Warning that salmon and other fish species are in danger of extinction, a federal agency Thursday issued directives that will guide the way dams, pumps, canals and other waterworks in California operate to help ease pressure on the Pacific coast's collapsing salmon fishery.
The biological opinion from the National Marine Fisheries Service affects waterways from the American River to the San Joaquin and will reduce water deliveries to farmers and urban users by about 5% to 7% annually, according to officials. Complying with the court-ordered prescriptions could cost "hundreds of millions" and would be passed on to water users, according to a federal water manager.
The 800-page document is the latest in a series of actions to address the increasing obstacles to the salmon's twice-yearly runs: upstream migration for spawning, when the fish require cool, abundant water, and downstream emergence of juveniles, which must negotiate the San Joaquin-Sacramento River Delta's maze of gates, canals and diversions to reach the sea.
Maria Rea, the federal Fisheries Service officer primarily responsible for the biological opinion, said as much as 98% to 99% of young fish attempt- ing to exit the San Joaquin water system are succumbing to pollutants, unfamiliar food, predators and pumps removing water for irrigation and urban use.
The new document replaces a 2004 biological opinion that found that increased pumping of water to the Central Valley and Southern California posed no harm to threatened and endangered populations of California salmon, steelhead and green sturgeon. A federal judge last year ruled that the agency had erred and ordered it to redraft the opinion.
Rea called the document "One of the most complex and scientifically challenging" the agency has ever undertaken, and said, "What is at stake here is not just the survival of the species but the entire ecosystem that depends on them."
Some commercial fishermen applauded the changes. This is the second straight year that the state's salmon fleet has been barred from fishing off the coast. California officials estimated that the ban equates to a loss of 2,200 jobs and $250 million in revenue.
"We've given as much blood as we can give," said Larry Collins, vice president of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Assns. .
The announcement was not universally embraced, though. "Public water agencies have faced cutback after cutback in failed attempts to boost fish populations," said Laura King Moon, assistant general manager of the State Water Contractors.
Don Glaser, regional director of the Bureau of Reclamation, the federal government's water management agency, said his office would "provisionally" accept the directives but hasn't had a chance to fully assess the implications.
Taken with federal requirements to reduce pumping to protect the delta smelt, Thursday's announcement will stress California's water system, Glaser said.
"I believe you are going to see less reliable water, particularly as it relates to farming activities in the Central Valley," he said, "and it will become more difficult to find replacement water for the urban growth that is anticipated in Southern California."
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Rotavirus: Every Child Should Be Vaccinated Against Diarrheal Disease, W.H.O. Says
The World Health Organization recommended last week that the vaccine against rotavirus, a diarrheal disease that kills 500,000 children a year, be given to every child in the world.
More than 85 percent of those deaths are of poor children in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and the W.H.O. endorsement allows donor money to be used for the vaccine.
Rotavirus drops are already routine for babies in the United States. Without them, virtually all children are infected by age 3; most cases are mild, but some unpredictably turn life-threatening.
In countries with ambulances and hospitals, even unimmunized children with severe viral diarrhea can usually be saved with intravenous fluids. In poor countries, they often die.
The recommendation came after trials in South Africa and Malawi showing that a GlaxoSmithKline vaccine worked even in areas with poor sanitation, competing viruses, high infant death rates and mothers with AIDS. The results of trials on a rival Merck vaccine in Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya, Mali and Vietnam are expected in the fall.
The recommendation “clears the way for vaccines that will protect children in the developing world from one of the most deadly diseases they face,” said Dr. Tachi Yamada, president of global health at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which paid for much of the research.
The next steps will not be cheap, Mr. Gates said recently. Even in poor countries, the vaccine costs about $20 and the vials must be refrigerated — no easy task in places lacking electricity.
More than 85 percent of those deaths are of poor children in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and the W.H.O. endorsement allows donor money to be used for the vaccine.
Rotavirus drops are already routine for babies in the United States. Without them, virtually all children are infected by age 3; most cases are mild, but some unpredictably turn life-threatening.
