WIMS Daily Environmental HotSheet 3/19/14

<> White House Launches the Climate Data Initiative - an ambitious new effort bringing together extensive open government data and design competitions with commitments from the private and philanthropic sectors to develop data-driven planning and resilience tools for local communities.

• FACT SHEET: The President's Climate Data Initiative: Empowering America's Communities to Prepare for the Effects of Climate Change

<> 16 Environmental Groups Implore Obama to End Fracked Gas Exports - The heads of 16 national and regional climate advocacy groups don't see how exporting fracked and liquefied natural gas (LNG) fits into a climate change agenda. The group says proposals to expand the country's fracking exports would undermine President Barack Obama's efforts to battle climate change.

<> New NRDC Analysis Shows U.S. Can Slash Carbon Emissions Far More Than Projected Initially Under Plan Shaping Debate on Power Plant Carbon Pollution Standards - March 18, 2014  -- Newer data and expanded analysis to be released Thursday (March 20th) during a National Press Club news event will show that far more carbon pollution can be eliminated than originally projected under the innovative approach for...

<> U.S.-China Climate Change Working Group and Ten-Year Framework for Energy and Environment Cooperation Meetings - U.S.-China Climate Change Working Group and Ten-Year Framework for Energy and Environment Cooperation Meetings March 18, 2014 A delegation of senior Chinese officials is in Washington March 17-18 for bilateral meetings with Administration officials on climate change and other environmental. . .

<> Working with stakeholders - engaging, not enraging! - Malcolm Preston, PwC Global Sustainability leader, reflects on the pressure CEOs are under to do business in the right way.  He cites the results of our on-line vote, in which we asked you to step into the shoes of a CEO, to show decisions are not always clear cut and that it's hard to keep. . .

<> EPA Calls for 2014 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award Nominations / New green chemistry technologies promote new products and markets – U.S. EPA is asking companies or institutions to nominate their innovative technologies for the 2014 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards. EPA is looking for nominations from companies and institutions that have developed safer chemica...

<> EPA Celebrates 10 Years of SmartWay Partnerships / Voluntary program saves companies billions in fuel costs while cutting pollution - EPA's SmartWay Transport Partnership is celebrating 10 years as a market-driven initiative that empowers businesses to move goods in the cleanest most energy-efficient way possible, saving businesses money while protecting public health and fighting climate change.

<> Exploring Linkages Between National and Corporate/Facility Greenhouse Gas Inventories - National and corporate/facility level GHG inventory systems can help countries address climate change. However, these systems are often developed independently of each other, and confusion exists regarding the purpose of and need for each inventory type. This working paper seeks to describe national and corporate/facility GHG inventories, highlighting major . . .

<> Brownfields K6 Grant Guidelines/Request for Proposals (RFP) - EPA's Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR) will be hosting an Adobe Connect webinar this Thursday, March 20 from 2:30-4:00 PM eastern time. Proposals are due by April 18.

<> Largest North American Acid ManufacturerAgrees to Reduced NOx Emissions - LSB Industries Inc. (LSB), and four of its subsidiaries have agreed to reduce harmful emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) by meeting emission limits that are among the lowest for the industry in the nation at plants in Alabama, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas. . .

<> HealthyStuff.org announces March Badness tournament to determine the MTP - Most Toxic Product - A new study finds that 7 in 10 (71%) of university-themed products sold at top retailers contain one or more hazardous chemicals, including arsenic, lead, bromine, chlorine and mercury and cadmium.

<> US Mayors Demand Action on Crude by Rail - The mayor of Albany, the capital city of New York State, has become the latest elected official of a major American city to demand that the Federal government increase the regulatory oversight of crude by rail trains. Albany's mayor Kathy Sheehan has now joined the mayors of Chicago, Philadelphia, Kansas City and Madison, amongst others. . .

<> NWF to Honor President Clinton with Lifetime Achievement Conservation Award - President Clinton will receive the award and deliver remarks at the National Wildlife Federation's Conservation Awards and Gala Event on April 30 in Washington, DC.

