Preview Newsletter
PM ACC Clips Report - April 17, 2019
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(ACC Mentioned) 3 Chemical Stocks Worth Betting on Before Their Q1 Earnings
Apr 17, 2019 | Zacks (In Nasdaq)
By Anindya Barman
The chemical industry is among the industries that have been badly hit by the bitter year-long trade tussle between the United States and China. The damaging effects of the trade war were evident from the industry's lackluster performance in 2018. -
(ACC Mentioned) Interactive: US April Homebuilder Confidence Edges Up
Apr 16, 2019 | ICIS
US homebuilder confidence rose by one point in April, with sentiment holding in the low 60s during the last three months, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) said in a Tuesday report. -
Labour Shortages Contributing to TSCA New Chemical Review Delays
Apr 17, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Lisa Martine Jenkins
At a US House of Representatives hearing last week, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said a buildup of to-be-reviewed pre-manufacture notices (PMNs) can be traced to a lack of EPA personnel. -
New Drinking Water Proposals for Perchlorate Just Weeks Away
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By David Schultz
The EPA is likely weeks away from unveiling a proposal to regulate a new contaminant in drinking water for the first time since the George W. Bush administration. -
Vermont Would Extend Tough Water Rules on Fluorinated Chemicals
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Adrianne Appel
Vermont has the strictest rules in the nation limiting fluorinated chemicals in drinking water, but those rules would get even tougher under a bill the legislature cleared April 16. -
Michigan Gets to Work on PFAS Safe Drinking Water MCL
Apr 17, 2019 | The National Law Review
By Tammy L. Helminski, Jeffrey S. Longsworth, and Charles M. Denton
Michigan’s PFAS Action Response Team (MPART) is working to implement Governor Whitmer’s March 26, 2019 directive that the state propose new drinking water standards for an undetermined subset of the thousands of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by October 1, 2019. -
Further Data Needed on Over 1,000 High Priority Chemicals – Echa
Apr 17, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Luke Buxton
Echa and member states have identified about 1,300 ‘high priority’ substances registered on the EU market for which further data needs to be generated or assessed. Authorities can then decide whether further regulatory risk management is needed on them. -
Aise Pushes for Digitalisation of Product Labels
Apr 17, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Caterina Tani
Soap and detergents association Aise is seeking input from EU authorities and stakeholders in its bid for information on product labels to be digitalised. -
Colorado Oil and Gas Fight Moves from Statehouse to State Agency
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Chuck McCutcheon
Colorado’s comprehensive new law giving local governments more say over regulating oil and gas drilling shifts the fierce fight from the statehouse to a state regulatory body. -
New Congress, New Faces, New Challenges
Apr 16, 2019 | RailwayAge Magazine
By Frank N. Wilner
Knock, knock. Who’s there? If at the door are those laboring in official Washington, the answer is, “many new faces”—new congressional committee chairs, regulators, association chiefs, lobbyists and labor negotiators. Does not danger dwell where unfamiliarity and uncertainty lurk? -
Virginia Railway Express Fully Compliant With Positive Train Control
Apr 17, 2019 | Transportation Today
By Melina Druga
Virginia Railway Express (VRE) recently announced it is fully positive train control (PTC) compliant. -
Warren Presses Top General on Climate Change
Apr 17, 2019 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Rebecca Kheel
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who is running for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, is pressing the nation’s top general on the threat of climate change. -
Midwest States Meet to Discuss Regional Climate Strategies
Apr 17, 2019 | Inside EPA
Officials from four Midwestern states with newly elected Democratic governors are meeting with environmental groups to discuss “options for regional cooperation” on policies to mitigate climate change and boost clean energy. -
Inslee Calls for Climate Primary Debate
Apr 17, 2019 | E&E Greenwire
By Nick Sobczyk
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) is petitioning the Democratic National Committee to have a presidential primary debate entirely about climate change, a potential boon to his quixotic 2020 candidacy. -
San Francisco Targets Single-Use Plastic Produce Bags
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Joyce E. Cutler
San Francisco, which enacted the nation’s first single-use plastic bag ban, wants to do the same for produce bags.
Industry and Association News
TSCA News
Chemical Management News
Energy News
Chemical Security News - There are no clips to report at this time.
Transportation and Infrastructure News
Environment News
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(ACC Mentioned) 3 Chemical Stocks Worth Betting on Before Their Q1 Earnings
Apr 17, 2019 | Zacks (In Nasdaq)
By Anindya Barman
The chemical industry is among the industries that have been badly hit by the bitter year-long trade tussle between the United States and China. The damaging effects of the trade war were evident from the industry's lackluster performance in 2018.
Washington and Beijing levied billions of dollars in punitive tariffs on each others' products last year. China's list of U.S. goods hit with tariffs includes an array of petrochemicals, specialty chemicals and plastics.
Although recent negotiations between the world's two biggest economies have raised hopes of a possible resolution of the trade spat, the tariffs currently in place are already doing damage to the chemical industry. In particular, the U.S. chemical industry is bearing the brunt of the trade conflict.
China is among the largest export markets for U.S. chemicals. Beijing's countermeasures have created an uncertain demand environment for U.S. chemical products in China. The tariffs are hurting U.S. chemical exports and the competitiveness of the American chemical industry.
Chemical makers are also seeing weaker demand in China associated with the U.S.-China trade tiff amid a slowing Chinese economy. Notably, the trade friction has led to a slowdown in demand in the automotive market (a major chemical end-use market) in China.
A downturn in the global economy, partly due to the trade tensions, is another concern for the chemical industry. Economic conditions have, in particular, weakened across emerging economies. Moreover, Brexit and other concerns have led to a slowdown in the European economy. Slowdown in the world economy would hurt growth of the chemical industry.
Notwithstanding the challenges, the chemical industry is poised for an upswing in 2019. In particular, the U.S. chemical industry is expected to run higher this year on the back of strength across major end-use markets, higher industrial activities and gains in business investment.
The American Chemistry Council ("ACC"), a leading industry trade group, expects national chemical production (excluding pharmaceuticals) to rise 3.6% in 2019. The growth is expected to be spurred by gains in manufacturing and export and sustained demand across light vehicles and housing markets.
Meanwhile, the European Chemical Industry Council ("CEFIC") envisions the European chemical industry to recover in 2019 from a decline in demand from the automotive industry in 2018. The CEFIC expects chemical output in the European Union to rise 0.5% year over year in 2019, which would mark a rebound from a 0.5% decline 2018.
Expectations for Q1
Per the Zacks Industry classification, the chemical industry is under the broader Basic Materials sector. Earnings picture for the Basic Materials sector for the first quarter looks glum. The sector is among the Zacks sectors that are expected to see a double digit decline in earnings in the first quarter. Overall earnings for the sector are projected to fall 17.7% on 2.7% lower revenues, per the latest Earnings Preview .
Chemical makers face margin headwinds in the first quarter from a spike in costs of raw materials as a result of short supply partly due to production outages and plant shutdowns. The stricter environmental policy in China has led to the tightening in the supply of certain key raw materials as a result of plant closures. The disruption in the supply chain has pushed up the prices of inputs. Some of the chemical companies are also exposed to challenges from elevated energy and logistics costs.
