Air pollution

COP28: Subnational gov’t’s effort aimed at lowering methane emissions launched: California part of coalition

DUBAI – California officially kicked off a new international climate initiative that creates a partnership of subnational governments that are committed to reducing methane today [Dec. 3, 2023] at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) hosted in Dubai. The effort, which was initially announced in September during Climate Week, has expanded to 15 signatories, which … Read more

Biofuel megaproject operations halted by Bay Area court

MARTINEZ, Calif.— The Contra Costa County Superior Court today [Oct. 12, 2023] ordered Phillips 66 to halt its plan to operate a biofuel refinery in Rodeo, California. The court put the Bay Area megaproject on hold until the county fully complies with environmental review requirements that it violated when first approving the project. Communities for … Read more

70 winners of $1.4B fiscal-year 2022 CRISI grants announced by FRA in October

Here’s another Biden/Harris win about which you probably haven’t heard much…as reported in the latest issue of Progressive Railroading: The Federal Railroad Administration last month announced 70 winners of $1.4 billion in fiscal-year 2022 Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program grants. The funds for rail projects in 35 states will help address long-standing rail infrastructure … Read more

EPA’s failure to address dangerous oxides of nitrogen pollution prompts lawsuit

OAKLAND, Calif. — Conservation and public health groups filed a lawsuit today [Sept. 28, 2023] challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s failure to review and update air-quality standards that protect people from harmful nitrogen pollution nationwide. Federal law requires the EPA to review the pollution standards every five years and improve them as needed to ensure … Read more

CARB, American Honda agree on $8M settlement for SORE air-quality compliance violations

SACRAMENTO – The California Air Resources Board (CARB) reached a settlement agreement with American Honda Motor Corp., Inc. (Honda) of Torrance for $7.9 million for violations of CARB’s small off-road engine (SORE) air quality regulations. This is the third SORE enforcement action against Honda in the past four years. In 2021, CARB testing revealed multiple … Read more

Did climate change cause this?

I’ve been lately hearing through the grapevine that ground on which properties sit around Fresno, California – where I make my home – has been sinking. Though I could be pulling your leg here, this time, however, I’m not. It’s really going on. That ground is compacting, compressing or sinking throughout this and other parts … Read more

High cost of ‘supersized’ SUV ownership could soar even more

Could it be those slick marketing campaigns with their targeted advertising that do the trick? Is it a one-upmanship sort of back and forth; you know, like a Smith’s versus Jones’s home-consumer-purchasing match just to see who can outdo whom that can be finger-pointed to? Could it be both? Why not?! But, whatever it is that drives … Read more

Funning extra: Cleanup’s the word

One of my least favorite cleaning activities is dusting. When I do dust, I cheat. I use the vacuum cleaner – hose with soft-bristle brush attachment. Those other dusting methods, I avoid like the plague. If the vacuum cleaner breaks, well, I’m up the creek without a paddle, as they say. Clean sweep Outdoor sweeping … Read more

Hyping clean air, blue skies: Yup, there’s a day, place for that too

(Editor’s note: And, yet another opportunity presents itself to commit to a healthier-air, clearer-sky environment). Air pollution is responsible for half a million premature deaths annually in the WHO European Region, primarily due to noncommunicable diseases, such as ischaemic heart disease, stroke, lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. On this International Day of Clean … Read more