Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, WaterTags Leave a comment on Clarifying the discussion about California drought and climate change

Clarifying the discussion about California drought and climate change

Peter Gleick, posted on SCIENCE BLOGS

In the last few months, as the severe California drought has garnered attention among scientists, policymakers, and media, there has been a growing debate about the links between the drought and climate change. The debate has been marked by considerable controversy, confusion, and opaqueness.
The confusion stems from the failure of some scientists, bloggers, reporters, and others to distinguish among three separate questions. All three questions are scientifically interesting. But the three are different in their nuance, their importance to policy, and their interest to politicians and water managers. Here are the three different questions:
Is the California drought caused by climate change?
Is the California drought, no matter the cause, influenced or affected by climate changes already occurring?
How will climate changes affect future drought risks in California?
via Clarifying the Discussion about California Drought and Climate Change – Significant Figures by Peter Gleick.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, Sustainable LivingTags , Leave a comment on The "value of solar"— utility-scale or rooftop?

The "value of solar"— utility-scale or rooftop?

R.J. Harrington and Timothy Schoechle, BOULDER DAILY CAMERA

In his March 16 Camera column, "Renewables? Yes!" Bob Greenlee praised the recently announced plan by Xcel Energy to construct a large utility-scale solar PV project in Pueblo County which he claims will be "two to three times more cost-effective than smaller rooftop projects." Although a dubious claim, such a project might still seem like a good idea — to those unaware of the incredibly rapid changes taking place in the energy world. But the ground is moving under Greenlee’s (and Xcel’s) feet. Over the last year, and particularly in the last few months, the main debate has shifted from fossil vs. renewables to centralized renewables vs. distributed renewables — specifically rooftop solar PV.

Just over one year ago, the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the investor-owned utility policy and lobbying organization, issued a brief, but prescient report titled "Disruptive Challenges: Financial Implications and Strategic Responses to a Changing Retail Electric Business." The report offered its members a "heads-up" that their basic 100-year old business model was threatened by rooftop solar, and it recommended that they rethink their whole business. The costs of rooftop solar panels (called Distributed Generation or DG) have dropped so dramatically that in some places they are already cost competitive with utility-supplied electricity. The conventional economies of scale of centralized generation is simply gone — solar modules are just as efficient at small scale as large. Public pressure has been mounting for PUCs to adopt new tariffs that recognize the "Value of Solar" to society and to encourage its use by moving beyond the ancient "cost-of-service" regulatory model that does not recognize the externalized costs of traditional generation (e.g., to air, water, health, jobs, environment, etc.) or the benefits of DG.

via The "value of solar"— utility-scale or rooftop? – Boulder Daily Camera.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, Local OrganizationsTags , Leave a comment on Some customers opting out of Sonoma Clean Power

Some customers opting out of Sonoma Clean Power

Derek Moore, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

About 5 percent of eligible business and residential customers so far have opted out of Sonoma County’s start-up public power agency, some over concerns the service won’t be as reliable as PG&E.

Sonoma Clean Power projects about 20 percent of eligible customers ultimately will opt out of the service, which launches May 1. About 24,000 potential customers — most of them businesses — are part of the first wave of service.

Geof Syphers, CEO of the power startup, said a “handful” of potential customers who received letters detailing the program cited reliability concerns as their reason for declining the service.

Under Sonoma Clean Power, PG&E would continue to provide services such as billing, metering and grid maintenance. Syphers said the “reality” is that “all aspects of reliability will be handled by PG&E in exactly the same way they are handling them now.”

via Some customers opting out of Sonoma Clean Power | The Press Democrat.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & EnergyTags , Leave a comment on SolarCity accuses utilities of slowing home-battery project

SolarCity accuses utilities of slowing home-battery project

David R. Baker, SFGATE.COM

For more than two years, SolarCity Corp. has been trying to launch an experiment that could change the way we power our homes.

The San Mateo company has installed battery packs in more than 100 houses throughout California, each pack linked to rooftop solar panels. The lithium-ion batteries, made by Tesla Motors, store electricity from the panels during the day for use at night.

That combination – solar on the roof, batteries in the basement – could one day revolutionize the energy industry, undercutting traditional utility companies.

So the utilities, SolarCity says, are fighting back.