<> U-M survey finds surprising attitudes toward energy costs, environmental impact - Consumers, on average, believe home energy bills would have to nearly double before forcing them to make lifestyle changes to save on costs, according to ...

WIMS Environmental HotSheet 3/18/14

<> AAAS Kicks Off Initiative to Recognize Climate Change Risks - American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is announcing the launch of a new initiative to expand the dialogue on the risks of climate change. At the heart of the initiative is the AAAS's " What We Know" report, an assessment of current climate science and impacts that emphasizes the need to understand and recognize possible high-risk scenarios.

<> EPA Asks Americans to Join the Race to Stop Water Leaks - WaterSense celebrates Fix a Leak Week Beginning March 17. In the race against water waste, EPA is urging people to fix household water leaks during the sixth annual Fix a Leak Week, March 17 through 23, 2014.

<> API: Happy Birthday Hydraulic Fracturing - With birthday cards and a social media campaign, the American Petroleum Institute celebrated the 65th birthday of the technology that has spurred an energy revolution in America: hydraulic fracturing or fracking. . .

<> NCDC Releases February 2014 U.S. Climate Report - The February 2014 average temperature for the contiguous United States was 32.2°F, 1.6°F below average. . .

<> Conflict Disclosures for Regulatory Science: Slow but Steady Progress at Last - Basic disclosures of conflicts of interest have been required by the top science journals for decades. Yet most regulatory agencies - despite strong urging from a variety of bipartisan sources - have failed to require these disclosures for private research submitted to inform regulatory decisions. This omission is particularly alarming since, unlike journals, agencies

<> GE Crops: Why Did USDA Ignore Environmental and Economic Harms? - Center for Food Safety (CFS) filed a lawsuit demanding the release of federal documents which may uncover undue political pressure over USDA's decision to approve genetically engineered alfalfa. The lawsuit seeks 1179 documents from USDA's Agriculture. . .

<> Will Tesla be a Game-Changer for Battery Energy Storage? - Last week Tesla, an electric car manufacturer based in Palo Alto, made national news by announcing it intends to launch a "Gigafactory" to produce lithium-ion batteries for at least 500,000 vehicles by 2020. This is no small potatoes. The level of battery production Tesla envisions is equivalent to the lithium ion batteries produced worldwide last year.

<> William Koch, pessimistic about coal's future in the U.S., is out of the business - William Koch, CEO of energy and industrial products giant Oxbow Carbon LLC, expressed pessimism about the future of coal in the United States during an interview last week. While not as active in politics as siblings David and Charles Koch, Bill Koch has also donated millions to political candidates, including a large political action committee backing former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney

<> Climate-change agenda heats up - Source: The Jordan Times - For many people around the world this year, the weather has become anything but a topic for small talk.

• Trust deficit blocking progress at UN climate talks - Source: RTCC - Levels of trust between leading developing countries and the USA and EU member states appears to have hit a new low after a week of UN climate talks in Bonn.

<> Climate change webinar - The next in Ohio State University's climate change webinar series is Adaptation and forest management in Great Lakes forests: custom-made, real-world examples. This free webinar takes place on March 25; advance registration is required.

<> USDA Announces Support for Innovative, Sustainable Wood Building Materials to Protect Environment and Create Jobs - March 18, 2014 - At a meeting hosted by the White House Rural Council today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a new partnership to train architects, engineers and builders about the benefits of advanced wood building materials, and plans for a forthcoming prize competition to design and build high-rise wood demonstration projects. . .

WIMS Environmental HotSheet 3/14/14

<> House Passes Water Rights Bill - The U.S. House of Representatives passed with bipartisan support Rep. Scott Tipton's (R-CO) legislation to protect private water rights from uncompensated federal takings (H.R. 3189).

