Instead of including the 50 percent target in the state’s existing regulatory framework, the utilities argue, California should require increased carbon reduction through other, more flexible means. They say other approaches could cost less while still achieving environmental goals.
Petroleum imports accounted for less than 20% of the nation’s trade deficit last year, down from more than 40% only five years earlier, according to figures for 2014 released Thursday.
Further, a lack of comprehensive demographic data prevents us from concluding whether the solar initiative and the decal program have served a diverse population of Californians. However, the limited demographic data that does exist shows that participants in the solar initiative’s General Market Program tend to be largely older, wealthier, and have received more education than most California homeowners. . . With respect to the decal program’s capacity to appeal to a diverse population, a recent consumer survey for a related incentive program for low-emission vehicles found that, although the ages of respondents are somewhat evenly distributed, most respondents were male and earned $100,000 or more per year.
The comments, downgrading expectations for a strong outcome at Paris, suggest that the architects of a global climate deal are already resigned to the prospect that governments will fail to aim high enough when setting out their targets for cutting greenhouse gas emission in the coming months.
Gasoline traders reacted quickly to the first nationwide oil refinery walkout in more than three decades, pumping up wholesale prices to their highest level in more than a month..
Roughly two-thirds of the rate spike came because it’s costing more to buy energy in the first place, especially from renewable sources crucial to meeting the state’s 33 percent mandate, she said. “Renewables are simply more expensive than the traditional power.”
We applaud the governor’s efforts to protect our environment and address climate change. But the proposed goals will not come cheaply, with additional costs pinching the wallet of every Californian. We feel the need to ask an important question: How do we get there without emptying our pocketbooks and further burdening millions already living in poverty?
Data released today by the BLS indicates that the electricity price indexes hit all-time highs for the month of December and for the year. 2014 was the most-expensive year ever for electricity in the United States.
The move — which means another loss of a publicly held company for the capital region — was effective Wednesday. But it is not a surprise.
School districts throughout San Diego County are seeing huge electricity bill increases that have soared as much as 40 percent in recent months, according to some officials.
The report also points out that the EU’s climate policies were enacted based on the assumption that the rest of the world would soon follow suit. That hasn’t happened, and despite some fleeting green optimism following the joint emissions agreements from the U.S. and China last month, the Global Climate Treaty is still dead in the water. The EU may be a first mover in this arena, but it’s suffering the costs, not reaping the benefits, of blazing this trail. By going it alone, the bloc is putting itself at a competitive disadvantage with regard to the rest of the world, as the cost of electricity continues to rise and turn the screws on households and businesses alike.
Driving just got a lot cheaper in America. The timing is great not only for American consumers, but also for America’s infrastructure. The Highway Trust Fund simply can’t keep up current spending levels without more revenue. Significant declines in pump prices have presented an excellent opportunity to raise the federal gas tax, while keeping pump prices lower than initially anticipated.
People who own all-electric cars where coal generates the power may think they are helping the environment. But a new study finds their vehicles actually make the air dirtier, worsening global warming.
The basis for fuel-efficiency claims and the regulation of CO2 emissions are results obtained under “type-approval” tests. What was once a gap between the mileages achieved on test tracks and real-world roads has become a chasm, according to a recent report from Transport & Environment (T&E), a green pressure group. Analysis by the International Council on Clean Transportation, a consultancy, of data reported by car owners in Europe shows that in 2013 fuel-economy figures “on the road” were on average 38% worse than those advertised (see chart).
The California Climate Leadership Forum, starting at 1 p.m. at the Kaiser Center, will focus on the state’s climate policy and its impact on local communities, as well as new approaches to addressing climate change. State Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León and Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins will deliver keynote addresses, as will Steyer, a big political player who spent $30 million in 2012 to help pass an energy conservation measure, Proposition 39.