Nevertheless, the companies should be able to offset the concerns with strategic measures, including cost-cutting and productivity improvement and actions to raise selling prices. A number of companies including Eastman Chemical Company EMN and Celanese Corporation CE are taking aggressive price increase actions in the wake of raw material cost inflation. These actions will likely support their margins in the first quarter.
Moreover, chemical companies remain actively focused on mergers and acquisitions to diversify and drive growth. Synergies from acquisitions should also lend support to earnings in the March quarter.
Picking the Winning Stocks
Companies in the chemical space face headwinds from cost inflation and some demand weakness amid the trade conflict. Nevertheless, strategic measures including productivity improvement and price hike actions are likely to aid the performance of chemical makers in the first quarter.
As such, a sneak peek at the space for some potential winners backed by a solid Zacks Rank could be a great idea for investors looking to gain from the first-quarter earnings season.
With the help of the Zacks Stock Screener , we have shortlisted chemical stocks that have an estimated year over year earnings per share (EPS) growth of 5% or more for the to-be-reported quarter. Further, these stocks carry a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here .
3 Chemical Stocks to Buy
Below we discuss three chemical stocks that are worth investing in before the first-quarter earnings season hits full throttle.
Innospec Inc.IOSP
Colorado-based Innospec sports a Zacks Rank #1. It has an expected EPS growth of 12.8% for the first quarter. Moreover, the company delivered positive earnings surprise in three of the trailing four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 8%. The company also has an expected EPS growth of 3.5% for the current year. Earnings estimates for the current year have been revised 5.3% upward over the last 90 days.
Tronox LimitedTROX
Our next pick is Connecticut-based Tronox, carrying a Zacks Rank #2. The company has an expected EPS growth of 300% for the first quarter. The company also has an expected EPS growth of 50% for the current year. Earnings estimates for the current year have been revised 2.4% upward over the last 90 days.
W. R. Grace & Co.GRA
Maryland-based W. R. Grace carries a Zacks Rank #2. The company has an expected EPS growth of 7.3% for the first quarter. Moreover, the company delivered positive earnings surprise in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average positive surprise of roughly 12.2%. The company also has an expected EPS growth of 10.4% for the current year. Moreover, earnings estimates for the current year have been revised 3.2% upward over the last 90 days.
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(ACC Mentioned) Interactive: US April Homebuilder Confidence Edges Up
Apr 16, 2019 | ICIS
US homebuilder confidence rose by one point in April, with sentiment holding in the low 60s during the last three months, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) said in a Tuesday report.
“Builders report solid demand for new single-family homes, but they are also grappling with affordability concerns stemming from a chronic shortage of construction workers and buildable lots,” said Greg Ugalde, chairman at the NAHB.
“Ongoing job growth, favorable demographics and a low interest rate environment will help to modestly spark sales growth in the near term,” said Robert Dietz, chief economist at the NAHB. “However, supply-side headwinds that are putting upward pressure on housing costs will limit more robust growth in the housing market.”
The housing market is a key consumer of chemicals, driving demand for a wide variety of chemicals, resins and derivative products such as plastic pipe, insulation, paints and coatings, adhesives and synthetic fibres, among many others.
The American Chemistry Council (ACC) estimates each new home built represents some $15,000 worth of chemicals and derivatives used in the structure or in the production of component materials.
https://www.icis.com/explore/resources/news/2019/04/16/10349386/interactive-us-april-homebuilder-confidence-edges-up
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Labour Shortages Contributing to TSCA New Chemical Review Delays
Apr 17, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Lisa Martine Jenkins
At a US House of Representatives hearing last week, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said a buildup of to-be-reviewed pre-manufacture notices (PMNs) can be traced to a lack of EPA personnel.
The backlog, which stands at 515 as of 2 April, is down from an October high of 553 cases. Back then the EPA responded to industry criticism by saying the buildup was due to readjustments caused by the complexity of the new TSCA requirements.
But in a 9 April hearing, Mr Wheeler told lawmakers that "it’s more a labour problem, at this point."
While the EPA hired 25 new people to work on TSCA last year, it also lost 25 people, he said. In response to questions from Representative John Shimkus (R-Illinois, pictured), Mr Wheeler said the agency will try to quickly hire more experienced scientists and engineers to make the process run in a more timely fashion.
And both Mr Wheeler and EPA toxics head Alexandra Dunn have said that a plan is in place to address the new chemical reviews that have been "languishing" for months or years.
"Working through the implementation phase [of the 2016 amendments to TSCA] we got the backlog. So we’re trying to process the new chemicals as they come in as quickly as possible and also work on the backlog," Mr Wheeler told the hearing.
"There have been some challenges, but we’re processing [PMNs] faster than we were a year ago," he added.Pace of reviews
TSCA mandates that new chemical reviews are completed within 90 days, with possible extensions. But according to Mr Wheeler’s review of the most current data as of the hearing, the pending PMNs included:270 that were older than 180 days; andbetween 110 and 120 PMNs that were between 90 and 180 days old.
The agency’s justification for its fiscal year 2020 budget reveals that in fiscal year 2018, it fell short of its target of completing 65% of reviews within the 90 day limit – just 58.4% were completed within that timeframe.
The report blames the miss on the "complexity" that TSCA amendments added to the new chemicals review process. However, the EPA "maintains a perfect record of completing final determinations within the timeframe allowable by law", when factoring in submitter-requested extensions.
The budget justification also highlights one of the agency’s goals for this year: to complete 80% of TSCA PMN final determinations within statutory deadlines by 30 September.
https://chemicalwatch.com/76586/labour-shortages-contributing-to-tsca-new-chemical-review-delays
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New Drinking Water Proposals for Perchlorate Just Weeks Away
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By David Schultz
The EPA is likely weeks away from unveiling a proposal to regulate a new contaminant in drinking water for the first time since the George W. Bush administration.
The Environmental Protection Agency sent a proposal to the White House on April 16 that would set new standards on perchlorate in drinking water to the White House. White House review is typically the final step in the regulatory process before a proposal is publicly unveiled.
The Trump administration is under a court-ordered deadline to publicly release the standards for perchlorate before the end of next month. This deadline sprang from a lawsuit by environmentalists, Nat. Res. Def. Council v. EPA, who argued the agency was not abiding by the timelines laid out in federal drinking water law.
Perchlorate is a component of rocket fuel and fireworks, but it was also added to some food packaging to reduce static electricity. Studies have found that consuming too much perchlorate can cause thyroid problems.
If and when these new perchlorate standards are finalized, drinking water utilities across the country will have to continuously monitor for perchlorate levels and take action if they rise too high.
The agency hasn’t established standards for a new drinking water contaminant since 2006 and has not even revised its standards for any previously regulated contaminants since 2013.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/unveiling-of-new-drinking-water-regulations-just-weeks-away
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Vermont Would Extend Tough Water Rules on Fluorinated Chemicals
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Adrianne Appel
Vermont has the strictest rules in the nation limiting fluorinated chemicals in drinking water, but those rules would get even tougher under a bill the legislature cleared April 16.
