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Breaking: Obama administration moving ahead with limits on emissions from power plants
Breaking: Obama administration moving ahead with limits on emissions from power plants
by VL Baker
A year after a plan by President Obama to limit greenhouse gas emissions from new power plants set off angry opposition, the New York Times breaks the news that the administration will announce on Friday that it is pressing ahead with enacting the first federal carbon limits on the nation’s power companies.
Great news that administration is ready to fight opposition, which is expected from the republicans and fuel industry supporters.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/09/20/1240127/-Breaking-Obama-administration-moving-ahead-with-limits-on-emissions-from-power-plants
by VL Baker
A year after a plan by President Obama to limit greenhouse gas emissions from new power plants set off angry opposition, the New York Times breaks the news that the administration will announce on Friday that it is pressing ahead with enacting the first federal carbon limits on the nation’s power companies.
The proposed regulations, to be announced at the National Press Club by Gina McCarthy, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, are an aggressive move by Mr. Obama to bypass Congress on climate change with executive actions he promised in his inaugural address this year. The regulations are certain to be denounced by House Republicans and the industry as part of what they call the president’s “war on coal.”
In her speech, Ms. McCarthy will unveil the agency’s proposal to limit new gas-fired power plants to 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions per megawatt hour and new coal plants to 1,100 pounds of carbon dioxide, according to administration officials who were briefed on the agency’s plans. Industry officials say the average advanced coal plant currently emits about 1,800 pounds of carbon dioxide per hour.
“New power plants, both natural gas and coal-fired, can minimize their carbon emissions by taking advantage of modern technologies,” Ms. McCarthy will say Friday, according to her prepared remarks. “Simply put, these standards represent the cleanest standards we’ve put forth for new natural gas plants and new coal plants.”
Great news that administration is ready to fight opposition, which is expected from the republicans and fuel industry supporters.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/09/20/1240127/-Breaking-Obama-administration-moving-ahead-with-limits-on-emissions-from-power-plants
EPA chief tells Grist what coal will have to do to survive in a “carbon-constrained” future
By Lisa Hymas
<...>
Under draft rules being announced this morning, new coal power plants will have to be a whole lot cleaner than the ones we’ve got today. In fact, thanks also to market conditions, new coal plants might not get built at all. Perhaps most important, the draft rules lay the foundation for a bigger move to cut emissions from already-existing coal-fired power plants, a plan due to be unveiled in June 2014.
In an interview with Grist, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said the proposed regulations for new plants are not intended to push coal out of the energy mix. Still, the standards are pretty strict. The EPA had released an earlier version of them in March of last year, then decided to rework them, but this new set of regs still takes a hard line with coal.
The proposal calls for any coal power plants built in the future to emit under 1,100 pounds of CO2 per megawatt-hour — considerably less than coal plants emit today, which is about 1,800 pounds on average. The rules are more stringent than some had expected; observers had been saying that they might come in at 1,300 or 1,400 pounds per megawatt-hour. (The draft rules set a limit for natural-gas plants, too — 1,000 pounds for large facilities — but new gas plants already pollute less than that. Some advocates had hoped the EPA would push the gas standard down to 800 pounds per megawatt-hour.)
<...>
These new rules are the first big piece of the climate plan President Obama laid out in a speech in June, one of the steps the administration can take without cooperation from Congress.
- more -
http://grist.org/climate-energy/epa-chief-tells-grist-what-coal-will-have-to-do-to-survive-in-a-carbon-constrained-future/
By Lisa Hymas
<...>
Under draft rules being announced this morning, new coal power plants will have to be a whole lot cleaner than the ones we’ve got today. In fact, thanks also to market conditions, new coal plants might not get built at all. Perhaps most important, the draft rules lay the foundation for a bigger move to cut emissions from already-existing coal-fired power plants, a plan due to be unveiled in June 2014.
In an interview with Grist, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said the proposed regulations for new plants are not intended to push coal out of the energy mix. Still, the standards are pretty strict. The EPA had released an earlier version of them in March of last year, then decided to rework them, but this new set of regs still takes a hard line with coal.
The proposal calls for any coal power plants built in the future to emit under 1,100 pounds of CO2 per megawatt-hour — considerably less than coal plants emit today, which is about 1,800 pounds on average. The rules are more stringent than some had expected; observers had been saying that they might come in at 1,300 or 1,400 pounds per megawatt-hour. (The draft rules set a limit for natural-gas plants, too — 1,000 pounds for large facilities — but new gas plants already pollute less than that. Some advocates had hoped the EPA would push the gas standard down to 800 pounds per megawatt-hour.)
<...>
These new rules are the first big piece of the climate plan President Obama laid out in a speech in June, one of the steps the administration can take without cooperation from Congress.
- more -
http://grist.org/climate-energy/epa-chief-tells-grist-what-coal-will-have-to-do-to-survive-in-a-carbon-constrained-future/
48 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
OMG, WTF is wrong with him?!!!!
But you forgot - he does it using the super powers imparted by him via the NSA. 
DOE: U.S. Wind Energy Production and Manufacturing Reaches Record Highs
by Magnifico
For the first time ever, wind power was the #1 source of new electricity generation in the United States last year.
This upbeat assessment comes from the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE), which released two new reports on America's wind energy production and manufacturing.
Nine states rely on wind power for more than 12 percent of their annual energy consumption, with Iowa, Kansas, and South Dakota exceeding a 20 percent share. For the past two years, "the price of wind under long-term power purchase contracts averaged just 4¢ per kilowatt hour."
Installed wind power capacity doubled from 2011, but such dramatic growth is in jeopardy because production tax credits are expiring.
