Weekly Green: October 1, 2012

In recent news:

• Polluters funding political ads;
• Governor signs cap-and-trade bills;
• Changing Calif. climate a threat to crops;
• California lawmakers pass a wave of new animal protection laws;
• Big earthquakes can trigger temblors across globe, USGS says;
• And much more.

Top of the Ticket

This week, CLCV Education Fund will release results of a new poll on Latinos' environmental values. Attend a forum in Oakland, Fresno, L.A. or San Diego to discuss the results and next steps!
http://www.clcvedfund.org/what-we-do/research-and-polls/latinos/outreach-forums/

Which is the Worst Oil Company of Them All?
Voters don't like it when Big Oil, Big Tobacco, Big Insurance, and Wall Street Banksters try to buy an election. But while we're successful about 75% of the time, Chevron and its allies still win 25% of their campaigns and have refined their tactics to be more deceptive and tough to beat.
http://www.ecovote.org/blog/which-worst-oil-company-them-all

Chevron Goes After Fran Pavley
These groups are not only attacking Senator Pavley because redistricting left her with a new, much more competitive district than her previous one, but also because she's been synonymous in California and around the world with the environmental movement and a clean energy economy. Defeating her would be a polluter's dream come true.
http://www.ecovote.org/blog/chevron-goes-after-fran-pavley

Governor signs cap-and-trade bills
A two-bill package that establishes how proceeds from the sale of carbon permits will be spent under California's cap-and-trade regulation was signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown on Sunday.
http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2012/10/01/governor-signs-cap-and-trade-bills.html

Governor Signs Bills Protecting Parks and Making Clean Water a Human Right
Recently, two environmental priorities cleared the final hurdle to become law. With Gov. Brown's signature, our state parks gained protection from closure, and access to clean, drinkable water became a human right in California.
http://www.ecovote.org/blog/governor-signs-bills-protecting-parks-and-making-clean-water-human-right

CA Environmental News

Changing Calif. climate a threat to crops
Farmers have always been gamblers, long accustomed to betting on the probabilities of the weather. But for the Napa Valley, where temperatures have been ideal for the wine industry, shifts in the Earth's climate could be a game-changer.
http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Changing-Calif-climate-a-threat-to-crops-3901021.php

Valley farmers examine climate change issues
New science and research has San Joaquin Valley farmers taking a harder look at the effect that climate change may have on their industry. If researcher's predictions hold true, the Valley's multi-billion dollar agriculture industry will be hit with longer stretches of hot temperatures, fewer colder days and shrinking water supplies.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2012/09/27/3008118/valley-farmers-examine-climate.html

Reality Check: California's Ultra-Low-Greenhouse Gas Future
What will it really take to meet the state's aggressive carbon reduction goals? As the centerpiece of California's climate strategy, the law known as AB 32 gets all the attention. But a little-known component of the state's plan to mitigate climate change, Executive Order S-3-05, is even more ambitious.
http://blogs.kqed.org/climatewatch/2012/09/27/reality-check-californias-ultra-low-greenhouse-gas-future/

California lawmakers pass a wave of new animal protection laws
For much of 2012, issues like taxes and schools dominated the discussion in California's state Capitol. But lawmakers and Gov. Jerry Brown also spent considerable attention on the animal kingdom.
http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_21656416/california-lawmakers-pass-wave-new-animal-protection-laws

State has new game plan for agency
Say so long to the California of Department Fish and Game and hello to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
http://www.pe.com/local-news/local-news-headlines/20120928-wildlife-state-has-new-game-plan-for-agency.ece

CA high-speed rail funding gets little love at candidate forum
California's bullet train won little support from congressional hopefuls from the Sacramento region Sunday, with just one of five congressional candidates participating in an election forum vowing to vote for federal funding for the project.
http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2012/10/congressional-candidates-split-on-california-bullet-train-funding.html

Toxics cleanup dispute at former railyards in Sacramento
Workers in Sacramento's downtown railyard this summer unearthed a disconcerting find: a large container of contaminated soil, likely buried by the Southern Pacific railroad company, which once used the property to build and fix locomotives.
http://www.sacbee.com/2012/09/30/4866721/toxics-cleanup-dispute-at-former.html

