Governors' Wind Energy Coalition

In America’s Heartland, Discussing Climate Change Without Saying ‘Climate Change’

By HIROKO TABUCHI, New York Times • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:37:02

Doug Palen, a fourth-generation grain farmer on Kansas’ wind-swept plains, is in the business of understanding the climate. Since 2012, he has choked through the harshest drought to hit the Great Plains in a century, punctuated by freakish snowstorms and suffocating gales of dust. His planting season starts earlier in the spring and pushes deeper into winter. To adapt, he has embraced an environmentally conscious way of farming that guards against soil erosion and conserves precious water. He can talk for hours about carbon sequestration — the trapping of global-warming-causing gases in plant life and in the soil — or the science of the beneficial microbes that enrich his land. In short, he is a climate change realist. Just don’t expect him to utter the words “climate change.” [ read more … ]

Republican Governor: God has blessed our state with wind energy resource

By David Ward, AWEA Blog • • Posted 2017-01-28 04:31:25

“Kansas is blessed with tremendous natural resources, from our fertile soil to the oil that lies beneath it. The Kansas economy has long thrived thanks to the natural gifts given to our land. As the global economy changes our energy markets change with it. Kansas has adapted and is on the cutting edge of the American renewable energy revolution.” [ read more … ]

Massachusetts Lawmakers Propose 100% Renewable Portfolio Standard

By Betsy Lillian, North American Wind Power • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:38:11

Massachusetts legislators have proposed a bill that calls for the state to adopt a 100% renewable portfolio standard, according to Environment Massachusetts, a statewide, citizen-funded clean energy advocacy group. Under the legislation, H.D.3357 – filed by State Reps. Sean Garballey, D-Arlington, and Marjorie Decker, D-Cambridge, and State Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton – Massachusetts would be required to achieve 100% renewable electricity generation by 2035, as well as phase out the use of fossil fuels across all sectors, including heating and transportation, by 2050. [ read more … ]

Environmentalists Preparing to Battle Trump, GOP in Court

By TAMMY WEBBER AND JOHN FLESHER, The Associated Press • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:38:36

The night before Donald Trump’s inauguration, five environmental lawyers filed a federal court brief defending an Obama administration clean-water rule that the new president and his Republican allies have targeted for elimination, considering it burdensome to landowners. The move served as a warning that environmentalists, facing a hostile administration and a Republican-dominated Congress, are prepared to battle in court against what they fear will be a wave of unfavorable policies concerning climate change, wildlife protection, federal lands and pollution. [ read more … ]

What Trump Can and Can’t Do to Dismantle Obama’s Climate Rules

By CORAL DAVENPORT, New York Times • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:38:56

President Trump campaigned on sweeping promises to eliminate former President Barack Obama’s major environmental regulations and “get rid of” the Environmental Protection Agency. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump offered a down payment on those promises, with memorandums clearing the path to construction of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines. He is expected to roll back a few more rules, including some on coal production, in the next few weeks. Although dismantling Mr. Obama’s most far-reaching climate regulations can be done, it will take legal acumen and a lot of time – perhaps longer than a single presidential term. Here’s a look at what Mr. Trump can and can’t do, and how quickly, to roll back environmental regulations. [ read more … ]

Comment: Trump transition leader’s goal is two-thirds cut in EPA employees

By Joe Davidson, Washington Post • • Posted 2017-01-30 06:41:45

“My own personal view is that the EPA would be better served if it were a much leaner organization that had substantial cuts,” he said in an interview. Ebell is director of the Center for Energy and Environment at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a small-government think tank where he pushes the notion of “global warming alarmism” and against the science that says it’s a crisis. He acknowledges cutting 10,000 staffers might not be realistic, yet he sees that as an “aspirational goal. … You’re not going to get Congress to make significant cuts unless you ask for significant cuts.” [ read more … ]

Will Trump Make This $7 Billion Clean-Coal Plant Irrelevant?

By Mark Chediak, Bloomberg • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:39:21

Southern Co.’s “clean-coal” plant has been hailed as a first-of-its-kind project. President Donald Trump’s climate-change skepticism could make it the last. The facility in Kemper County, Mississippi, is slated to finally start generating electricity and capturing carbon dioxide from coal by Jan. 31. [ read more … ]

Saudi Aramco Said to Weigh Up to $5 Billion of Renewable Deals

by Matthew Martin, Bloomberg • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:39:40

Saudi Arabia is planning to produce 10 gigawatts of power from renewable energy sources including solar, wind and nuclear by 2023 and transform Aramco into a diversified energy company. The kingdom also plans to develop a renewable energy research and manufacturing industry as part of an economic transformation planannounced by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in April. [ read more … ]

Note: News clips provided do not necessarily reflect the views of coalition or its member governors.