• Republican Overreach Threatens America's Waterways and Outdoors - House Republicans passed H.R. 3189, the so-called Water Rights Protection Act.  The originally stated intent of the bill was to address a dispute between the Forest Service and ski resorts that operate on
• H.R.3189 - Water Rights Protection Act

<> Congressman Declares Wind Tax Credit 'Dead' - Companies across the country rushed to qualify for the wind production tax credit (PTC) in December, and for good reason—the chances of it returning seem even bleaker a few months later. Because Republicans are seeking a broader tax overhaul this year, one representative says there's virtually no hope of the PTC making a return this year. "Maybe there will be some in the Senate. . .

<> EPA to Lift Suspension and Debarment of BP From Federal Government Contracts/Agreement contains strong provisions to continue safety and ethics improvements in order to comply – U.S. EPA  and BP executed an agreement resolving all suspension and debarment actions against BP that barred the company from doing business with the federal government following the company's guilty plea in the Deepwater Horizon disaster of April 2010. The administrative agreement will be in place for five years

<> New Initiative Will Identify Ways to Create an Effective and Ambitious International Climate Action Agreement - Negotiators are meeting in Bonn, Germany this week to make progress on establishing a global climate agreement by 2015. But they're not the only ones working to secure a worldwide climate action plan. WRI along with several other organizations recently launched a new global consortium, the Agreement for Climate Transformation 2015 (ACT 2015), bringing together top researchers. . .

• Negotiations Towards New Universal Climate Agreement in 2015 Get Underway - Countries got down to the business of fleshing out how a new universal agreement on climate change might look by the deadline of Paris 2015 as part of worldwide efforts to keep a global temperature rise under 2 degrees Celsius this century.

<> Over 200 Groups Call on Obama Administration and Congress to Reject Fast-Tracking Exports of Natural Gas Overseas - Americans Against Fracking and allied organizations today called on President Obama, Secretary of State John Kerry and the United States Congress to reject plans to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) overseas.

<> Pesticide-contaminated communities call for ban - More than seven years since findings were presented, Californians who found chlorpyrifos in their air and bodies call for more restrictions on the pesticide

<> Newly-Published EPA Proposal Will Strengthen Transparency and Accountability for Oil and Gas Methane Emissions - Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) comments, "We urge EPA to swiftly finalize these long-overdue improvements to the way we gather oil and natural gas methane emissions data."

• EPA Proposes Changes to Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rules - On March 10, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed changes to its greenhouse gas reporting requirements that would affect natural gas distribution operators that currently have to report estimated fugitive emissions of natural gas from distribution piping. Comments from the American Public Gas Association

<> Duke Energy Offers Plan to Remove Dangerous Coal Ash Pits, Considers Retiring Asheville Coal Plant - Sierra Club's thousands of North Carolina members and supporters recognize Duke Energy's leadership for taking responsibility for the tragic Dan River coal ash spill.

• More on Duke Energy's plans

<> NRC Seeks Public Comment on Draft Environmental Report for Davis-Besse Nuclear Plant License Renewal Meetings Scheduled for March 25 - The draft report assesses the environmental impacts of extending the operating license for the Davis-Besse nuclear power plant in Oak Harbor, Ohio, southeast of Toledo on the shoreline of Lake Erie

<> Reflections on Fukushima from Noam Chomsky to Ralph Nader and More - The news from Japan three years after Fukushima began its eruptions is simple: it's anything but over. Three molten radioactive cores are still missing, four explosions have. . . 

<> Solar Water Bottle Bulbs - Alfredo Moser with his solar water bottle bulbs Introduction Thomas Alva Edison lit up the world with his electric bulb in the nineteenth century. In this century it is the solar bottle bulbs of Alfredo Moser which are illuminating thousands of houses of under-privileged. . .

<> Press Release: Secretary Jewell Commends President Obama, Congress for Designating 32,557 Acres of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore as Wilderness - Secretary Jewell commended President Obama for signing into law S.23, legislation designating 32,557 acres of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan as wilderness, the first congressional designation under the Wilderness Act since 2009.

