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The EPA's coal mandate: An opportunity for nuclear, a giveaway for natural gas

March 28, 2012 by Steve Skutnik
with 511 views
7

Today the EPA issued its first-ever regulation on carbon dioxide emissions from new power plants, limiting emissions to 1000 pounds of CO2 per megawatt-hour of electricity produced. Given the fact that the average coal plant vastly exceeds this limit (weighing in around 1,768 lbs CO2 per megawatt-hour), the implications of the move seem... [read more]

The Beginning of the End for Coal?

March 28, 2012 by Geoffrey Styles
with 261 views
0

I saw in Tuesday's Washington Post that the EPA was ready to issue its proposed rules for CO2 emissions from new power plants. When finalized, these rules would apply to facilities larger than 25 MW that begin construction more than a year hence. As the Post notes, the chosen CO2 emissions limit of 1,000 lb. per gross Megawatt-hour (MWh... [read more]

Will the EPA's 'endangerment finding' stand?

February 23, 2012 by David Doniger
with 394 views
0

Next week a rogues’ gallery of science-denying industry associations, right-wing advocacy groups, Tea Party backers, and ultra-conservative elected officials get their day in court – two days, actually – to challenge the Environmental Protection Agency’s “endangerment finding” and its other actions under the Clean Air Act to start... [read more]

Predicting the Top Sustainability Stories of 2012

February 3, 2012 by Gil Friend
with 748 views
3

Last month I offered my picks for the Top Sustainability Stories of 2011. Here are my predictions for the Top Sustainability Stories of 2012. (It's a rugged mix of bad news and good.) Climate heats up and hides out The sheer pressure of the hard-to-escape evidence -- more record-breaking temperatures, more disastrous weather events, big... [read more]

Finding the Polluters: A Step Toward Accountability on Global Warming

January 17, 2012 by Peter Lehner
with 209 views
2

A new EPA web tool documents global warming pollution from about 6,700 facilities across the United States, filling a critical gap in the public's right to know about pollution. Polluters have been required to report on toxic chemical emissions for years, but in 2010, for the first time, big industrial polluters were asked to provide... [read more]

Because That's Where the Emissions Are

January 16, 2012 by Geoffrey Styles
with 175 views
0

Yesterday the Environmental Protection Agency released its tabulation of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from large facilities in the US. In perusing the data I couldn't help thinking of the quote attributed to Willie Sutton concerning why he robbed banks. Even if he never actually said, "Because that's where the money is," the simple logic of... [read more]

Biofuel Industry: Cellulosic Ethanol is Making Progress

January 12, 2012 by Antonio Pasolini
with 470 views
1

   Photo: NYT The Renewable Fuels Association has published an article on its website saying that despite a shortfall in cellulosic biofuel production in relation to the targets set by the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), as reported by the New York Times, the sector has been making advances.    “In a very... [read more]

What Would It Be Like if the GOP Abolished the EPA?

January 10, 2012 by Peter Lehner
with 520 views
1

The Republican Party has turned the Environmental Protection Agency into a political punching bag in the past year. GOP lawmakers routinely call for abolishing the agency and scraping the government standards that protect us from pollution. These attacks are part of the GOP’s larger ideological war against government regulation. But what... [read more]

New Air Pollution Rules Could Reduce US Electric-Sector CO2 Emissions By More Than 4 Percent

January 4, 2012 by Jesse Jenkins
with 394 views
1

Also by Alex Trembath. Two new federal air pollution regulations are expected to spur the closure of up to 67 aging, inefficient, coal-fired power plants, reducing both harmful air pollutants and emissions of the climate destabilizing greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide (CO2), according to an AP survey of US power plant operators and a... [read more]

Ethanol Industry Permits Its Politicians to Allow the Expiration of Its Tax Credit and Tariff

January 4, 2012 by Michael Giberson
with 269 views
0

The Des Moines Register has one version of the story - the agribusiness industry decided it could do without the subsidy since the renewable fuels mandate seemed securely in place: So established is corn-fed ethanol that the industry allowed the expiration of the 45 cents-per-gallon tax credit for ethanol production, as well as the... [read more]

Energy Efficiency in 2011: Progress on Many Fronts, Treading Water on Others

December 29, 2011 by Steve Nadel
with 422 views
2

With 2011 drawing to a close, now is a good time to take stock of energy efficiency accomplishments over the past year. On the plus side, many energy efficiency investments were made this year. While exact figures are not available yet, utility-sector spending on energy efficiency programs is likely to be more than $6 billion for the... [read more]

All I Want For Christmas Is …For Obama To Enact A Federal Climate Policy

December 23, 2011 by David Doniger
with 274 views
4

Smithsonian Magazine has posted some unusual portraits of jolly Saint Nick and asked readers to vote for the Scariest Santa.  Here’s my choice:                               ... [read more]

Climate Pragmatism in Action: New Mercury Regulations To Trigger Less Coal Use

December 22, 2011 by Jesse Jenkins
with 172 views
1

The Environmental Protection Agency unveiled new (and long-overdue) regulations today to rein in mercury and other toxic pollutants from coal and oil-fired power plants. The new mercury rules, designed to save lives and protect children from the potent neurotoxin, are likely to trigger the closure of many of America's oldest, dirtiest... [read more]

32 US Coal-Fired Power Plants Headed for Closure

December 21, 2011 by Jim Pierobon
with 517 views
0

The hotly debated Air Toxics Rule and Cross State Air Pollution Rule now slated for enactment in three years by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are destined to close at least 32 coal-fired power plants throughout the U.S. each with an average age of 51 years. This according to a survey of 55 power plant operators and EPA data by... [read more]

The Nuts and Bolts of the New CAFE and GHG Vehicle Standards

December 16, 2011 by Charles Zhu
with 162 views
0

This is Part 2 of a series on the new EPA-DOT vehicle greenhouse gas (GHG) and fuel economy standards. Part 1 took a first look on the goals of the standards.These days, most cars can go from 0 to 60 mph in a pretty short time – but can the nation’s car fleet go from 27.3 to 49.5 mpg in 15 years flat?As we mentioned in Part I, a 49.5 mpg... [read more]