Since July 2018, Vermont has enforced a limit of 20 parts per trillion combined for any of five common compounds known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), in public and private drinking water systems and wells.
The chemicals are widely used in firefighting foam, and as nonstick and stain-resistant compounds in a number of consumer and industrial products.
They have been detected in drinking water nationwide and have been linked to thyroid issues, cancer, and immune system problems, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
The bill, S.49, would extend these limits to ground water and surface water and require the agency to take other steps to protect the Vermont public from exposure to PFAS.
Officials in Vermont and other states say they are taking action on the chemicals because the federal government is dragging its feet.
The federal EPA does plan to list two types of common PFAS chemicals as hazardous substances under the nation’s Superfund law by year’s end, the EPA has said.
And the agency’s water office is exploring drinking water rules, though it is midstream through that multi-year consideration process, with no guarantees it will end up regulating PFOA and PFOS in drinking water.
GovernorVermont House lawmakers passed the bill on a 135 to 1 vote on April 16, following Senate approval March 13.
It will soon head to the desk of Gov. Phil Scott (R), whose administration has won a series of agreements from Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics on PFAS contamination.
The Scott administration has been working with the legislature on the bill, Rebecca Kelley, Scott spokeswoman, said April 16. But the governor will need to evaluate the final legislation when it arrives on his desk, she said.
The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources is in the process of drafting a final drinking water rule for five PFAS, which include: perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), and perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS).
Thousands of other PFAS exist, and environmental groups have petitioned for Vermont and other states to require filtration for all types of PFAS. So far none of the six New England states have agreed.
Sludge TestsThe bill would require the Agency of Natural Resources to investigate whether PFAS compounds should also be regulated in municipal sludge. The agency would need to test broadly for PFAS chemicals in Vermont under the measure. The state has had a similar emergency health rule in place since July 2018.
Alarm has spread among states, including Vermont and Maine, about PFAS concentration in municipal sludge, after an Arundel, Maine, dairy farm was found to have elevated concentrations of PFAS traced to its sludge use. The farm has had to dump its milk since 2016.
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection announced March 22 that all municipal sludge, a common fertilizer, must be tested before it can be used as fertilizer.
Saint-Gobain SettlementVermont announced April 10 that it had reached a final settlement with Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics to extend public water connections to all 470 homes and businesses in Bennington, Vt., found to be contaminated with PFAS. The PFAS was discovered in 2016 and traced back to a factory that Saint-Gobain now owns.
“Saint-Gobain has worked cooperatively with state and local officials to ensure residents have access to potable drinking water,” Dina Pokedoff, a companyspokeswoman, said April 16. She said the company is “aware of the bill,” but declined to comment on the measure.
The nonprofit advocacy group Conservation Law Foundation “believes regulating these harmful chemicals as a class is the right approach,” Elena Mihaly, an attorney for the group in Vermont, said April 16.
“The municipal sewage sludge issue is definitely concerning, and it’s one of the reasons why the Agency of Natural Resources needs to conduct a more comprehensive investigation of PFAS sources,” she said.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/vermont-would-extend-tough-rules-on-water-contaminant
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Michigan Gets to Work on PFAS Safe Drinking Water MCL
Apr 17, 2019 | The National Law Review
By Tammy L. Helminski, Jeffrey S. Longsworth, and Charles M. Denton
Michigan’s PFAS Action Response Team (MPART) is working to implement Governor Whitmer’s March 26, 2019 directive that the state propose new drinking water standards for an undetermined subset of the thousands of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by October 1, 2019. MPART, on April 11, 2019, appointed three scientists to a Science Advisory Workgroup and directed the workgroup to review existing and proposed health-based drinking water standards for various PFAS compounds from around the nation.
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), soon to be part of the new Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE), was directed by the Governor to work with the Science Advisory Workgroup to develop health-based values for PFAS compounds by the end of June -- an ambitious but critical step for developing Safe Drinking Water Act maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) in drinking water. Thereafter, MDEQ will propose draft rules, seeking stakeholder input that, according to the governor’s directive, must be proposed by October 1st. Following administrative rulemaking procedures, a final MCL drinking water standard could be adopted by April 2020. The directive leaves to agency deference which of the thousands of PFAS compounds MDEQ will select for developing MCLs.
Michigan, like most states, has typically (if not always) simply adopted those MCLs developed federally by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). States have called on the EPA to develop MCLs for certain PFAS compounds. In response, the EPA’s PFAS Action Plan, released earlier this year, stated the agency was moving forward with the MCL process for PFOA and PFOS—two of the most well-known and prevalent PFAS chemicals. The EPA, however, did not provide a timeline and the implication was that federal MCLs could take several years or more. The next federal action under the Safe Drinking Water Act that the agency describedwas to propose a “regulatory determination,” which would provide the opportunity for the public to contribute to the information the EPA will consider related to regulating certain PFAS compounds for drinking water. Some states, like Michigan, have decided not to wait for this EPA process to continue with indeterminate outcomes and timeframes, and have instead undertaken to set their own state-based MCLs.
PFAS regulatory approaches continue to emerge and evolve. This MCL development is just one of the many actions that are being taken in Michigan and many other states across the nation.
https://www.natlawreview.com/article/michigan-gets-to-work-pfas-safe-drinking-water-mcl
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Further Data Needed on Over 1,000 High Priority Chemicals – Echa
Apr 17, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Luke Buxton
Echa and member states have identified about 1,300 ‘high priority’ substances registered on the EU market for which further data needs to be generated or assessed. Authorities can then decide whether further regulatory risk management is needed on them.
This is one of the outcomes of the inaugural report Mapping the chemical universe to address substances of concern under the agency’s integrated regulatory strategy.
The information, the report said, helps authorities to identify, plan and monitor the progress on identifying and regulating substances of concern.
The exercise provides knowledge on which substances need further hazard information or risk management measures and helps steer decisions on which chemicals member states should prioritise.Three ‘pools’
Echa’s "interim goal" is to generate sufficient understanding of all substances registered above 100 tonnes by 2020 and to assign each substance to one of the following work streams or ‘pools’:high priority for risk management: this comprises around 270 substances with identified concerns, and for which further regulatory risk management is ongoing or can start based on currently available information. The majority of these substances were identified through screening. Following more in-depth work, authorities will initiate harmonisation of classification, identification as an SVHC, restriction, or actions under other legislation, or conclude that further regulation at Union level is not justified;high priority for data generation: about 1,300 substances are deemed as being of potential concern, and either new hazard data need to be generated or existing data need to be assessed in more detail so that authorities can decide whether further regulatory risk management is needed. The majority of these substances were identified through screening. "As the testing itself takes time, it is important to keep all process timelines as short as allowed by legislation to ensure that regulatory risk management can be initiated promptly," the report said; andlow priority: around 450 substances are considered of low priority because they are already "sufficiently regulated". For these substances there is no need for further immediate regulatory action. In 2018, 16 more substances were identified as SVHCs and included on the candidate list and three restriction proposals were submitted.