• The Wilderness Society Praises First Wilderness Designation in 5 Years - The Wilderness Society Praises First Wilderness Designation in 5 Years -- Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Conservation and Recreation Act

WIMS Environmental HotSheet 3/13/14

<> Senate Foreign Affairs Committee Keystone XL Hearing - Testimony from U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Sierra Club, Dr. James Hansen, and Jones Group International; to be webcast and beginning at 11:15 AM

<> Committee Launches Investigation into EPA's Proposed Standards for New Power Plants that Threaten Affordable Energy and Jobs - The House Energy and Commerce Committee is launching an investigation into the Environmental Protection Agency's decision-making process relating to the agency's consideration of carbon capture technologies in developing greenhouse gas emissions standards for new power plants.

<> Report Finds Major Economic Risks of Climate Change Missing from U.S. Government Assessment - Report released by major environmental groups examines the government estimate of what the public pays for carbon pollution.

<> EPA Awards More than $500,000 to Schools to Help Reduce Children's Exposure to Pesticides Integrated pest management practices are shown to reduce pesticide use - U.S. EPA announced three grants to facilitate integrated pest management practices in schools. This funding will help reduce student's exposure to pests and pesticides in the nation's schools, while saving money, energy and pesticide treatment costs. Includes Michigan State University. . .

<> API: LNG exports support America's role as an energy superpower - March 12, 2014 – Liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports will grow the U.S. economy while strengthening the energy security of America and its allies, including Ukraine, said American Petroleum Institute (API) Director of Upstream and Industry Operations Erik Milito on a conference call. . .

<> Upcoming Funding Opportunity for Technology Incubator for Wind Energy Innovations - On March 12, 2014 EERE's Wind Program announced a Notice of Intent to issue a funding opportunity entitled "Technology Incubator for Wind Energy Innovations."

<> European Research Center Backs Climate-Friendly Coolant for Car Air Conditioners, Global Automakers Moving Forward – NRDC's David Doniger, reports that the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) issued its final report last week reaffirming the safety of the new climate-friendly coolant for car air conditioners called HFO-1234yf (R-1234yf).  The European experts flatly rejected fire risk claims leveled 18 months ago by Daimler (the maker of Mercedes-Benz). . .

<> Ohio Fracking Well Suspended After Quakes - Fracking operations at one site in the state of Ohio remain suspended until further notice after five small earthquakes over a period of twenty four hours earlier this week. Yesterday's tremor was recorded at 2.1, following earlier ones reaching 3.0 on the Richter scale, enough to be noticeable but not enough to cause structural damage. According to local media reports, the US Geological Survey. . .

<> Fracking Boom Would Increase California's Earthquake Danger, Report Finds - Hundreds of Oil Wastewater Wells Near Active Faults and Major Cities Already Raising Quake Risk for Millions of Californians SAN FRANCISCO — Oil companies are increasing California's earthquake risk by injecting billions of gallons of oil and gas wastewater a year into hundreds of disposal wells near active faults around Los Angeles, Bakersfield and other major cities, according to a. . .

<> Farmers warn of threats to farm economies posed by Dow's new genetically engineered corn and soybean varieties - USDA receives nearly 400,000 public comments opposing approval of2,4-D resistant crops Today over 387,000 farmers, farmworkers, health professionals, and concerned individuals from across the country joined together in urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to reject Dow AgroSciences' application seeking approval of controversial genetically engineered (GE) corn and soybean 

WIMS Environmental HotSheet 3/12/14

<> GAO-14-423T, Federal Rulemaking: Regulatory Review Processes Could Be Enhanced, March 11, 2014 - What GAO Found In 2007, GAO found that agencies had conducted more retrospective reviews of the costs and benefits of existing regulation than was readily apparent, especially to the public. Requirements in statutes or executive directives were sometimes the impetus for reviews, but agencies more often conducted these retrospective reviews based on their own discretionary. . .

<> The 2014 Economic Report of the President - The Council of Economic Advisers released the 2014 Economic Report of the President, which discusses the progress that has been made in recovering from the worst recession since the Great Depression, and President Obama's agenda to build on this progress by creating jobs and expanding economic opportunity.

<> U.S. Department of Transportation Announces TIGER Discretary Grant Program Focus on Capital Projects - TIGER Discretionary Grant program has up to $600 million available for capital projects related to highways, bridges,public transportation, rail,ports, and intermodal projects. Applications are due April 28, 2014.

