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newsclips -- Newsclips for November 26, 2013 Posted: 26 Nov 2013 11:11:20
ARB Newsclips for November 26, 2013. This is a service of the California Air Resources Board’s Office of Communications. You may need to sign in or register with individual websites to view some of the following news articles. AIR POLLUTION Study: US spewing 50% more methane than EPA says. The United States is spewing 50 percent more methane - a potent heat-trapping gas - than the federal government estimates, a new comprehensive scientific study says. Much of it is coming from just three states: Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas. That means methane may be a bigger global warming issue than thought, scientists say. Methane is 21 times more potent at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, the most abundant global warming gas, although it doesn't stay in the air as long. Posted. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SCI_MORE_METHANE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Related articles: http://www.sciencecodex.com/studies_find_methane_emissions_in_california_and_us_15_times_greater_than_expected-123731 http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Study-US-spewing-50-more-methane-than-EPA-says-5010487.php Spare the Air alert called for Tuesday. Wood fires are banned in Bay Area fireplaces and stoves Tuesday because a Spare the Air alert has been issued for a second day in a row. The Bay Area Air Quality Management District said a pattern of cold, stagnant air is trapping smoke and fine particles near the ground, causing predictions of unhealthy air. Another no-burn alert may be issued for Wednesday as well. During alerts, it's illegal for Bay Area residents and businesses to burn in their fireplaces, wood stoves, pellet stoves, outdoor fire pits or any other wood-burning devices. An exemption is made for homes without permanently installed heating in areas where wood stoves or fireplaces are the only source of heat. Posted. http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_24598894/spare-air-alert-called-tuesday?IADID=Search-www.contracostatimes.com-www.contracostatimes.com http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_24598894/spare-air-alert-called-tuesday?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_24598894/spare-air-alert-called-tuesday?IADID=Search-www.mercurynews.com-www.mercurynews.com Season’s first Spare the Air Alert issued for Monday; wood fires banned. The first Spare the Air alert of the winter season for Napa and eight other counties has been issued for Monday by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. A cold weather pattern and lack of wind has allowed air pollution to rise to a level that is considered unhealthy, according to the air quality district. The alert bans the burning of wood, manufactured fire logs or other solid fuel, both inside and outdoors, for 24 hours. Homes without permanently installed heating systems are exempt. Posted. http://napavalleyregister.com/news/local/season-s-first-spare-the-air-alert-issued-for-monday/article_13ebb9e6-5562-11e3-b236-001a4bcf887a.html Voluntary restriction this morning on wood burning in the Truckee Meadows. Air pollution in the Truckee Meadows is moderate and the Washoe District Health Department asks people to do voluntary restriction on wood burning. This morning's wood burning code is yellow due to elevated levels of fine particulates, the health department reports. People with health concerns should consider reducing prolonged or health exertion, the health department said. Posted. http://www.rgj.com/article/20131126/NEWS/131126006/Voluntary-restriction-morning-wood-burning-Truckee-Meadows?nclick_check=1 Low-cost sensors gather air pollution data. Epidemiologists' understanding of the relationship between exposure to airborne pollutants and a range of health conditions, such as cardiovascular disease and asthma, has grown increasingly precise in recent years. What's less well known is precisely where the air is most polluted. Toronto, for example, has only four air-quality measurement stations providing real-time data, even though research shows that the concentration of pollutants such as nitric oxides, volatile organic compounds and carbon monoxide can vary by orders of magnitude within an area spanning just a few city blocks. Posted. http://phys.org/news/2013-11-low-cost-sensors-air-pollution.html CLIMATE CHANGE EU climate chief says UN talks hinge on 2015 deal. After another U.N. climate conference gave only modest results, European Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard says the process needs to provide a "substantial answer" to global warming in two years to remain relevant. Even if it succeeds, it's worth reconsidering whether the international confabs need to be held every year, and whether the scope of each session should be narrower, Hedegaard told The Associated Press on Sunday. Posted. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CLIMATE_CHANGE_?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Rio de Janeiro mayor to lead cities climate group. Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes (payz) will succeed New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as head of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group. Bloomberg made the announcement Tuesday at New York City Hall. The group is a network of the world's megacities aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Posted. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_MAYORS_CLIMATE_CHANGE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Related articles: http://online.wsj.com/article/AP58e17d047b7843f2a80639370fe67334.html?KEYWORDS=climate+change DIESEL EMISSSION CARB delaying retrofit deadline, sued over alleged DPF misleading. The California Air Resources Board is delaying the particulate matter filter retrofit enforcement deadline to July 1 for truck owners who report by Jan. 31 they made a efforts toward trying to comply with the retrofit law. CARB released Nov. 13 an advisory that said it would recognize truck owners’ “good faith” actions toward compliance by Jan. 1, the deadline for retrofitting a particulate matter filter. The state says it will delay enforcement through July 1 for those who’ve mad efforts and then reported the efforts by Jan. 31 to CARB’s Truck Regulations Upload and Compliance Reporting System. Posted. http://www.ccjdigital.com/carb-delaying-retrofit-deadline-sued-over-alleged-dpf-misleading/ FUELS GM and U.S. Army expand fuel-cell collaboration. Expanding on a demonstration project in Hawaii, General Motors Co. and the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development & Engineering Center (TARDEC) will again collaborate on fuel-cell technology under a new cooperative research and development agreement. The new collaboration will focus on the testing of new hydrogen fuel-cell materials and designs to evaluate their performance and durability before assembling them into full-scale fuel-cell propulsion systems. Posted. http://articles.sae.org/12508/ BLOGS New Study Finds U.S. Has Greatly Underestimated Methane Emissions. A comprehensive new study of atmospheric levels of methane, an important greenhouse gas released by leaky oil and gas operations and livestock, has found much higher levels over the United States than those estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency and an international greenhouse gas monitoring effort. The paper, “Anthropogenic emissions of methane in the United States,” is being published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study, combining ground and aerial sampling of the gas with computer modeling, is the most comprehensive “top down” look so far at methane levels over the United States, providing a vital check on “bottom up” approaches, which have tallied estimates for releases from a host of sources — ranging from livestock operations to gas wells. Posted. http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/11/25/new-study-finds-u-s-has-underestimated-methane-levels-in-the-atmosphere/?_r=0 23 Stories That Show Solar Power Can Be Successful Anywhere in L.A. The stereotype of affluent California rooftop solar owners persists enough that it's being used effectively in anti-solar campaigns. And there certainly are a lot of wealthy Californian individuals and businesses taking advantage of solar. But though there's certainly room for improvement in the way we make rooftop solar's benefits available to people without a lot of cash to throw around, the field isn't just limited to the rich -- even in stylish Los Angeles. That's according to "Solar in the Spotlight: Stories of Angelenos Investing in a Clean Energy Future" -- a report released today by Environment California offering 23 human-interest-style case studies of solar installations throughout Los Angeles and environs. The stories range from modest homes, to local businesses and community churches, to the titans of L.A.'s flagship industry. Posted. http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/solar/photovoltaic-pv/new-report-details-las-diverse-rooftop-solar-scene.html EPA Faces Challenges To Air Pollution Authority In Supreme Court Cases. The U.S. government's authority to regulate air pollution nationwide, often against the wishes of Republican-leaning states, could face new curbs when the U.S. Supreme Court takes on two high-stakes cases in coming months. The cases focus on the broad-ranging power wielded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the landmark Clean Air Act, first enacted in 1970. The law was envisioned as a cooperative effort between the federal government and states in which the EPA sets standards but states have to set plans to comply. Posted. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/24/epa-air-pollution-supreme-court_n_4333602.html