In countries with ambulances and hospitals, even unimmunized children with severe viral diarrhea can usually be saved with intravenous fluids. In poor countries, they often die.
The recommendation came after trials in South Africa and Malawi showing that a GlaxoSmithKline vaccine worked even in areas with poor sanitation, competing viruses, high infant death rates and mothers with AIDS. The results of trials on a rival Merck vaccine in Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya, Mali and Vietnam are expected in the fall.
The recommendation “clears the way for vaccines that will protect children in the developing world from one of the most deadly diseases they face,” said Dr. Tachi Yamada, president of global health at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which paid for much of the research.
The next steps will not be cheap, Mr. Gates said recently. Even in poor countries, the vaccine costs about $20 and the vials must be refrigerated — no easy task in places lacking electricity.
Minister calls for food date labels to be made clearer to reduce food waste
Retailers are being urged to phase out the sell-by and best-before date labels on food in a bid to reduce the UK's growing mountain of food waste.
Consumers are throwing away thousands of tonnes of edible food every year – some of it not even opened – because they are confused and misled by the plethora of different labels, the government claims.
Environment and food secretary Hilary Benn said products should only carry a "use before" date because it is the only meaningful, and legally necessary, safety cut-off point.
Other labels such as "sell until", "sell by", "display until" or "best before" are often used by retailers for stock or quality control, and can cause confusion, he said.
In a speech today to a conference organised by the Chartered Institute of Waste Management, Benn said: "When we buy food it should be easy to know how long we should keep it for and how we should store it. Too many of us are putting things in the bin simply because we're not sure, we're confused by the label, or we're just playing safe."
He said Britons were throwing away thousands of tonnes of food every year completely unnecessarily: "As part of our war on waste I want to improve the labels on our food so that when we buy a loaf of bread or a packet of cold meat, we know exactly how long it's safe to eat."
The Department of Food, Environment and Rural Affairs published separate figures revealing that 370,000 tonnes of food is thrown away each year in the UK after passing its "best before" date, 40,000 tonnes of which has not even been opened by consumers while it was still edible. Some 440,000 tonnes of food thrown is away every year after passing a "use by" date, but 220,000 tonnes is thrown away before reaching the "expiry date".
Only "use by" dates indicate a potential food safety concern, Defra said — but research has shown that "best before" — intended to be a mark of quality — is often mistaken for a safety warning. "Sell by" dates are used by retailers for stock control — but often end up confusing customers into throwing away perfectly good food.
Working together with retailers, the food industry, the Food Standards Agency and the Waste & Resources Action Programme (Wrap), the government said it wanted to make labelling much clearer. "Sell by" and "display until" labels could be phased out altogether, or alternatively made less visible to consumers.
But the issue of food labelling is fraught with problems, with the food industry currently resisting government plans to introduce a voluntary system to display nutritional content.
Retailers said that scrapping "best before" labels would not reduce food waste, and said achieving better understanding of food date labels and improving food management at home would make more difference to reducing food waste.
Stephen Robertson, director general of the British Retail Consortium said: "Scrapping best-before dates won't reduce food waste. Customer education will. Date labels are there to help customers but they need to understand what they mean. Retailers are working with the government to improve understanding and to help customers make better choices about buying, storing and using food at home."
In a parallel move Benn said consumers could see a major overhaul of all packaging over the next decade. He unveiled the government's new packaging strategy, Making the most of packaging, which looks at the packaging of the future and what our shop shelves and kitchen cupboards should look like if we cut the amount of packaging produced, used and thrown away, and increase the amount recycled. Among the proposals, the use of refillable and reusable packaging could be expanded, so in the future customers could have the option of buying anything from laundry detergent to coffee by simply taking empty containers back to shops to be refilled.
Consumers are throwing away thousands of tonnes of edible food every year – some of it not even opened – because they are confused and misled by the plethora of different labels, the government claims.
Environment and food secretary Hilary Benn said products should only carry a "use before" date because it is the only meaningful, and legally necessary, safety cut-off point.
Other labels such as "sell until", "sell by", "display until" or "best before" are often used by retailers for stock or quality control, and can cause confusion, he said.