<> House Joint Hearing - Science of Capture and Storage: Understanding EPA's Carbon Rules - GOP background, statements and witness testimony

• Democrats website and statements

<> 50% Energy Savings in the Residential Sector? Deep Energy Retrofits Are Making it Possible - The need for innovative ways to reduce residential energy use is growing. States are setting increasingly aggressive energy savings targets for utilities and program administrators, as well as longer-term energy reduction goals that call for even greater savings. In California, for example, their goal calls for a 40% reduction in existing homes' energy use by 2020. 

<> APPA Offers New Policy Resolutions - Members of the American Public Power Association's (APPA) Legislative & Resolutions Committee today approved nine resolutions at its annual Legislative Rally, including resolutions in support of fair distributed generation policies, reforms to Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) capacity markets, and critical infrastructure physical security.

<> What are the Realistic Costs and Benefits of the New EPA Tier 3 (Reduced) Gasoline Sulfur Regulation? - The EPA finalized new regulations to further reduce gasoline sulfur and mitigate possible health impacts on the Public. Are the EPA's estimated compliance cost of less than one cent per gallon and primary claimed benefits reasonably accurate? And, are there more cost effective alternatives. . .

<> Bicameral Task Force Releases Third Fact Sheet in Series on Grid-Scale Energy Storage - The Bicameral Task Force on Climate Change released its third fact sheet to examine the progress being made on grid-scale energy storage as part of the Clean Energy Breakthroughs series.  This fact sheet examines the energy storage potential for Primus Power's rechargeable zinc flow battery and Fluidic Energy's rechargeable zinc-air battery.

<> NACAA Comments on EPA's Proposed Residual Risk and Technology Review for Three Source Categories - the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA), comments on the proposed National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Generic Maximum Achievable Control Technology Standards; and Manufacture of Amino/Phenolic Resins, which were published in the Federal Register on January 9, 2014

<> Mapping climate change in the oceans - An interview with Mike Alexander, research meteorologist at NOAA's Earth System Research Lab in Boulder, Colorado, about a new web portal that maps climate change effects in oceans.

<> Cree Accelerates the LED Light Bulb Pricing War - One year ago, LED lighting company Cree introduced a light bulb that set a new bar in price. Today, it's introducing a 100-watt equivalent LED bulb and lowering prices on existing products, in a move that could trigger price cuts from competitors. On Wednesday, Home Depot will begin online sales of Cree's latest bulb, which gives off 1600 lumens, or about the same as a 100-watt incandescent

<> Now You Can Walk Into A Best Buy And Get A Solar System For Your Home - Shutterstock SolarCity and Best Buy have just announced a deal allowing customers to get low-cost and low-hassle solar power for their homes. It's what's called a third party leasing agreement. Rather than purchasing a solar array outright, they lease the system from the provider — SolarCity, in this case. It's just that the system is installed on the roof of the homeowner. 

WIMS Environmental HotSheet 3/11/14

<> Senators conclude all-night climate change talkathon - Overnight Monday into early Tuesday, 30 Democratic senators and one Republican devoted a little more than 14 hours to climate change.

• Is the Senate's climate change all-nighter more than a one-night stand?
• Video: Senator Harry Reid  & Others on Climate Change

<> CO2 Allowances Sold at $4.00 at 23rd RGGI Auction - The nine Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), the nation's first market-based cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas pollution, announced the results of their 23rd auction of carbon dioxide (CO2) allowances.

<> Energy Department Awards $2.2 Million to Drive Innovative Solutions, Lower Costs of Solar - Energy Department Awards $2.2 Million to Drive Innovative Solutions, Lower Costs of Solar The Energy Department today announced $2.2 million for three California projects to help lower the costs of solar electricity and increase deployment nationwide.

<> FIRST Act Prioritizes Science Investments to Keep America First - Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) and Research and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Larry Bucshon (R-Ind.) today introduced the Frontiers in Innovation, Research, Science, and Technology (FIRST) Act (H.R. 4186). The bill reauthorizes and streamlines federal investments at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and. . .