Additionally, the report said some 500 substances are currently of low priority following assessment. Authorities have focused on identifying substances of concern that need further regulatory risk management.
"However, in carrying out these activities, they have been able to conclude on many other substances, based on available data on hazard and uses, that they can currently be considered of low priority for further work and not needing follow-up action."
Conclusions on these chemicals will be revisited when new information becomes available on hazardous properties or uses, the agency said.Impending list
The focus is on the 4,700 substances registered above 100 tonnes – so far Echa has allocated more than 40% of them to one of the three substance pools.
The list of the substances will be published at the end of the year and will be updated as the work progresses.
"However, authorities still need to clarify in which pool around 2,700 substances belong. This uncertain area is what is left after more than ten years of systematic screening, focusing on substances of high concern," Echa said.
It expects a "significant number" of them to undergo compliance checks or substance evaluation in the coming years to generate the necessary information for priority setting and assessment.
"We are working together with the European Commission and member states in developing an ambitious plan to increase the level of compliance of dossiers, which will accelerate the identification of substances of concern in the years to come," Echa executive director Bjorn Hansen said.
"We also urge industry, who is ultimately responsible for ensuring the safe use of their substances, to be proactive and take all necessary steps to ensure that all their dossiers are compliant."
Main recommendations from report
Further cooperation and coordination between authorities;
further optimisation of data generation and assessment to ensure substances are progressed to regulatory risk management without delay;
harmonised classification and labelling should become a priority, because it has a direct impact on company-level risk management and is often the step before legislative measures;
the priority and appropriateness of previously identified, but still pending, follow-up actions should be reviewed, and those for chemicals of high priority should be progressed to regulatory risk management; and
the quality of registration information needs to be improved, in particular for substances with a high potential for exposure and currently lacking hazard data.
https://chemicalwatch.com/76629/further-data-needed-on-over-1000-high-priority-chemicals-echa
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Aise Pushes for Digitalisation of Product Labels
Apr 17, 2019 | Chemical Watch
By Caterina Tani
Soap and detergents association Aise is seeking input from EU authorities and stakeholders in its bid for information on product labels to be digitalised.
It discussed the issue with Echa, member states, national authorities and other industry stakeholders, at the annual CLP workshop for the network of national helpdesks (HelpNet) on 4 April.
The European Commission is currently reviewing the detergents Regulation as part of the regulatory fitness check on chemicals legislation excluding REACH.
In June last year, Aise president Arndt Scheidgen called for the detergents Regulation review to prioritise "simplification of labels to enable safe and correct use of products" and "the transparent provision of information via digital means".
The digital agenda is expected to be "very high" on the next Commission’s agenda, Aise spokesperson Valérie Séjourné told Chemical Watch.
Aise presented the case at the CLP workshop this month to gauge initial reactions, gather information and assess the potential of using digital tools.
One discussion thread is on deciding which information should stay on the label and what can be exported and put online, Ms Séjourné said.Consumers and costsThe digital drive has been spurred on by consumer attitudes towards printed labels on products, which, according to Aise, do not succeed in conveying relevant safety information.
An online questionnaire carried out by the detergents association in 2017, involving 1,800 people in four countries, showed that 80% of respondents would prefer labels that are simpler and easier to understand.
Labels on products are "too crowded" and the information too technical, Ms Séjourné said.
A 2018 Aise consumer behaviour survey found that out of 4,600 people in 23 countries, only half read the labels before buying a product and 60% before using it.
Presenting information in a digital format is one way around this, the Aise spokesperson said. "Future labels should convey the relevant information which matters most,'' so that consumers would be more inclined to read the label, she added.
Information presented on a digital platform would also eliminate the "high cost burdens" associated with printing labels. Additionally, it would afford greater clarity on separate labelling requirements under the CLP, detergents and biocidal products Regulations.
Outside of the detergents sector, Cosmetics Europe is currently implementing a project to provide consumers with information on ingredients in a digital format.And the German Environment Agency (UBA) recently held a workshop on digital compliance in the context of trying to harmonise its AskREACH database with Echa’s on SVHCs in articles.UN and outside
The digitalisation initiative has spread beyond the EU and is on the radar of the UN, as the CLP Regulation adopts the UN’s Globally Harmonised System on the classification and labelling of chemicals (GHS).
UN representatives are "very interested and keen" to learn from the EU’s implementation of CLP, Ms Séjourné said.
A specific working group, led by Cefic with the involvement of Aise, is exploring the opportunity that digitalisation could bring to the UN, she added.
Further discussions with them will be carried out in July.
Aise is also in contact with non-European countries, for instance the US, which has a system to facilitate the use of online information called SmartLabel.https://chemicalwatch.com/76645/aise-pushes-for-digitalisation-of-product-labels
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Colorado Oil and Gas Fight Moves from Statehouse to State Agency
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Chuck McCutcheon
Colorado’s comprehensive new law giving local governments more say over regulating oil and gas drilling shifts the fierce fight from the statehouse to a state regulatory body.
· Energy companies and environmentalists will take their arguments to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, hoping to pull the changes to the final rule in their respective directions.
· Industry will argue about the economic effects, saying it could prompt reduced drilling that leads to layoffs. The bill’s supporters note that the local government regulatory changes are optional and not mandatory.Mexican Wolf Puts Agency in Tough Spot
The Fish and Wildlife Service has found itself caught between environmentalists and ranchers as it seeks to protect the Mexican gray wolf, Stephen Lee writes.
· The agency’s April 8 annual update on the status of the animal, the rarest subspecies of gray wolf in North America, sparked heated reactions from the environmentalists, who contend federal officials aren’t doing enough, and ranchers, who say the wolves are hurting their livelihood.
· Courts may ultimately settle the wolf’s fate. Environmentalists filed a lawsuit last year challenging provisions of the agency’s 2017 recovery plan for the wolf; the court partly denied a Fish and Wildlife Service motion to dismiss the case.Nukes Trying to Get Nimble
Volatile wind and solar is swamping power grids, prompting nuclear reactor owners to experiment with ways tap the brakes on massive plants that were built to run nonstop, Bloomberg News writes.
· The challenge of ramping up and down to keep pace with wind and solar will only get worse as California and other states push to eliminate fossil fuels.
· Exelon, the biggest U.S. nuclear operator, regularly adjusts output at its Quad Cities and Byron plants in Illinois when grid operators order generators to cut back or pay to keep producing. The company’s techniques can reduce power by almost 15 percent in less than an hour.Midwest Climate Group
Three new Midwestern governors are taking more of a leadership position on climate change policy, with specific policy goals such as committing to emissions-free energy sources by 2050, Stephen Joyce reports in Chicago.
· Democratic Govs. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, and Tony Evers of Wisconsin each flipped state capitols to Democratic control in 2018 elections.
· The Natural Resources Defense Council and other nongovernmental groups hosted a meeting April 16 in Chicago to bring together new Midwest state environmental staff members. Pritzker addressed the group in person.