In a speech today to a conference organised by the Chartered Institute of Waste Management, Benn said: "When we buy food it should be easy to know how long we should keep it for and how we should store it. Too many of us are putting things in the bin simply because we're not sure, we're confused by the label, or we're just playing safe."
He said Britons were throwing away thousands of tonnes of food every year completely unnecessarily: "As part of our war on waste I want to improve the labels on our food so that when we buy a loaf of bread or a packet of cold meat, we know exactly how long it's safe to eat."
The Department of Food, Environment and Rural Affairs published separate figures revealing that 370,000 tonnes of food is thrown away each year in the UK after passing its "best before" date, 40,000 tonnes of which has not even been opened by consumers while it was still edible. Some 440,000 tonnes of food thrown is away every year after passing a "use by" date, but 220,000 tonnes is thrown away before reaching the "expiry date".
Only "use by" dates indicate a potential food safety concern, Defra said — but research has shown that "best before" — intended to be a mark of quality — is often mistaken for a safety warning. "Sell by" dates are used by retailers for stock control — but often end up confusing customers into throwing away perfectly good food.
Working together with retailers, the food industry, the Food Standards Agency and the Waste & Resources Action Programme (Wrap), the government said it wanted to make labelling much clearer. "Sell by" and "display until" labels could be phased out altogether, or alternatively made less visible to consumers.
But the issue of food labelling is fraught with problems, with the food industry currently resisting government plans to introduce a voluntary system to display nutritional content.
Retailers said that scrapping "best before" labels would not reduce food waste, and said achieving better understanding of food date labels and improving food management at home would make more difference to reducing food waste.
Stephen Robertson, director general of the British Retail Consortium said: "Scrapping best-before dates won't reduce food waste. Customer education will. Date labels are there to help customers but they need to understand what they mean. Retailers are working with the government to improve understanding and to help customers make better choices about buying, storing and using food at home."
In a parallel move Benn said consumers could see a major overhaul of all packaging over the next decade. He unveiled the government's new packaging strategy, Making the most of packaging, which looks at the packaging of the future and what our shop shelves and kitchen cupboards should look like if we cut the amount of packaging produced, used and thrown away, and increase the amount recycled. Among the proposals, the use of refillable and reusable packaging could be expanded, so in the future customers could have the option of buying anything from laundry detergent to coffee by simply taking empty containers back to shops to be refilled.
China launches green power revolution to catch up on west
China is planning a vast increase in its use of wind and solar power over the next decade and believes it can match Europe by 2020, producing a fifth of its energy needs from renewable sources, a senior Chinese official said today.
Zhang Xiaoqiang, vice-chairman of the of China's national development and reform commission, told the Guardian that Beijing would easily surpass current 2020 targets for the use of wind and solar power and was now contemplating targets that were more than three times higher.
In the current development plan, the goal for wind energy is 30 gigawatts. Zhang said the new goal could be 100GW by 2020.
"Similarly, by 2020 the total installed capacity for solar power will be at least three times that of the original target [3GW]," Zhang said in an interview in London. China generates only 120 megawatts of its electricity from solar power, so the goal represents a 75-fold expansion in just over a decade.
"We are now formulating a plan for development of renewable energy. We can be sure we will exceed the 15% target. We will at least reach 18%. Personally I think we could reach the target of having renewables provide 20% of total energy consumption."
That matches the European goal, and would represent a direct challenge to Europe's claims to world leadership in the field, despite China's relative poverty. Some experts have cast doubt on whether Britain will be able to reach 20%. On another front, China has the ambitious plan of installing 100m energy-efficient lightbulbs this year alone.
Beijing seeks to achieve these goals by directing a significant share of China's $590bn economic stimulus package to low-carbon investment. Of that total, more than $30bn will be spent directly on environmental projects and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
But the indirect green share in the stimulus, in the form of investment in carbon-efficient transport and electricity transmission systems, would be far larger.
HSBC Global Research estimated the total green share could be over a third of the total package.
