The 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that federal fuel economy standards for many sport-utility vehicles, minivans and pickup trucks which were to go into effect next year, didn't properly assess the risk to the environment and failed to include heavier SUVs and trucks. The decision resulted from a lawsuit filed by 11 states and environmental groups that argued federal regulators ignored the effects of carbon dioxide emissions when calculating fuel economy standards for light trucks. NY Times 11/16/07
The International Maritime Organization saw the Cosco Busan oil spill coming: Last year, it banned new ships from being built with their fuel tanks along the hull beginning in 2010. Contra Costa Times 11/16/07
Frustrated with the slow progress of legislation in Washington on energy and global warming, the nation’s governors have created regional agreements to cap greenhouse gases and are engaged in a concerted lobbying effort to prod Congress to act. Beginning Monday, three Western governors will appear in a nationwide television advertising campaign sponsored by an environmental group trying to generate public and political support for climate change legislation now before the Senate. The 30-second ad features Arnold Schwarzenegger, along with the governors of Utah and Montana. NY Times 11/15/07
If cleanup crews followed to the letter every regulation after last week's San Francisco Bay oil spill, then California needs new regulations, said Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, in a legislative hearing Thursday morning. Meanwhile, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday launched a full state investigation into the causes of the spill. A company contracted to perform oil spill cleanups, testified before a skeptical Hancock and the Assembly Natural Resources Committee that their people were on the scene with cleanup equipment and personnel well within the mandated six hours specified under the ship's state-approved contingency plan. Contra Costa Times 11/16/07
State air regulators voted Thursday to reduce diesel pollution at California's ports by ordering ferries, party boats and tugboats to replace their old engines. Although the vessels make up 15 percent of harbor traffic, they generate about half of all harbor emissions. The new rules mark the first time the vessels' emissions will be regulated by the state. Critics say although replacing engines sooner might get quick emission reductions, it actually would increase the amount of pollution in the long term because the cleanest engines not available now wouldn't be used. Contra Costa Times 11/16/07
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger lauded an agreement Thursday that brings nine states in America's heartland in line with his fight against global warming -- his 11th such pact in little more than a year. The pacts enlist governments -- states, foreign provinces and a coalition of European Union nations -- to join a large emissions cap-and-trade system. Contra Costa Times 11/16/07
The southbound truck tunnel on Interstate 5 near Santa Clarita reopened Thursday, a month after a fiery crash killed three people and temporarily shut down the West Coast's main commercial route. Contra Costa Times 5/16/07
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