Wildland Fire Management

Posted by Brad Johnson Tue, 12 Feb 2008 15:00:00 GMT

Witnesses * Dr. Anthony L. Westerling, University of California, Merced * Dr. Roger B. Hammer, Department of Sociology, Oregon State University * Albert C. Hyde, Consultant, Brookings Institution’s Center for Executive Education * Robin Nazzarro, Director for Natural Resources and Environment, GAO * Kathleen Tighe, Deputy Inspector General, USDA * Kirk M. Rowdabaugh, President, National Association of State Foresters and Arizona State Forester * James Cason, Asst. Secretary for Policy & Budget, Department of Interior * Mark E. Rey, Under Secretary for Natural Resources & Environment, USDA

Budget Briefing: EPA Clean Air and Global Climate Change Budget Cut 38%

Posted by EESI Tue, 12 Feb 2008 00:31:00 GMT

Ed. —I would like to welcome the participation of the Environmental and Energy Study Institute on Hill Heat. EESI was founded in 1984 by a bipartisan group of members of Congress concerned about energy and environmental issues. Their initial series of guest posts will be drawn from their briefings on the president’s proposed FY 2009 budget.

The President’s FY 2009 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) budget request remains relatively flat compared to the FY 2008 request and is down slightly from FY 2008 appropriations. The FY 2009 budget request is $7.14 billion, which is $56.9 million (0.80%) less than the FY 2008 budget request and $330 million (4.4%) less than FY 2008 appropriations.

The President’s FY 2009 budget request for Clean Air and Global Climate Change (EPA Goal 1) is $939 million. This is $33 million (3.4%) less than the FY 2008 appropriations.

Looking at the EPA budget by goals, the Reduced Greenhouse Gas Intensity program within Goal 1 has a FY 2009 budget request of $121 million, which is $9.0 million (6.9%) less than the FY 2008 appropriations of $130 million and $1.7 million (1.4%) less than the FY 2008 budget request of $123 million.

Looking at the EPA budget by program and project, the FY 2009 budget request for Climate Protection programs includes a Science and Technology component, requested at $11.4 million, and an Environmental Program and Management component, requested at $87.0 million. Taken together, these were cut $10.3 million (9.5%) from FY 08 appropriations. The Climate Protection Programs include Energy Star, SmartWay Transport, the Methane to Markets Partnership and Asia-Pacific Partnership. There were a number of cuts, as well as a few increases to the programs, as illustrated below:

Climate Protection Programs

  • $10.3 million cut overall (9.5% cut from FY 08 appropriations)
  • Zeroing out the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Registry (100% cut from $3.4 million in FY 08)
  • $6.9 million cut in Climate Science and Technology program (38% cut from FY 08 appropriations)
  • $4.0 million cut in Energy STAR (8.3% cut from FY 08 appropriations)
  • $177,000 increase in Methane to Markets (4.1% increase from FY 08 appropriations)
  • $5.0 million increase in Asian Pacific Partnership (no previous FY 08 appropriation amount)

Clean Air Rules

Clean Air Rules are a major component of EPA’s Clean Air and Global Climate Change Goal, and include the Clean Air Interstate Rule, the Clean Air Mercury Rule and the Clean Air Nonroad Diesel Rule. These rules work towards the improvement of the United State’s air quality. Additionally, reductions on particulate matter from diesel engines will continue to be addressed through the Diesel Emissions Reduction Grants program of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-58), which authorizes $200 million annually (2007-2011). However, the President requests just $49.2 million for the FY 09 EPA Clean Diesel grant, 25% of the authorized amount.

A table reviewing changes in the Goal I and overall EPA budget is below the jump.

EPA Budget: FY 2007-09 Budget Requests and FY 2008 Appropriation
(dollars in thousands) FY 2007 Budget Request FY 2008 Budget Request FY 2008 Appropriation FY 2009 Budget Request
EPA Goal 1:
Clean Air & Global Climate Change Program
933,691 910,365 971,739 938,582
Total EPA Budget 7,315,475 7,199,400 7,472,324 7,142,520

GM Chief Asks Dealers to Lobby Against State-Level Greenhouse Limits

Posted by Brad Johnson Mon, 11 Feb 2008 19:03:00 GMT

From the AP:
General Motors Corp. CEO Rick Wagoner urged a group of auto dealers Saturday to lobby against individual states trying to set their own limits on greenhouse gas emissions.