· “Through the climate lens, if the Midwest were a country it would be the sixth-largest emitter on the planet. So what happens in the Midwest is critically important,” said Rhea Suh, NRDC president.What Else We’re Watching
Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association
Photographer: Bobby Magill/Bloomberg Environment
· The Energy Storage Association’s conference in Phoenix continues with a panelfeaturing Edison Electric Institute President Tom Kuhn, Solar Energy Industries Association President Abigail Ross Hopper, and American Wind Energy Association CEO Tom Kiernan.
· The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s energy and environment committee looks at derivatives markets developments resulting from changes in the natural gas and crude oil physical markets.
· A group of EPA advisers will meet to discuss ways to finance infrastructure projects that could stop agricultural pollution from going into the Chesapeake Bay, as well as projects that could make communities nationwide more resilient to extreme weather events.
· A group of 15 state attorneys general are opposing the Trump administration’s attempt to rewrite a landmark Obama-era regulation on water pollution. The attorneys general, all Democrats, don’t want the administration to narrow the Clean Water Act definition of what is—and isn’t—a water body that qualifies for federal anti-pollution protection, according to their letter. Seventeen Republican attorneys general support the rewrite, according to their separate letter to the administration.
· San Francisco, which brought the nation’s first single-use plastic bag ban, wants to start the same wave for plastic produce bags. A proposed ordinance introduced yesterday would require compostable-only bags starting July 1, 2020, and would boost from 10 cents to 25 cents the cost for bags at point of sale.
· Local governments across China have made $15.6 billion from fast-tracked transfers of land development rights on contaminated plots of land previously home to chemical, steel, and other heavy industry, Michael Standaert writes.Daily Rundown
Top Stories
Trump Signs Water-Saving Measure for Seven Southwestern States
A water-management plan agreed to by seven Southwestern states to respond to drought conditions in the Colorado River basin took a big step forward when President Donald Trump signed a bill authorizing the pact.20-Year Offshore Wind Contracts Get Massachusetts Nod
Large wind turbines will be coming to the waters 14 miles off the coast of Massachusetts after the state approved its first long-term contracts between a wind developer and utilities.California Water District Sued Over Bernhardt Records Request
The fight over Interior Secretary David Bernhardt’s loyalty to former clients and possible conflicts of interest has moved West. A Montana-based advocacy group said it sued in California Superior Court asking a judge to force the Westlands Water District to comply with public records requests related to Bernhardt.Energy
Justices Appear Split on Wage Laws for Offshore Oil Rig Workers
The U.S. Supreme Court appeared divided over whether California’s offshore oil rig workers should be subject to the state’s more rigorous wage and hour law or the federal standard.Trump’s Former Interior Secretary Joins Board of Gold Miner
Former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has joined the board of a tiny gold mining company with projects in Nevada and Wyoming.Environment
Vermont Would Extend Tough Water Rules on Fluorinated Chemicals
Vermont has the strictest rules in the nation limiting fluorinated chemicals in drinking water, but those rules would get even tougher under a bill the legislature cleared.Cattle Ranchers Seek to Limit Clean Water Act Reach in Northwest
Cattle industry trade groups filed suits in Oregon and Washington April 16 aiming to curtail the reach of the Clean Water Act.Today’s Events· 8:30 a.m. (CDT) • Floods • Senate environment committee holds field hearing in Glenwood, Iowa, on Army Corps of Engineers’ management of Missouri River Basin flooding.
· 9 a.m • Russia • The Atlantic Council hosts a discussion on the implications of Russia sanctions legislation on the energy sector.
· 12:30 p.m • Gulf Arab States • An event at the Mortara Center for International Studies features a discussion led by Aisha Al-Sahiri, a scholar of contemporary Arab studies, on climate change and economic diversification in the Gulf Arab states.
· 1 p.m • Climate Change • Catholic University’s engineering school sponsors a conference looking at climate issues, areas of advanced research, and adaptation.
· 3 p.m • Air Monitoring • The EPA holds a webinar on the increasing number of low-cost air quality sensors and the limited amount of research on them.
· 5 p.m • Food, Water Security • Johns Hopkins’ energy center takes a look at food and water security challenges in the era of climate change.Around the Web
· Pennsylvania’s Environmental Quality Board has agreed to study a group’s rulemaking petition for a carbon cap-and-trade program in the state.
· Virginia’s environment agency is looking for an outside consultant to conduct an environmental justice study.
· Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration is boosting funding available for helping low-income residents pay their heating bills in response to criticism from lawmakers and advocates for the poor.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/first-move-tuesday-57-58-59-60
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New Congress, New Faces, New Challenges
Apr 16, 2019 | RailwayAge Magazine
By Frank N. Wilner
Knock, knock. Who’s there? If at the door are those laboring in official Washington, the answer is, “many new faces”—new congressional committee chairs, regulators, association chiefs, lobbyists and labor negotiators. Does not danger dwell where unfamiliarity and uncertainty lurk?
History may provide solace. “When you’re fighting the railroads, they’re very strong and they seldom lose,” says one of the railroads’ most resolute adversaries, attorney Robert G. Szabo, whose Consumers United for Rail Equity coalition once came within a single Commerce Committee vote of sending to the Senate floor a referendum on whether to retain for railroads partial economic deregulation.
Indeed, it is difficult finding evidence of railroads making a hash of things in the legislative or regulatory arenas.
Enter now an assemblage of new advocates and decision-makers as railroads again sally forth to defend against those urging a tilt in their direction of the competitive playing field. Railroads also must avoid stumbling service-wise in implementing Precision Scheduled Railroading that is pounding operating ratio down to unmapped depths, and in finalizing installation of Positive Train Control (PTC).
Also fraught with risk of unwanted new regulation and legislation is rail transport of crude oil, which has bounded from 55 million barrels in 2012 to more than 130 million barrels, and now represents some 40% of domestic crude oil moving to refineries. A misstep could chill efforts to replace prescriptive safety regulation with more efficient performance-based safety standards, where the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) establishes a desired safety outcome and carriers innovate to reach the goal.
To be preserved and advanced are policies and programs assuring continued viability of smaller freight and all manner of passenger railroads.
The New Faces
As for the new arrivals, there are Association of American Railroads (AAR) President Ian Jefferies, American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) President Chuck Baker and American Public Transportation Association (APTA) President Paul Skoutelas.On the lobbying front, new AAR arrival Adrian Arnakis is collaborating with newbie Jefferies in pursing the industry’s lobbying agenda. Arnakis arrived from the Republican side of the Senate Commerce Committee; Jefferies from the Democratic side—both having been senior advisors to senators on transportation, economic and safety issues. Other new lobbyists are CSX’s John Patelli, Norfolk Southern’s Marque Ledoux and Union Pacific’s Printz Bolin.
Among challenges is that of 535 lawmakers, only six remain who were present in 1980 when Congress concluded the necessity of rolling back stultifying economic regulation (the Staggers Rail Act, largely now unknown in name on Capitol Hill)—provisions of which many rail shippers are aggressively seeking to dilute through regulatory fiat or new legislation. Those remaining—some since moved from the House to Senate—are Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.), Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska).
