax burden on the oil, gas, and coal industries - or required electric utilities to use renewable sources of energy.
Soon, the focus is expected to shift quickly to greenhouse-gas emissions. In line with the high-court ruling, President Bush in May issued an executive order for the EPA to begin working on a new rulemaking process to create standards that reduce carbon from auto emissions - and to work closely with DOT and other agencies. At this point, the legal documents to do so are nearly complete and an EPA announcement is expected before year's end to comply with the Supreme Court's decision.
But in an internal debate last week, EPA chief Stephen Johnson told White House officials unequivocally that the EPA intends to issue an "endangerment finding" for carbon-dioxide emissions, according to one source familiar with the discussion, who asked not to be named because he was not permitted to speak to the press. Such a move could vastly accelerate federal regulation of greenhouse-gas emissions across a range of industries, the source says.
"The EPA has decided to go ahead with broader construction of an endangerment finding. That's what Johnson told the West Wing people - that EPA was going ahead with a strong finding," the source says.
When asked for comment, a White House spokesman said: "I can't speak to any communication the EPA administrator has had with the White House," said Scott Stanzel. "I can say that if Congress is going to take action on modern CAFE standards, they should want that process to be enacted, and not usurped, by a regulatory process."
An EPA spokeswoman, Jennifer Wood, wrote in an e-mail: "EPA and its federal partners remain on track to take the first regulatory step in addressing greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles."
If the EPA does announce a finding - saying that public health and welfare is endangered by CO2 emissions - the EPA would be required under the Clean Air Act to crack down on "major" emitters, legal experts say. That could be a very broad group indeed, including any stationary emitter in the country that emits 250 tons or more, according to congressional testimony last month by Peter Glaser, a clean-air expert at Troutman Sanders, a Washington law firm.
Apparently concerned about such a prospect, the US Chamber of Commerce and industry groups that represent refineries and manufacturers sent a Dec. 7 letter to the Senate, warning that the bill's "overlapping authorities" could produce the "unintended triggering of an expansive and costly stationary [greenhouse-gas] source control program."
At least some Wall Street analysts appear to be picking up on such issues. "EPA's proposal will probably include an 'endangerment finding' with an August 2008 target date that would classify CO2 as a pollutant," wrote Kevin Book, an energy analyst with FBR Capital Markets, in his newsletter for investors Wednesday. "This could force EPA to review CO2 as a pollutant from stationary sources, too."
Such a finding, he wrote, would probably require that the agency, under the Clean Air Act, require federal clean-air permits from a host of sites, including those emitting as little as 100 tons per year.
"This could paralyze construction sites, not just refineries and coal-fired power plants," he wrote.
While the energy bill failed in a vote early Thursday, environmentalists worry about White House allies within Congress also pushing in the same direction, who might insert a provision in the new stripped-down energy bill. Some question whether many in Congress realize that by eliminating "ambiguity" in regulation authority, it might also eliminate the EPA from CO2 regulation.
Indeed, a slender provision floated this week as a remedy for possible inclusion in the Senate energy bill would not only give DOT authority over fuel economy - but would also strip EPA of authority to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions, environmentalists say.
"It is a poison pill that, in the dark of night, would reverse the landmark decision by the US Supreme Court affirming EPA's power to regulate global-warming pollution," says Ms. Patton of Environmental Defense.
The controversial provision did not appear to be part of the energy bill that failed to pass a procedural vote Thursday morning in the US Senate, but it could be inserted into a new slimmed-down energy bill. That would be unfortunate, she says, given a recent legal ruling in California.
On Wednesday, the entire claim of an agency conflict in regulating auto fuel economy was dealt a blow by US District Judge Anthony Ishii. In a case involving automakers challenging California greenhouse-gas emission standards, he ruled that there was no conflict between the EPA's regulatory duties and DOT's setting of mileage requirements.
Used tags: climate_change, emissions, energy, energy_bill, energy_legislation, regulating_emissions, renewable_energy
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Monday 28 January 2019 at 03:31 am
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Saturday 16 July 2011 at 06:07 am
Raging wildfires: Climate changes to blame for record season?