China also believes the price reforms that will take place in its economic recovery programme will lead to more efficient use of resources and an increased demand for renewable energy.
"Due to the impact of global financial crisis, people are all talking about green and sustainable development," Zhang added. "Enterprises and government at all levels are showing more enthusiasm for the development of solar for power generation, and the Chinese government is now considering rolling out more stimulus policies for the development of solar power."
He said the government would also plough money into the expansion of solar heating systems. He said the country was already a world leader, with 130m square metres of solar heating arrays already installed, and was planning to invest more. The US goal for solar heating by 2020 is 200m square metres.
Zhang was speaking in London on a day China came under increased pressure from Washington to do more cut its emissions.
David Sandalow, the US assistant secretary of energy, said the continuation of business as usual in China would result in a 2.7C (36.9F) rise in temperatures even if every other country slashed greenhouse gas emissions by 80%.
"China can and will need to do much more if the world is going to have any hope of containing climate change," said Sandalow, who is in Beijing as part of a senior negotiating team aiming to find common ground ahead of the crucial Copenhagen summit at the end of this year.
"No effective deal will be possible without the US and China, which together account for almost half of the planet's carbon emissions."
Zhang said China was pursuing "a constructive and a positive role" in negotiations aimed at agreeing a deal in Copenhagen. As part of that agreement, he said developing countries would have to pursue "a sustainable development path", and said Beijing was open to the idea of limits on the carbon intensity of its economy (the emissions per unit of output).
"We have taken note of some expert suggestions on carbon intensity with a view to have some quantified targets in this regard. We are carrying out a serious study of those suggestions," Zhang said.
Zhang told the all-party parliamentary China group in Westminster todaythat Beijing's stimulus package was already showing signs of re-energising the Chinese economy. He said it grew by 6.1% in the first quarter of this year, and growth in the second quarter would be stronger than the first. He predicted that China would meet its target of 8% growth this year.
Zhang Xiaoqiang, vice-chairman of the of China's national development and reform commission, told the Guardian that Beijing would easily surpass current 2020 targets for the use of wind and solar power and was now contemplating targets that were more than three times higher.
In the current development plan, the goal for wind energy is 30 gigawatts. Zhang said the new goal could be 100GW by 2020.
"Similarly, by 2020 the total installed capacity for solar power will be at least three times that of the original target [3GW]," Zhang said in an interview in London. China generates only 120 megawatts of its electricity from solar power, so the goal represents a 75-fold expansion in just over a decade.
"We are now formulating a plan for development of renewable energy. We can be sure we will exceed the 15% target. We will at least reach 18%. Personally I think we could reach the target of having renewables provide 20% of total energy consumption."
That matches the European goal, and would represent a direct challenge to Europe's claims to world leadership in the field, despite China's relative poverty. Some experts have cast doubt on whether Britain will be able to reach 20%. On another front, China has the ambitious plan of installing 100m energy-efficient lightbulbs this year alone.
Beijing seeks to achieve these goals by directing a significant share of China's $590bn economic stimulus package to low-carbon investment. Of that total, more than $30bn will be spent directly on environmental projects and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
But the indirect green share in the stimulus, in the form of investment in carbon-efficient transport and electricity transmission systems, would be far larger.
HSBC Global Research estimated the total green share could be over a third of the total package.
China also believes the price reforms that will take place in its economic recovery programme will lead to more efficient use of resources and an increased demand for renewable energy.
"Due to the impact of global financial crisis, people are all talking about green and sustainable development," Zhang added. "Enterprises and government at all levels are showing more enthusiasm for the development of solar for power generation, and the Chinese government is now considering rolling out more stimulus policies for the development of solar power."
He said the government would also plough money into the expansion of solar heating systems. He said the country was already a world leader, with 130m square metres of solar heating arrays already installed, and was planning to invest more. The US goal for solar heating by 2020 is 200m square metres.
Zhang was speaking in London on a day China came under increased pressure from Washington to do more cut its emissions.
David Sandalow, the US assistant secretary of energy, said the continuation of business as usual in China would result in a 2.7C (36.9F) rise in temperatures even if every other country slashed greenhouse gas emissions by 80%.
