Preview Newsletter
PM ACC Clips Report - February 13, 2018
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(ACC Mentioned) Power Rental Market Best Productivity Supply Chain Relationship, Development by 2025
Feb 13, 2019 | Honest Businessman
Power rental plants are required for temporary supply of power for industries due to the supply-demand gap in electricity. To avoid financial losses, industries requires a constant power supply. Therefore, industries use additional... -
US, China Envoys Hold Talks before Trump Tariff Decision
Feb 13, 2019 | Houston Chronicle
By Joe Mcdonald and Paul Wiseman
U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators are meeting this week for talks President Donald Trump says will help decide whether he escalates a technology dispute by going ahead with a March 2 tariff hike on $200 billion of imports from China. -
EPA to Roll out PFAs Plan Tomorrow
Feb 13, 2019 | E&E - Greenwire
By Cecelia Smith-Schoenwalder
After much speculation, EPA will reveal its action plan for PFAS tomorrow morning. The agency's plan grabbed headlines in recent weeks after reports that it would not include a legal limit for two types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl... -
Home Improvement Chain Menards Joins the Growing Chorus of Retailers Banning Dangerous Paint Strippers
Feb 13, 2019 | Safer Chemicals Healthy Families
By Mike Schade
Today the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel broke the news that Menards has become the latest retailer to phase out the sale of paint strippers containing the dangerous chemicals methylene chloride and NMP. The company has over 300... -
EPA Says It Has a Plan to Address PFAs in Drinking Water — and Will Announce It in Philly Tomorrow
Feb 13, 2019 | Philly.com
By Laura McCrystal and Justine McDaniel
The Environmental Protection Agency says it is prepared to “move forward” with a plan to address the PFAS water contamination that has tainted drinking water and groundwater in communities nationwide, including taking steps to... -
PFAs Levels Elevated in Michigan Sewer Tests
Feb 13, 2019 | Water & Waste Digest
In Flint, Mich., recent testing at the former Buick City site shows elevated levels of PFOA or PFOS are not only in the storm sewer but also in the sanitary sewers as well. According to MLive, four of five sampling locations tested... -
Belgium Gears up for Voluntary Microplastics Ban
Feb 13, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Caterina Tani
Belgian industry is giving its "full support" to a voluntary agreement to phase out microplastics in all rinse-off cosmetic products and toothpastes by 31 December, a key trade body has said. Detic – the Belgian and Luxembourg... -
Canada Clears Benzoates, DIDA in Final Assessments
Feb 13, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Kelly Franklin
The Canadian government has determined that nine benzoates and DIDA do not pose considerable risk to human health or the environment, according to a final screening assessment. The conclusion that the substances do not... -
Murkowski Eyes 'Refreshed' Reform Bill
Feb 13, 2019 | E&E - Greenwire
By Courtney Columbus
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) today expressed hope that the current Congress could pass a "refreshed" energy reform bill. She spoke about her priorities today at the National Association... -
Pipeline Fight Drags On, Tempting Intervention from Trump
Feb 13, 2019 | Houston Chronicle
By James Osborne
Pipeline executives are urging President Donald Trump to assert federal authority over interstate pipelines and prevent states from blocking projects that run within their boundaries. The lobbying is another front in a legal and political... -
Energy Transfer Pipeline Projects on Hold After String of Violations
Feb 13, 2019 | Truthout
By Sharon Kelly
Plans for a pipeline network to export petrochemical ingredients from fracked gas wells in Pennsylvania hit a major roadblock, as state environmental regulators announced Friday that they were suspending all permit reviews for... -
Natural Gas Processors Warned of Risks After Miss. Explosions
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Sam Pearson
Enterprise Products Partners LP failed to notice high heat had degraded a critical part at its Pascagoula, Miss., gas processing plant, causing a series of fires and explosions in 2016, according to the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard... -
Legislator Urges Positive Train Control
Feb 12, 2019 | HamletHub
By Grady Jacobsen
On Wednesday, February 13th, the Transportation Committee will consider HB 7098, a raised bill concerned with all commuter rail infrastructure projects. State Senator Tony Hwang (R-28) released the following statement insisting fully... -
Skeptic-Free Climate Hearing Turns New Page for Science Panel
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Abby Smith
The House science committee’s Feb. 13 hearing on climate science didn’t call any witnesses who reject human-caused global warming—a stark change for a panel that under Republican control often gave climate skeptics a forum. -
Democrats Praise 'Refreshing' Change in Science Committee
Feb 13, 2019 | E&E - Greenwire
By Niina Heikkinen
The Science, Space and Technology Committee kicked off its long-awaited climate hearing this morning by agreeing on one basic fact: Climate change is happening. Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) said the hearing... -
Toxic Sterigenics Pollution Prompts Democratic Oversight Bills
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Stephen Joyce
Elevated carcinogenic air pollution from an Illinois medical sterilizer prompted the state’s U.S. senators to introduce bills demanding the EPA set tougher new emissions standards and disclose when it detects elevated health risks. -
Liz Cheney Calls for House Vote on Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal
Feb 13, 2019 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Timothy Cama
The No. 3 Republican in the House is calling on Democratic leaders to hold a vote on the Green New Deal, an aggressive plan to fight climate change. Rep. Liz Cheney (Wyo.), chairwoman of the House Republican Conference... -
Ewire: McConnell Pledges Senate Vote on Green New Deal
Feb 13, 2019 | Inside EPA
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is pledging a vote on the “Green New Deal” proposal, though the vote is not being held to advance the climate policy but rather in an effort to paint Democrats' plan as extreme and force... -
Green New Deal Vote in Senate Could Expose Democratic Divisions (1)
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Dean Scott
A plan by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to hold a vote on the Green New Deal will almost surely expose divisions among Senate Democrats still wrestling with whether to back the ambitious 10-year plan to combat...
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(ACC Mentioned) Power Rental Market Best Productivity Supply Chain Relationship, Development by 2025
Feb 13, 2019 | Honest Businessman
Global Power Rental Market Insights
Power rental plants are required for temporary supply of power for industries due to the supply-demand gap in electricity. To avoid financial losses, industries requires a constant power supply. Therefore, industries use additional power by introducing short-term initiatives, such as leasing or renting addition power by using diesel generators to fulfill their need for power.
Major drivers propelling the growth of power rental market globally include rapidly developing construction industry. According to CMI, the global construction industry is projected to expand at a CAGR of 5.8% from 2017 to 2025.
North America led the power rental market and is expected to witness a CAGR of 6.4% during the forecast period. Increasing demand for electricity and challenges in power sector, such as federal carbon policies on carbon emission and meeting energy targets are the main reasons for development of power rental market in this region.
Among applications, base load/continuous segment held the leading position with a market share of around 43.5% in the power rental market in 2016. Base load or continuous power plant takes minimum power generation to provide continuous electricity supply. The other types of continuous power plant are geothermal power plant, tidal power plant, and coal-fired power plant among others.
On the basis of end users, construction and oil & gas industries held the largest position in 2016, owing to high adoption rate of power rental technologies by industries. According to American Chemistry Council (ACC), 294 new chemical projects started in the U.S. in 2017, due to availability of cheap and abundant ethane and shale gas. The ever increasing demand for oil and gas all over the world is the major factor driving the growth of global power rental market
About Coherent Market Insights:
Coherent Market Insights is a prominent market research and consulting firm offering action-ready syndicated research reports, custom market analysis, consulting services, and competitive analysis through various recommendations related to emerging market trends, technologies, and potential absolute dollar opportunity.https://honestbusinessman24.com/2019/02/power-rental-market-best-productivity-supply-chain-relationship-development-by-2025/
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US, China Envoys Hold Talks before Trump Tariff Decision
Feb 13, 2019 | Houston Chronicle
By Joe Mcdonald and Paul Wiseman
U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators are meeting this week for talks President Donald Trump says will help decide whether he escalates a technology dispute by going ahead with a March 2 tariff hike on $200 billion of imports from China.
