On one front, the federal government is already following in California’s footsteps. In 2009, President Obama enacted ambitious fuel-economy standards that were modeled largely off what the Golden State had done in its transportation sector.
But California is doing much more than that, establishing policies the federal government could in theory adopt on the national level. The state has an economy-wide cap-and-trade system, a low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) for its transportation sector, and a 33 percent renewable-portfolio standard (RPS) for its electricity sector.
California’s New Energy Storage Mandate Under the Microscope
Energy storage systems not only harness power but also inject that energy into the grid so that providers can efficiently meet their demands. The focus in California is on reducing harmful air emissions and on increasing the use of greener energy that is sometimes unavailable. And while some suppliers are now using the technology, they readily acknowledge that prices must come down if the tools are to become commercially available on a national level.
Survey Says: Hours of Service Top Trucking Industry Concern
Continued concern over the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Compliance, Safety, Accountability program, commonly known as CSA, caused that issue to rank second this year, after ranking first in 2012. Worry over the implications of a driver shortage resulted in that issue ranking third in this year’s survey while concern over the economy lessened, causing that issue to slip one position to fourth place. Continued economic growth, coupled with CSA and hours of service changes may be contributing factors to the driver shortage according to some in the industry, according to ATRI.
Texas Leads the Nation in Wind Energy Production
Oil production from six key fields in the United States is expected to increase 1.6 percent from October to November, the Energy Department said. The U.S. Energy Information Administration, the analytical arm of the Energy Department, rolled out its inaugural drilling productivity report. It assesses information taken from the Bakken, Eagle Ford, Haynesville, Marcellus, Niobrara and Permian shale reserve areas in the United States.
Big Wind’s Dirty Little Secret: Toxic Lakes and Radioactive Waste
The wind industry promotes itself as better for the environment than traditional energy sources such as coal and natural gas. For example, the industry claims that wind energy reduces carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming.
But there are many ways to skin a cat. As IER pointed out last week, even if wind curbs CO2 emissions, wind installations injure, maim, and kill hundreds of thousands of birds each year in clear violation of federal law. Any marginal reduction in emissions comes at the expense of protected bird species, including bald and golden eagles. The truth is, all energy sources impact the natural environment in some way, and life is full of necessary trade-offs. The further truth is that affordable, abundant energy has made life for billions of people much better than it ever was.
Transportation Awards honor Every Day Counts innovations
Now more than ever, we’re being asked to stretch every transportation dollar as far as possible. One of the most effective ways we’re doing that at the Federal Highway Administration is through our Every Day Counts initiative, which is saving State DOT’s millions of dollars and delivering the benefits of road and bridge projects to travelers much more quickly.