California’s big electricity providers are dragging their feet on connecting the batteries to the grid and charging steep fees – nearly $3,700 per customer, in some cases – to do so, according to SolarCity.

via SolarCity accuses utilities of slowing home-battery project – SFGate.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, TransportationTags ,

Temporary ban on Petaluma gas stations fails

Lori A. Carter, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

The Petaluma City Council on Monday night rejected a proposed moratorium on gas stations that would have prohibited Safeway from building a fueling station in front of its North McDowell Boulevard store.

A temporary urgency ordinance – commonly called a moratorium – would have required the approval of six of seven council members.

As council members began discussing the issue, it soon became clear that Councilman Mike Healy, who sought the moratorium, wouldn’t even get a majority on his side. In a straw vote, only Healy, Gabe Kearney and Kathy Miller supported a 45-day ban to buy the council time to craft tighter regulations on gas stations.

“We should just follow the process we already have in place,” said Councilman Mike Harris, saying businesses should be able to rely on existing rules when they “make investments in our community.”

Councilwoman Teresa Barrett was conflicted in her vote. She said she opposes the gas station project on whole, but doesn’t support blanket bans.

Read more at: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/1857348-181/temporary-ban-on-petaluma-gas

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, ForestsTags , Leave a comment on Tree growth never slows : Biggest trees accumulate more carbon than younger siblings

Tree growth never slows : Biggest trees accumulate more carbon than younger siblings

conifersJeff Tollefson, NATURE
Many foresters have long assumed that trees gradually lose their vigour as they mature, but a new analysis suggests that the larger a tree gets, the more kilos of carbon it puts on each year.
“The trees that are adding the most mass are the biggest ones, and that holds pretty much everywhere on Earth that we looked,” says Nathan Stephenson, an ecologist at the US Geological Survey in Three Rivers, California, and the first author of the study, which appears today in Nature1. “Trees have the equivalent of an adolescent growth spurt, but it just keeps going.”
The scientific literature is chock-full of studies that focus on forests’ initial growth and their gradual move towards a plateau in the amount of carbon they store as they reach maturity2. Researchers have also documented a reduction in growth at the level of individual leaves in older trees3.
In their study, Stephenson and his colleagues analysed reams of data on 673,046 trees from 403 species in monitored forest plots, in both tropical and temperate areas around the world. They found that the largest trees gained the most mass each year in 97% of the species, capitalizing on their additional leaves and adding ever more girth high in the sky.
via Tree growth never slows : Nature News & Comment.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, Sonoma CoastTags , Leave a comment on Feds approve more fracking off California coast

Feds approve more fracking off California coast

Alicia Chang, ASSOCIATED PRESS

The federal government has approved three new fracking jobs off the shores of California as state coastal regulators voiced concerns about potential environmental impacts.

The work in the Santa Barbara Channel, site of a 1969 oil platform blowout, has not yet begun and it was not immediately clear when it would.

The disclosure Wednesday came as the California Coastal Commission attempts to exercise greater oversight of the contested practice known as hydraulic fracturing, which involves pumping huge amounts of water, sand and chemicals deep into rock formations to free oil.

The environmental impacts of fracking and other well stimulation techniques "are not well understood. To date, little data has been collected," said Alison Dettmer, a commission deputy director.

The agency launched an investigation into the extent of offshore fracking after The Associated Press last year documented at least a dozen instances of companies using the technique since the 1990s in federal waters.

via Feds approve more fracking off California coast.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, Sonoma Coast, TransportationTags Leave a comment on Electric vehicles to get a coastal charge

Electric vehicles to get a coastal charge

Matt Brown, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Richard Sachen enjoys driving his electric Nissan Leaf from his home in Petaluma to the coast. The tech entrepreneur used to worry about having enough juice to make it home.

Not any more. Sachen recently installed an electric vehicle charger at Point Reyes Station to eliminate so-called “range anxiety.”

Sunspeed Enterprises, the company Sachen founded in 2012, is developing a network of fast charging stations up and down the coast from Eureka to Malibu. Sachen calls it the “Pacific Coast Sun Trail.”