Wagoner, speaking to the National Automobile Dealers Association convention in San Francisco, said several states want to go beyond requirements passed by Congress.

If that happens and automakers must focus on state regulations, they won’t be able to focus as much on alternative fuel vehicles to reduce oil consumption and pollution, he said.

“We’re not going to be able to accomplish everything that we otherwise could,” Wagoner said. . .

“We need to work together to educate policymakers at the state and local levels on the importance of tough but national standards,” Wagoner told the dealers group.

He also said dealers and automakers should push for infrastructure to handle new technologies including hydrogen and ethanol fueling stations and charging stations for electric vehicles.

GM is the official vehicle provider for the Democratic National Convention, a decision highlighted as part of the DNC’s “green” mission:
“GM’s leadership in this area will play a critical role in our event – helping us make this the ‘greenest’ political convention our country has ever seen, while providing our guests with yet another convenient option for getting around Denver.”
– Leah Daughtry, DNC CEO
Once we talked to them about how we really wanted to push the environmental piece, they were 100 percent on board.
– Cameron Moody, the DNCC’s director of operations
This will be a great showcase to change perceptions about GM and to show we are taking leadership.
– GM spokesman Greg Martin

The Effects of Climate Change on Forest Resources

Posted by Brad Johnson Mon, 11 Feb 2008 19:00:00 GMT

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) invites you to learn about the likely effects that global climate change will have on the structure, function, and ecological dynamics of forest ecosystems in the United States. As Congress discusses climate change policies and legislation, it is important to develop a better understanding of these impacts.

Panel
  • Dr. Anthony C. Janetos, Director, The Joint Global Change Research Institute
  • Dr. Allen M. Solomon, National Program Leader for Global Change Research, U.S. Forest Service
  • Dr. Anthony L. Westerling, Assistant Professor, Sierra Nevada Research Institute, UC Merced

Changes in average annual temperature, precipitation, length and timing of the growing seasons, and other climate-related factors can result in a number of both short- and long-term changes to forests, including altered growth rates, changes in stand structure and dynamics, and shifts in geographic distribution of both individual tree species and forest types. In addition to these direct effects, climate change has the potential to indirectly change the structure and dynamics of the entire forest ecosystem by affecting insect infestations, wildfire patterns, and other key processes and components of forested landscapes. In 2005, mortality due to mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) alone affected over 3 million acres, and this number is rapidly increasing over a significant portion of the intermountain West. Recent studies have tied both increases in catastrophic wildfires and the rapid expansion of bark beetle infestations to climate change. These changes will have dramatic and far-reaching effects on biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, water management, and recreation and tourism, as well as the multi-billion dollar forest products industry in the United States.

This briefing is part of an EESI initiative focusing on sustainable forest bioenergy. To adequately assess the role that forests can play in addressing climate change, it is critical that we first have a firm understanding of the effects that climate change will have on forests. Biomass assessments and carbon sequestration formulae that pre-suppose static forest dynamics and processes will inevitably result in unreliable conclusions. As one of the key elements of the global carbon cycle, it is essential that the dynamic interaction between forests and climate must be taken into account when discussing bioenergy, carbon sequestration, afforestation or other forest-based solutions to climate change.

This briefing is open to the public and no reservations are required. For more information, contact Jetta Wong at 202-662-1885 ([email protected]) or Jesse Caputo at 202-662-1882 ([email protected])

Waxman Subpoenas EPA Docs; Congressional Pressure Continues to Build

Posted by Warming Law Mon, 11 Feb 2008 15:45:00 GMT

In a move that has been discussed for some time on both sides of Capitol Hill, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) has grown tired of waiting around for EPA to fully cooperate with his investigation of California’s EPA waiver denial:
Escalating the fight over the decision, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Beverly Hills), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, directed the EPA to provide uncensored copies of its staff recommendation to agency Administrator Stephen L. Johnson before he rejected California’s request to enact tailpipe emission standards stricter than the federal government’s. The EPA was told to respond by noon Tuesday.

“The committee is simply trying to understand if the decision to reject California’s plan was made on the merits, so I’m especially disappointed that EPA is refusing to provide the relevant documents voluntarily,” Waxman said. “But we will to try to get to the bottom of this.”

[...]