As for the new 116th Congress, the most railroad-important committees have leadership changes.
Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.)—robust in his support of short lines, but thought “swayable” by captive shippers—chairs the House T&I Committee; while Sam Graves (R-Mo.), previously a “no” vote on liberalizing truck size and weight, and said to be “no fan of economic regulation,” is ranking (senior minority party) member. DeFazio succeeds now-retired Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), who, with his father, Bud—a previous T&I Committee chairman—were among the freight railroads’ best congressional friends.
T&I’s Railroad Subcommittee is chaired by Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.), said “not a plus” for passenger rail, but a proponent of funding the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) Program, a public-private partnership to reduce train and truck congestion. Lipinski’s father, Bill, a former T&I Committee member, now lobbies for BNSF.
The Railroad Subcommittee’s ranking member is Rick Crawford (R-Ark.), a perennial supporter of the short line and regional railroad investment tax credit, but otherwise a back-bencher on rail issues.
On the Senate Commerce Committee, Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), who voted to open Amtrak long-distance routes to competitive bidding, favors economic deregulation and opposes longer-combination trucks, is chairman, succeeding John R. Thune (R-S.Dak.), now Senate Majority Whip. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) succeeds election-defeated Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) as ranking member. While said “not very friendly” toward Class I’s, she is a proponent of passenger rail.
On the Senate Surface Transportation Subcommittee, Deb Fisher (R-Neb.) remains chairman. She advocates safety regulators be bound by “sound science, relevant data and data modeling” in decision-making, and supports giving railroads greater flexibility to apply innovation in meeting safety goals (performance-based safety standards). The subcommittee’s ranking member is Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), with minor past involvement in rail issues.
At the Surface Transportation Board (STB), former Senate Commerce Committee senior legislative aide Patrick J. Fuchs, a Republican, joins attorney, former Chicago alderman and Chicago Metra Chairman Martin J. Oberman, a Democrat, as new members. Republican Ann D. Begeman remains chairman, with two STB seats vacant. (See Watching Washington, p. 10, for more on these members and STB issues.)
For the first time since 2009, the three-member National Mediation Board (NMB) is under Republican control, with new GOP arrivals Gerald W. (Trey) Fauth III and Kyle Fortson. Should productive rail collective bargaining stall, the NMB determines if and when to declare an impasse, leading to appointment of a fact-finding Presidential Emergency Board that recommends a non-binding settlement. The NMB’s new tilt was seen in the first significant action of Fauth and Fortson—a rulemaking to weaken impediments for workers seeking to decertify their union.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) have relatively new leaders—Ronald L. Batory at FRA; and Acting Administrator K. Jane Williams at FTA, pending Senate confirmation of Thelma Drake.
Don’t call the newbies rookies, however, as each has MVP credentials. The crucial unknown, of course, is a difficult-to-quantify human chemistry—the principal determinant of effective engagement. It was no coincidence that in 1998, when Bud Shuster chaired the T&I Committee, and STB reauthorization, hard-coupled to a shipper reregulation agenda, was before Congress, the AAR hired Ed Hamberger as its president. Early in his career, Hamberger was employed by the elder Shuster, with whom he built a lasting bond, which served railroads demonstrably well.
A New Era Now Begins
Although railroads are targeting lawmakers and regulators with advertising, advertorials and third-party-induced commentary defending partial economic deregulation, the more immediate challenge is competitive equity—assuring that heavy trucks pay user charges commensurate with the pavement and highway-bridge damage they cause.Railroads also oppose congressional loosening of maximum truck length and weight limits, which would accelerate user-charge under-payments, as weight is a primary cause of pavement and bridge deterioration.
A coalition, including the National Industrial Transportation League (NITL), Amazon, FedEx and UPS, is asking Congress to allow double 33-foot trailers nationwide—up from twin-28-foot trailers; and even to allow maximum truck weight to increase from 80,000 pounds to 91,000. While railroads grasp it’s a sticky wicket fighting their customers, “it doesn’t preclude us from remaining firm on the need for truckers to fully cover their costs,” says the AAR.
Although heavy trucks pay a per-gallon motor fuels tax directed to the Highway Trust Fund (HTF), the tax hasn’t increased since 1993, while purchasing power has decreased by almost 65%, and nominal costs of highway and bridge construction and repair has risen substantially.
The HTF, created in 1956 to finance the Interstate Highway System and other federal-aid highways—and now with a separate account for mass transit—has required bailouts from the General Treasury of more than $143 billion since 2008. The HTF remains underfunded, meaning rail-competitive heavy trucks enjoy an unjust competitive advantage over railroads that own, operate, maintain and even police their track network.
To restore HTF solvency, lawmakers are considering either an increase in the per-gallon motor fuels tax; a vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) fee; a weight-distance charge; or removal of a legislative prohibition on tolling Interstate Highways constructed since 1956—supported by President Trump. The 2015 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) authorized a pilot project allowing 18 states to toll Interstate Highways, with some 3,000 miles of the 46,000-mile Interstate Highway System now tolled.
While the House T&I Committee has jurisdiction over truck size and weight, the Senate gives jurisdiction over truck length to its Commerce Committee, and truck weight to the Environment and Public Works Committee. Whether user charges are called a tax or fee, the congressional tax- writing committees (House Ways & Means and Senate Finance) may seek jurisdiction. Semantics is at play here, as Republicans en masse have signed a “no new taxes” pledge.
Notable is that the Senate Finance Committee’s ranking Democrat Ron Wyden, the Ways & Means Committee’s Democratic Chairman Earl Blumenauer and the T&I Committee’s Democratic Chairman DeFazio all are from Oregon, where a state “weight-mile tax” has been in effect for decades.
Although the AAR told Congress in February it supports a 20-cents-per-gallon increase in the fuels tax, Arnakis says “railroads are largely agnostic as to the means for keeping the Highway Trust Fund solvent,” as long as it is paid for by users.
APTA, meanwhile, is seeking creation of a Passenger Rail Trust Fund—separate from the HTF—to increase existing investment in intercity rail. It would have a yet-to-be-determined dedicated revenue source, with grants directed by regional and state transportation authorities.
Aside from the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, which expires in 2020 and already serves to authorize highway, mass transit and highway-rail grade crossing projects, Congress is crafting a more comprehensive 10-year infrastructure bill to include telecommunications, the electrical grid, and water and waste water systems, with a price tag exceeding $1 trillion and no identifiable revenue source.
Strong political divisions already are evident. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) says such an infrastructure bill must transition America to a “clean energy economy,” with DeFazio calling for a “less fossil [fuel] dependent” nation; but the Trump Administration [and, by extension, most congressional Republicans] rejects the Democrats’ New Green Deal. The Administration advocates greater use of coal, and has relaxed emissions caps for coal-fired generating plants.
