Center Highlights of 2012

PRESIDENT'S CORNERBy Norris McDonaldThe year was very interesting with many exciting events and milestones.  My son is in college at South Carolina State University.  Life is good.  Although there were many activities, I decided to list the top five of the year below.Breakfast with EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson at The White HouseCompton-To-Catalina Program (Trips in April and October)Participated in The White House Forum on Urban...

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CLF Report Shows Natural Gas Leaks Costing Millions

The Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) released a white paper, Into Thin Air (Accompanying Infographic), that documents the enormous environmental and economic consequences of aging, leaky natural gas pipes around Massachusetts. These leaking gases, known as “fugitive emissions,” amount to a significant source of greenhouse gases, pollution that hinders the state’s efforts to achieve the mandates of the Global Warming Solutions Act.Meanwhile,...

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Mapping Natural Gas Leaks From Aging Urban Pipes

Watch this video on YouTubeScientists from Boston University and Duke University took equipment that detects methane — the main constituent of natural gas — on a 785-mile van ride through Boston’s streets. The result, published in the journal Environmental Pollution, is a map showing more than 3,300 spikes in gas concentrations representing leaks of various sizes. Most of the leaks are minor, but some could pose an explosion risk and they add...

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FERC Approves Dominion's Pipeline Storage Proposal

FERC APPROVES, WITH CONDITIONS, NEW INTERSTATE NATURAL GAS PIPELINE AND STORAGE FACILITIESFERC Docket No. CP12-72-000 The order authorizes, with conditions, Dominion's proposal to construct and operate compression, pipeline, and storage facilities located in Frederick County, Maryland; Monroe County, Ohio; Lewis County, West Virginia; and Tioga County, Pennsylvania (Allegheny Storage Project). The proposed Allegheny Storage Project will provide...

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Viginia Uranium Moratorium Issue 2013

In the coming session, the Virginia General Assembly is expected to consider lifting a 30-year moratorium on uranium mining permits that some say would clear the way for the first uranium mine on the East Coast. The lode, with an estimated value of $7 billion, is said to be the largest undeveloped deposit in the country and among the largest in the world. It is buried near Chatham, Virginia.On January 16, 2007 Virginia Uranium was formed, with Walter...

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U.S.E.P.A. Approves Clean Air Act Waiver for California's New Clean Car Rules

The United States Environmental Protection Agency today gave the green light to California to set in place its Advanced Clean Cars package of regulations. This sets the stage for a new generation of ultra-clean cars starting in 2017 that slash smog-forming and greenhouse gas emissions and pave the way for increased numbers of zero-emission vehicles through 2025 and beyond.Today's announcement by U.S.E.P.A. also clears the way for other states covering...

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Lisa Jackson Decides To Step Down at EPA

STATEMENT BY EPA ADMINISTRATOR LISA P. JACKSONANNOUNCING HER LEAVING CABINET AFTER STATE OF UNION"I want to thank President Obama for the honor he bestowed on me and the confidence he placed in me four years ago this month when he announced my nomination as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. At the time I spoke about the need to address climate change, but also said: “There is much more on the agenda: air pollution, toxic chemicals...

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California Cap & Trade Program

By 2013, California electrical power generators and utilities, as well as other greenhouse gas emitters, must comply with an emissions cap mandated by the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB’s) adoption of new regulations. California’s Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 requires a reduction of greenhouse emissions to 1990 levels by 2020.The law vests considerable power in CARB to adopt policies and regulations.  The act does not mandate...

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Natural Gas Vehicles

Comparison of:Passenger vehicles running on compressed natural gas (CNG) withGasoline and hybrid electric models, andHeavy-duty trucks running on liquefied natural gas (LNG) with their diesel counterparts.High costs, reduced cargo space, and range issues— along with stiff competition from other alternative fuels—are likely to make switching to natural gas a tough sell for passenger vehicles. Tractor trailer semi-trucks running on LNG can be a...

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EPA Building Named After Bill Clinton

William Jefferson Clinton Federal Building Both chambers of Congress have passed legislation to rename the Environmental Protection Agency’s District of Columbia headquarters after former President Bill Clinton.The building, located at 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue and currently named the “Ariel Rios Building,” previously served as the headquarters of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The facility was renovated to house the EPA...

