The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) invites you to a
briefing on black carbon, a component of soot, a leading cause of
mortality in the developing world, and a contributor to global climate
change. The largest sources of black carbon emissions are diesel
engines, residential heating and cooking, and open burning of
agricultural lands and forests. Black carbon contributes to climate
change in two basic ways: by absorbing sunlight in the atmosphere and,
subsequently, by falling from the atmosphere onto snow and ice -
causing these normally-reflective surfaces to absorb more heat and melt
more quickly. Biomass burned in open fires and crude cooking stoves also
leads to extremely high individual exposures to smoke - of which
black carbon is a major component—and is a serious health threat for
women and children in the developing world. This briefing will provide
an overview of how black carbon impacts public health and the climate
(and how the effects vary regionally) as well as technologies, current
initiatives, and policy opportunities to reduce these emissions from
cookstoves, the transportation sector, and forestry and agriculture.
Speakers for this event include:
- Ben DeAngelo, Senior Analyst for Climate Change Science and Policy,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Co-chair, Task Force on
Short-Lived Climate Forcers, Arctic Council
- Conrad Schneider, Advocacy Director, Clean Air Task Force
- Jacob Moss, Senior Advisor, Office of Air and Radiation, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (and informal technical advisor to the
Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves)
Black carbon is a significant contributor to climate change, and yet it
remains in the atmosphere for only days at a time (compared to more than
100 years for carbon dioxide). According to the World Health
Organization, indoor air pollution from burning solid fuel is
responsible for 1.6 million deaths annually, and is one of the fourth
worst overall health risk factors in poor countries. Many measures to
reduce black carbon emissions have been called “no regrets” strategies
due to their co-benefits for climate change mitigation and improved
public health. In addition, some black carbon reduction strategies also
reduce ozone precursors and methane, magnifying the health and climate
benefits even further.
Environmental and Energy Study Institute
385 Russell
11/09/2010 at 10:00AM
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is engaged in a series of
rule-making proceedings of extraordinary scope and ambition—going well
beyond its efforts to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions under the Clean
Air Act. All major EPA decisions are
contentious, but the current flurry of regulatory initiatives raises
unusually serious issues of costs and benefits, feasibility,
methodology, and agency discretion. This event will begin with a
presentation on air-quality trends followed by panel presentations and
discussions on current rule-making proceedings and underlying issues of
science, economics, and risk assessment.
Agenda
8:15 a.m.
Registration and Breakfast
8:30
Introduction:
8:40
Presentation: Trends in Air Quality—1970, Today, and Tomorrow
9:00
Panel I: EPA’s Rule-Making Surge
Panelists:
- PAUL R. NOE, American Forest & Paper
Association “The Challenge of Boiler MACT
and the Cumulative Air Regulatory Burden”
- ARTHUR FRAAS, Resources for the Future
“Banking on Permits: A Risky Business”
- JEFFREY R. HOLMSTEAD, Bracewell & Giuliani
“The Clean Air Act and the Rule of Law”
Moderator: *KENNETH P. GREEN, AEI
10:30
Break
10:40
Panel II: Science and Economics in EPA
Rule-Making
Panelists:
- RICHARD A. BECKER, American Chemistry
Council “The Blurred Lines between Science and Policy”
- RICHARD B. BELZER, Regulatory Checkbook and
Neutral Source “Empirical Analysis of EPA
Compliance with the Information Quality Act”
- JANE LUXTON, Pepper Hamilton
LLP “Polarization on Science Issues in
EPA Risk Assessment”
- BRIAN F. MANNIX, Buckland Mill Associates
“Whose Telescope is Defective? The Role of Discount-Rate Arbitrage in
Energy and Climate Policy”
Moderator:
- SUSAN E. DUDLEY, The George Washington
University
Wohlstetter Conference Center, Twelfth Floor, AEI
1150 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036
American Enterprise Institute
District of Columbia
11/08/2010 at 08:30AM
Witnesses
- William J. Lynn III, Deputy Secretary of
Defense
- Ashton B. Carter, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition,
Technology and Logistics * General James E. Cartwright,
USMC Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff
Senate Armed Services Committee
G50 Dirksen
09/28/2010 at 10:00AM
“As Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, I am pleased to hold
this hearing to examine the impact of EPA
regulation on agriculture and rural America to ensure that we are
avoiding unnecessary, duplicative regulation,” Lincoln said. “American
family farmers and ranchers produce the safest, most affordable, and
abundant supply of food and fiber in the world and do so with great
respect for our environment. I look forward to exploring how we ensure
the continued success of our producers by building a more collaborative
relationship between the EPA and American
agriculture.”