Equally problematic is that while projects and spending are being identified for a bold infrastructure bill, there has been little discussion as to who will pay, and how. The nation’s debt has increased by more than $2 trillion since 2017, standing now at $22 trillion, and on track to reach $33 trillion by 2029. Even absent new spending legislation, Congress faces having to increase the national debt ceiling before Oct. 1. In 2015, Presidential candidate Donald Trump said that if the debt topped the then-$21 trillion mark, “Obama will have effectively bankrupted our country.”
Perhaps no greater truth has been spoken than by T&I Committee ranking member Graves: “We’re going to have to spend a lot of political capital to do whatever it is we’re going to do.”
Short Lines and Regionals
For short line and regional railroads, no issue is of greater importance than restoration of a 50% investment tax credit (45-G, for its designated section in the Internal Revenue Code)—and making it permanent, as opposed to the six renewals it has received since being created in 2005. That tax credit has encouraged capital investment of more than $4 billion by regional and short line railroads, benefitting some 10,000 shippers in mostly rural areas.Bills to extend 45-G are moving in Congress. Among sponsors of the House-introduced Building Rail Access for Customers and the Economy (BRACE) Act (H.R. 510) are Blumenauer, DeFazio and Graves; while a similarly named and written S. 203 has support from Schumer, Thune and Wicker. Both include provisions making the 45-G tax credit permanent, and retroactive to Jan. 1, 2018, as the previous 45-G provision expired in 2017.
Expected is that these bills will be incorporated with tax credit bills benefitting other industries—collectively moving in a single omnibus bill. For example, the Tax Extender and Disaster Relief Act (S. 610) incorporates the small-railroad 45-G tax credit with those of other industries, the rub being that S. 610 has no provision for permanence.
Amtrak and Transit
The immediate challenge for Amtrak and public transit is avoiding President Trump’s heavy-on-the-skinny fiscal year 2020 budget request that seeks to slash Amtrak funding by 23% and transit by 31%.There already is a $90 billion backlog in project funding to bring transit systems to a state of good repair, says APTA. Millennials increasingly are looking to substitute public transportation for the automobile, and transit is a lifeline for many, especially in rural areas.
As for Amtrak, the Trump budget proposal cuts in half funding for the Northeast Corridor (NEC), and zeroes out Amtrak’s NEC Gateway project, which includes a new cross-Hudson River tunnel linking New Jersey with New York City. It is suspected that the Federal Transit Administration’s “medium-low rating” of the tunnel project, which disqualifies it for federal funding, is in furtherance of the President’s intention to shift more cost responsibility for Amtrak to the states and localities.
The Trump budget request also would cut funding for long-distance trains, break many into shorter routes and, in many places, substitute connecting buses for rail.
Where the President’s budget proposal provides for capital improvement grants for new transit projects, they are intended as incentives for regions, states and localities to provide most of the financing. The Trump Administration says that while highways are of national concern, transit and intercity corridor trains are of local concern.
Amtrak’s dismal on-time performance (OTP), where its trains are hosted on freight railroad tracks, could be ripe for new legislative attention. This could occur if the Supreme Court agrees with an AAR petition to scrap a requirement in the 2008 Passenger Rail Improvement and Investment Act (PRIIA) allowing Amtrak to collaborate with the FRA in establishing metrics and standards for OTP.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Wicker takes special interest in freight railroad dispatching of Amtrak trains. In 2018, only one of Amtrak’s long-distance routes had an OTP of more than 70%. Ten of those routes had OTP of less than 50%, with Norfolk Southern the caboose, delivering on time only 24% of Amtrak trains it dispatched.
Additionally, the Association for Independent Rail Passenger Operators (AIPRO) seeks a new “rail title” in the FAST Act, to include creation of an Office of Rail Expansion within the FRA and FTA to encourage additional intercity rail passenger corridors, with pilot projects allowing competitive bidding by private-sector operators on Amtrak routes. Where private-sector competitors were allowed to bid on commuter routes, Amtrak often lost the contracts.
Rail Suppliers
Topping the congressional wants of rail suppliers is a “Buy America” provision, where federal dollars fund capital investment. This request is taking on a national security aspect as PTC and other advanced electronics, with billions of lines of computer code, are becoming fused into all aspects of railroading, making them targets for foreign-government cyber espionage and cyberwarfare.https://www.railwayage.com/regulatory/new-congress-new-faces-new-challenges/
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Virginia Railway Express Fully Compliant With Positive Train Control
Apr 17, 2019 | Transportation Today
By Melina Druga
Virginia Railway Express (VRE) recently announced it is fully positive train control (PTC) compliant.
VRE, a transportation partnership between the Northern Virginia and the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation commissions, became fully compliant last week. VRE’s 32 inbound and outbound trains on the Fredericksburg and Manassas lines are under PTC operation.
VRE is the 12th largest commuter rail service in the United States.
“Safety is always our top priority at VRE,” VRE CEO Doug Allen said. “The implementation of PTC takes system safety to the next level and continues our commitment to providing the safest environment for riders, railroad workers and the general public.”
PTC implementation was federally mandated. The technology automatically controls train speeds and movements if the engineer does not make a safe decision. Nationwide, implementation is expected to cost the railroad industry $14 billion and cost 10 to 20 percent of annual capital costs to maintain.
The deadline for implementation was Dec. 31, 2018, but VRE filed for an extension with the Federal Railroad Administration.
VRE operates 20 locomotives and 21 cab control cars. Implementation cost the company $15 million.
VRE worked closely with its host railroads, CSX and Norfolk Southern, to install compatible equipment on the 90 miles of track VRE operates on and throughout the railroads’ systems.
https://transportationtodaynews.com/news/13488-virginia-railway-express-fully-compliant-with-positive-train-control/
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Warren Presses Top General on Climate Change
Apr 17, 2019 | The Hill - E2 Wire
By Rebecca Kheel
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who is running for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, is pressing the nation’s top general on the threat of climate change.
In an eight-page letter to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford, Warren asked for unclassified answers by May 13 on how the military is addressing climate change.
“The Department of Defense must do more than simply acknowledge or take piecemeal actions to address climate change while it increasingly threatens and harms our military's infrastructure and operations," Warren wrote in the letter dated Wednesday. "Fundamentally, adapting to climate change is a necessary component of maintaining readiness. We must act decisively to prepare for this threat, and our military is as capable as anyone of leading the way."
Warren, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has asked about climate change to several top officials testifying before the committee: the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs, the chiefs of the Air Force and Army, the secretaries of the Air Force and Navy, and the chiefs of European Command, Transportation Command and Indo-Pacific Command.
The bulk of her eight-page letter is spent recapping the testimony those officials gave.
“Each of these military leaders acknowledged the threat of climate change to our military’s infrastructure and operations, and that adapting to climate change is a factor in military readiness,” Warren wrote. “None has denied the threat of climate change. This uniformity of opinion among military leaders underscores my concern about the need to act vigorously and expeditiously to mitigate this threat.”
Earlier this year, as part of a requirement in the annual defense policy bill, the Pentagon sent Congress a report that called climate change a “national security issue,” finding more than two-thirds of operationally critical military installations are threatened by the effects of climate change over the next 20 years.