"China can and will need to do much more if the world is going to have any hope of containing climate change," said Sandalow, who is in Beijing as part of a senior negotiating team aiming to find common ground ahead of the crucial Copenhagen summit at the end of this year.
"No effective deal will be possible without the US and China, which together account for almost half of the planet's carbon emissions."
Zhang said China was pursuing "a constructive and a positive role" in negotiations aimed at agreeing a deal in Copenhagen. As part of that agreement, he said developing countries would have to pursue "a sustainable development path", and said Beijing was open to the idea of limits on the carbon intensity of its economy (the emissions per unit of output).
"We have taken note of some expert suggestions on carbon intensity with a view to have some quantified targets in this regard. We are carrying out a serious study of those suggestions," Zhang said.
Zhang told the all-party parliamentary China group in Westminster todaythat Beijing's stimulus package was already showing signs of re-energising the Chinese economy. He said it grew by 6.1% in the first quarter of this year, and growth in the second quarter would be stronger than the first. He predicted that China would meet its target of 8% growth this year.
Road particles pose 'higher risk'
Children may be at greater risk from the microscopic particles in traffic pollution than was previously thought.
Early findings from a major study in London seen by the BBC show that the lung capacity of 8- and 9-year-olds is 5% lower than the national average.
And 7% of the children - surveyed in the Tower Hamlets area - have lung function reduced to a level internationally regarded as hazardous.
The London study is being led by Professor Jonathan Grigg.
He works out of the Centre for Paediatrics at Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry.
Leaf clues
The particles - so-called "particulates" - are produced in vehicle exhaust and are far smaller than the width of a human hair.
Less than 10 microns across, they are often referred to as PM10.
The results come as researchers at Lancaster University warn that levels of particulates are often higher than shown by official monitoring devices.
Analysing the particulates collected on roadside leaves, the research shows that the pollution can be most intense at the height of many children.
Britain already faces penalties from the European Union for multiple breaches of standards for particulate pollution.
Professor Grigg told BBC News: "Our findings in the East End of London are that children living here have slightly lower lung function than what we'd expect from the national average.
"Now, if that's due to air pollution, as we suspect, they're going to be at increased risk from a range of respiratory disorders such as asthma and infection, and may be at risk in adulthood."
Cough test
A total of 203 children at 10 different schools are taking part in regular tests over several years.
Interim findings from 149 children show that 11 of them have lung capacity that is 80% or lower than the national average - a threshold regarded by researchers as vulnerable to a range of breathing conditions.
One test involves encouraging the children to cough - so the carbon content of their sputum can be analysed.
Microscope analysis shows how particulates are reaching deep into the lungs.
These results will add pressure on the government over Britain's failure to meet European Union air quality standards.
The EU requirement is for average PM10 concentrations to stay below 40 micrograms per cubic metre of air - but most of the country's major conurbations record higher levels.
And the new research by Lancaster University shows that the particulate levels may be even worse than official figures show.
The official data is gathered at automatic monitoring stations which typically sample air at a height of three metres - mainly to avoid the risk of vandalism.
But Professor Barbara Maher and her team have devised a new technique for measuring the magnetic response of particulates on roadside leaves - many of the particles contain fragments of metal.
Barbara Maher from Lancaster University offers her tips on avoiding traffic pollution
And the readings show higher concentrations of particulates at lower levels.
'Progress made'
Interviewed beside a busy road in Lancaster, Professor Maher said: "We're surrounded by this invisible mist of these millions of toxic particles - you can't see them but we know, we've measured them, they're here.
"When we do our leaf magnetic measurements, our research shows that down at small child height the concentrations - the number - of these very fine particles is sometimes twice the current EU regulation standard."
One set of measurements, outside the Cathedral School in Lancaster, revealed particulate levels that were above the EU standard.
The school's head, Anne Goddard, said the findings were "quite worrying".
"It's the only playground we have at the school and it's right next to the road. The levels are high so obviously the effect on the children, especially those with asthma, is a concern."
