Weekly Green: March 18, 2014

In recent headlines:

• Thousands rally at Capitol to protest fracking;
• Oil severance tax at center stage;
• Warmest winter on record worsens California drought;
• California Assembly names new Assembly speaker
• ... and much more!

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Top News

Thousands rally at Capitol to protest fracking
More than 2,000 people came from across the state to gather at the Capitol Saturday afternoon to call for a ban on fracking in California. Protesters heard from speakers who talked about how fracking hurt communities.
http://www.news10.net/story/news/politics/2014/03/15/thousands-rally-at-fracking-protest/6471383/

Scientists Sound Alarm on Climate
The report will warn that the effects of human emissions of heat-trapping gases are already being felt, that the ultimate consequences could be dire, and that the window to do something about it is closing. “The evidence is overwhelming: Levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are rising,” says the report, which was made available early to The New York Times. “Temperatures are going up. Springs are arriving earlier. Ice sheets are melting. Sea level is rising. The patterns of rainfall and drought are changing. Heat waves are getting worse, as is extreme precipitation. The oceans are acidifying.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/18/science/scientists-sound-alarm-on-climate.html

Ricardo Lara & Fran Pavley: Reduce air pollution for region’s health, economy
It’s time to send a signal, not only to Californians but to the Congress, neighboring states and important trading partners like Mexico and China. Long-term targets to reduce climate pollution in California will make our families healthier and our economy stronger.
http://www.presstelegram.com/opinion/20140317/reduce-air-pollution-for-regions-health-economy-guest-commentary

Huge increase in crude oil by rail to Bay Area concerns local leaders
Bakken crude oil from North Dakota is part of the mix of increased crude-by-rail shipments into Contra Costa County, raising concerns from local leaders about whether current regulations are sufficient to minimize risks of transporting the volatile fossil fuel.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/west-county-times/ci_25363152/huge-increase-crude-oil-by-rail-bay-area

Oil severance tax at center stage
It has been killed repeatedly in the state Legislature or at the ballot box, but the backers of an oil severance tax hope 2014 is the year to get it done. History is not on their side.
http://capitolweekly.net/oil-severance-tax-california/

Drought News

Letters to the Editor: What to Do About California’s Drought
The current drought has certainly been exacerbated by climate change for one simple reason: Temperatures in California are now higher today, as they are globally. This alone increases water demand by crops and ecosystems, accelerates snowpack loss, and worsens evaporation from reservoirs. There are other complicating effects, but the influence of higher temperatures on drought is already real and cannot be ignored. We are now unambiguously altering the climate, threatening water supplies for human and natural systems. This is but one example of how even today we are paying the cost of unavoidable climate changes.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/17/opinion/what-to-do-about-californias-drought.html

Warmest winter on record worsens California drought
Warmer winters make for less snow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. When the snow melts into the state's rivers, it provides water throughout the summer, when the state typically experiences little rain.
http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/Latest-News-Wires/2014/0317/Warmest-winter-on-record-worsens-California-drought

Court approves California Delta smelt protections
A federal appeals court on Thursday largely upheld a 2008 plan that called for restrictions on water deliveries from California's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to protect a tiny, threatened fish. In a 2-1 ruling, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals panel said that much of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's 2008 biological opinion about the Delta smelt was not arbitrary and capricious as a lower court judge had ruled.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/03/11/6226163/in-severe-drought-plan-california.html

In severe drought plan, California salmon may be moved by truck
Starting next month, millions of young California salmon could be migrating to the ocean in tanker trucks instead of swimming downstream in the Sacramento River.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/03/11/6226163/in-severe-drought-plan-california.html

Dry spring imperils dwindling tricolored blackbirds in Valley
A single colony of 80,000 tricolor blackbirds filled a Tulare County farmer's field with nests and eggs a few years ago shortly before harvesting blades were scheduled to level the crop. It would have been an ugly killing field if not for a delay negotiated between the farmer and Audubon California. The financial settlement saved one-third of Earth's dwindling population of tricolored blackbirds.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2014/03/15/3825370/dark-daysblackbirds.html

California drought: Solar desalination plant shows promise
Quietly whirring away in a dusty field in the Central Valley is a shiny solar energy machine that may someday solve many of California's water problems.
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/California-drought-Solar-desalination-plant-5326024.php

More CA Environmental & Politics

National Park Service Slams Solar Project Near Mojave Preserve
The National Park Service isn't happy about a proposal to build a large solar facility on almost 4,200 acres next door to the Mojave National Preserve. The agency is citing the project's threats to wildlife, rare plants, groundwater, air quality, and wilderness characteristics of the 1.6 million acre unit.
http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/solar/photovoltaic-pv/park-service-slams-blm-over-solar-project-near-mojave-preserve.html

UC Davis: The trend at Lake Tahoe is toward clarity
The latest scientific findings from Lake Tahoe show a trend toward long-term water clarity. Clarity levels at the alpine lake continued to stabilize in 2013, according to University of California, Davis scientists. The average clarity reading for last year was 70.1 feet.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/03/13/6234199/uc-davis-the-trend-at-lake-tahoe.html

BPA-free plastics may be less safe than those with chemical
Now comes news from Oakland's Center for Environmental Health that some cups labeled BPA-free contain other chemicals that appear to pose an equal if not greater health hazard. Those chemicals, acting a lot like BPA, have a disruptive effect on the body's naturally produced hormones, raising the same concerns for the health risks associated with BPA - that exposure to them may lead to cancer, diabetes, reproductive problems, early development and obesity, especially in young children. The research isn't definitive, but a growing number of studies, mostly done on animals, have raised those suspicions.
http://www.sfgate.com/health/article/BPA-free-plastics-may-be-less-safe-than-those-5302319.php

Amateur photographer's images helped preserve national treasure
President Barack Obama added more of northern California's beautiful coastline this week to a national monument, ensuring it will be preserved and protected. Much of the credit goes to a photographer. Bob Wick's photos do more than describe the new addition to the California Coastal National Monument -- they take you there.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/amateur-photographers-images-helped-preserve-national-treasure/

San Francisco Chronicle editorial: Mendocino part of a worthy coastal protection
A stretch of Mendocino coastline filled with wildflower meadows, steep bluffs and river estuary will join a national preserve running the length of California's 1,100-mile Pacific edge. The result caps a drive that will safeguard the land, rejuvenate tourism and overcome Washington's snarled conservation policies.
http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/editorials/article/Mendocino-part-of-a-worthy-coastal-protection-5322974.php

Toxic material in infant mats on new state list targeting hazardous materials
Infant napping pads, varnish strippers and certain foam sealants made California’s first-ever list of hazardous products on Thursday, putting manufacturers on notice that they’ll eventually need to find cleaner ingredients to make those items or face government regulation.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/03/14/6235803/toxic-material-in-infant-mats.html

California Assembly names new Assembly speaker
The California Assembly on Monday formally chose Assembly Majority Leader Toni Atkins as its next speaker. The San Diego Democrat succeeds Speaker John Perez, a Los Angeles Democrat.
http://voices.mydesert.com/2014/03/17/california-assembly-names-new-assembly-speaker/

National News

EPA Unlikely to Buy Argument that Keystone XL Will Not Worsen Climate Change: Agency Concerns Were Ignored
The lead U.S. environmental agency has for several years raised serious concerns about the climate, environmental, safety, and health impacts of the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.  Three different times, the U.S. EPA  has issued failing grades saying the true impacts of the pipeline have not been adequately considered.
http://theenergycollective.com/danielle-droitsch/352346/epa-unlikely-buy-argument-keystone-xl-will-not-worsen-climate-change-agency

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