Democrats, though, said the report lacked many elements mandated by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), including a list of the ten installations from each military service most vulnerable in the next 20 years, specific mitigation measures to alleviate climate risks at installations and cost estimates for such efforts.
The Pentagon delivered Congress a new report last month with a list of bases most at risk from climate change threats within the next 20 years. But Democrats were equally unsatisfied, saying the methodology is opaque and a cost assessment is still missing.
Warren’s letter similarly knocked the “several deficiencies” of the Pentagon’s report.
She also highlighted that the Pentagon has not implemented any of six recommendations made by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2017 to adapt overseas infrastructure to climate change, according to a March update from the GAO.
Warren specifically asked Dunford for a written summary of the Pentagon’s “comprehensive approach to building resilience to climate change risks,” another written summary of the department’s “comprehensive approach to reducing climate change” and an update on the status of the implementation of the GAO recommendations.
https://thehill.com/policy/defense/439305-warren-presses-top-general-on-climate-change
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Midwest States Meet to Discuss Regional Climate Strategies
Apr 17, 2019 | Inside EPA
Officials from four Midwestern states with newly elected Democratic governors are meeting with environmental groups to discuss “options for regional cooperation” on policies to mitigate climate change and boost clean energy.
The April 16 meeting in Chicago included officials from Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. It was convened by the Midwest Environmental Justice Network, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Sierra Club and League of Conservation Voters.
Before the November midterms, all of the states except for Minnesota had been led by a Republican governor. Since the elections, all four are now led by Democrats.
An NRDC press release says the event is “one of the first discussions of regional climate action in the Midwest in more than a decade and may lead to continued cooperation moving forward.”
During the Obama administration, some groups of power sector officials hosted meetings to plan for compliance with EPA's Clean Power Plan utility greenhouse gas standards, and some state officials had participated or observed those sessions.
The NRDC release does not outline which climate and clean energy policies the state officials are discussing, nor the possible regional strategies that might emerge from the effort.
The new Democratic governors -- J.B. Pritzker (IL), Gretchen Whitmer (MI), Tim Walz (MN) and Tony Evers (WI) -- have all joined the U.S. Climate Alliance, which is a group of states pledging to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. The group formed in response to President Donald Trump's promise to leave the Paris deal at his earliest possible opportunity, in November 2020.
Since the election, the new governors have been pursuing strong clean energy goals and drinking water protections in an effort to fight the Trump administration's deregulation of federal environmental policy.
“These problems are exacerbated by a federal abdication of environmental and energy leadership,” says a February report from a commission created by Pritzker. “Denial of climate science, withdrawal from the Paris Agreement [on climate change], and active plans to weaken limits on pollution threaten environmental safeguards and the health of Illinoisans, forcing the state to take even more aggressive action to transition to a clean energy economy.”
https://insideepa.com/daily-feed/midwest-states-meet-discuss-regional-climate-strategies
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Inslee Calls for Climate Primary Debate
Apr 17, 2019 | E&E Greenwire
By Nick Sobczyk
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) is petitioning the Democratic National Committee to have a presidential primary debate entirely about climate change, a potential boon to his quixotic 2020 candidacy.
The DNC is planning to hold a dozen primary debates, but advocates have complained that not much of the discussion was centered on climate change during the 2016 cycle.
"This can't be a one-off question where candidates get to give a sound bite and move on: Climate change is at the heart of every issue that matters to voters, and voters deserve to hear what 2020 presidential candidates plan to do about it," Inslee said in a statement.
The DNC is unlikely to go along with the idea, but Inslee's petition, and his climate-centric candidacy as a whole, is certainly not the only push to make the issue a big part of the 2020 elections.
The Sunrise Movement, the group behind the Green New Deal, is planning organizing campaigns around the country in an effort to make candidates talk about climate change at debates and on the campaign trail.
And most of the candidates in the race have either endorsed the Green New Deal, the sweeping progressive proposal to wean the country off fossil fuels, or talked up their own plans to address climate change.
In a statement, the DNC did not commit to Inslee's proposal but said there would be "vigorous discussion" about climate, among other hot-button Democratic issues.
"While Republicans refuse to even acknowledge that climate change is real, Democrats are eager to put forward their solutions to combat climate change, and we will absolutely have these discussions during the 2020 primary process," said DNC Communications Director Xochitl Hinojosa.
"The DNC is currently ironing out the details for all 12 debates and will work with the networks to ensure that Democrats have a platform to discuss these issues directly with the American people," Hinojosa added.
A climate-focused debate could be beneficial for Inslee, who began his campaign pledging to make climate his "No. 1 priority" and has centered his entire candidacy on the issue.
It's not clear, however, whether Inslee will even be on the stage when the first debate kicks off in June.
To be eligible for participation, candidates are required to come in at least 1% in three polls or to have at least 65,000 unique donors, including 200 in at least 20 states.
Debates will be capped at 20 candidates, and if more than 20 qualify, the DNC says it will give priority to candidates who meet both criteria.
As of the first-quarter fundraising reports, Inslee has not met the donor threshold and is polling at just 0.5% in the Real Clear Politics average. He raised a total of $2.25 million.
At his CNN town hall last week, Inslee rounded out the night by asking for more support so that he can get on the primary stage (Climatewire, April 11).
Inslee made a similar plea in a Monday appearance on "Pod Save America," asking for donations as small as $1 just to meet the target.
"I hope people will think about that because regardless of who you want to serve, we want to make sure climate change is on that debate stage," he said. "We want to make sure we've got somebody who is very aggressive on this issue."
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2019/04/17/stories/1060174181
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San Francisco Targets Single-Use Plastic Produce Bags
Apr 17, 2019 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Joyce E. Cutler
San Francisco, which enacted the nation’s first single-use plastic bag ban, wants to do the same for produce bags.
Stores selling produce that is bagged before a customer checks out would have to supply only compostable bags or recyclable paper bags, under the proposed ordinance introduced April 16.
The proposal also would increase from 10 cents to 25 cents the charge for checkout bags, which already have to be recyclable paper, compostable, or reusable. San Francisco was California’s first city to require charging for bags, Supervisor Vallie Brown (D) said in introducing the bill.
“San Francisco generates 3 million tons of waste a year and despite our efforts to date, this amount continues to grow. We’re recycling, we’re composting the majority of our waste but we never achieve our zero waste goals if our consumption and generation continues to grow,” Brown said.
Produce bags tend to be extremely thin and difficulty to recycle, Brown said. The legislation if approved and signed into law by Mayor London Breed (D) would update and strengthen the city’s existing plastic bag ordinance. The measure would be effective July 1, 2020, to give retailers and the San Francisco Department of Environment time to prepare for the single-use produce bag ban, Brown said.
Californians in 2016 upheld the single-use plastic ban, rejecting a plastic bag industry’s initiative to repeal 2014 state legislation.
The San Francisco measure will be heard by a supervisors’ committee after 30 days under board rules.
https://news.bloombergenvironment.com/environment-and-energy/san-francisco-targets-single-use-plastic-produce-bags
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