The Environment Secretary Hilary Benn admits there is a problem but says 24 out of 27 members of the European Union are in breach of the standards and that most of the landmass of Britain does meet the requirements.
He also said that "huge progress" had been made in the last few decades with the Clean Air Act and changes in vehicles standards.
"But we need to do more and principally that will be about cars and lorries and buses," he said.
"And we've been working with other countries in Europe to improve the standards to get these PM10 particles down because we know it has an effect on our health."
Early findings from a major study in London seen by the BBC show that the lung capacity of 8- and 9-year-olds is 5% lower than the national average.
And 7% of the children - surveyed in the Tower Hamlets area - have lung function reduced to a level internationally regarded as hazardous.
The London study is being led by Professor Jonathan Grigg.
He works out of the Centre for Paediatrics at Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry.
Leaf clues
The particles - so-called "particulates" - are produced in vehicle exhaust and are far smaller than the width of a human hair.
Less than 10 microns across, they are often referred to as PM10.
The results come as researchers at Lancaster University warn that levels of particulates are often higher than shown by official monitoring devices.
Analysing the particulates collected on roadside leaves, the research shows that the pollution can be most intense at the height of many children.
Britain already faces penalties from the European Union for multiple breaches of standards for particulate pollution.
Professor Grigg told BBC News: "Our findings in the East End of London are that children living here have slightly lower lung function than what we'd expect from the national average.
"Now, if that's due to air pollution, as we suspect, they're going to be at increased risk from a range of respiratory disorders such as asthma and infection, and may be at risk in adulthood."
Cough test
A total of 203 children at 10 different schools are taking part in regular tests over several years.
Interim findings from 149 children show that 11 of them have lung capacity that is 80% or lower than the national average - a threshold regarded by researchers as vulnerable to a range of breathing conditions.
One test involves encouraging the children to cough - so the carbon content of their sputum can be analysed.
Microscope analysis shows how particulates are reaching deep into the lungs.
These results will add pressure on the government over Britain's failure to meet European Union air quality standards.
The EU requirement is for average PM10 concentrations to stay below 40 micrograms per cubic metre of air - but most of the country's major conurbations record higher levels.
And the new research by Lancaster University shows that the particulate levels may be even worse than official figures show.
The official data is gathered at automatic monitoring stations which typically sample air at a height of three metres - mainly to avoid the risk of vandalism.
But Professor Barbara Maher and her team have devised a new technique for measuring the magnetic response of particulates on roadside leaves - many of the particles contain fragments of metal.
Barbara Maher from Lancaster University offers her tips on avoiding traffic pollution
And the readings show higher concentrations of particulates at lower levels.
'Progress made'
Interviewed beside a busy road in Lancaster, Professor Maher said: "We're surrounded by this invisible mist of these millions of toxic particles - you can't see them but we know, we've measured them, they're here.
"When we do our leaf magnetic measurements, our research shows that down at small child height the concentrations - the number - of these very fine particles is sometimes twice the current EU regulation standard."
One set of measurements, outside the Cathedral School in Lancaster, revealed particulate levels that were above the EU standard.
The school's head, Anne Goddard, said the findings were "quite worrying".
"It's the only playground we have at the school and it's right next to the road. The levels are high so obviously the effect on the children, especially those with asthma, is a concern."
The Environment Secretary Hilary Benn admits there is a problem but says 24 out of 27 members of the European Union are in breach of the standards and that most of the landmass of Britain does meet the requirements.
He also said that "huge progress" had been made in the last few decades with the Clean Air Act and changes in vehicles standards.
"But we need to do more and principally that will be about cars and lorries and buses," he said.
"And we've been working with other countries in Europe to improve the standards to get these PM10 particles down because we know it has an effect on our health."
ENVIRONMENT: Global warming endangers oceans, senators told
In Washington state, oysters in some areas haven’t reproduced for four years, and preliminary evidence suggests the increasing acidity of the ocean could be the cause.
In the Gulf of Mexico, shrimp disoriented by oxygen-depleted water jump into the air in what the locals call a “shrimp jubilee.”