The EPA has also turned over some documents, but they were heavily redacted, so much so that some pages were largely blank. The agency has resisted turning over nonredacted documents to Congress, contending that they are protected under attorney-client privilege. California and more than a dozen other states that want to enact similar laws have sued to overturn Johnson’s decision.

The agency has also argued that releasing the documents could have a “chilling effect” on candid discussions within the EPA. Vice President Dick Cheney also cited the need to keep internal deliberations private in fighting congressional efforts to force him to disclose details of private meetings he held as the White House drafted its energy policy, an initiative sparked in part by another California issue – the 2000-01 electricity crisis.

Waxman’s deadline isn’t the only one EPA must meet this week. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) has given it until Friday to turn over documents related to potential White House involvement, and she has now spearheaded a call for the Government Accountability Office to look into factors influencing the waiver decision.

Johnson’s spokesman stood by the decision and said he wouldn’t be changing his mind anytime soon, but that hardly seems to be the California delegation’s point here. They’re building a careful case for congressional intervention via Senator Boxer’s legislative remedy overturning the decision, and both the slow pace of legal proceedings (which California is trying to hasten)and EPA’s foot-dragging play right into their hands.

FY 2009 Department of Energy Budget

Posted by Brad Johnson Thu, 07 Feb 2008 15:00:00 GMT

Energy market effects of the recently-passed renewable fuel standard

Posted by Brad Johnson Thu, 07 Feb 2008 14:30:00 GMT

Investment Banks Set Coal Plant Carbon Guidelines

Posted by Brad Johnson Wed, 06 Feb 2008 20:18:00 GMT

On Monday Citi Group, Morgan Stanley, and JPMorgan Chase announced the establishment of an “enhanced diligence” framework for judging proposed financings of certain new fossil fuel generation.

The framework, according to the joint press release, sets principles for energy efficiency (including “regulatory and legislative changes that increase efficiency in electricity consumption”), renewable energy and low-carbon distributed energy technologies, and assessing the “financial, regulatory and certain environmental liability risks” of CO2-emitting fossil fuel power generation. The group intends to “encourage regulatory and legislative changes that facilitate carbon capture and storage (CCS) to further reduce CO2 emissions from the electric sector.”

The group, which as the Rainforest Action Network’s Understory blog notes does not include major investor Bank of America, consulted the power companies American Electric Power, CMS Energy, DTE Energy, NRG Energy, PSEG, Sempra and Southern Company and the environmental organizations Environmental Defense and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Chukchi Lease Sale Goes Forward; Still No Polar Bear Decision from FWS

Posted by Brad Johnson Wed, 06 Feb 2008 16:46:00 GMT

Despite opposition from environmental organizations and Democrats in Congress, the Minerals Management Service is proceeding with its scheduled sale of offshore drilling leases in the Chukchi Sea at 9 AM Alaska time (1 PM EST). FWS chief Dale Hall failed to make the February 6 deadline despite his testimony to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee last week that he was “pushing to get there.”

A Los Angeles Times op-ed penned last weekend by MMS director Randall Luthi, The Bear Necessities, defends the lease sale, claiming that “under the Marine Mammals Protection Act, the bear currently receives regulatory protections even stricter than those available under the Endangered Species Act.” This statement ignores the critical habitat provisions of the ESA which could prevent such actions as the lease sale.

Last week MMS officials sent a cease-and-desist order to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, who earlier published “a series of internal e-mails from current and former Interior scientists raising troubling questions about how badly environmental assessments of Arctic offshore oil development were skewed.”

The Alaska Wilderness League plans to live-blog the sale.

Update The sale has been completed, the 488 blocks selling for a total of over $2.6 billion.

Estimated reserves include 77 trillion cubic feet of conventionally recoverable natural gas (worth about $635 billion at $8/MMBtU) and 15 billion barrels of oil ($1.5 trillion at $100/barrel).

The winning bidders:
  • Shell (Netherlands, $2.1 billion)
  • ConocoPhilips (US, $506 million)
  • Repsol (Spain, $14.4 million)
  • Eni (Italy, $8.9 million)
  • StatoilHydro (Norway, $14.4 million – most Statoil & Eni bids were joint bids)

As StatoilHydro noted in its press release, “The area is considered a frontier area with no production or infrastructure as of today.”

FY 2009 Department of Energy Budget

Posted by Brad Johnson Wed, 06 Feb 2008 15:00:00 GMT

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