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	January 30, 2017
In America’s Heartland, Discussing Climate Change Without Saying ‘Climate Change’ By HIROKO TABUCHI, New York Times • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:37:02 Doug Palen, a fourth-generation grain farmer on Kansas’ wind-swept plains, is in the business of understanding the climate. Since 2012, he has choked through the harshest drought to hit the Great Plains in a century, punctuated by freakish snowstorms and suffocating gales of dust. His planting season starts earlier in the spring and pushes deeper into winter. To adapt, he has embraced an environmentally conscious way of farming that guards against soil erosion and conserves precious water. He can talk for hours about carbon sequestration — the trapping of global-warming-causing gases in plant life and in the soil — or the science of the beneficial microbes that enrich his land. In short, he is a climate change realist. Just don’t expect him to utter the words “climate change.” [ read more … ] Republican Governor: God has blessed our state with wind energy resource By David Ward, AWEA Blog • • Posted 2017-01-28 04:31:25 “Kansas is blessed with tremendous natural resources, from our fertile soil to the oil that lies beneath it. The Kansas economy has long thrived thanks to the natural gifts given to our land. As the global economy changes our energy markets change with it. Kansas has adapted and is on the cutting edge of the American renewable energy revolution.” [ read more … ] Massachusetts Lawmakers Propose 100% Renewable Portfolio Standard By Betsy Lillian, North American Wind Power • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:38:11 Massachusetts legislators have proposed a bill that calls for the state to adopt a 100% renewable portfolio standard, according to Environment Massachusetts, a statewide, citizen-funded clean energy advocacy group. Under the legislation, H.D.3357 – filed by State Reps. Sean Garballey, D-Arlington, and Marjorie Decker, D-Cambridge, and State Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton – Massachusetts would be required to achieve 100% renewable electricity generation by 2035, as well as phase out the use of fossil fuels across all sectors, including heating and transportation, by 2050. [ read more … ] Environmentalists Preparing to Battle Trump, GOP in Court By TAMMY WEBBER AND JOHN FLESHER, The Associated Press • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:38:36 The night before Donald Trump’s inauguration, five environmental lawyers filed a federal court brief defending an Obama administration clean-water rule that the new president and his Republican allies have targeted for elimination, considering it burdensome to landowners. The move served as a warning that environmentalists, facing a hostile administration and a Republican-dominated Congress, are prepared to battle in court against what they fear will be a wave of unfavorable policies concerning climate change, wildlife protection, federal lands and pollution. [ read more … ] What Trump Can and Can’t Do to Dismantle Obama’s Climate Rules By CORAL DAVENPORT, New York Times • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:38:56 President Trump campaigned on sweeping promises to eliminate former President Barack Obama’s major environmental regulations and “get rid of” the Environmental Protection Agency. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump offered a down payment on those promises, with memorandums clearing the path to construction of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines. He is expected to roll back a few more rules, including some on coal production, in the next few weeks. Although dismantling Mr. Obama’s most far-reaching climate regulations can be done, it will take legal acumen and a lot of time – perhaps longer than a single presidential term. Here’s a look at what Mr. Trump can and can’t do, and how quickly, to roll back environmental regulations. [ read more … ] Comment: Trump transition leader’s goal is two-thirds cut in EPA employees By Joe Davidson, Washington Post • • Posted 2017-01-30 06:41:45 “My own personal view is that the EPA would be better served if it were a much leaner organization that had substantial cuts,” he said in an interview. Ebell is director of the Center for Energy and Environment at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a small-government think tank where he pushes the notion of “global warming alarmism” and against the science that says it’s a crisis. He acknowledges cutting 10,000 staffers might not be realistic, yet he sees that as an “aspirational goal. … You’re not going to get Congress to make significant cuts unless you ask for significant cuts.” [ read more … ] Will Trump Make This $7 Billion Clean-Coal Plant Irrelevant? By Mark Chediak, Bloomberg • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:39:21 Southern Co.’s “clean-coal” plant has been hailed as a first-of-its-kind project. President Donald Trump’s climate-change skepticism could make it the last. The facility in Kemper County, Mississippi, is slated to finally start generating electricity and capturing carbon dioxide from coal by Jan. 31. [ read more … ] Saudi Aramco Said to Weigh Up to $5 Billion of Renewable Deals by Matthew Martin, Bloomberg • • Posted 2017-01-30 04:39:40 Saudi Arabia is planning to produce 10 gigawatts of power from renewable energy sources including solar, wind and nuclear by 2023 and transform Aramco into a diversified energy company. The kingdom also plans to develop a renewable energy research and manufacturing industry as part of an economic transformation planannounced by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in April. [ read more … ] Note: News clips provided do not necessarily reflect the views of coalition or its member governors.
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