Tuesday, June 03, 2014

WIMS Environmental HotSheet 6/3/14

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National / International News

 

<> Remarks for Administrator McCarthy, Announcement of Clean Power Plan, Washington, DC - About a month ago, I took a trip to the Cleveland Clinic. I met a lot of great people, but one stood out—even if he needed to stand on a chair to do it. Parker Frey is 10 years old. He's struggled with severe asthma all his life. . .

<> Smith: New EPA Power Plant Regs 'All Pain, No Gain' - Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) released the following statement in response to the Obama administration's announcement of stringent new EPA carbon. . .

<> The Consensus on Climate Change: It's Time to Act - The crisis of climate change is felt across our nation and around the world.  Today, President Obama's Administration proposed a bold plan to responsibly reduce carbon pollution and safeguard our children's health

<> Recent trends in energy-related CO2 emissions vary across regions and states - (Tue, 03 Jun 2014) U.S. energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2013 were 10% below the benchmark year of 2005. . . Recently released state-level data through 2011, calculated from the State Energy Data System (SEDS) and aggregated here by Census regions...

<> Report Reviews Estimates of Costs and Benefits of Compliance with Renewable Portfolio Standards to Date - A new report, prepared by analysts from the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), reviews estimates of the costs and benefits of compliance 

<> 2013 Annual Accomplishments Report - The report illustrates how NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC),continues to carry out critical climate science, develop new and better applications to enable climate data access, and monitor our changing planet.

<> China and the United States—A Comparison of Green Energy Programs and Policies – A 31-page report from the Congressional Research Service dated 4/30/14

<> Secretary Kerry's Call to Action to Help Protect Our Ocean - U.S. Secretary of State Kerry issued a call to action to people around the world to help protect our ocean, an encouragement as the Our Ocean Conference hosted by the Department of State in Washington, D.C., approaches on June 16-17.

<> EPA Rule on Treated Seeds Challenged, Activists Tell Lowe's to Stop Selling Neonics - (Beyond Pesticides, June 3, 2014) In a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Center for Food Safety (CFS) challenged EPA's position that seeds coated with pesticides. . .

<> World needs $48 trillion in investment to meet its energy needs to 2035 -

IEA World Energy Outlook special report sees rising role of governments in shaping investment decisions. . .

<> CO2 Levels Reach and Maintain 400 PPM - A Dubious Milestone in Human History - The World Meteorological Organization has reported that, for perhaps the first time in human history, atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) eclipsed 400 parts-per-million (ppm) in the northern hemisphere for the entire month of April. . .

 

U.S. Appeals Court Environmental Decisions

 

<> GenOn Power Midwest, L.P. v. Bell – In the U.S. Supreme Court, Docket No. 13-1013, Appealed from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. The High Court denied the petition to appeal. Issue: Whether the Clean Air Act, which provides a comprehensive system for the regulation of air pollution in the United States and leaves "no room for a parallel track," American Electric Power Co. v. Connecticut, preempts state common law nuisance claims that would impose emissions restrictions different from those adopted pursuant to the Act and expose companies operating in compliance with all applicable emissions standards under the Act to liability for their emissions.

<> Venancio Aguasanta Arias v. Dyncorp – In the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit, Case No. 13-7044. The Panel rules: "Appellants, a group of Ecuadorian provinces and individual farmers, alleged that they were injured by an anti-drug herbicide spraying operation in Colombia, conducted by an American company. In a series of rulings, the district judge dismissed all claims. Some of those are appealed. We affirm all but one."

 

Federal Register Highlights 

The following is an alert of Environmental Federal Register announcements that may be of interest for: Tuesday, June 3, 2014.  (Click here to access today's complete Federal Register index with links to complete announcements).

 

1. Nothing We're Tracking Today (click for the complete Energy & EPA announcements)

 

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