By Pete Spotts
The images are stark: soot-grimed firefighters steering bulldozers or wielding shovels to clear underbrush; curtains of orange flame tracing the contours of summits; aircraft dumping chemicals to slow a fire's progress.
Between Jan. 1 and early July of 2011, slightly more than 38,000 wildfires charred the landscape in the United States at a record pace. So far this year, wildfires have consumed just under 4.9 million acres of forest and grassland, a cumulative expanse the size of New Jersey.
That's 1 million more acres than fires consumed during the same period in 2006, which saw a record 9.9 million acres burned for the entire year.
Beyond the numbers, this year's fires may provide the first large-scale tests of the effectiveness of projects undertaken over the past decade to help forests survive wildfires, several specialists say.
The West's forests are adapted to deal with certain types of wildfires, researchers note. But since the mid-1980s, they add, some of these forests have experienced an increasing number of fires to which they are not well adapted.
Many researchers trace this shift in part to climate change.
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Sunday 22 May 2011 at 01:14 am
Hybrid Moves Into Housing
By Brenda Krueger Huffman
(Chicago) – Recycling - Check. Conserving energy - Check. Hybrid car - Next car, check. Hybrid home system - What? Yes, it’s here. Hybrid has seamlessly, successfully moved into housing.
Safety Power, Inc. was initially started to provide homes with back up power. The company quickly grew to include renewable energy options and advising commercial and industrial clients with electrical conservation. Recently the company has come full circle and began marketing a new more capable type of renewable energy system for homes.
The award winning firm was voted one of the “Top 5 Sustainable Product Companies in Illinois” and continues to grow its residential client base in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Safety Power also serves larger firms on the national level.
Robert Brazzale, President of Safety Power, a master electrician turned entrepreneur, began Safety Power in 2007. An avid member of Local First Chicago, Rob believes in assisting sustaining local economies with green collar jobs and belongs to many green orientated groups in Chicago and around the country.
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Tuesday 29 March 2011 at 11:12 am
Are electric car makers missing the trick?
by Martin Ott
I believe that electric car makers may be driving us all down the road that may result in the same sort of technology failures that we have seen in the past.
I'm not referring to the Sinclair scooter here but cast your mind back to the débâcle of Betamax v VHS home recording systems. The eventual winner was the technically inferior VHS but the battle was not resolved until innumerable consumers had paid out for worthless Betamax systems. Back in the 70's a similar conflict occurred over audio systems when America fell in love with the 8 track tape system that moved magnetic tape in a loop over the player head at a high speed resulting in a better sound. The world market finally dictated that the audio cassette was the way to go but not until millions of consumers had been lumbered with home and in-car systems that went down the technological cul de sac.
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Tuesday 29 March 2011 at 10:57 am
by Suresh Varma
The Theni Wind Farm project was developed by CLP India Pvt. Ltd., one of the major wind farm project developers in India. Located in the south western part of Tamilnadu, a southern state of the country, the facility consists of 60 Vestas V82 geared wind turbines. As recognition of its contribution towards the successful execution of this wind power project SGS received Vestas award.
Each turbine at the wind farm has a capacity of 1.65 MW IEC Class IIB machine with a blade diameter of 82 m. After a six-month long completion period, the Theni Wind Farm was officially opened in May, 2010.
Acting as contract engineer during project execution, SGS was responsible for ensuring that all activities were carried out at the site by the contractor in line with the final agreement. In doing so, SGS supervised the quality of construction works, the fulfillment of the technical parameters and kept the project within the scheduled time and contracted price.
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Tuesday 29 March 2011 at 10:37 am
E.ON uses PPC's Broadband Powerline technology in smart grid project
by Power Plus Communications
Mannheim - Power Plus Communications AG (PPC), the leading provider of Broadband Powerline Communication systems (BPL) for smart grids has taken on a key role within an E.ON smart grid project to facilitate an extension of Cisco's Connected Grid Solution.