Two days of talks starting Thursday allow too little time to resolve the war over Beijing's technology ambitions that threatens to drag on weakening global economic growth, businesspeople and economists say. They believe China's goal is to make enough progress to persuade Trump to extend his deadline.
There are few signs of movement on the thorniest issue: Washington's demand that Beijing scale back its efforts to nurture world leaders in robotics and other technologies. China's trading partners say the state support for industries violates Beijing's market-opening obligations and some American officials worry they might erode U.S. industrial leadership.
This week, Beijing wants "to see the threat of additional tariff imposition being removed for as long as possible," with minimal conditions attached, said Louis Kuijs of Oxford Economics.
Trump's December agreement to postpone more tariff hikes while the two sides negotiate expires March 1. The following day, a 10 percent tariff imposed in July on $200 billion of Chinese imports would rise to 25 percent.
On Tuesday, Trump said while he is not inclined to extend the March 2 deadline, he might let it "slide for a little while" if talks go well. Earlier, the White House called March 2 a "hard deadline."
Companies on both sides have been battered by Washington's tariffs and retaliatory duties imposed by the government of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The stakes are rising as global economic growth cools.
Trump hiked tariffs on Chinese goods over complaints Beijing steals or pressures companies to hand over technology. The dispute has spread to include Chinese industry development plans, cyberspying and the countries' lopsided trade balance.
Chinese leaders have offered to narrow their multibillion-dollar trade surplus with the United States. But they have balked at making major changes in development plans they see as a path to prosperity and more global influence.
"China will continue resisting U.S. demands in certain areas, such as changes to its industrial strategy and the role of the state in its economy," said Eswar Prasad, a Cornell University economist who was head of the China division at the International Monetary Fund.
Chinese officials reject complaints that foreign companies are required to hand over technology. But business groups and foreign governments point to rules they say compel companies to disclose trade secrets or share technology with state-owned local partners.
Chinese officials also are balking at U.S. pressure to accept an enforcement mechanism to monitor whether Beijing carries out its promises, said Kuijs.
"They feel that it is humiliating for China," he said.
The U.S. delegation is led by Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who has said his priority is Chinese industrial policy. He is accompanied by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
The Chinese side is led by Vice Premier Liu He, Xi's top economic adviser. It will be his second meeting with Lighthizer following last month's talks in Washington.
Business groups and economists say the decision by the top trade envoys to participate suggests the talks might be making enough progress to require higher-level political decisions.
Their deputies have met since Monday to make preparations. On the American side, that includes Jeffrey Gerrish, a deputy trade representative, and David Malpass, a Treasury undersecretary who is Trump's nominee for World Bank president.
Even if negotiators produce an agreement, it run might into opposition from within the Trump administration, Prasad said.
"The hardliners seem loath to settle for a deal that represents anything less than total capitulation by China on all U.S. demands," he said.
Beijing has tried to deflect pressure by emphasizing China's growth as an export market. It has announced a series of changes over the past year to open finance and other fields, including allowing full foreign ownership in its auto industry for the first time.
Regulators have announced plans to improve protection of foreign patents and copyrights. But it is unclear whether that will satisfy Washington and other governments that complain the system is designed to extract technology from foreign companies and to use official industrial standards to shield Chinese enterprises from competition.
"There's been notably less progress" around such issues, said Jeremie Waterman, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's China Center and a former U.S. trade official.
Negotiators have said any final agreement will have to be made by Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping. Trump said last week they plan to meet, but not before the March 1 deadline.
"When the time is right, the hope would be that the personal chemistry that exists (between Trump and Xi) will pay dividends," said Erin Ennis, senior vice president at the U.S.-China Business Council.
The Hong Kong newspaper The South China Morning Post reported Monday the meeting could take place in late March on the southern Chinese island of Hainan.
Other possible sites include Beijing or Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, where the two met in April 2017, the U.S. news website Axios reported, citing Trump administration officials.
And what if Trump goes ahead with a March 2 tariff hike to step up pressure on Beijing?
"We certainly hope not," said Waterman. "It would be a terrible cost for American consumers and a terrible hit to the global economy."
https://www.chron.com/news/world/article/US-China-envoys-hold-last-talks-before-March-1-13612384.php
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EPA to Roll out PFAs Plan Tomorrow
Feb 13, 2019 | E&E - Greenwire
By Cecelia Smith-Schoenwalder
After much speculation, EPA will reveal its action plan for PFAS tomorrow morning.
The agency's plan grabbed headlines in recent weeks after reports that it would not include a legal limit for two types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in drinking water (Greenwire, Jan. 29).
While EPA officials at the time assured the public that the plan had not yet been finalized, environmental groups do not expect tomorrow's plan to divert from what has been reported.
EPA said the plan will "move forward" the maximum contaminant level process for two types of PFAS — PFOA and PFOS — under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
Additionally, the plan will clarify EPA's cleanup strategies and expand monitoring for the group of chemicals.
It will also improve "research and scientific foundation for addressing PFAS by developing new analytical methods and tools," according to a media advisory.
PFAS are lab-made chemicals that have been linked to cancer and developmental issues in children. They are found in many products, including firefighting foam, nonstick cookware and outdoor clothing.
The chemicals are in the drinking water of more than 110 million Americans, according to research from the Environmental Working Group.
If EPA were to set a legal limit for the chemicals in its plan, it would be a welcome surprise to health advocacy groups. The agency hasn't regulated a new contaminant in drinking water since 1996 (Greenwire, Feb. 5).
Whatever the decision, it's expected to generate buzz on Capitol Hill.
A bipartisan group of 20 senators this month told acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler that without a legal standard for PFOA and PFOS, "it is doubtful that a national management strategy will sufficiently confront the challenges PFAS chemicals pose to states and communities" (Greenwire, Feb. 1).
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2019/02/13/stories/1060120477
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Feb 13, 2019 | Safer Chemicals Healthy Families
By Mike Schade
Today the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel broke the news that Menards has become the latest retailer to phase out the sale of paint strippers containing the dangerous chemicals methylene chloride and NMP. The company has over 300 stores across 14 states.
Menards’ new commitment comes on the heels of a new letter sent yesterday to the company from 17 Midwestern environmental, labor, and public health organizations, including John Muir Chapter Sierra Club, Ecology Center, Clean Water Action Minnesota and Learning Disabilities Association of Illinois. This also follows a letter and follow-up communications we sent the company last summer with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
In a statement to the paper, a Menards spokesperson said:“All of our paint removal products meet stringent US Government Standards. We have not been contacted by any US Government Agency about any changes to the US Government Standards. However, to be on the safe side, we are no longer purchasing paint removal products that contain any amount of methylene chloride or NMP.” (emphasis added)Step in the right direction, more action needed
We are cautiously optimistic that Menards is finally beginning to address these dangerous products. It’s been seven months since we first wrote to the company calling for action and citing the risks to its customers’ health—and their lives.
The company, however, failed to clarify its timeline for pulling these products from store shelves, unlike other major retailers such as Lowe’s.
Menards should move forward and pull these dangerous products from store shelves immediately. The company should also follow the example set by Lowe’s and issue a “stop sale” so that consumers can’t purchase these harmful products at the register.