Yet even as researchers, scientists and Jacques Cousteau’s granddaughter painted a bleak picture Tuesday of the future of oceans and the “blue economy” of the nation’s coastal states, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., had to hurry off to another meeting where senators voted to allow more offshore oil drilling.
“It’s crazy they are discussing more drilling,” said Cantwell, suggesting the real priority needs to be slowing or halting what could be irreversible damage to oceans from climate change. “It’s incredibly important, and we need to get a handle on it.”
The hearing before Cantwell’s oceans subcommittee of the Senate Commerce Committee was expected to focus on how the degradation of the oceans was affecting marine businesses and coastal communities.
But instead, much of the testimony focused on how the waters covering 70 percent of the plant are already changing because of global warming.
In the Gulf of Mexico, shrimp disoriented by oxygen-depleted water jump into the air in what the locals call a “shrimp jubilee.”
Yet even as researchers, scientists and Jacques Cousteau’s granddaughter painted a bleak picture Tuesday of the future of oceans and the “blue economy” of the nation’s coastal states, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., had to hurry off to another meeting where senators voted to allow more offshore oil drilling.
“It’s crazy they are discussing more drilling,” said Cantwell, suggesting the real priority needs to be slowing or halting what could be irreversible damage to oceans from climate change. “It’s incredibly important, and we need to get a handle on it.”
The hearing before Cantwell’s oceans subcommittee of the Senate Commerce Committee was expected to focus on how the degradation of the oceans was affecting marine businesses and coastal communities.
But instead, much of the testimony focused on how the waters covering 70 percent of the plant are already changing because of global warming.
Environmental Report On Richmond Refinery Rejected
A Contra Costa County Superior Court judge ruled Friday that an environmental impact report on Chevron's proposed upgrade to its Richmond refinery failed to disclose whether the project would enable the refinery to process heavier crude oil.
The ruling voids the environmental impact report on the refinery's Energy and Hydrogen Renewal Project, which was approved in July by a divided Richmond City Council, Jessica Tovar with Communities for a Better Environment said Monday.
The project included replacing the refinery's 1960s-era hydrogen plant and its 1930s-era power plant.
Refinery officials said that the upgrade would increase the refinery's flexibility to process a larger variety of crude oil and improve the plant's energy efficiency and reliability.
In September, three environmental justice groups filed a lawsuit challenging the city's approval of the project.
Experts at Communities for a Better Environment, Asian Pacific Environmental Network and the West County Toxics Coalition - plaintiffs in the lawsuit - said that the upgrade would allow the refinery to process heavier crude oil, which would result in increased pollution and increased risk of explosion at the plant.
Heavier crude oil can contain higher amounts of contaminants such as mercury and selenium, which can cause serious health problems, according to Communities for a Better Environment.
"Communities in Richmond, particularly low-income communities of color, already suffer from industrial pollution-related health problems, including high rates of asthma and cancer. Chevron's refinery is the largest industrial polluter in the region," plaintiffs said in a news release issued Monday.
Processing heavier crude also takes higher temperatures, which increases the likelihood of upset or explosion, Tovar said.
Tovar said that the proposed project is similar to an upgrade at a Chevron refinery in Mississippi that has allegedly enabled that plant to process heavier crude oil.
In her ruling, Superior Court Judge Barbara Zuniga wrote that under the California Environmental Quality Act, the environmental impact report should enable the public, interested parties and public agencies to weigh the proposed project against its environmental costs and consider appropriate mitigation measures.
The ruling went on to state that the environmental impact report "is unclear and inconsistent as to whether the project will or will not enable Chevron to process a heavier crude slate than it is currently processing" and therefore "fails as an informational document."
Also at issue in the lawsuit was the refinery's plan to mitigate increased greenhouse gas emissions.
Plaintiffs argued that the refinery had not submitted a plan to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions during the environmental review process, but instead deferred the mitigation plans to a later date, which excluded the public from the process.
In her ruling, Zuniga found that under state Environmental Quality Act guidelines, the formulation of mitigation measures should not be deferred to a later date. She found that the "city has improperly deferred formulation of greenhouse gas mitigation measures."