E.ON Westfalen Weser AG is currently trialing smart grid technology within its network of 1.3 million inhabitants and PPC's proven medium voltage BPL solution has connected substations in the project using the existing power grid.
Using BPL technology, standard compliant and IP-based data transfer rates of 5-30 Mbit/s can easily be achieved via the medium voltage cable itself. Within E.ON’s smart grid project, PPC's medium voltage technology facilitated the extension of Cisco's Connected Grid Solution. The Cisco smart grid Router and Switches used in the project are highly compatible with BPL networks, providing a real cost advantage over fiber optic networks – which can be much more expensive where cables are not pre-existing.
By combining their technology at Westfalen Weser, PPC and Cisco have ensured the evolution of fast and efficient smart grids which are controlled on an IP basis. This increases the reliability of the power grid, fulfills regulations and drives down costs. At the same time this modern smart grids communications technology makes it possible to effectively integrate renewable energy into the grid.
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Saturday 19 February 2011 at 09:02 am
By Brenda Krueger Huffman
Chicago – Perhaps moving to the center is where we all need to be politically on the environment and effective spending compatibility. Not all green technology is crazy, and not all business profit or government expenditure is evil.
Even if you do not believe in man caused climate change, we can all agree leaving a cleaner planet and a more fiscally responsible government for the next generation is preferable to not doing so.
Perhaps green technology can be cost effective, and government fiscal responsibility may realistically include affordable green initiatives. Honest “life cycle analysis” and “life cycle cost analysis” study considerations should be a political compromise starting point both the left and the right can embrace.
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Thursday 27 January 2011 at 11:05 am
Global warming: Impact of receding snow and ice surprises scientists
By Pete Spotts
Washington - A long-term retreat in snow and ice cover in the Northern Hemisphere is weakening the ability of these seasonal cloaks of white to reflect sunlight back into space and cool global climate, according to a study published this week.
Indeed, over the past 30 years, the cooling effect from this so-called cryosphere – essentially areas covered by snow and ice at least part of the year – appears to have weakened at more than twice the pace projected by global climate models, the research team conducting the work estimates.
The study, which appeared online Sunday in the journal Nature Geoscience, represents a first cut at trying to calculate from direct measurements the impact of climate change on the Northern Hemisphere's cryosphere. The study was conducted by a team of federal and university scientists who examined data gathered between 1979 and 2008.
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Wednesday 05 January 2011 at 10:38 pm
By Mark Clayton
Washington - Setting the stage for a New Year battle royal between Congress and the White House over greenhouse gas emissions, the US Environmental Protection Agency Thursday laid out a timetable for the nation's largest carbon emitters – power plants and refineries – to begin curbing those pollutants.
Republicans have said all year that they plan to pull out all the stops to keep the EPA from phasing in greenhouse gas (GHG) regulations beginning in 2011, saying they would damage the energy industry, raise prices, and cost jobs.
Rep. Fred Upton (R) of Michigan, the incoming chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, has said he opposes the regulations on greenhouse gases and indicated he would lead efforts to revoke EPA regulations in the next Congress. The new regulations, he says, will likely lead to the shut down of coal-fired power plants.
"To protect jobs and fortify our energy security, we should be working to bring more power online, not shutting plants down," Mr. Upton said in a statement. "We are woefully unprepared to meet our nation's growing energy demands, yet this administration's 'none of the above' energy policy will do nothing but cost jobs, make energy more expensive, and increase our dependence on foreign sources of energy."
Environmentalists lauded the EPA's move.
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Monday 13 December 2010 at 03:21 am
By Warren Richey,
Washington - The US Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine a major environmental lawsuit that seeks to force six electric power companies to cap and reduce their carbon-dioxide emissions to fight global warming.
The lawsuit - filed in 2004 by eight states, the City of New York, and three land trusts - targets what it claims are the largest emitters of carbon dioxide in the United States and among the largest in the world.
It seeks a judicial order declaring that the fossil-fueled power plants are a "public nuisance." It also seeks a judicial order capping the plants' greenhouse gas emissions and requiring the plants to adopt a schedule of reduced emissions in future years.
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