Until Menards’ policy is fully implemented, this will be a “buyer beware” situation. Menards’ customers should exercise caution when purchasing paint strippers to ensure they don’t contain these dangerous chemicals.Growing market movement away from dangerous paint strippers, while EPA drags its feet
Menards is now the twelfth major retailer to restrict toxic paint strippers in response to our campaign. Since last May, we and our coalition partners won commitments from eleven other retailers including Lowe’s, Sherwin-Williams, The Home Depot, Walmart, and Amazon. In total, retailers are pulling these toxic products from more than 30,000 stores across North America and the world!
Menards’ comments also underscore the need for EPA to follow through on its proposed ban on methylene chloride and NMP paint strippers, both for consumers and workers. We are very concerned that EPA is proposing to exclude workers from a ban on these products, and is also failing to follow through on its proposed ban of NMP. This is unconscionable, especially when safer alternatives are readily available.
The marketplace is speaking and the writing is on the wall for these dangerous chemicals. The EPA should slam the door once and for all on their use in paint removal products to ensure all consumers and workers are protected, and that no sales of these hazardous products slip through the cracks.
If EPA fails to ban these products for both consumers and workers, it’s only a matter of time before another family loses a loved one.
https://saferchemicals.org/2019/02/13/home-improvement-chain-menards-joins-the-growing-chorus-of-retailers-banning-dangerous-paint-strippers/
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EPA Says It Has a Plan to Address PFAs in Drinking Water — and Will Announce It in Philly Tomorrow
Feb 13, 2019 | Philly.com
By Laura McCrystal and Justine McDaniel
The Environmental Protection Agency says it is prepared to “move forward” with a plan to address the PFAS water contamination that has tainted drinking water and groundwater in communities nationwide, including taking steps to begin the process of creating a drinking-water limit for the chemicals.
After mounting pressure from elected officials and years of public outcry, Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler will detail the plan during a news conference Thursday in Philadelphia, the EPA press office said Wednesday. Some 70,000 Philadelphia-area residents living in Bucks and Montgomery Counties were among the first in the nation to discover they had been affected by contamination for decades.
The suggestion that the EPA will create a maximum contaminant level, or a standard for how much of the chemical is safe to drink, is contrary to a Politico report last month that the EPA would not pursue a drinking water limit for the chemicals. The report sparked outrage from environmentalists and elected officials and drew suggestions that PFAS could be an issue in Wheeler’s confirmation to the administrator post.
In recent weeks, members of Congress, including representatives from the Philadelphia region, had announced the formation of a PFAS task force, saying they would put pressure on the EPA to regulate the chemicals.
“I am pleased the Administration is finally putting together an action plan to address the PFAS issues in drinking water across our nation," said Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) on Wednesday. "I have long pushed and petitioned them to address these issues impacting Bucks and Montgomery Counties. I look forward to seeing the results and plan on keeping a close watch on their progress.”
The plan set to be unveiled by the EPA will also “continue our enforcement actions and clarify our clean up strategies, expand monitoring of PFAS in the environment, and enhance our research and scientific foundation for addressing PFAS by developing new analytical methods and tools,” according to the EPA.
Activists, residents, and state agencies have pushed for action from the EPA on the chemicals, which in 2014 were widely discovered to have leaked into water supplies near military bases nationwide. Used in firefighting foams by the military — as well as contained in many common household products — PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, have been linked to health issues including cancer and reproductive problems.
“After years of calling for federal action to address the water contamination and any resulting health issues they’ve caused in my community, I’m looking forward to learning more about the action plan to be released tomorrow," said State Rep. Todd Stephens (R., Montgomery). "I remain hopeful that the EPA may finally be stepping up to fulfill their obligations to our residents.”
Creating an enforceable drinking water limit can take years. The EPA has created drinking water regulations for only 90 contaminants, and last made changes to those regulations in 2013.
A recent analysis by the Inquirer found that the chemicals are present in drinking water in at least 22 towns in the suburbs of Philadelphia in addition to Horsham, Warrington, and Warminster Townships, where the military has taken responsibility for contamination that spread from former naval bases. There, recent blood testing revealed high levels of the chemicals in residents’ bloodstreams.
Currently, the EPA has only issued a nonbinding health advisory that many scientists and activists say is too lax. Some states have started the process of creating their own drinking water standards that are much stricter.
https://www.philly.com/news/pfas-epa-maximum-contaminant-level-action-plan-20190213.html
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PFAs Levels Elevated in Michigan Sewer Tests
Feb 13, 2019 | Water & Waste Digest
In Flint, Mich., recent testing at the former Buick City site shows elevated levels of PFOA or PFOS are not only in the storm sewer but also in the sanitary sewers as well.
According to MLive, four of five sampling locations tested showed elevated levels of one– or both –of the compounds, adding to evidence of widespread contaminationthat will require further sampling and investigation of connections to the sanitary sewers.
"We have reported these results to the U.S. (Environmental Protection Agency) and (Michigan Department of Environmental Quality),” the RACER Trust said in a posting on its web site.
The company manages the old Buick property, according to MLive. The court-created trust is charged with cleaning up and selling off the real estate for redevelopment. However, sales have been put on hold until the scope of PFAS contamination is better defined.
According to the EPA, PFAS are a group of man-made chemicals that includes PFOA, PFOS and other chemicals that have been manufactured and used in a variety of industries in the U.S. since the 1940s.
According to MLive, concentrations of PFOA ranged from zero to 2,280 ng/L, and PFOS results ranged from zero to 27,580 ng/L, nearly twice the level as the highest previous testing of groundwater in the area.
The groundwater and sanitary sewer tests showed high results near a former paint shop.
RACER officials said none of the PFAS detected on the Buick City property is making its way to the municipal water system, which has not drawn from the Flint River since October 2015.
According to MLive, previous testing showed PFAS moving through the storm sewer system into the river.
https://www.wwdmag.com/sanitation/pfas-levels-elevated-michigan-sewer-tests
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Belgium Gears up for Voluntary Microplastics Ban
Feb 13, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Caterina Tani
Belgian industry is giving its "full support" to a voluntary agreement to phase out microplastics in all rinse-off cosmetic products and toothpastes by 31 December, a key trade body has said.
Detic – the Belgian and Luxembourg association for producers and distributors of cosmetics, cleaning and maintenance products, adhesives, sealants, biocides and aerosols – and the Belgian environment ministry signed the commitment in January last year.
The agreement, which is valid for five years, commits to: communication and training of members to encourage substitution; a follow up on scientific and technological developments; and other specific actions on the Belgian market.Ahead of the deadline, Detic has ramped up communication activities and guidance to members, paying particular attention to SMEs, it told Chemical Watch.
It is also planning training courses this year and has been collaborating with the plastics sector, and its parallel associations in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Scandinavian countries and the UK.
Detic has been working closely with the Belgian chemical industry federation Essenscia, which said the voluntary agreement is an "excellent solution", because it is "in the interest" of all those involved. All signatories, it told Chemical Watch, are "permanently and contractually responsible".Ministry activity
The environment ministry said it will carry out inspections after the ban comes into force via documentation and laboratory tests on samples of consumer products.
However, it confirmed it will not issue fines if companies are found to be non-compliant.
The ministry conducted a study between October 2018 and January on toothpastes and body scrubs available on the Belgian market, covered by the industry commitment.
Inspectors assessed products sold in high street stores and online. The results will be disclosed in the coming months, it said.EU ‘challenge’The sectoral agreement will be "adapted [...] in the case of a European ban", the ministry said.
At the end of January Echa published its restriction proposal on the use of intentionally added microplastic particles in all consumer and professional use products. It is expected to come into force in 2020.
An EU-wide restriction would prevent varying controls on microplastics across different member states, some of which have already taken – or proposed – national action. They include France, Italy, Sweden and the UK.
