January 2016 Climate Change Summary Report

“Big changes for climate regs on the way for autos”

January 19, 2016: Washington Examiner reports: “The Environmental Protection Agency may have some surprises in store for the automotive industry as it contemplates big changes to its greenhouse gas rules following the Paris climate change deal last month. ‘In this post-Paris world we need to open our minds to all good ideas that will accelerate this transformation in ways that will be good for the planet, good for business and good for people,’ EPA’s director of transportation and air quality, Chris Grundler, said in an interview with Automotive News published Monday. On the sidelines of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Grundler discussed the changes he sees coming as the agency rethinks its current set of standards for the industry, which stretch out to 2025.”

“Steyer still not satisfied with climate change’s place in debate”

January 19, 2016: Washington Examiner reports: “Billionaire climate change activist Tom Steyer won’t be satisfied until the entire field of presidential candidates makes the fight against global warming the top of their agendas. Even though climate change was included in Sunday night’s NBC Democratic debate, Steyer says it was far too brief with too few details on their plans to tackle the issue. ‘Two of the three candidates were finally given the opportunity to talk about the need for decisive action on climate change and the tremendous economic opportunity that comes with a clean energy future — but it was far too brief,’ he said in a statement released by his activist group NextGen Climate. ‘With the first caucuses and primaries just weeks away, we need to hear more from all of the candidates about how to confront this critical challenge.’”

“Climate exaggeration: buy now”

January 19, 2016: An op-ed in the Suncoast News by IER founder Robert Bradley Jr. states: “The Better Business Bureau warns consumers against high-pressure sales tactics, such as ‘today only’ or ‘last one in stock.’ According to the BBB, ‘Deadlines are designed to force you into a sale before you’ve had time to think.’ Now-or-never climate warnings would make a hyperactive used-car salesman blush. The message? Act now, act big. Replace the carbon-based energy economy. Get rid of coal, petrol, and natural gas. The future of the planet, as Obama stated in his final state of the union address, is ‘at stake.’ Where have we heard this sort of doom-and-gloom before? Remember the 1960s scare of mass starvation in the United States and around the world? The mineral exhaustion scare in the 1970s? The global-cooling scare implicating coal-plant emissions of sulfur dioxide?”

“Counterpoint: Uncompetitive energy won’t pay off”

January 14, 2016: An op-ed in the Star Tribune by Minnesota Chamber of Commerce vice president Bill Blazar states: “The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce has been a longtime supporter of the development of our state’s renewable energy industry. We support it not just as a supply of electricity, but also for the innovation-driven businesses new renewable technologies create. We agree with much of what Lt. Gov. Tina Smith said in “Tackling climate change will pay off” (Dec. 28). Where we part company is on the policy direction Minnesota has chosen to pursue renewable technologies. Rather than relying on restrictive state mandates, we believe a more productive approach is through advanced research and development and measurable goals. The consequences of our past policy choices are that our electric rates are less competitive than ever.”

“Fossil fuel leases should charge for climate change, says president”

January 13, 2016: The Hill reports: “President Obama wants companies leasing oil and coal rights on federal land to pay more for the effects those fuels have on climate change. In his final State of the Union address Tuesday night, Obama said the prices charged for oil and coal ought to reflect the cost of the greenhouse gases from burning them. It answers a top request from Democrats and environmentalists who say that federal resources account for about a quarter of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, with coal as the top culprit. ‘Rather than subsidize the past, we should invest in the future — especially in communities that rely on fossil fuels,’ Obama told Congress. ‘That’s why I’m going to push to change the way we manage our oil and coal resources, so that they better reflect the costs they impose on taxpayers and our planet.’”

“Climate science deniers ‘will be pretty lonely,’ president says”

January 13, 2016: The Hill reports: “President Obama is using his State of the Union speech Tuesday night to chastise lawmakers who deny the science of climate change, saying they will ‘be pretty lonely’ as the world moves toward cleaner energy in the future.  ‘Look, if anybody still wants to dispute the science around climate change, have at it,’ Obama wrote, according to prepared remarks released by the White House.  ‘You’ll be pretty lonely, because you’ll be debating our military, most of America’s business leaders, the majority of the American people, almost the entire scientific community and 200 nations around the world who agree it’s a problem and intend to solve it.’ Obama has often admonished members of Congress who doubt climate science, including Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), the chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee who last year took a snowball onto the Senate floor to decry what he considers alarmist conclusions about man-made global warming.”

“Automakers Go Electric, Even if Gas Is Cheap”

January 12, 2016: The New York Times reports: “While American consumers were taking advantage of low gas prices to buy trucks and sport utility vehicles in large numbers, some automakers delayed investing in slower-selling electrified vehicles. But with increases in federal fuel-economy standards looming in 2017, car companies are hustling to bring out hybrid and electric models to help them meet the new rules — even though electrified vehicles make up only 2 percent of overall sales. The federal government has mandated corporate average fuel economy of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. But companies need to meet an interim standard of about 37 m.p.g. by next year.”