EV advocates say the new network will fill an overlooked niche by adding charging infrastructure in rural areas that attract tourists while other companies have focused on installing charging stations in urban centers and along major highways.

via Sunspeed Enterprises, Point Reyes, Richard Sachen, Eureka, Malibu, Greenlots, electric vehicles | PressDemocrat.com.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, WaterTags Leave a comment on Final state Water Action Plan released: Outlines California's near and long-term priorities

Final state Water Action Plan released: Outlines California's near and long-term priorities

California Natural Resources Agency, PRESS RELEASE
Click here to read the report.
As California experiences one of the driest winters on record, the California Natural Resources Agency, the California Environmental Protection Agency, and the California Department of Food and Agriculture released the final California Water Action Plan, laying out goals and vision for the next five years. The plan will guide state efforts to enhance water supply reliability, restore damaged and destroyed ecosystems, and improve the resilience of our infrastructure.
At the direction of Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr., a collaborative effort of state agencies, and nearly 100 substantive public and stakeholder comments formed a plan to set direction for a host of near- and long-term actions on water issues for the state.
“It is a tall order. But it is what we must do to get through this drought and prepare for the next,” said Gov. Brown in his 2014 State of the State address.
The Governor’s proposed 2014-15 budget lays a solid fiscal foundation for implementing near-term actions for the plan, recommending $618.7 million in funding for water efficiency projects, wetland and watershed restoration, groundwater programs, conservation, flood control, and integrated water management.
“As we work on emergency actions to manage through one of the driest winters on record, we are also taking proactive, long-term steps to prepare California for future droughts and flood,” said Secretary for Natural Resources John Laird. “Each decade brings improvements, but also significantly highlights what we can do better. The California Water Action Plan gives us clear focus and vision for the next five years.”
Final revisions to the draft plan, released in October, include an expanded section on drought response and a new effort focused on better management of Sierra Nevada headwaters that helps water storage and quality, and ecosystems. Public comment on the draft plan made it clear that California must better understand the economic and ecological harm of sustained dry weather. The Governor’s proposed budget would provide $472.5 million in Proposition 84 funds to the Department of Water Resources (DWR) for integrated regional water management. The bond funds would leverage local and federal investment in projects that reduce demand, build supply, and offer additional benefits such as wildlife habitat and flood management. The budget also placed immediate emphasis on water and energy use efficiency and wetlands and coastal watershed restoration to further support the resiliency of water supply and ecosystems during this dry weather period.
The governor’s budget also would allow DWR to better monitor the groundwater resources that provide more than one-third of California’s supplies in dry years, and supports the development of a state backstop for sustainable groundwater management practices by the State Water Resources Control Board, should local efforts to do so not materialize.
“Together, the Governor’s proposed budget and this finalized plan provide the State with practical solutions to the state’s most critical problems; the proposals on groundwater are a good example,” said Cal/EPA Secretary Matt Rodriquez. “Data collection and monitoring are crucial to sustainable management of our unseen but incredibly important aquifers.”
All of the near-and long-term actions in the plan center on sustaining supplies of water for people, the environment, industry and agriculture. This year’s severe dry conditions highlight the stakes. Drought threatens to force the fallowing of hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland, throw thousands of people out of work, and potentially raise supermarket food prices.
“Our severe dry conditions are alarming for California’s agricultural industry,” said California Department of Food and Agriculture Secretary Karen Ross. “In the near term, we must do all we can to keep our fields productive. In the long term, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make the investments that will allow us to stay productive in the face of a changing climate.”
Key actions identified in the Plan include:
Make conservation a California way of life.
Increase regional self-reliance and integrated water management across all levels of government.
Achieve the co-equal goals for the Delta.
Protect and restore important ecosystems.
Manage and prepare for dry periods.
Expand water storage capacity and improve groundwater management.
Provide safe water for all communities.
Increase flood protection.
Increase operational and regulatory efficiency.
Identify sustainable and integrated financing opportunities.

Posted on Categories Climate Change & Energy, WaterTags Leave a comment on Governor declares drought emergency

Governor declares drought emergency

Derek Moore, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Gov. Jerry Brown’s declaration Friday of a drought emergency in California does not immediately trigger new restrictions on water use on the North Coast, where officials already have begun asking people to voluntarily cut back their use.

Brown, speaking in San Francisco Friday, said California is in perhaps its worst drought since record-keeping began a century ago.

His proclamation states that drought and water shortage are creating “conditions of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property” in the state. The governor asked Californians to reduce their water usage voluntarily by 20 percent.

via Drought declaration underscores state's water woes | The Press Democrat.