Detic has criticised the restriction dossier along with other industry associations. Its members "are very concerned" and have called on the agency to review the definition of microplastics, it said.
Despite Belgian industry having demonstrated a "very high" level of substitution "well before the deadline" of the sectoral agreement by sourcing biomass products, its concerns remain.According to Detic, even if substitution is proceeding well, efforts to reformulate products remain "intense", and Echa’s proposal – which concerns rinse-off and leave-on products – poses an "incredible challenge" for the sectors.
"There are no known alternatives for many critical functions," it said, adding that "the costs associated with reformulation in a relatively short period of time are very high."
https://chemicalwatch.com/74304/belgium-gears-up-for-voluntary-microplastics-ban
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Canada Clears Benzoates, DIDA in Final Assessments
Feb 13, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Kelly Franklin
The Canadian government has determined that nine benzoates and DIDA do not pose considerable risk to human health or the environment, according to a final screening assessment.
The conclusion that the substances do not meet the criteria of section 64 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (Cepa) is consistent with draft screening assessments published in 2017.
This means the government will take no further action on the nine benzoates at this time.
However, in the case of hexanedioic acid, diisodecyl ester (DIDA), Canada has signalled its intent to impose significant new activity (Snac) provisions on it.
Benzoates Group
The final assessment deals with nine of the ten substances assessed under the Chemicals Management Plan (CMP) in the benzoates group. These are: methyl benzoate; ethyl benzoate; isobutyl benzoate; butyl benzoate; tuberose oils; tribenzoin; diethylene glycol dibenzoate (DEGDB); dipropylene glycol dibenzoate (DPGDB); and trimethylpentanediyl dibenzoate (TMPD).
The substances are used in varied applications, including in food packaging materials, cosmetics, and caulking, paint and adhesives.
Their ecological hazard and exposure potential were classified using the country’s Ecological Risk Classification of Organic Substances Approach.
They were found to have low human health and ecological hazard potential, and low exposure. The government therefore concluded they are not harmful to human health or the environment at current exposures.
The final substance in the substance group – 1,3-benzenedicarboxylic acid – was also considered to be of low concern to human health and the environment, but was assessed through a different approach.
DIDA
The screening assessment for DIDA – used as a plasticiser in electrical cables and as an ingredient in lubricants and greases – also concluded the substance is not harmful at current exposure levels.
But the assessment did identify potential developmental effects, using data available for similar substances. And the substance was determined to have a moderate level of ecotoxity.
The government therefore believes it may present a concern for human health if exposures were to increase. And, in a separate Gazette notice, it has published a notice of intent to apply Snac provisions to require notification of proposed new activities.
These would target the use of DIDA in consumer products and cosmetics at concentrations above 0.6% by weight. Activities involving its use in lubricants or automotive fluids at concentrations of less than 15% by weight, and in rinse-off cosmetics at concentrations under 5%, would be exempt from notification.
Comments on the notice of intent will be accepted for 60 days.
https://chemicalwatch.com/74275/canada-clears-benzoates-dida-in-final-assessments
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Murkowski Eyes 'Refreshed' Reform Bill
Feb 13, 2019 | E&E - Greenwire
By Courtney Columbus
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) today expressed hope that the current Congress could pass a "refreshed" energy reform bill.
She spoke about her priorities today at the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners' winter policy summit in Washington, D.C.
"At the federal level, there's a number of steps that we can take to really cement our status as the energy superpower that we are," said Murkowski.
She added: "And that means access to our lands and our water, it means a stronger push for innovation, it means careful regulations, and after what has now been more than a decade of inaction, it is going to require us to update and modernize our energy laws."
Broad energy and natural resources legislation came close to passing in recent years, only to see the effort stall.
The dynamic will be different this Congress. Democrats now control the House, and the bill won't carry Land and Water Conservation Fund language; a reauthorization cleared the Senate last night.
Murkowski said the success surrounding the lands package may transfer to energy policy. "This is going to be the Congress that we can finally reach agreement on a major policy act that promotes energy innovation, efficiency and so much more," she said.
Another of her priorities, she said, is to "restore a full complement of commissioners at the FERC." She didn't mention specific nominees.
"The commission has a lot of work ahead of it. In order to do that, in order to keep moving full steam ahead, they need to have everybody; they need to have everybody there," Murkowski said.
"We've got billions, literally billions of dollars in energy infrastructure projects, including pipelines, LNG export facilities. They're in the queue; they're waiting, and FERC needs to have that full team in order to address the growing backlog."
Murkowski said she also sees modernization of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act as a priority.
Some in the audience sighed audibly after she brought up PURPA. "Was that air escaping from a balloon over there?" she said, laughing.
"I think there is recognition that you've got a modern energy landscape, and then you have an act like PURPA, enacted in 1978, meant to encourage energy conservation and renewable energy sources. But back then, in the 1970s world of energy, that really wasn't the norm at the time," she said.
Renewable energy will keep growing and may even surpass coal and nuclear, she said, and there is now also open access to transmission and to competitive markets.
"The norm has changed, and so must PURPA," Murkowski said. "My hope is that the FERC will reach a bipartisan deal to bring PURPA into the 21st century."
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2019/02/13/stories/1060120473
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Pipeline Fight Drags On, Tempting Intervention from Trump
Feb 13, 2019 | Houston Chronicle
By James Osborne
Pipeline executives are urging President Donald Trump to assert federal authority over interstate pipelines and prevent states from blocking projects that run within their boundaries.
The lobbying is another front in a legal and political fight that shows no signs of ending since New York state blocked a series of pipeline projects carrying natural gas to New England from the gas-rich Marcellus shale in Pennsylvania three years ago. That has left multi-billion dollar investment decisions facing more uncertainty as environmental activists target pipelines in their fight to reduce fossil fuel consumption.
Congress has been reluctant to intervene in a debate encompassing two deeply partisan issues in climate change and federal authority over state regulators. At the same time courts have so far upheld states’ ability to use environmental law to block pipelines projects that have come under fire for their contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.
Even if Trump intervenes to overrule states, any relief would likely be a long time coming. A deluge of lawsuits from environmental groups would almost certainly follow, tying up the executive action in court for years, said Steve Weiler, a Washington energy attorney.
“It probably wouldn’t be implemented in this president’s administration,” he said. “Nothing’s going to happen quickly.”
The uncertainty around permitting pipelines comes as U.S. natural gas production shows little sign of slowing down, as hydraulic fracturing continues to unlock shale gas deposits from Texas to Pennsylvania. In November, U.S. gas production exceeded 2.6 trillion cubic feet, enough to heat 45 million U.S. homes for a year and up 30 percent from five years ago.
But the climate change movement is also gaining momentum after a series of dire forecasts, including one from the federal government last year that predicted that crop failures, wildfires and flooding would shrink the U.S. economy by 10 percent by 2100 if greenhouse gas emissions are left unchecked.
In a letter to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Neil Chatterjee this week, Cabot Oil and Gas CEO Dan Dinges, a partner in one delayed pipeline through New York, criticized the commission for not doing more to get pipeline construction moving.
“The gamesmanship of the state of New York has never been more legally suspect,” he wrote. “We urge you and your fellow Commissioners not to lose sight of the more substantial contributions to energy security and reliability in the region that can be achieved by decisive action on needed pipelines.”
Nationwide, pipelines have largely moved through the state permitting process at their usual pace, analysts say. But the industry fears that other states might follow New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s oppositionist stance to pipelines. A wave of Democratic governors elected in November campaigned on the pledge to shift their states’ energy sector away from fossil fuels.
