Climate Change Summary Newsletter and Commentary - October 18, 2009

Climate Change Summary Newsletter and Commentary

October 18, 2009

Steven L. Hoch
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP

The Feel Good Move of the Week

UPS Customers to Offset Carbon Emissions
Brown goes green?

UPS is introducing an option for customers to offset the carbon dioxide emissions from their package transportation within the United States by giving them the option of paying a small fee to calculate and offset the climate impact for each of their packages. To encourage customers to participate in this flat fee program, UPS has offered to match the offset purchases, effectively doubling the offsets purchased in 2009-2010, up to $1 million.

Bush Leftovers

EPA Releases Bush-Era Endangerment Document
It’s all the fault of those guys in the black robes… otherwise, who would know?

U.S. EPA released a document showing the George W. Bush administration had concluded in December 2007 that greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles were endangering public welfare and needed to be regulated under the Clean Air Act. The EPA analysis - labeled “Deliberative, Do Not Distribute” – discussed -through the climate-changing effects that heat-trapping gases have on air pollution, precipitation patterns, sea-level rise, glacial melting and wildlife patterns. The 2007 EPA document was prepared as part of the Bush administration's response to the Supreme Court's April 2007 decision in Massachusetts v. EPA.

SEC Reviewing Bush-Era Ban on Climate Risk Disclosure
Do not arouse the wrath of the great and powerful Oz. I said come back tomorrow!

The SEC is responding to a growing push to lift Bush administration restrictions on climate risk disclosure that any “evaluation of risk” is not permitted. The SEC is re-examining shareholder concerns that companies are sidestepping requirements to disclose the climate-related liability they face from greenhouse gas emissions, regulations, rising commodity prices, potential property damage and the long-term costs associated with replacing equipment and infrastructure. Two options appear to be on the table. One option could be a rulemaking to set specific rules for disclosing climate risks, and the other is to issue a reinterpretation of Form 10-K disclosure rules requiring companies to comment on operations tied in with mitigating climate-change risks.

Regulation

TV to Be Regulated in California
To save power, you can only watch Oprah every other day.

The California Energy Commission will change its rules to reduce energy use, save money for consumers and eliminate the need for new power plants. The rules would set benchmarks: TVs would have to enter standby mode after 15 minutes of inactivity, and standby power usage would be no more than 1 MW, down from 3 MW now. Manufacturers would also have to slap power-consumption labels on the sets. The electronics industry group is urging the commission to use the federal government’s voluntary Energy Star standards for televisions, but commissioners say voluntary standards won’t get needed energy savings. The commission estimates overall savings up to $18.48 per year. The proposed standards should also save 6,515 gigawatt-hours of energy after all consumers get new models, as well as 876.5 metric tons of criteria pollutants and 3.1 million metric tons of greenhouse gases per year.

EPA Will Create New Fuel-Economy Rating For Plug-In Vehicles
Miles per what watt?

EPA is developing a rule to establish metrics for defining the fuel economy of plug-in hybrid vehicles intended to update consumer labeling requirements to more accurately reflect mileage claims by manufacturers of some plug-in vehicles. The agency is reviewing options for providing consumers with one or more new metrics to best inform their decisions on purchasing plug-in hybrids, which in some cases can get 100 miles per gallon (MPG) or more, in addition to statutory requirements to present all vehicles’ fuel economy in a MPG format. The traditional MPG approach presents efficiency based on how far vehicles can drive on one gallon of fuel. A consumption-based metric would present fuel economy for plug-in hybrids in a format of how many gallons of fuel are necessary for the vehicles to travel 100 miles.

Going Nuclear
This time the environmentalists need a time out for fibbing.

Environmentalists are calling on senators to reject any proposal to “streamline” the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s licensing process for new nuclear power plants. The environmentalists argue that any effort to expedite the licensing process “would fatally undermine public confidence in the safety of U.S. reactors.” The outcry from environmentalists marks a significant moment in the drafting of Senate climate change legislation, as activists appear ready to part with their industry allies on cap-and-trade proposals over measures to reinvigorate the nuclear power industry. The brewing battle also signals the difficulties lawmakers face in trying to hash out the details of a federal climate program.

Sealing gas leaks could be first step to reduce methane
Can’t blame this one on the cows.

Regulations are being sought to - Acting to curb the loss of methane from wells which could substantially cut GHG emissions while bigger issues are being tackled. There are few current restrictions on such leaks and at least 3 trillion cubic feet of methane seep into the air every year, with Russia and the United States the leading sources, according U.S. EPA estimates. While some gas drillers are taking steps on their own, many are not. Various industry actions are taking place voluntarily while non-industry groups are calling for regulation.

Air Travel

Qatar Airways Makes First Natural Gas-Powered Flight
Coffee, tea, natural gas?

Qatar Airways said it has completed the world’s first commercial passenger flight using kerosene derived from natural gas, a positive step for an airline industry looking for alternative fuels to protect it from volatile oil prices. The airline used an Airbus A340-600 aircraft on Monday’s flight from London Gatwick to Doha, Qatar, fueled by a mixture of synthetic gas-to-liquids, or GTL, kerosene and conventional oil-based kerosene fuel developed by Royal Dutch Shell PLC. The question remains as to whether the fuel will make an impact, considering the cost and energy required to produce it. No analysis has been performed yet on that point.