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House Natural Resources Committee NEPA Evaluations

The House Natural Resources committee will devote more attention to environmental reviews and their effects on advancing energy development in a new subcommittee next Congress. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) evaluations will now be wrapped into the newly formed subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation. Currently called the subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah) will remain its...

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California Utilities Like Cap & Trade Program

From (Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) to Southern California Edison, the state's utilities have been placed in a special class that will hold their rates neutral and that effectively cushions companies and their ratepayers from the cost of reducing carbon emissions. Ratepayers of the investor-owned utilities, such as Pacific Gas and Electric Company, will even get a small "climate dividend" under a mechanism ratified today...

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DOE Releases Study on Natural Gas Exports

Energy Department Releases Study on Natural Gas Exports, Invites Public Comment As part of a broader effort to further inform decisions related to LNG exports, the Department of Energy commissioned NERA Economic Consulting to conduct a third party study in order to gain a better understanding of how U.S. LNG exports could affect the public interest, with an emphasis on the energy and manufacturing sectors. The Department is releasing that study...

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Exporting Natural Gas?

The government should quickly begin easing restrictions on the export of natural gas to take advantage of the vast new discoveries of a fuel that only a decade ago was in relatively short supply in this country. The benefits of selling gas to other countries would more than offset the modestly negative impact of higher prices for domestic users of the fuel.Production from shale gas fields has swelled American reserves and driven down prices...

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D.C. GSA West Heating Plant Auction

Auction Date Set for West Heating Plant in GeorgetownGSA West Heating PlantThe General Services Administration plans to sell the West Heating Plant, in Georgetown, using an online auction set to begin January 18.The six-story plant on two acres at 1051 29th St. NW offers clear views of the Potomac River from its top floor and is considered one of the most valuable undeveloped sites in Georgetown. It has been almost completely vacant since 2000.Starting...

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More On Anticipated EPA Fracking Study

Mandated by Congress in EPA's fiscal year 2010 budget, the agency's highly anticipated study on the drinking water risks posed by fracking -- the injection of chemical-laced fluids to extract oil and gas -- is expected to set a benchmark for whether EPA needs to regulate the injection practice and whether Congress needs to amend current law to provide that authority.If EPA decides, based on the final study results, to make the case for expanding...

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EPA Enforcement in 2012

Lisa Jackson & President ObamaThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today released its annual enforcement results, showing significant environmental and public health protections achieved – a reduction of 2.2 billion pounds of air, water and land pollution, as well as 4.4 billion pounds of hazardous waste, and $252 million in civil and criminal penalties levied – while also focusing on enforcement efforts that reduce smaller amounts...

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GW Solar Institute's Fifth Solar Symposium

The GW Solar Institute's Fifth Solar Symposium will be presented April 23, 2013. Save the date, and register for free.This year's event is entitled "Solar Energy: Going Global" and will emphasize the opening of new markets worldwide. You will hear from those who are directly experiencing the new world of solar energy in countries with explosive deployment growth. Both solar photovoltaics and solar thermal electric will be highlighted.Mailing address:GW...

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EPA Announces Soot Pollution Standards

In response to a court order, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today finalized an update to its national air quality standards for harmful fine particle pollution (PM2.5), including soot, setting the annual health standard at 12 micrograms per cubic meter. By 2020, ninety-nine percent of U.S. counties are projected to meet revised health standard without any additional actions Today’s announcement has no effect on the existing daily...

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Keystone XL Pipeline Construction (Oklahoma To Texas)

The Canadian pipeline company  began construction of the southern leg of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline on August 9.  The Canadian pipeline company is installing segments near Livingston, Texas.  The southern section of the pipeline received government approval in July. The pipeline is designed to eventually carry diluted bitumen from the tar sands of northern Canada to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. Construction...

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Canada's National Energy Board Energy Market Assessment

Oil SandsWhat are the main conclusions of the Energy Market Assessment?Alberta's oil sands collectively contain vast bitumen resources, one of the largest known hydrocarbon deposits in the world. Established reserves are estimated to be 178 billion barrels.By 2015, production is expected to more than double to about 2.2 million barrels per day.Supply costs of oil sands production have fallen dramatically although the...

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