The pipeline industry has lobbied Congress to limit states’ ability to block pipeline projects, but outside of a bill introduced last year by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., lawmakers have shown little interest.
“You have a tug of war here. The fact we would contend is states are using their [environmental] jurisdiction this way is not what’s intended,” said Don Santa, president of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America. “The other side of the coin is those who would say this is about state authority, and they don’t want it taken away.”
In the courtroom, decisive victories have been hard to come by.
Last year, environmentalists scored a win when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear pipeline companies’ challenge of New York’s rejection of the 125-mile Constitution Pipeline project in 2016, which would have run from Pennsylvania to upstate New York. That left in place a ruling from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upholding New York’s decision.
But earlier this month the Second Circuit told New York officials that they had failed to explain their rationale for rejecting another pipeline project, the 96-mile Northern Access, which would also run from Pennsylvania to New York. However, the ramifications are unclear outside the fate of that single pipeline project.
Industry attorneys say it’s a sign judges are starting to restrain New York in their reliance on water pollution laws to stop pipelines. Environmentalists say New York’s attorneys just need to do a better job explaining their legal reasoning.
Either way, the ruling did not address the larger question: Is climate change grounds for a state to reject pipeline and related projects under the Clean Water Act, the landmark 1972 law protecting rivers and coastlines.
Environmental attorneys argue the gas transported by pipelines increases greenhouse gas emissions which leads to more intense storms. That drives more runoff into rivers and streams, carrying more pollutants into those waters, and putting pipelines squarely under states’ authority. But so far, there has been no clear court ruling on that point, said Moneen Nasmith, a staff attorney at the activist group Earthjustice.
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/Pipeline-fight-drags-on-tempting-intervention-13611878.php
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Energy Transfer Pipeline Projects on Hold After String of Violations
Feb 13, 2019 | Truthout
By Sharon Kelly
Plans for a pipeline network to export petrochemical ingredients from fracked gas wells in Pennsylvania hit a major roadblock, as state environmental regulators announced Friday that they were suspending all permit reviews for pipeline builder Energy Transfer until further notice.
“There has been a failure by Energy Transfer and its subsidiaries to respect our laws and our communities,” Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, who has supported fracking in the state, said in a statement when the suspension was announced. “This is not how we strive to do business in Pennsylvania, and it will not be tolerated.”
Energy Transfer has been building a network of pipelines in Pennsylvania that are designed to carry not only natural gas (primarily methane) from fracked Marcellus shale wells, but also the natural gas liquids (NGLs) that many shale wells produce as by-products. Those NGLs, which include ethane, butane, and propane, are prized by petrochemical companies and can be turned into plastics and a wide array of synthetic products.
But the company — also at the center of Dakota Access, Bayou Bridge, and Rover pipeline controversies — racked up a troubling track record of law-breaking in Pennsylvania, causing sinkholes, water contamination, and an early-morning pipeline explosion. It separately remains under a criminal investigation by the Chester County district attorney.
Friday’s order leaves one Energy Transfer (ET) NGL pipeline, a re-designed Mariner East 2, still flowing. Energy Transfer’s Mariner East 2X and Revolution pipelines have permits pending — and the company will not be able to obtain those permits until the company complies with state orders related to the Revolution pipeline.
“Multiple inspections by [Department of Environmental Protection] staff, most recently in January 2019, found that ET had not fulfilled the terms of the order and was not progressing toward compliance,” Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Patrick McDonnellsaid Friday, February 8.
That pipeline, the Revolution pipeline, had been in use only seven dayswhen heavy rains caused a landslide on a steep slope about 25 miles outside Pittsburgh. Revolution’s subsequent leak caused a column of fire 150 feet high, destroyed a home, a barn, and multiple cars, and caused residents of over two dozen houses to be evacuated.
The pipeline was designed to carry so-called “wet” or liquids-rich gas from Marcellus shale wells to a plant where liquids could be separated and then shipped on the Mariner East pipeline system.
Energy Transfer has been caught violating either state environmental laws or its pipeline permits over 80 times, Pennsylvania regulators said, and the company’s fines for violations have totaled $12.6 million.
Roughly a month before Revolution exploded, Energy Transfer was fined for “a series of erosion events” about a mile from the blast site, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported in January. That stretch of pipeline crosses several steep slopes, and a field survey of a nearby wetland shows Energy Transfer labeled it as a “slip landslide area” and “dangerous and unstable hillslope terrain,” the Post-Gazette found.
Since September, Energy Transfer has been unable to stabilize the land near the blast-site. The company brought in heavy machinery — but had to abandon it on-site after state regulators found the ground was so unstable it was unsafe to operate the machines.
The slopes remained partially barren of vegetation after the blast — which leaves the risk of future landslides elevated. Energy Transfer has tried to re-seed the slopes by spraying seed from helicopters, but so far, efforts have proved unsuccessful.
The company failed to report landslides following the blast, allowed construction activities in unpermitted areas, and even ran the pipeline’s path through old reclaimed mines, leading to acid mine drainage, according to violations issued by the state.
Energy Transfer’s subsidiary “failed to comply with the Oct. 29, 2018, order issued following the explosion along the Revolution pipeline on Sept. 10, 2018,” DEP Secretary McDonnell said, announcing the permit review suspension. “This hold will continue until the operator corrects their violations to our satisfaction.”
All told, 27 pending permits for Energy Transfer pipeline projects are under review — and those reviews are all on hold, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
“We have communicated to the DEP and to the governor’s office that we are committed to bringing this project into full compliance with all environmental permits and applicable regulations,” Energy Transfer spokesperson Lisa Dillinger told the Chester County, Pennsylvania Daily Local News. “This action does not affect the operation of any of our in-service pipelines or any areas of construction where permits have already been issued. We look forward to continuing to work with the DEP throughout this process.”Mariner East Still Moving NGLs to Sea
The move announced Friday will still allow natural gas liquids, or NGLs, to continue flowing through a re-designed pipeline Energy Transfer dubbed Mariner East 2. This pipeline went into partial service at the end of 2018, carrying less than the 275,000 barrels a day of NGLs it was originally designed to carry, through a line that ranges in diameter from 12 inches to 20 inches.
Another Mariner East pipe, the 70,000 barrel-a-day Mariner East 1, was shut down in January after a sinkhole opened up and exposed a portion of the buried pipe just yards from a house.
That same month, the state’s Public Utility Commission refused to order a shutdown of Mariner East 2 over safety concerns. One pipe section now pressed into service as part of the “Mariner East 2” NGL pipeline was previously used to transport gasoline — and it caused a 33,000 gallon gasoline spill into a creek near Philadelphia the same month as the explosion of the Revolution pipeline.
“Nothing the Department of Environmental Protection or the governor has done today stops the flow of highly volatile, hazardous natural gas liquids through Chester and Delaware counties,” state Senator Andy Dinniman said in a Friday statement. “While it’s good to see the governor and DEP asserting some authority, we hope that in the days ahead they assert it more by ordering a shutdown of the Mariner East 2 (including the 12-inch line) in the interest of public safety.”
Mariner East 2 was designed to be a 20-inch pipe running roughly 350 miles across the south of Pennsylvania, but Energy Transfer has been unable to finish running that 20-inch pipe amid construction mishaps and state law violations. The pipeline Energy Transfer began using to ship NGLs at the end of December includes stretches of narrower 16-inch and 12-inch pipe, used to bypass areas where the wider pipe is not yet complete.
That redesign — and the company’s safety track record — has locals worried.
In November, a Reuters investigation examined Energy Transfer’s record building Mariner East 2 and its Rover pipeline in Ohio. They found the company had been issued more than 800 violations for breaking its state or federal permits on the two pipeline projects — compared to an industry-wide average of 19 violations per project.