As part of the report, the Energy Department released an interactive map that shows the growth of wind farms across the U.S. from the first wind farm in southern California in 1975 that could power 4,149 to the growth of wind farms across much of the U.S. in 2013 where 815 wind farms produce enough electricity to power to 15 million homes.
Here are some screen grabs of the map showing the spread and growth of wind farms across the U.S. in 1975, 1990, 2000, 2008, and 2012:
<...>
Wind power generation is also becoming more diversified. Led by local school districts and farmers, Americans installed 175 megawatts of private wind turbines last year that increased their energy independence from utility company rates. This $410 million investment was a 62 percent increase over 2011. Most turbines installed were on towers just under 100 feet and generated 100 kilowatts of power or less. California, Iowa, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin led the way in growing distributed capacity.
Although "America's wind energy capacity has increased more than 22-fold since 2000," there is still a long way to go however for a truly sustainable energy future in the US. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, for 2011 capacity for renewable power (including wind) was 62 GW, compared to 318 GW for coal-burning power.
"Wind energy projections for future years are uncertain, due in part to policy uncertainty," according to the DoE. The Obama administration wants Congress to pass an extension of the production tax credit. "The wind sector’s growth underscores the importance of continued policy support and clean energy tax credits to ensure that wind manufacturing and jobs remain in America."
2013 is predicted to be a slow year for new capacity additions with a robust pick-up in 2014. Wind capacity projections beyond 2015 are uncertain.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/08/06/1229378/-DOE-U-S-Wind-Energy-Production-and-Manufacturing-Reaches-Record-Highs
by Magnifico
For the first time ever, wind power was the #1 source of new electricity generation in the United States last year.
Wind energy is now the fastest growing source of power in the United States – representing 43 percent of all new U.S. electric generation capacity in 2012 and $25 billion in new investment...
In the first four years of the Obama Administration, American electricity generation from wind and solar power more than doubled.
This upbeat assessment comes from the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE), which released two new reports on America's wind energy production and manufacturing.
Nine states rely on wind power for more than 12 percent of their annual energy consumption, with Iowa, Kansas, and South Dakota exceeding a 20 percent share. For the past two years, "the price of wind under long-term power purchase contracts averaged just 4¢ per kilowatt hour."
Installed wind power capacity doubled from 2011, but such dramatic growth is in jeopardy because production tax credits are expiring.
As the graphic above illustrates, America’s wind industry is booming. In 2012, over 13 gigawatts of new wind power capacity was added to the U.S. grid – nearly double the wind capacity deployed in 2011. This tremendous growth helped us surpass 60 gigawatts of total capacity at the end of 2012 – enough capacity to power all the homes in California and Washington State combined. As energy production goes, so does manufacturing. The 2012 Wind Technologies Market Report estimates that 72 percent of the wind turbine equipment – including towers, blades and gears – installed in the U.S. last year was made in America. This growth in domestic wind manufacturing is creating thousands of new jobs across the country. Industry estimates the wind sector employs more than 80,000 American workers across a variety of sectors, including finance, engineering, construction and project development.
As part of the report, the Energy Department released an interactive map that shows the growth of wind farms across the U.S. from the first wind farm in southern California in 1975 that could power 4,149 to the growth of wind farms across much of the U.S. in 2013 where 815 wind farms produce enough electricity to power to 15 million homes.
Here are some screen grabs of the map showing the spread and growth of wind farms across the U.S. in 1975, 1990, 2000, 2008, and 2012:
<...>
Wind power generation is also becoming more diversified. Led by local school districts and farmers, Americans installed 175 megawatts of private wind turbines last year that increased their energy independence from utility company rates. This $410 million investment was a 62 percent increase over 2011. Most turbines installed were on towers just under 100 feet and generated 100 kilowatts of power or less. California, Iowa, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin led the way in growing distributed capacity.
Although "America's wind energy capacity has increased more than 22-fold since 2000," there is still a long way to go however for a truly sustainable energy future in the US. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, for 2011 capacity for renewable power (including wind) was 62 GW, compared to 318 GW for coal-burning power.
"Wind energy projections for future years are uncertain, due in part to policy uncertainty," according to the DoE. The Obama administration wants Congress to pass an extension of the production tax credit. "The wind sector’s growth underscores the importance of continued policy support and clean energy tax credits to ensure that wind manufacturing and jobs remain in America."
2013 is predicted to be a slow year for new capacity additions with a robust pick-up in 2014. Wind capacity projections beyond 2015 are uncertain.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/08/06/1229378/-DOE-U-S-Wind-Energy-Production-and-Manufacturing-Reaches-Record-Highs
Note:
Kos Media, LLC Site content may be used for any purpose without explicit permission unless otherwise specified
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023420471
those bits and pieces that fly off! 
He wants to pollute! We forced him not to!!!!!!!!!!!!
"I eat them for lunch at work so much, that they stay away from me when they see me. If I one starts a conversation with me outside of work, I make their heads spin with logic."
But what's even funnier is that I'm the one defending Obama on an (alleged) "Democratic" website, and you're calling ME the troll!
Well, the way things are at DU nowadays, I suppose it's just a matter of time before all of the Obama supporters are banned due to their disruptive support for Democrats here on DemocraticUnderground.
But what's even funnier is that I'm the one defending Obama on an (alleged) "Democratic" website, and you're calling ME the troll!
Well, the way things are at DU nowadays, I suppose it's just a matter of time before all of the Obama supporters are banned due to their disruptive support for Democrats here on DemocraticUnderground.
Thanks for the thread, ProSense.