<> As U.S. Energy Booms, Don't Forget About Roadway Infrastructure - One fracking operation needs 600 to 1,100 one-way truck trips for equipment to and from a well site. In a new paper in the Journal of Infrastructure Systems, our team estimated the costs of additional heavy truck traffic associated with shale gas development on Pennsylvania's state-maintained roadways.read more. . .

<> USDA Announces Efforts to Expand Support for Small and Mid-Sized Farmers and Ranchers - March 10 – Today in remarks at the National Farmers Union National Convention, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced new and expanded efforts to connect small- and mid-sized farmers and ranchers with USDA resources

<> Keystone XL (KXL) pipeline: The 'significance' trap - Carbon Tracker responds to the US Department of State's Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) with new research report -- KXL: The 'significance' trap.

<> LCFS and iLUC Workshops Presentations - The California Air Resources Board (ARB) staff has posted PowerPoint presentations for the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) and indirect land use change (iLUC) workshops on March 11, 2014.

<> ASP Briefing Note: The Ukraine Crisis and the Geopolitics of Energy -

<> The Truth About Nuclear Power - Part One - This post marks the first of several articles on commercial nuclear power plants, providing facts and figures from various credible sources.   It is notable that in some parts of the world, it is already March 11, the third anniversary of the disastrous Fukushima nuclear reactor meltdowns.   This article does not address the numerous safety issues at nuclear power plants, as that will be addressed. . .

<> GAO-14-109, Nuclear Safety: Countries' Regulatory Bodies Have Made Changes in Response to the Fukushima Daiichi Accident, March 06, 2014 - What GAO Found All the nuclear regulatory bodies in the 16 selected countries in GAO's review—13 of which currently operate nuclear power reactors and 3 of which are developing or considering developing civilian nuclear power programs—have taken steps to strengthen nuclear safety in response to the Fukushima Daiichi accident in Japan. Japan in particular has fundamentally. . .

<> Rethinking Emissions Reduction - March 6, op-ed for Project Syndicate, C2ES Board Member David Hone, chief climate change adviser at Royal Dutch Shell, urges policymakers to focus more on the deployment of carbon capture and storage technology as a strategy for achieving emissions reductions. . . "fossil fuels will likely remain dominant throughout this century – meaning that carbon capture and storage (CCS) may well be the critical technology for mitigating climate change."

<> New UNEP Report Outlines Japan's Experience with Industrial Waste Management - Lessons for Sustainable Development in Rapidly Industrializing Countries Spotlighted. . .

<> Free Online Event: the Whole Earth Summit Starts! (March 11-13, 2014) - The Whole Earth Summit (free and online). Join Geoff Lawton and 42 remarkable visionaries, and tens of thousands of people worldwide, as we share our passion, vision and next steps for creating regenerative communities and a whole earth...

<> U.S.-India Energy Dialogue 2014 - March 11, 2014U.S.-India Energy Dialogue 2014 The U.S.-India Energy Dialogue met in New Delhi on March 5-11. Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia hosted the government-to-government portion of the Dialogue meeting on March 11 with United States Department of Energy Secretary Dr. Ernest Moniz.  The U.S. delegation included the Department of. . .

<> New Report Reveals Environmental Costs of North American Free Trade Agreement - A massive free trade deal went into effect 20 years ago and has had very harmful effects on communities and the environment in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, according to a report released by Sierra Club

<> USGS Recognizes "National Groundwater Awareness Week," March 9-15, 2014 - Groundwater is one of the Nation's most valuable natural resources. It occurs almost everywhere beneath the Earth's surface and is a major source of water supply worldwide.

WIMS Environmental HotSheet 3/10/14

<> On March 7, 2014, Secretary of State John Kerry issued instructions to all diplomats around the world on combating climate change - He stressed that success in this effort will require active leadership and participation from everyone in the State Department and at posts around the world.

