Weekly Green: March 6, 2013

In recent headlines:

• Jerry Hill (lifetime CLCV score 97%) named chair of Senate Environmental Quality Committee;
• New EPA pick seen as strong;
• Future water prices, availability in question;
• San Francisco tops new "mega-commuter" list; foam ban possible in San Jose; no coal in Los Angeles by 2025?
• ... and much more!

» Welcome to another jam-packed edition of the Weekly Green, a no-frills news roundup provided free of charge by the California League of Conservation Voters. If you're not a regular subscriber, sign up today! Get your free subscription here: http://ecovote.org/wg

Top News

Jerry Hill chosen to lead environmental committee
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, has tapped Sen. Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, to fill former senator Michael Rubio's place atop a key environmental committee.
http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2013/03/jerry-hill-nominated-for-environmental-committee.html

CLCV's statement on nomination of Sen. Hill as Chair of Environmental Quality Committee
We recognize Senator Hill as an environmental and community leader. We look forward to working with him as Chair of this important committee and are confident that he will bring his commitment and legislative skills to bear in efforts to support effective implementation of CEQA, improve and protect water quality, and on hazardous waste.
http://www.ecovote.org/page/press-release-clcv-statement-hill-appointment
Blog entry: http://www.ecovote.org/blog/environmental-champion-jerry-hill-chair-key-committee

Labor, biz and enviros agree on one thing in CEQA fight: They like Jerry Hill. So far.
Many in the looming CEQA battle seem OK for now with the choice of Democratic State Senator Jerry Hill.
http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2013/03/05/labor-biz-and-enviros-agree-on-one-thing-in-ceqa-fight-they-like-jerry-hill-so-far/

L.A. mayor's race: Garcetti and Greuel top the field
The top-two finishers in Tuesday’s election will face off in what is expected to be a bruising May 21 runoff. Only 16% of the city's 1.8 million registered voters cast ballots in the election.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2013/03/la-mayors-race-garcetti-and-greuel-top-the-field-.html

Obama Makes a Strong Choice to Head the EPA
There are three basic things one would hope to see in the White House’s nominee for the Environmental Protection Agency. He or she should possess a big, ambitious vision for combating climate change; he or she should have federal rule-making experience, since that’s the administration’s only real hope for getting things accomplished in that area; and he or she should be able to get confirmed by the US Senate. At first blush, Obama’s selection of Gina McCarthy seems to clearly check each box.
http://www.thenation.com/blog/173187/obama-makes-strong-choice-head-epa

More California Environmental News

Gov. Jerry Brown works to spread California's green doctrine
Brown needs other states and the federal government to adopt key elements of California's environmental agenda, such as reaping more energy from renewable sources and capping greenhouse gas emissions, if those programs are to be successful here.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-brown-environment-20130304,0,411747.story

San Onofre uncertainty mirrored throughout industry
Safety concerns, construction costs and continually cheap energy alternatives such as natural gas have some analysts planning for a reduction in the contribution from nuclear power.
http://www.ocregister.com/news/nuclear-497878-plant-san.html

Blue Tahoe getting a little bluer
A recent trend in improved water clarity at Lake Tahoe has scientists and regional agency planners confident that 15 years of environmental measures are beginning to bear fruit.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/03/03/5231705/blue-tahoe-getting-a-little-bluer.html

Average commute for L.A. County residents 29.4 minutes in 2011
Nearly 12 percent of workers in Los Angeles County had a commute of an hour or more in 2011, while 72.3 percent drove to work alone, according to statistics released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_22725245/average-commute-l-county-residents-29-4-minutes

Bay Area tops new 'mega-commuter' Census list defining the worst trips to work
"Mega-commuters" -- a new Census demographic that defines the worst of the worst commutes: workers who spend at least 90 minutes plus 50 miles to get to the office in the morning. And... a Bay Area worker is four times more likely than the average American worker to be a mega-commuter, a sobering fact that officials say isn't likely to change anytime soon.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_22717273/bay-area-tops-new-mega-commuter-census-list

Hard choices ahead for growing S.F.
San Francisco residents will be getting thousands of new neighbors in the next 30 years, and it's time to start figuring out where they will live and work.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Hard-choices-ahead-for-growing-S-F-4328013.php

Water price, availability in question
In the coming months, California will confront an unusual confluence of challenges that could determine the price and availability of water for decades to come. These looming decisions will test the state’s commitment to revitalizing one of the nation’s most economically and environmentally important estuaries: the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/mar/04/future-water-price-availability-in-question/

San Jose steps closer toward plastic foamware ban
San Jose took a step closer to becoming the largest city in California and perhaps the nation to ban plastic foam food containers after voting Tuesday to pursue phasing them out beginning next year.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_22676272/san-jose-steps-closer-toward-plastic-foamware-ban

Los Angeles to end use of coal by 2025, says Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
The city of Los Angeles, once mostly dependent on coal-fired power plants, will end its use of coal energy entirely within 12 years, according to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
http://www.scpr.org/blogs/environment/2013/02/26/12695/los-angeles-to-end-use-of-coal-by-2025-says-mayor/

Herdt: Freaking out about 'fracking'
Although it has been used in unregulated obscurity for decades in California, the drilling practice of hydraulic fracturing — you know it as “fracking” — has rather suddenly emerged as one of the top issues in Sacramento this year.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2013/feb/26/herdt-freaking-out-about-fracking/

Imperial County betting its future on renewable energy
The county, which has the state's highest jobless rate, needs the construction boom to spur its economy. But some farmers and Native Americans are crying foul.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-imperial-energy-20130227,0,497876.story