Witness List
Panel 1
- Lisa P. Jackson, Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Panel 2
- Rich Hillman, Vice President, Arkansas Farm Bureau
- Jay Vroom, President and Chief Executive Officer, Croplife America
- Jere White, Executive Director, Kansas Corn Growers Association
Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee
328A Russell
09/23/2010 at 02:00PM
From New York City to Nashville, Washington to Pakistan, 2010 has seen
it’s fair share of extreme weather events. To probe the long-term trends
of disruptive weather events in a world beset by climate change,
Chairman Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and the Select Committee on Energy
Independence and Global Warming will hold a briefing to discuss these
issues.
The briefing will feature Husain Haqqani, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the
United States, who will discuss the historic floods that have displaced
millions of his countrymen. The briefing will also include top climate
scientists.
Witnesses
- Husain Haqqani, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States
- Michael Oppenheimer, Professor, Princeton University
- Thomas Peterson, Chief Scientist, NOAA’s
National Climatic Data Center
- Michael Wehner, Staff Scientist, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
House Energy Independence and Global Warming Committee
2237 Rayburn
09/23/2010 at 11:00AM
Energy Experts, CEOs and Congressmen Convene to Discuss Oil Spill,
Energy Bill, and Electronic Vehicles
President Obama has pledged to end America’s dependence on foreign oil
and his administration is spending billions on greener energy
initiatives. Few issues are considered more urgent by both the White
House and average Americans than securing affordable and cleaner energy.
This timely Washington Post Live conference gathers members of Congress,
oil and energy CEOs and other well-known experts to discuss the impact
of the Gulf oil spill, government energy policy and whether electric
cars are really about to go mainstream.
Panels
Congressional Energy Bill (9am):
- Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)
- Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine)
- Senator Byron Dorgon (D-N.D.)
- Congressman Ed Markey (D-Mass.)
Beyond the Gulf Oil Spill (10:30am):
- Daniel Yergin, chairman of Cambridge Energy and Research Associations
- Jack Gerard, president of American Petroleum
- Jacqueline Savitz, senior campaign director of Oceana
Are Electric Vehicles Really Going Mainstream? (1:15pm):
- David Crane, president and CEO of
NRG Energy Inc.
- David Vieau, president and CEO of
A123Systems
- Tony Posawatz, vehicle line director for General Motors/Chevy Volt;
Carlos Tavares, executive vice president of Nissan Mortor Co, Ltd.
- Alan Crane, board of energy and environmental systems for the National
Research Council
The panel discussions and keynote address will be streamed live on
washingtonpostlive.com.
The Washington Post, 1150 15th Street, NW, Washington, DC
The Washington Post
District of Columbia
09/23/2010 at 09:00AM
Witnesses
- Rebeccs M. Blank, Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, U.S.
Department of Commerce
- John Fernandez, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic
Development, Economic Development Administration, U.S. Department of
Commerce
Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee
428A Russell
09/16/2010 at 10:00AM
Last week an ice sheet covering 100 square miles broke off Greenland.
This dramatic sea ice event follows the warmest six months on record and
is the largest piece of Arctic ice to break free since 1962.
On Tuesday, the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global
Warming will hold a briefing with scientists and experts who study the
Arctic region to discuss this event and its relationship to climate
change.
Witnesses
- Dr. Richard B. Alley, Professor of Geosciences, and Earth and
Environmental Systems, The Pennsylvania State University
- Dr. Robert Bindschadler, Senior Research Scientist at University of
Maryland Baltimore County, who has 30 years of service with
NASA
- Dr. Andreas Muenchow, Professor of Physical Ocean Science and
Engineering, University of Delaware
House Energy Independence and Global Warming Committee
2123 Rayburn
08/10/2010 at 09:30AM