WIMS Environmental HotSheet 5/19/14

National / International News

 

<> Major U.S. public companies from all economic sectors now facing climate change related risks and costs - A new report from CDP indicates S&P 500 companies are seeing climate-change-related risks increase in urgency, likelihood and frequency, with many describing significant impacts already affecting their business operations. . .

<> Obama Bid to Cut Greenhouse Gases Divides Utility, Coal Industries - Bracing for greenhouse-gas rules from the Obama administration, two industries are staking out different positions. Coal companies are pledging to sue. Electric utilities are ready to talk.

<> Green Groups: Leaked Energy Text Exposes Trade With European Union Endangers Action on Climate - A draft negotiating text of energy provisions in the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the U.S. and the European Union was leaked online today, just as the fifth round of negotiations began in Washington, DC.

<> Exelon Pins Nuclear Hopes On Small Modular Reactors - Exelon CEO Chris Crane: "New nuclear plants being built in a competitive market is not in our future, unfortunately."

<> How Much Greenhouse Gas is Your State Emitting? - Climate change is an ever-growing concern for our planet. It is not a problem that is easily quantifiable or solvable, but we can start with awareness. We thought it would be interesting to see how much each state was contributing. . .

<> What Will the Supreme Court's Latest Climate-Change Case Mean? - David Doniger, Director, Climate and Clean Air Program, Washington, D.C. Sometime in the next few weeks, the Supreme Court will decide its third case on climate-changing carbon pollution in the last seven years. 

<> Appropriations Committee Releases the Fiscal Year 2015 Agriculture Appropriations Bill - The House Appropriations Committee today released the fiscal year 2015 Agriculture Appropriations. . .

<> Shell dismisses Carbon Bubble concept as 'alarmist' - Letter from senior executive to shareholders says oil and gas likely to dominate energy mix till 2050s

<> Billionaire Democrat Sets Eye on Senate Races - Tom Steyer, whom Republicans have depicted as a one-man special interest group, plans to raise $100 million to run campaigns on climate issues and efforts to block the Keystone XL pipeline.

<> Gov. Jerry Brown Discusses Role of Climate Change in California's 10 Wildfires in the Past Week - About 25,000 acres of land were scorched by the fires, causing. . .

<> Press Release: Secretary Jewell Announces $20 Million in WaterSMART Funding for Water Reclamation and Reuse Projects in Drought Stricken California - As part of the Obama Administration's continued effort to bring relief to California communities suffering from the historic drought, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced today that the Bureau of Reclamation

<> New Game Consoles to Cost U.S. Consumers $1 Billion in Annual Electric Bills - (May 16, 2014) – The latest-generation game consoles are on track to cost American consumers $1 billion annually in utility bills--$400 million of that in standby mode when no one is using them. . .

 

Federal Register Highlights 

The following is an alert of Environmental Federal Register announcements that may be of interest for: Monday, May 19, 2014.  (Click here to access today's complete Federal Register index with links to complete announcements).

1. Water, Energy - Proposed Rule. U.S. EPA. Hydraulic Fracturing Chemicals and Mixtures PDF | Text |