“Ohio’s negative experience with Rover has fundamentally changed how we will permit pipeline projects,” James Lee, a spokesperson for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said in a statement reported by The Hill, adding that Energy Transfer’s Rover pipeline “fundamentally changed” the state’s approach to authorizing pipeline work.
Governor Wolf called for several reforms of state pipeline laws, as he expressed support for the hold. He urged the state’s Republican-controlled General Assembly to pass pending bills which would give the state’s Public Utility Commission say over a proposed in-state pipeline’s route, authority he said state regulators currently lack.
He also expressed support for bills that would require builders to include more automatic shut-off valves and laws that would require pipeline operators to provide schools within 1,000 feet of a pipe and county emergency coordinators with more information.
Pennsylvania environmental watchdogs said they supported the recent announcement, but called for further action by the state.
“The suspension of Mariner East permits is a good start and should be made permanent,” said Del-Chesco United for Pipeline Safety, a grassroots organization. “But it doesn’t go nearly far enough, because Sunoco’s cobbled-together workaround pipeline (Mariner East 2) is still transporting industrial quantities of dangerous materials next to our homes, schools, and businesses.” (Sunoco is a subsidiary of Energy Transfer.)
Energy Transfer, now one of the country’s biggest pipeline companies, has expanded at a rapid clip since 2002, when it operated only 200 miles of pipeline. Today, it operates 83,000 miles of pipe. One of the largestMaster Limited Partnerships in the U.S. (a corporate structure criticized by environmental watchdogs for offering fossil fuel companies exclusive tax benefits), Energy Transfer has gotten into the NGL business in a serious way.
It operates 3,181 miles of pipelines specifically designed to carry NGLs — enough, the company says, to move nearly a million barrels of NGLs a day. It also owns NGL storage sites and chemical plants designed to separate ethane, propane, butane, and other NGLs in Texas and Louisiana.
Energy Transfer is not the only company planning NGL infrastructure. In December, Shell obtained state permits to build its 97-mile Falcon pipeline to carry ethane to a planned plastics plant in Potter Township, though the company continues to face opposition from environmental and community groups. A recent Ambridge Water Authority permit drewover 1,000 public comments.
The Mariner East pipes are designed to carry NGLs to an export terminal in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. From there, the fossil fuels will be shipped to Europe to make plastics and petrochemicals.
Although Energy Transfer announced that Mariner East 2 was up and running in December, the controversy over the pipeline has continued to make headlines. Hundreds of people attended a February 2 public hearingabout the Mariner East pipeline system in Delaware County, outside Philadelphia.
“If the leak is too small, it won’t be detected so we have to be the ears and the eyes of the pipeline,” Rosemarie Fuller of Middletown, Pennsylvania, told Delaware County commissioners at another hearing several days later, describing the sleepless nights that Mariner East caused her and her concern about the mix of ethane, butane, and propane carried by the pipeline. “It’s odorless, it’s colorless.”
“There’s no early warning system,” she added. “There’s no adequate emergency plan and there’s no evacuation plan in here at all.”
https://truthout.org/articles/energy-transfer-pipeline-projects-on-hold-after-string-of-violations/
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Natural Gas Processors Warned of Risks After Miss. Explosions
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Sam Pearson
Enterprise Products Partners LP failed to notice high heat had degraded a critical part at its Pascagoula, Miss., gas processing plant, causing a series of fires and explosions in 2016, according to the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board.
A part called a brazed aluminum heat exchanger failed at Enterprise’s plant, sparking the blasts on June 27, 2016, the safety board said in a report released Feb. 13. Investigators reviewed company documents and spoke with personnel. They determined Enterprise...
From the Occupational Safety section, subscription required...
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/safety/midstream-natural-gas-processors-warned-of-heat-failure-risk
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Legislator Urges Positive Train Control
Feb 12, 2019 | HamletHub
By Grady Jacobsen
On Wednesday, February 13th, the Transportation Committee will consider HB 7098, a raised bill concerned with all commuter rail infrastructure projects. State Senator Tony Hwang (R-28) released the following statement insisting fully operational Positive Train Control is a necessary component of this legislation:
“Metro-North Railroad is part of the way of life in southwestern Connecticut. Every day, thousands of residents rumble over its tracks for work, school, or to head into New York City for a show or a ballgame. Like the other parts of our daily lives, we want Metro-North to be efficient and, most importantly, safe. We don’t want to have to worry when we travel. Ten years ago, Congress passed legislation that all railroads in the United States must install Positive Train Control (PTC), a life-saving system that helps avoid deadly rail accidents, on their railways.
A computerized network of GPS, sensors, transmitters and other equipment that reduces the potential for human error, PTC could have prevented multiple rail accidents in the years since Congress instructed Metro North to act. The U.S. Government gave the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) $1 Billion to complete the task on all the rail lines they oversee, including Metro-North. A decade later, it’s still not finished.
In recent conversations with Metro-North leadership as well as CT DOT, I have been told that metro north has been fullyinstalled, but is not yet fully operational.
I penned a letter to Metro-North President Catherine Rinaldi, as well as an op-ed to the Hearst CT NewsTimes onSeptember 7th, asking Metro-North leadership to answer this important question:
What is the plan to get PTC fully operational as quickly as possible and When?
Unfortunately, we learned that although Metro-North’s PTC system would be installed by the December 31st 2018 deadline, the system will not be “fully operational.” In her response, Metro-North President Catherine Rinaldi stated she is “highly confident” that metro-north will have met the four required criteria to be approved for an “alternative schedule for PTC implementation” that gives them until 2020 to have the system fully operational.
A two-year delay? That is unacceptable and deeply troubling. Neither Metro-North nor CT DOT seem to grasp the urgency with which they need to act to ensure it is fully operational.
Passenger and worker safety, not meeting arbitrary deadlines, should be Metro-North’s and our CT Department of Transportation’s top priority in Commuter Rail service. We know PTC will improve railway safety. CT DOT and Metro-North needs to get this done. No excuses. No more delays. It’s about our money, our safety, and our rail line. We want accountability and action.
As Sarah E. Feinberg, [then] administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration, said in 2016, ‘Every day that passes without PTC (Positive Train Control), we risk adding another preventable accident to a list that is already too long.’ If the FRA administrator was that concerned, I am and our legislature should be too.”
https://news.hamlethub.com/fairfield/politics/47922-legislator-urges-positive-train-control
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Skeptic-Free Climate Hearing Turns New Page for Science Panel
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Abby Smith
The House science committee’s Feb. 13 hearing on climate science didn’t call any witnesses who reject human-caused global warming—a stark change for a panel that under Republican control often gave climate skeptics a forum.
The top Republican on the committee, Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), acknowledged a warming climate and the contribution of human-caused industrial emissions in his opening statement, welcoming the hearing as the start of a “constructive” discussion on climate change.
“It is critical America leads the world in developing next generation technology” to combat climate change, Lucas said.
But Lucas did criticize “pie-in-the-sky” policies to address climate change that transition the U.S. to 100 percent renewable energy—a reference to the Green New Deal resolution (H. Res 109) unveiled recently by progressive Democrats and led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.).
That resolution outlined in broad terms a plan that would shift the U.S. to 100 percent zero-carbon energy within 10 years, as well as implement several other progressive priorities related to health care, employment, and social justice.
More Climate Research
Witnesses at the hearing—including Republican-called witness Joseph Majkut, climate policy director for the think tank Niskanen Center—outlined risks the world would face from increased global warming. They advocated for additional climate policies and greater federal support for climate research.
