Weekly Green: January 28, 2013

Headlines from the last week-plus:

• Efforts to revise CEQA to resume in 2013;
• Reactions to Gov. Brown's optimistic State of the State;
• Major climate changes looming;
• Fire retardants, high-speed rail, Hetch Hetchy, and much more.

CEQA

The Battle for CEQA
California’s core environmental protection law, a 43-year-old statute frequently denounced by developers and business interests as a tangle of red tape, is on a Capitol hit list once again. But the political dynamic this year is unusual: Those pushing hard for change are Democrats, including Gov. Brown, the Senate and Assembly leaders and a farm-belt lawmaker.
http://www.capitolweekly.net/article.php?xid=116395uhwgjhsts

Moderate Michael Rubio takes on California's environmental law
State Sen. Michael Rubio says he first wondered if something [was] wrong with California's environmental review law during his days as a Kern County supervisor, when he saw it used to slow wind and solar projects he considered green by their very nature.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/01/28/5144984/moderate-michael-rubio-takes-on.html

State of the State

Brown's two key sentences
The governor touched only briefly on streamlining environmental regulations in his State of the State speech. But reformers are praising his goal of reforming the California Environmental Quality Act.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-cap-brown-environment-20130128,0,4716388.column

Jerry Brown's water plan faces mixed reviews
Nearly lost in the flurry of praise for Gov. Jerry Brown's State of the State address on Thursday were a handful of tersely worded statements from lawmakers objecting to his plan to build two water-diverting tunnels through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/01/26/5142201/jerry-browns-water-plan-faces.html

Gov. Brown puts a price tag on protecting major water supply
In his State of the State address Thursday, Gov. Jerry Brown reiterated his pitch to protect California’s water supply. But in a speech lawmakers repeatedly interrupted with applause, Brown’s plea to spend billions on water elicited silence.
http://www.scpr.org/blogs/politics/2013/01/24/12186/governor-puts-price-tag-protecting-major-water-sup/

As California Bounces Back, Governor Calls For Lofty Goals
Emboldened by a brighter fiscal horizon, Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday recommitted himself to two ambitious projects, a high-speed rail line and a huge water tunnel system, in an optimistic State of the State speech that sought to secure California’s long-term future as well as the three-term governor’s legacy.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/25/us/with-california-rebounding-governor-pushes-big-projects.html

National & World Environmental News

Major climate changes looming
Within the lifetimes of today's children, scientists say, the climate could reach a state unknown in civilization. In that time, global carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels are on track to exceed the limits that scientists believe could prevent catastrophic warming.
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Major-climate-changes-looming-4227943.php

Natural Gas May Be Worse For Climate Than Feared
Recent studies of leakage from gas fields and production facilities suggest that natural gas use may be far more dangerous to the planet's climate than expected -- with potentially serious ramifications for solar thermal generating plants as well.
http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/science/natural-gas-may-be-worse-for-climate-than-feared.html

Barbara Boxer sees carbon tax in the mix
Boxer called Hurricane Sandy a turning point in public opinion on global warming, and said Washington will act to curb CO₂ emissions not via legislation but through the Environmental Protection Agency.
http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2013/01/22/barbara-boxer-sees-carbon-tax-in-the-mix/

Sierra Club to engage in civil disobedience for first time
How hot is the controversial Keystone Pipeline controversy getting? Sierra Club President Michael Brune hopped onto Facebook to announce that the San Francisco-headquartered Club is "for the first time in our 120-year history….be engaging in peaceful civil disobedience to help stop the dirty and destructive Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. We’re all in!"
http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2013/01/22/sierra-club-to-engage-in-civil-disobedience-for-first-time/

Susie Tompkins Buell organizing to press Obama for "bold" appointments on climate change
(Video) San Francisco philanthropist and businesswoman Susie Tompkins Buell -- one of a crowd of big Democratic donors expressing sharp opposition to the Keystone XL pipeline -- is organizing a new effort to press President Barack Obama for “bold” appointments to advance the issue of climate change.
http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2013/01/28/big-dem-donor-susie-buell-organizing-to-presses-obama-for-bold-appointments-on-climate-change-video/

New York Times Dismantles Its Environment Desk
Times says demise of the nine-person team, created in 2009, won't affect climate coverage.
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/20130111/new-york-times-dismantles-environmental-desk-journalism-fracking-climate-change-science-global-warming-economy

More California Environmental News & Opinion

[Opinion] Dan Morain: Rolling back regs on fire retardants
Ten months after Brown took office the first time, his administration produced a little-noticed regulation requiring that furniture sold in California comply with the strictest fire safety standard in the nation. Although it was supposed to save lives, another story has emerged in the intervening decades. Technical Bulletin 117 has resulted in the addition of countless tons of toxic chemicals to couch cushions, carpet pads and, alas, our bodies.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/01/27/5141866/rolling-back-regs-on-fire-retardants.html

California still hasn't bought land for bullet train route
Construction is supposed to start in July. High-speed rail officials say they can do it. But they face resistance from landowners, and if the schedule slips, costs could grow too high.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-bullet-land-20130127,0,6688039.story

Effort to drain Hetch Hetchy dealt major setback
In a move that could be the political death knell for environmentalists' efforts to drain Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission has approved a plan to block the draining of the famed reservoir unless the 26 cities and water districts in San Mateo, Santa Clara and Alameda counties that receive Hetch Hetchy water give their approval.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_22445061/effort-drain-hetch-hetchy-dealt-major-setback

California Industry's Greenhouse Pollution Dropped Again in 2011
California's industrial emissions of greenhouse gases dropped for the third straight year in 2011, according to figures released this month by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The decline adds to a so-far unbroken trend since CARB started tracking the emissions in 2008.
http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/climate-change/california-industrys-greenhouse-pollution-dropped-again-in-2011.html

Notthoff: California's Environmental Leadership: Making Progress Amid Economic Recovery
Governor Brown's continued bold leadership is essential to advance California's groundbreaking climate, land and water policies. California is on the right path and we have internationally acclaimed environmental and public health policies on the books. A quick look at what California accomplished in 2012 is inspirational.
http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/site/californias-environmental-leadership-making-progress-amid-economic-recovery

Plenty of green [plug-in hybrid] carpool stickers remain available
The carpool sticker program will end Jan. 1, 2015, and many think it is unlikely to be extended because of the low demand as well as the push to convert many carpool lanes into toll lanes that solo drivers use for a fee. But with 40 percent of all plug-in vehicles in the U.S. registered in California, some state officials think demand will increase.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_22405368

The Oyster Farm Goes to Court
Drakes Bay Oyster Company is asking an Oakland judge to indefinitely block the creation of the first marine wilderness on the West Coast.
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/ebx/the-oyster-farm-goes-to-court/Content?oid=3441833

• Next Weekly Green
•  
• Previous Weekly Green