WIMS Environmental HotSheet 4/7/14

National / International News

 

<> IPCC starts meeting to finalize Working Group III report - April 7. Government representatives and scientists opened a five-day meeting today of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to finalize a report assessing the options for mitigating climate change, and the underlying technical, economic and institutional requirements.

<> Sen. Finance Committee Approves EXPIRE Act with Strong Bipartisan Vote - Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., led the Finance Committee today to pass bipartisan legislation renewing a set of provisions known as "tax extenders" that have expired or will expire at the end of this year.

• Sen Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, statement at a committee markup on the Expiring Provisions Improvement Reform and Efficiency (EXPIRE) Act

<> Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack Announces Progress on 2014 Farm Bill Implementation - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced significant progress on implementing the Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill) signed into law on February 7.

<> House Hearing: "Energy Independence: Domestic Opportunities to Reverse California's Growing Dependence on Foreign Oil" - GOP site with background, testimony, webcast

• GOP news release

<> Revealing rare earths: Economic report sheds light on rare earths' essential role - Whether it's energy-saving wind turbines, life-saving pacemaker devices, state-of-the-art advanced avionics or super sleek smartphones, rare earth elements play an important role in helping a variety of the latest technologies. . .

<> World Business Council for Sustainable Development calls for city leaders to work closer with businesses to meet sustainability goals - April 7, 2014 - The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) has launched a new report calling for city leaders to work closer with businesses to meet sustainability goals. . . report on the findings of the Urban Infrastructure Initiative (UII)

<> US Wind Energy Output Breaks Records - Wind energy is breaking records across the U.S., thanks to long-needed transmission upgrades that are relieving congestion on the power grid and allowing more clean energy to reach consumers. . .

<> Wind Power Has Cut U.S. Carbon Dioxide Emissions by 4.4 Percent: Report - April 7 -- The growth of wind power in the United States is putting a significant dent in emissions, according to a forthcoming report from the American Wind Energy Association. Wind generation avoided 95.6 million metric tons. . .

<> Exclusive: Enbridge plans to re-export Canadian oil via United States - Enbridge is the first company to publicly confirm it holds a re-export permit and intends to use it. The company has to segregate the re-exports from any U.S. oil it carries in its pipelines.

<> Tired of climate doom and gloom? So are we. But don't despair – the age of clean renewable energy is gaining momentum - Did you read the news last week? The impacts of climate change are being felt all around the world. And it's going to get much worse if we carry on polluting our way into the future.It's frustrating. It's infuriating. And it makes you. . .

<> Is Minnesota the next battleground in the tar sands fight? - A trio of major pipeline projects proposed by Canadian fuel transporter Enbridge have been moving forward in Minnesota, mostly below the national radar.

<> CCAC Invests $10 Million in New Work to Reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants, Focuses on Human Health - The Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) has agreed to expand actions in cleaner transport, alternative refrigeration, agriculture, municipal solid waste management and methane reduction in the oil and gas sector.

<> How the tech industry can help save the climate - The Internet we love, and the companies that run it, are at a crossroads in terms of where their energy comes from.. . . Facebook, Apple and Google have committed to 100 percent renewable energy, in response to users around the world who have asked them for a greener internet. . .

<> UN's Top Climate Change Official Calls on Oil and Gas Industry to Undertake Radical Transformation towards New, Sustainable Energy Mix - The UN's top climate change official Christiana Figueres on Thursday called on the oil and gas industry to undertake a radical transformation towards a new, sustainable energy mix in order to align itself with the physical and. . .

 

U.S. Appeals Court Environmental Decisions

 

<> El Paso Natural Gas Company v. USA - 4/4/14. In the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit, Case No. 12-5156. "This is a weighty case, involving numerous claims concerning environmental hazards at three sites on Navajo land near Tuba City, Arizona. . . Given the number of statutes, claims, and locations at issue, we have summarized below the issues on appeal and our holdings with respect to each question before the court.

 

Federal Register Highlights 

The following is an alert of Environmental Federal Register announcements that may be of interest for: Monday, April 7, 2014.  (Click here to access today's complete Federal Register index with links to complete announcements).

 

1. Nothing we're tracking today

2. (Friday, April 4, 2014): AIR - Proposed Rule. U.S. EPA. Air Quality State Implementation Plans; Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Michigan; PSD Rules for PM2.5 PDF | Text |