Now, though, a growing number of experts, environmentalists and farmers themselves see their fields as a powerful weapon in the fight to slow climate change, their very soil a potentially vast repository for the carbon that is warming the atmosphere. Critically for an industry that must produce an ever-larger bounty to feed a growing global population, restoring lost carbon to the soil also increases its ability to support crops and withstand drought.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s recently released International Energy Outlook 2016 (IEO2016) projects that world energy consumption will grow by 48% between 2012 and 2040. Most of this growth will come from countries that are not in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), including countries where demand is driven by strong economic growth, particularly in Asia. Non-OECD Asia, including China and India, accounts for more than half of the world’s total increase in energy consumption over the projection period.
Despite the urgency to cut greenhouse gas emissions as climate change bears down on the globe, fossil fuel use is not likely to change much in the coming decades. Though renewable energy will grow quickly though 2040, gasoline and diesel will still move most of the world’s vehicles, and coal will still be the largest single source of carbon emissions.
California drivers still pay more for gasoline than motorists in virtually every other state, but there are signs their pain at the pump won’t be quite as bad in the coming months. . . The ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance went back into full operation Tuesday, a little more than a year after an explosion at the plant injured two people and prompted state regulators to fine the company more than a half-million dollars for safety violations. . . The Torrance plant generates 10 percent of the state’s refined gasoline capacity and 20 percent of the capacity in Southern California.
After increasing in 2013 and in 2014, energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions fell in 2015. In 2015, U.S. energy-related carbon dioxide emissions were 12% below the 2005 levels, mostly because of changes in the electric power sector. . . Many of the changes in energy-related CO2 emissions in recent history have occurred in the electric power sector because of the decreased use of coal and the increased use of natural gas for electricity generation.
To assess AB 32’s primary goal of reducing California’s emissions, we need to assess the Golden State’s emission reduction relative to the other 49 states, which have been slow to implement anti-climate change actions. Over the course of the last decade, California hasn’t done much better at reducing emissions, but this data only incorporates two years of AB 32 being truly in action. But even looking at just 2012 and 2013, California still isn’t performing much better than the rest of the country. In absolute terms, CO2 emissions increased in California by an average of 1.2% while they dropped by an average of 0.8% per year in the rest of the nation.
The February 2015 explosion that shuttered the ExxonMobil plant in Torrance was the costliest disruption at a California refinery in the past 16 years, with motorists paying at least $2.4 billion in higher pump prices in the following six months, according to a recent RAND study.
In constant 2015 dollars, average annual household energy expenditures peaked at about $5,300 in 2008. Between 2008 and 2014, average annual household energy expenditures declined by 14.1%. During this period, household expenditures decreased by 17.7% for gasoline, 25.1% for natural gas, and 28.3% for fuel oil. Electricity expenditures declined by a more modest 0.7%
“Southern California continues to have the highest gas prices in the country by far, with price averages in local metro areas hovering about 20 cents above the $2.60 state average price for Hawaii,” said Auto Club spokesman Jeffrey Spring. . . California pretty much relies on 14 in-state refineries for gas made to meet state smog standards. When one or more is down or even producing fuel at less than full capacity, your wallets suffer.
The February 2015 explosion, which triggered state and federal investigations, led to higher gas prices in Los Angeles than the rest of the nation. The fully operational refinery provided a fifth of the refined gasoline capacity in Southern California and 10% of the statewide capacity.
“With the gas storage field kept at about one-fifth of its full capacity, power plants could run short of natural gas to burn for power. State law permits power plants’ gas service to be cut off when supplies run short, preserving gas for homes and small businesses. State energy officials have predicted that the L.A. Basin and surrounding counties could face up to 14 days this summer and 32 days in the coming year when utilities might order limited power outages to avoid larger blackouts.”
The soon-to-be new laws, which have been introduced but not yet finalized, stem from a resident protest two years ago in response to Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s now-abandoned plan to drill 200 new oil and gas wells. The city, they argued, has too many industrial operations causing environmental and health problems.
On March 27, solar farms had to shut down because they were producing more electricity than Californians needed. As renewable energy grows, the imbalance is becoming a growing state challenge, particularly on days when the sun is shining, but it is not hot enough for most people to run air conditioning.
Announcing government support for clean-energy projects, President Obama hailed a Spanish company, saying its new solar technology would supply tens of thousands of American homes with renewable power, while spurring local employment. . . Saddled with debt from its expansion, the company is scrambling to avoid what would be the largest bankruptcy in Spanish corporate history. . . In Abengoa’s case, its signature American projects still have around $2 billion in outstanding loans guaranteed by the United States government, and the company benefited heavily from subsidies in Spain.
Critics have accused local governments of focusing on capacity rather than efficiency and utilization, hitting renewable energy targets by building windfarms in regions plagued by low wind speeds and insufficient grid capacity.