“Week ahead: Obama poised to take victory lap on climate”

January 11, 2016: The Hill reports: “All eyes are on President Obama’s final State of the Union address, and how large of a role climate change will play in the speech. He’ll have a lot to talk about. The Tuesday speech will come exactly a month after negotiators from nearly 200 nations voted on an agreement in Paris to fight climate change. Obama hasn’t been shy about promoting what he sees as his leading role in getting the agreement completed, including through diplomacy and domestic policy. It will also be four months after the president rolled out his climate change rule for power plants, by far the most aggressive federal government action on greenhouse gases in history. Climate change and clean energy have played a role in most of the annual State of the Union speeches from Obama. He often strikes a positive tone and calls for more clean energy use, like in 2011 and 2013. But he has also used the address for forceful warnings or calls for Congress to act.”

 

“EPA head: Court won’t block climate rule”

January 8, 2016: The Hill reports: “A federal court is unlikely to block the Obama administration’s landmark climate change rule, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said Thursday. A coalition of states, energy companies, business groups and others led by West Virginia has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to put the regulations on hold while they are litigated. But EPA chief Gina McCarthy was confident Thursday that her agency will win both on the petition to halt the rule and the case overall. ‘I think we’ll get through the stay soon. We’ll be getting a decision in the next couple weeks or so,’ McCarthy said at a Council on Foreign Relations event on climate change policy. ‘There’s no damage that would warrant a stay that any of us could identify,’ she said. ‘So we’re really hopeful on that.’”

“EPA chief: Obama administration will seek to lock in climate gains in 2016”

January 8, 2016: Washington Post reports: “The Obama administration is preparing an ambitious agenda on climate change for its final year in office, pushing ahead on multiple fronts to ensure that the United States keeps its promises to rein in greenhouse gas pollution, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency says. Despite last month’s major win at the Paris climate talks — and in spite of a shrinking timeline for new regulations — 2016 ‘is not an opportunity to relax,’ EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said in an interview. The agency’s chief cited new efforts to lock in progress in lowering air pollution and predicted that the administration’s signature regulatory accomplishments would survive challenges from a hostile Congress and from the courts.”

“EPA, White House pump up Paris climate deal ahead of SOTU”

January 7, 2016: Washington Examiner reports: “The Obama administration is going back to work this week promoting the Paris climate change deal that President Obama signed onto in December, with Environmental Protection Agency and senior White House officials fanning out to speak at top think tanks. The renewed push on climate change tees up the Jan. 12 State of the Union address by the president, which coincidentally marks the one-month anniversary of the United Nations’ climate change agreement being reached. The lobbying push hints at the likelihood of climate change being a key topic in Obama’s final address to Congress.”

“Commentary: A chilling regulatory Climate”

January 6, 2016: A blog in Fuel Fix states: “Late last year a second major oil company was forced to abandon plans to drill in the Arctic Ocean off the coast of Alaska – and irresponsible, high-fiving anti-development activists, most of whom live thousands of miles away and will not be affected, could not be more thrilled. But for those who live close by, the ones who will be most affected, the news is devastating….While the Arctic has record amounts of yet-to-be-tapped oil and natural gas resources – and with it, significant opportunities to increase U.S. energy security and create jobs – development can only be achieved if we have an effective, predictable regulatory framework in place. Which, to date, we don’t. And the outcome will not be good.”

 

“Poll: 70 percent believe in climate change”

January 6, 2016: The Hill reports: “A new survey finds that 70 percent of Americans believe the climate is changing. The poll from Monmouth University, released Tuesday, found a stark partisan divide on most issues surrounding climate change, including whether it is happening, how serious it is and what should be done about it. The research, conducted mostly before nearly 200 nations voted last month in Paris on an international climate accord, found that Democrats (63 percent) are much more likely than Republicans (18 percent) to see climate change as a very serious issue. The poll provides another piece of support for actions internationally and by President Obama to fight climate change. Obama’s main climate policy, contentious new limits on carbon emissions from power plants, is due to be litigated this year in federal courts.”

 

“New Global Warming Consensus: 95% Of ‘Climate Economists’ Want Tax On CO2”

January 6, 2016: The Daily Caller reports: “A new survey by New York University, used Monday by The Guardian to attack Republican presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio claims 95 percent of ‘climate economists’ support putting a tax or price on carbon dioxide emissions to combat global warming. ‘Two hundred and eight-one people want to impose trillions of dollars of costs on the economy every decade for a theoretical 0.2 degree reduction in world temperature a century from now. The other 299,999,719 people in the U.S. may disagree.  You don’t have to be a climate expert to recognize a bad deal,’ Heritage Foundation economist Doctor David Kreutzer told The Daily Caller News Foundation.”

 

“Obama’s climate agenda on trial”

January 4, 2016: The Hill reports: “A slate of major environmental rules rolled out by the Obama administration in 2015 will face serious challenges in the new year, as opponents look to beat back the president’s ambitious policies — a core piece of his legacy. In the lead-up to the landmark Paris climate talks in December — an event that yielded a first-of-its-kind global agreement to cut carbon emissions — the Obama administration released a series of sweeping new environmental rules, each garnering both condemnation and deep-pocketed opposition from interest looking to torpedo the regulations in 2016. As Obama enters the final year of his presidency, much of his focus on environmental issues will be implementing and preserving the work he’s already done. If 2015 was the year he pushed his environmental agenda forward, 2016 could be the year he looks to preserve it.”