<> In Response to Russian Aggression, Key Central European Nations Plead for U.S. Natural Gas Exports - In response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the central European nations of Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic yesterday sent a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) urging action to export more American natural gas to counter Russian President Vladimir Putin. "Energy security is not only a day-to-day issue for millions of citizens in our. . . 

<> Senators Speaking All Night to Urge Action on Climate Change - Immediately following votes on the evening of Monday, March 10 until approximately 9 am ET Tuesday, March 11, Senators from the Senate Climate Action Task Force will be holding the Senate floor to urge action on climate change.

<> Whitehouse Would Veto Two Anti-Regulatory Bills - The OMB Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) has issued two policy memos recommending a veto of H.R.2641 & H.R.2824

• H.R.2641 - Responsibly and Professionally Invigorating Development Act of 2013
• H.R.2824 - Preventing Government Waste and Protecting Coal Mining Jobs in America

<> Handbook Issued on NEPA and CEQA: Integrating Federal and State Environmental Reviews - March 7, 2014. Handbook Issued on NEPA and CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act): Integrating Federal and State Environmental Reviews The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and the California Governor's Office of Planning and Research (OPR) jointly issued a new handbook, NEPA and CEQA: Integrating Federal and State Environmental Reviews.

<> Handbook On Integrating NEPA With Historic Preservation Act - Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) issue the first handbook, to provide advice to Federal agencies, applicants, project sponsors, and consultants on how to take advantage of existing regulatory provisions to align the NEPA process and the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) Section 106 review process.

<> Demand response part of Army prep for climate change - In this interview with Kathleen Wolf Davis of Intelligent Utility, Richard Kidd, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy and Sustainability for the U.S. Army, describes the need for technologies and applications–demand response, smart grid, and microgrids, for example–to prepare our armed services for the impact of climate change.

<> First round of UN climate change negotiations in 2014 set to kick off in Bonn with Special Focus on Renewables and Energy Efficiency - This year's UN climate change negotiations kick off in Bonn this week, marking the beginning of an intense year of conferences and summits designed to lead to a meaningful, universal agreement in Paris in late 2015.

<> Science Advisory Board Issues Science Advice and EPA Priority Topics - SAB identified several areas where science advice would be helpful in advancing the agency's mission.

<> Survey Finds GE Contamination of Organic Farms - (Beyond Pesticides, March 10, 2014) New data finds that organic farmers are growing increasingly concerned with genetically engineered (GE) crops cross-pollinating and contaminating their fields. This contamination can lead to serious economic losses for organic farmers and has created tension between neighbors. The data comes at a critical time as USDA is advancing the. . . 

<> Colorado River Basin Study - Press release: There will not be enough water in the Colorado River in the near future to meet the demands of the more than 33 million people in Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming who depend on it for drinking water, crops, ranching, tourism, energy and business. That's according to a new Colorado River Basin Water Supply and. . .

<> UEA research reveals four new man-made gases in the atmosphere - Scientists at the University of East Anglia have identified four new man-made gases in the atmosphere – all of which are contributing to the destruction of the ozone layer.

<> DOE Announces Webinars on the National Fuel Cell Technology Evaluation Center, Engaging Building Occupants to Reduce Energy Use, and More - March 7, 2014DOE Announces Webinars on the National Fuel Cell Technology Evaluation Center, Engaging Building Occupants to Reduce Energy Use, and More EERE offers webinars to the public on a range of subjects, from adopting the latest energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies to training for the clean energy workforce. Webinars are free; however, advanced. . .

<> Technical documents supporting the National Climate Assessment - Compiled by 13 government agencies as part of the U.S. Global Change Research Program and expected to be released in April, Island Press has published the full-length version of the reports, which focus on energy and infrastructure more broadly. Huffington Post article links to the reports.

<> The Effect of Renewable Energy Development on Carbon Emission Reduction: An Empirical Analysis for the EU-15 Countries - Institute for the Study of Labor http://ftp.iza.org/dp7989.pdf The increased concerns about climate change have made renewable energy sources an important topic of research. Several scholars have applied different methodologies to examine the relationships between energy consumption and economic growth of individual and groups of countries and to analyze the. . .