Majkut suggested more federal research efforts such as the National Climate Assessment, the latest version of which was released in November 2018, could bolster private sector, state, and local leaders’ efforts to adapt to the impacts of climate change.
“The time to talk about solving climate change has really passed us,” he said.
The climate assessment—written by 13 federal agencies and required by law every four years—said impacts from the warming climate could cost the United States billions of dollars and damage public health.
“Though this administration has regrettably chosen to ignore the findings of its own scientists in regards to climate change, we as lawmakers have a responsibility to protect the public’s interest,” Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas), chairwoman of the committee, said in opening remarks.
“I plan to do this by making sure this committee is informed by the most relevant and up-to-date science as we work to conduct our legislative and oversight responsibilities,” she added.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/skeptic-free-climate-hearing-turns-new-page-for-science-panel
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Democrats Praise 'Refreshing' Change in Science Committee
Feb 13, 2019 | E&E - Greenwire
By Niina Heikkinen
The Science, Space and Technology Committee kicked off its long-awaited climate hearing this morning by agreeing on one basic fact: Climate change is happening.
Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) said the hearing would set the stage for future discussions about the "most relevant and up-to-date" science to inform the committee's work.
"Though this administration has regrettably chosen to ignore the findings of its own scientists in regards to climate change, we as lawmakers have a responsibility to protect the public's interest," Johnson said in her opening remarks.
Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.) praised the chairwoman for the change of tone in the committee. Former Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) questioned the science behind man-made climate change.
"I'm really thrilled to see some of the changes happening in this committee," Foster said.
He also praised the decision to include Joseph Majkut, director of climate policy at the libertarian Niskanen Center, who has views on climate that are in the "scientific mainstream."
"That is refreshing," he said.
Witnesses highlighted the impacts of warming temperatures: sea-level rise, extreme weather, the spread of pests and worsening human health.
"Climate change is real, it's happening now and humans are responsible for it. The planet is running a fever. It's not an issue for the distant future, it's already affecting people," said Robert Kopp, director of the Rutgers Institute of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences.
He emphasized the need to bring greenhouse gas emissions as "close to zero as possible." Other witnesses echoed Kopp's urgency.
Jennifer Francis, an atmospheric scientist at the Woods Hole Research Center, said it wasn't arbitrary that the international scientific community has focused on preventing more than 1.5 degrees Celsius in warming.
"It's actually useful because we use very sophisticated models to simulate the kinds of events that could occur under these kinds of scenarios. By doing that we can see, we really don't want a world with 2-degree warming," Francis said.GOP focus on technology
Republicans raised concerns about making drastic changes in an effort to address emissions and what the costs of such an effort might be.
"Before we do away with flatulent cows and airplanes, we need to put a price tag on it, don't we?" said Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.).
The committee's ranking member, Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), noted in his opening remarks that climate change was intensifying the impacts of drought and heat waves.
But he cautioned against a focus on "pie-in-the sky policies" demanding a transition to 100 percent renewable energy.
Both Norman and Lucas were making references to rhetoric surrounding the "Green New Deal" — a set of policies from progressive Democrats to address climate, social and economic concerns.
Lucas emphasized the need for investment in carbon capture and utilization, advanced nuclear, and renewable energy technologies.
"America has led the world in coal, oil and gas. Now we must lead again, and partner with industry to develop breakthrough energy technologies and make our existing energy sources cleaner and more affordable," he said in his opening remarks.
Rep. Brian Babin (R-Texas) questioned whether the American people should have to bear heavy financial burdens in the form of a carbon tax.
"It's hard for me to justify how we would be expected to pay that kind of price," said Babin.
Energy and Commerce Committee ranking member Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and Environment and Climate Change Subcommittee ranking member John Shimkus (R-Ill.) penned an op-ed released today also highlighting technology as a solution and railing against the "Green New Deal."
"While a full analysis of the Green New Deal has not been completed, the sheer scale and cost to implement such a proposal could have potentially devastating consequences on our national debt and on our economy," the pair wrote.
Hoping to put Democrats on the record, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) yesterday announced a vote on the "Green New Deal."
Today Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) said the House should follow suit. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has yet to say whether she will put the resolution on the floor.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2019/02/13/stories/1060120481
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Toxic Sterigenics Pollution Prompts Democratic Oversight Bills
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Stephen Joyce
Elevated carcinogenic air pollution from an Illinois medical sterilizer prompted the state’s U.S. senators to introduce bills demanding the EPA set tougher new emissions standards and disclose when it detects elevated health risks.
The legislation is a response to what the Democrats say is the Environmental Protection Agency’s mishandling of the discovery of ethylene oxide emissions at a Willowbrook, Ill., facility operated by Sterigenics U.S. LLC. The legislators Feb. 13 also called on the EPA to open a criminal investigation into allegations of misconduct alleged by former Sterigenics employees and for an independent contractor to monitor and confirm the company’s emissions of ethylene oxide.
Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill) introduced bills Feb. 12 that would force the EPA to update its emissions limits on ethylene oxide and disclose when it finds elevated health risks due to ethylene oxide emissions (S. 458). Ethylene oxide is a flammable, colorless gas used to sterilize medical equipment and make other products, such as antifreeze.
Another bill (S. 451) would provide $20 million for the EPA to update not less frequently than once every two years its National Air Toxics Assessment, an analysis conducted every three years since 1996 to help the EPA identify air pollutants and locations of concern due to emissions.
The bills and letter come after the EPA recently released monitoring data showing the presence of ethylene oxide at the Willowbrook facility. The EPA, which has concluded the emissions elevate the risk of cancer, conducted several rounds of air monitoring during 2018 in Willowbrook and documented the presence of ethylene oxide emissions at the site.
Sterigenics and the EPA didn’t immediately respond to Bloomberg Environment’s requests for comment.
Bill Wehrum, head of the EPA’s air pollution office, told Bloomberg Environment in December 2018 the agency could propose the first update to its toxic pollution standards for medical sterilization facilities such as Sterigenics this year.
‘Public Health Crisis’
Speaking on the Senate floor Feb. 12, Durbin said he called acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler Feb. 8 to insist the agency take action the Sterigenics plant.
“The EPA has to do a lot more,” Durbin said. “The EPA needs to treat this matter like the public health crisis that it is.”
The Senate bills were referred to the Environment and Public Works Committee. House companion bills sponsored by Illinois Democrats are expected to be introduced no later than Feb. 15.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/congress-increases-demands-on-epa-regarding-illinois-emissions
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Liz Cheney Calls for House Vote on Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal
Feb 13, 2019 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Timothy Cama
The No. 3 Republican in the House is calling on Democratic leaders to hold a vote on the Green New Deal, an aggressive plan to fight climate change.
Rep. Liz Cheney (Wyo.), chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, said a vote would help the American people learn where lawmakers stand on the non-binding resolution that she and others have painted as a socialist plan that would ruin the economy.
“We think Democrats need to be held accountable,” Cheney told reporters Wednesday. “If they support this as they say they do, and as their presidential candidates do, then let’s have a vote on it and see to what extent they’re all going to get behind moving towards this kind of fantasy.”
Cheney, whose state is the nation's top coal producer, said the Democrats backing the proposal “have said they would attempt to eliminate all planes, all air travel, within a decade. The results would be the elimination also of gasoline, the elimination of cars as we know them now.”
The resolution, introduced last week by Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), calls for a quick, 10-year plan to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, through an aggressive increase in renewable energy, plus a jobs guarantee and other provisions.
It does not call for the elimination of air travel, gasoline or cars. However, supplementary information from Ocasio-Cortez's office had said it would expand rail infrastructure to the point that air travel would be “unnecessary.”
