Focus
Biden, emphasizing job creation, signs sweeping climate actions
The New York Times – January 27
President Biden on Wednesday signed a series of executive actions, ranging from pausing new federal oil leases to electrifying the government’s vast fleet of vehicles, casting the moves as being about job creation as much as they are about the climate crisis. Biden said his directives would reserve 30 percent of federal land and water for conservation purposes, make climate policy central to national security decisions, and build out a network of electric-car charging stations nationwide. With respect to leases of federal land for oil and gas drilling, Biden’s executive orders direct the Interior Department “to the extent consistent with applicable law” to “pause” leases pending a review of the climate change effects. The orders also call for increasing renewable energy production on those lands and waters, with the goal of doubling offshore wind energy production by 2030.
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News
California to impose first statewide rules for winery wastewater, marking new era
The Press Democrat – January 22
Hundreds of California wineries will for the first time be governed by statewide wastewater processing rules, a change from the long-established, regional approach, that could increase production costs for wineries but also provide consistency for vintners across the state. The order, finalized this week by the State Water Resources Control Board, includes increased reporting requirements, caps on the amount of processed water wineries can dispose of through land application and subsurface disposal, requirements for water treatment systems and ponds, and extensive groundwater monitoring requirements for the state’s largest wineries. The new order promises to bring at least 1,500 of the state’s 3,600 bonded wineries into a regulatory framework for wastewater disposal for the first time, leading to extra compliance costs.
Central Coast congressman’s bill would delay oil and gas hydraulic fracturing on public lands
The Tribune – January 26
U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D-Cal. 24th) introduced a bill to the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday that aims to delay issuance of new leases for oil and gas hydraulic fracturing, a technique commonly known as fracking, on public lands by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The California Land Protection Act would require the BLM’s Bakersfield field office to complete a new environmental impact statement before it can issue new oil and gas leases. According to a news release Monday, the bill is a response to a move by a December 2020 decision under the Trump administration allowing the BLM to pursue oil and gas leasing on more than 1.2 million acres of California land after a five-year moratorium.
San Diego County teams with UCSD on plan for zero-carbon by 2035
The San Diego Union-Tribune – January 27
The San Diego Board of Supervisors voted unanimously this Wednesday to contract with the University of California - San Diego’s School of Global Policy and Strategy to create a blueprint for reducing the region’s carbon footprint to zero by 2035. The move comes just weeks after the Board committed to redrafting its climate action plan. A previous version of the document was struck down in court based largely on a provision that would have allowed developers to comply with the restrictions by relying on carbon offsets.
Ninth Circuit asked to undo asbestos review by EPA
Courthouse News Service – January 26
Joined by a coalition of public health and environmental advocates, the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday to review the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) final risk evaluation for asbestos. The risk assessment published in December 2020 found that one form of asbestos — chrysotile asbestos — poses unreasonable risks to human health but no serious risks to the environment. Opponents say the EPA failed to examine risks associated with other forms of asbestos, consider past uses of the chemical, address all asbestos-related health conditions, and use the best available data to draw its conclusions.
California eyes novel risk-based pesticide fees to help budget
Bloomberg – January 20
California regulators propose to change the way the state charges fees on pesticide sales by switching from a flat fee to a tiered system that increases fees based on greater health risks associated with exposure. The plan would update the state’s fee structure for the first time in 16 years and nearly double the costs for high-risk pesticides, such as those containing 1,3-dichloropropane and metam-potassium, which are among the most popular in the state to treat insects and weeds. When fully deployed, the tiered assessment is expected to generate an additional $45 million annually to help the state Department of Pesticide Regulation fund programs related to pest management, enforcement, and air monitoring.
Advocates for fish and canoeing win a round in debate over Tuolumne River flows
The Modesto Bee – January 26
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has ruled that the State of California may continue to seek higher flows on the Tuolumne River than the flows planned by the Modesto and Turlock irrigation districts. The January 19 ruling, which came in connection with a pending license from FERC to operate Don Pedro Reservoir for up to 50 more years, drew cheers from environmental and fishing groups that have long sought larger releases from the reservoir into the lower river than the irrigation districts have authorized. The districts, which contend that the higher releases would take too much water from their customers, vowed to appeal the ruling.
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