Plaintiffs also alleged that the environmental impact report failed to analyze a proposed pipeline that would transport hydrogen from the new hydrogen processing plant to the Shell refinery in Martinez and the ConocoPhillips refinery in Rodeo.
The ruling stated that because the pipeline is an integral part of the project, it should have been addressed in the environmental impact report.
Tovar said that if Chevron decides to pursue its plans to upgrade the refinery, it will have to begin the environmental review process over again and include all of the information that was missing in the current environmental impact report.
"Chevron is disappointed and believes that the Energy and Hydrogen Renewal Project was properly permitted and that the benefits of the project are identified in the thorough environmental review conducted by the city of Richmond staff and the city's environmental consultant," Chevron spokesman Brent Tippen said Monday.
Tippen said Chevron officials were reviewing the specifics of the court's decision and would be determining a course of action in consultation with the city
The ruling voids the environmental impact report on the refinery's Energy and Hydrogen Renewal Project, which was approved in July by a divided Richmond City Council, Jessica Tovar with Communities for a Better Environment said Monday.
The project included replacing the refinery's 1960s-era hydrogen plant and its 1930s-era power plant.
Refinery officials said that the upgrade would increase the refinery's flexibility to process a larger variety of crude oil and improve the plant's energy efficiency and reliability.
In September, three environmental justice groups filed a lawsuit challenging the city's approval of the project.
Experts at Communities for a Better Environment, Asian Pacific Environmental Network and the West County Toxics Coalition - plaintiffs in the lawsuit - said that the upgrade would allow the refinery to process heavier crude oil, which would result in increased pollution and increased risk of explosion at the plant.
Heavier crude oil can contain higher amounts of contaminants such as mercury and selenium, which can cause serious health problems, according to Communities for a Better Environment.
"Communities in Richmond, particularly low-income communities of color, already suffer from industrial pollution-related health problems, including high rates of asthma and cancer. Chevron's refinery is the largest industrial polluter in the region," plaintiffs said in a news release issued Monday.
Processing heavier crude also takes higher temperatures, which increases the likelihood of upset or explosion, Tovar said.
Tovar said that the proposed project is similar to an upgrade at a Chevron refinery in Mississippi that has allegedly enabled that plant to process heavier crude oil.
In her ruling, Superior Court Judge Barbara Zuniga wrote that under the California Environmental Quality Act, the environmental impact report should enable the public, interested parties and public agencies to weigh the proposed project against its environmental costs and consider appropriate mitigation measures.
The ruling went on to state that the environmental impact report "is unclear and inconsistent as to whether the project will or will not enable Chevron to process a heavier crude slate than it is currently processing" and therefore "fails as an informational document."
Also at issue in the lawsuit was the refinery's plan to mitigate increased greenhouse gas emissions.
Plaintiffs argued that the refinery had not submitted a plan to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions during the environmental review process, but instead deferred the mitigation plans to a later date, which excluded the public from the process.
In her ruling, Zuniga found that under state Environmental Quality Act guidelines, the formulation of mitigation measures should not be deferred to a later date. She found that the "city has improperly deferred formulation of greenhouse gas mitigation measures."
Plaintiffs also alleged that the environmental impact report failed to analyze a proposed pipeline that would transport hydrogen from the new hydrogen processing plant to the Shell refinery in Martinez and the ConocoPhillips refinery in Rodeo.
The ruling stated that because the pipeline is an integral part of the project, it should have been addressed in the environmental impact report.
Tovar said that if Chevron decides to pursue its plans to upgrade the refinery, it will have to begin the environmental review process over again and include all of the information that was missing in the current environmental impact report.
"Chevron is disappointed and believes that the Energy and Hydrogen Renewal Project was properly permitted and that the benefits of the project are identified in the thorough environmental review conducted by the city of Richmond staff and the city's environmental consultant," Chevron spokesman Brent Tippen said Monday.
Tippen said Chevron officials were reviewing the specifics of the court's decision and would be determining a course of action in consultation with the city
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