California high-speed rail finally wins Peninsula lawsuit after five years
Nearly five years after Peninsula cities first sued to block California's high-speed train from running along the Caltrain corridor, a judge has dismissed the case in a long-awaited victory for bullet train backers.
http://www.mercurynews.com/california-high-speed-rail/ci_22688893/california-high-speed-rail-finally-wins-peninsula-lawsuit

High-speed rail project targets 'disadvantaged' workers in the Central Valley
The prospect of construction jobs in the recession-weary Central Valley has long been a selling point for proponents of California's $68 billion high-speed rail project. A controversy has arisen, however, since officials pledged in December to reserve a portion of those jobs for certain disadvantaged people.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/03/04/5233285/high-speed-rail-project-targets.html

New Calif. rail plan to make major improvements in Valley Amtrak
State transportation leaders are quietly planning to drop more than $15 billion into California's existing Amtrak train service -- including a big chunk here in the Valley. Improvements for Amtrak's San Joaquin line are forecast in a draft of a new statewide rail plan that the California Department of Transportation is circulating for public comment through March 11.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/03/03/3197481/new-calif-rail-plan-to-make-major.html

Snow survey confirms driest Jan., Feb. on record in California
It's official, and it's not good news for thirsty Californians: January and February have been the driest on record.
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_22692734/snow-survey-confirms-driest-jan-feb-record-california

Sahara Desert dust affects California rainfall, study finds
High-altitude dust blown thousands of miles across the Pacific from Asian and African deserts can make it rain and snow in the Sierra Nevada, according to new research that suggests tiny particles from afar play a role in California's water supply.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-water-dust-20130301,0,4934653.story

USC water report: conservation will be imperative for Los Angeles, Inland Empire
Water providers such as the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and Cucamonga Valley Water District are likely to meet conservation goals, but that does not mean their customers will be immune from future supply problems, according to a new study led by USC researchers. The report, released today, concludes that Southern California agencies' current conservation strategies may be too modest to protect water supplies in light of future uncertainties.
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_22688701/usc-water-report-conservation-will-be-imperative-los

A carbon market takes root in California
California's carbon market remains in its infancy, and the program still faces a legal challenge and uncertainty about what action, if any, the federal government may take to reduce emissions at the national level. Still, the success of the most recent state auction is widely seen as an indication that the a market-based approach to reduce greenhouse gases is here to stay, and could be replicated elsewhere.
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_22691814/carbon-market-takes-root-california

Tribe To Launch Biomass-Fueled Fuel Cell Plant in Northern California
On Wednesday, fuel cell industry dreadnought Ballard Power Systems announced it's teaming up with the Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe in Humboldt County to build a first-of-its-kind biogas fuel cell system. The Blue Lake Rancheria is in timber country a few miles east of Arcata. Waste from timber harvesting is in abundant local supply. A 175-megawatt "ClearGen" fuel cell system will convert that logging waste to essentially carbon-neutral power.
http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/biomass/tribe-to-launch-biomass-fueled-fuel-cell-plant.html

Firms sue to keep California from adding BPA to 'blacklist'
Industry representatives say in their filing that the state is ignoring the findings of national scientific experts, outlined in a 2008 report, that there was no proof BPA poses serious health risks. State regulators point to findings in the same report that say the chemical, used in soup cans, dental fillings and other items, could increase the risks of some birth defects.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-chemicals-20130302,0,5161122.story

Jerry Brown says he was counting on Michael Rubio
Gov. Jerry Brown said today that state Sen. Michael Rubio's resignation from the state Legislature took him by surprise, and he suggested it could complicate his effort to overhaul the state's signature environmental law.
http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2013/02/jerry-brown-says-he-was-counting-on-michael-rubio-calls-resignation-surpris.html

CEQA future tied to Oakland's experience
Gov. Jerry Brown wants to loosen requirements on the state's 43-year-old landmark environmental law and is willing to stare down his core backers in labor and environmental circles, in large part because of what he learned as mayor of Oakland more than a decade ago.
http://www.sfgate.com/politics/joegarofoli/article/CEQA-future-tied-to-Oakland-s-experience-4308007.php

Dan Morain: After election losses, Chevron turns to Rubio
Setting aside questions of propriety, Chevron was shrewd to hire state Sen. Michael Rubio to head its governmental relations operation. Rubio's decision to quit midterm makes sense, too.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/02/27/5220191/after-election-losses-chevron.html

Yosemite plan - relief for giant sequoias
The National Park Service on Tuesday released its long-awaited environmental review of plans to restore the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias to something closer to its natural state.
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Yosemite-plan-relief-for-giant-sequoias-4311343.php

National park cuts could hit state hard
Park rangers in the Bay Area and throughout California would be laid off, interpretive programs would be cut and Yosemite's bears might end up with a perpetual trash banquet if the federal government does not find a deficit-reduction plan, according to a National Park Service document leaked this week.
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/National-park-cuts-could-hit-state-hard-4302094.php

Bay Area environmental group proposes hybrid levees for bay
As global warming escalates, San Francisco Bay's existing flood protection system will be no match for rising sea levels. But according to a new report by a Bay Area environmental group, fortifying the bay's shoreline with levees fronted by restored tidal marshes will be a cheaper, more aesthetic and ecologically sensitive alternative to traditional levees.
http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_22651840/bay-area-environmental-group-proposes-hybrid-levees-bay

Delta pumps raise controversy in the Valley
Are these huge pumps a savior or a villain? At the moment, they're simply the focus as authorities try to protect the dwindling smelt, which don't live anywhere else on the planet.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/02/23/3186214/delta-pumps-irrigate-valley-farmland.html

Global warming worries Californians
Two-thirds of California voters believe global warming is a threat and measures need to be taken to stop it, but the level of concern has dropped significantly over the past six years, according to a Field Poll released Monday.
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Global-warming-worries-Californians-4305269.php

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