Cheney’s call came the day after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell(R-Ky.) announced his chamber would hold a vote on the resolution.
“We’ll give everybody an opportunity to go on record and see how they feel about the Green New Deal,” McConnell told reporters.
Multiple Senate Democrats are running for president in 2020, and McConnell and his colleagues think the vote is an opportunity to highlight what they see as extreme positions among the candidates running against President Trump.
Democrats hold the House majority, so Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who has not backed the resolution, would be responsible for scheduling a vote.
Hoyer’s office did not directly say whether he would heed Cheney’s call.
“Democrats are committed to taking action to address climate change, one of the most pressing issues of our time,” Hoyer said in a statement.
“For far too long, Republicans in Congress have ignored this critical issue. I’m pleased that House Committees have begun to hold hearings on climate change, and I look forward to bringing legislation to the House floor to reduce carbon pollution, help our communities prepare for current and future climate risks, and create clean energy jobs.”
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/429832-cheney-calls-for-house-vote-on-ocasio-cortezs-green-new-deal
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Ewire: McConnell Pledges Senate Vote on Green New Deal
Feb 13, 2019 | Inside EPA
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is pledging a vote on the “Green New Deal” proposal, though the vote is not being held to advance the climate policy but rather in an effort to paint Democrats' plan as extreme and force lawmakers to take a public stand on it.
“We'll give everybody a chance to go on record and see how they feel about the Green New Deal,” McConnell said, according to Politico, though he did not provide a timeframe for a possible vote.
Currently, the plan only exists as a resolution outlining a framework for aggressive climate mitigation efforts, with supporters pledging to flesh out the policy in the coming months.
Republicans see political opportunity in the Green New Deal, with Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID) previously telling the outlet that the plan is “crazy” and “loony.” Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), the chairman of the Senate environment committee, called the plan a “big government takeover of the economy masked as an environmental policy” in Feb. 12 floor remarks.
However, Vanity Fair posits that the GOP “may have misjudged the perception of the Green New Deal beyond the conservative echo chamber,” citing two recent polls showing a majority of Americans -- including conservatives -- in favor of the plan, and a plurality backing higher taxes on carbon emissions.
“At this point, a show vote may inadvertently boost the Democrats McConnell intended to target,” the article says.
Democrats and environmentalists quickly dismissed McConnell's pledge as a political stunt. Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA), the chamber's main sponsor of the Green New Deal resolution, said in a Feb. 12 statement that bringing the measure to the floor would be insincere without committee hearings, expert testimony or a “true national debate.”
“The Green New Deal resolution has struck a powerful chord in this country, and Republicans, climate deniers, and the fossil fuel industry are going to end up on the wrong side of history,” the senator said.
Sierra Club in its statement called the announcement a “cynical political ploy,” charging that McConnell is “playing games with the livelihoods of people across this country” because he does not intend to address climate change but rather is using the issue as a political cudgel.
“McConnell may think this is a savvy political move to hurt his opponents, but the fact is the American people overwhelmingly support the vision of the Green New Deal,” the group said.
https://insideepa.com/daily-feed/ewire-mcconnell-pledges-senate-vote-green-new-deal
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Green New Deal Vote in Senate Could Expose Democratic Divisions (1)
Feb 13, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Dean Scott
A plan by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to hold a vote on the Green New Deal will almost surely expose divisions among Senate Democrats still wrestling with whether to back the ambitious 10-year plan to combat climate change.
McConnell announced Feb. 12 a yet-unscheduled vote designed to put pressure on Senate Democrats, many of whom remain undecided on the proposal.
House Republicans who have been lambasting the Green New Deal as far-fetched, or socialism, said a Senate vote would force backers of climate action to defend the costs of their proposed solutions.
“You know, if that’s a message that highlights the difference, that will be good,” Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), co-founder of the Freedom Caucus, told Bloomberg Environment.
Many Democrats who have been active on climate change aren’t rushing to embrace the Green New Deal resolution (H.Res. 109) saying Congress remains too far from a consensus on what to do about the issue. They, along with Democrats who back the measure, said McConnell’s call for a floor vote amounts to political posturing.
Democrats have options besides voting “yes” or “no,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a co-sponsor of the Green New Deal resolution in the Senate, who said members could vote “present” as a protest of McConnell’s tactics.
“We have a lot of really important things to do” to combat climate change, Murphy said. “Political stunts are not one of them.”
Democratic Counterattack
Freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), the architect of the resolution, said most of the nation backs significant investment in green infrastructure, ratcheting up U.S. reliance on clean energy, and overhauling the U.S. transportation system.
“McConnell thinks he can end all debate on the Green New Deal now and stop this freight train of momentum,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement. “Unfortunately for Mitch, all he’s going to do is show just how out of touch Republican politicians are with the American people.”
Other Democrats also sought to use McConnell’s move as an opportunity to counterattack Senate Republicans, whom they say have no plan of their own to deal with climate change.
The Republican approach “for addressing climate change does not exist,” Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), a reliable supporter of climate-change action who isn’t backing the Green New Deal resolution, tweeted after the Senate leader’s announcement.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), one of the proposal’s backers, said the Republicans’ criticism of the deal was in line with past GOP attacks on Democratic proposals.
“Now, once again, we’ve got a serious challenge which has enormous ramifications for our future, for our young people, and once again, you’ve got the people on the far right saying it’s socialism,” Wyden said. “You can almost set your clock by it. Wash, rinse and repeat.”
A Dozen Supporters
The Democrats’ plan envisions shifting away from fossil fuels and other sources of emissions that cause global warming within 10 years. It also includes nonenvironmental measures designed to address social injustices, such as economic insecurity, affordable housing, and universal health care.
The Green New Deal has roughly a dozen supporters in the Senate, all Democrats, among them several who are vying for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, such as Sens. Kamala Harris (Calif.), Cory Booker (N.J.), and Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.).
McConnell’s response would force Senate Democrats to follow through on that support, although it’s unclear what the wording of the Senate leader’s resolution will be. A McConnell aide declined to clarify how the resolution would be worded.
“It will give everybody an opportunity to go on record and see how people feel about the Green New Deal,” McConnell said at his weekly news conference.
The McConnell aide told Bloomberg Environment afterward that the vote isn’t likely to be imminent, given that both chambers are focused this week on a deal to avert a shutdown beginning midnight Feb. 15. The Senate has a one-week recess next week for President’s Day.
Manchin Skeptical
At least one Democrat has joined Republicans in being openly skeptical of the deal: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who has long supported his state’s coal industry and who famously shot a hole in the Democrats’ failed cap-and-trade bill in 2010.
“What is it? It’s a dream,” said Manchin of the green deal.
Manchin, the new ranking Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, a position he won over the objections of environmental groups who tried to sink the promotion given his record opposing climate action.
He has tried to balance his dismissal of the Green New Deal while saying that he supports action on climate change.
“We all agree that the climate is changing and we all agree we have to do something,” he told reporters after McConnell’s announcement.
Republicans All for Vote
Top Senate Republicans rallied around the idea of essentially subjecting the Democrats’ own Green New Deal to a vote in the Senate.
“It’s something obviously they’ve made a big priority in terms of, you know, it being something they want to see accomplished,” Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), the chamber’s second-ranking Republican, told reporters.
Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said Democrats should have to defend their climate ideas.
“It’s so interesting to watch this very hard left turn the Democratic Party has taken,” he told reporters.
Thune sidestepped a question though on what Republicans might offer on their own to address climate change, saying Congress has “made some good headway in the past years” in tackling U.S. emissions.
“I always believed it was better to use in the Senate a carrot approach rather than a stick approach,” he said.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/green-new-deal-vote-in-senate-could-expose-democratic-divisions-1
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