Hetch Hetchy controversy: Could Yosemite's 'second valley' be restored?
For nearly 100 years, environmentalists have dreamed about draining Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and turning the 300-foot-deep man-made lake in Yosemite National Park back into a glorious Sierra landscape -- a second Yosemite Valley with green meadows, rich forests and waterfalls cascading down granite walls.
http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_21662101/hetch-hetchy-controversy-could-yosemites-second-valley-be

Ballot Watch: Labeling genetically engineered foods
Proposition 37, pushed by organic food companies and Joseph Mercola, an osteopath and owner of an alternative health website, is the second attempt nationwide to ask voters to require labeling of genetically engineered foods.
http://www.sacbee.com/2012/09/30/4867250/ballot-watch-labeling-genetically.html

Monday is D day for bags, a dime apiece
There's one more thing San Franciscans need to add to their shopping list, unless they want to pay up: a reusable bag.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Monday-is-D-day-for-bags-a-dime-apiece-3905514.php

Sacramento region gets seat on state air board
The Sacramento region will get a seat on the California Air Resources Board under legislation signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown this week.
http://www.sacbee.com/2012/09/27/4858814/sacramento-region-gets-seat-on.html

Cadiz water project faces federal, local hurdles
The Metropolitan Water District, U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, environmental rules and lawsuits could stand in the way of the controversial Cadiz water project.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-cadiz-groundwater-20121001,0,46099.story

Environmentalists oppose PG&E plans for undersea air blasts
PG&E plans to use underwater 'air cannons' emitting 250-decibel blasts every 15 seconds for 12 straight days to map earthquake fault zones near Diablo Canyon nuclear plant.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-sonic-20120929,0,7977891.story

Yes on Prop. 39 pulls ads as opposition fades
The Yes on Prop. 39 campaign sort of declared victory today, announcing it would pull its television and radio ads after hearing that the companies once opposing the measure will do so no longer.
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2012/09/27/yes-on-prop-39-pulls-ads-as-opposition-fades/

Water authority releases desalination plan
The San Diego County Water Authority Thursday released its long-awaited draft agreement to buy desalinated water from a proposed plant in Carlsbad - a deal that could cost households up to $7 extra per month by 2016 but potentially assure the region of a more reliable source to tap as supplies across the state tighten.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/sep/27/water-authority-relies-desal-plan-7-extra-for/

Big earthquakes can trigger temblors across globe, USGS says
A large earthquake in one part of the globe can trigger earthquakes elsewhere, according to new research by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey and UC Berkeley.
http://californiawatch.org/dailyreport/big-earthquakes-can-trigger-temblors-across-globe-usgs-says-18180

California legislators call for hearing on Richmond Chevron refinery fire
Two East Bay legislators on Wednesday called for a state hearing on steps that government agencies are taking to prevent incidents like last month's massive fire at Chevron's local refinery.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_21638363/state-legislators-call-hearing-chevron-refinery-fire

National News

Romney Shifted Right on Energy as Presidential Politics Beckoned
"He was ahead of his time and very progressive," said Jack Clarke, who was appointed to an ocean management task force by Mr. Romney and now directs public policy at Mass Audubon, a conservation group. "But by the end of his administration, he seemed to have gotten Potomac fever. The conservation agenda he had didn't seem to be a core conviction."
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/30/us/politics/romney-energy-agenda-shifted.html

Ad hits Romney ahead of debate for opposing wind industry tax credit
An environmental group is hitting the airwaves in Denver, as the city prepares to host the first presidential debate, with a TV ad criticizing GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney for opposing a crucial wind energy incentive. The $500,000 League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund ad buy begins air Monday and will wrap up Oct. 7.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/259445-presidential-debate-ad-hits-romney-for-wind-energy-incentive-opposition

Poll: Obama backers want more fracking rules, but national support eroding
Supporters of President Obama are more than twice as likely as backers of Mitt Romney to want strict environmental regulations on natural-gas fracking, according to a Bloomberg National Poll released Thursday.
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/259155-poll-calls-for-stricter-fracking-regulations-decline-

• Next Weekly Green
•  
• Previous Weekly Green