Weekly Green: December 8, 2015

Hello and welcome to the second installment of Weekly Green Special Edition: Paris Climate Conference. We're now in the second week of the 21st Conference of Parties (COP 21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The historic conference is generating widespread media coverage – including many reports focused on California's involvement. We are pleased to bring you a broad collection of those stories now.

However, the conference in Paris isn't the only environmental story that matters to our readers. Scroll to the bottom of this Weekly Green for our regular roundup of this week's top environmental headlines in California – including the new gray wolf conservation plan, risks of uranium-contaminated drinking water, weakening of air quality regulations, the disappearing Pacific Ocean Blob, and much more!

– California League of Conservation Voters

WEEKLY GREEN SPECIAL EDITION
21st Conference of Parties (COP 21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

Highlights

Arnold Schwarzenegger: I don’t give a **** if we agree about climate change.
I want you to know that I hear you. Even those of you who say renewable energy is a conspiracy. Even those who say climate change is a hoax. Even those of you who use four letter words. I've heard all of your questions, and now I have three questions for you.
https://www.facebook.com/notes/arnold-schwarzenegger/i-dont-give-a-if-we-agree-about-climate-change/10153855713574658

VIDEO: Jerry Brown heckled in France
Gov. Jerry Brown, at the conclusion of a speech here Tuesday, was heckled by a group of protesters opposed to carbon offset programs they said could hurt indigenous people.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article48638750.html

EPA chief: 'There's no going back' on Clean Power Plan
EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy spoke Tuesday morning at the 21st Conference of the Parties, better known as COP21, and sought to reassure those in attendance that Congress wouldn't undo U.S. commitments to the climate change talks.
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/epa-chief-theres-no-going-back-on-clean-power-plan/article/2577862

Can California Help the Paris Climate Talks Succeed?
California is no stranger to the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. It has the second-highest carbon footprint of any US state (after Texas). But as diplomats from nearly every country on Earth hash through the final details of an international climate change agreement in Paris this week, they're seeing a very different side of the Golden State.
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2015/12/california-climate-change-cop21-paris-tom-steyer

Governor Brown-related

Paris climate talks: California touts work with China; John Kerry arrives to help seal the deal
Gov. Jerry Brown is running through a packed schedule at the United Nations summit on climate change. On Monday he touted California's environmental partnerships with China, a glimpse of how the state could play a key international role.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-climate-change-talks-updates-day-6-htmlstory.html

In Paris, Schwarzenegger and Brown unite to seek climate action
It was like the debut of an environmentally themed buddy cop drama, with a political odd couple uniting against a common foe.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article48309750.html

Jerry Brown’s MOU life in Paris
The memorandum of understanding, a non-binding instrument, had become Brown’s go-to on climate change in the run-up to the United Nations summit now underway outside of Paris.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article48303625.html

How climate change came to shape Jerry Brown’s legacy
On the last weekend in May, Gov. Jerry Brown traveled to a cabin on the Russian River to help spread the cremains of Peter Finnegan, one of his oldest friends. Brown had turned 77 the previous month and, after a lifetime in politics, is in the dusk of his career.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article48242420.html

California Delegation in Paris

California-Led “Under 2 MOU” Agreement Gaining Steam In Paris
The “Under 2 MOU” just bumped its total from 57 signatories last week to 80 today, with each representing a city, state or region around the world that is pledging to limit global warming to under 2 degrees by 2100.
http://legal-planet.org/2015/12/06/california-led-under-2-mou-agreement-gaining-steam-in-paris/

Don’t expect California to follow Quebec on this climate pledge
For California, in many respects a leader on climate change, the announcement Saturday that Quebec will contribute to a fund to help poor countries address global warming was notable because it came from a province, not a nation.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article48220445.html

Pavley headed to Paris for climate change summit
Pavley is scheduled to speak at a panel on transportation Thursday and plans to attend numerous meetings and discussion groups during her 10-day trip. A nonprofit organization working to reduce emissions is paying for her trip along with those of other state politicians, including Gov. Jerry Brown.
http://www.vcstar.com/news/local/pavley-headed-to-paris-for-climate-change-summit-25c810c9-d5e5-7b06-e053-0100007fc6e2-359175751.html

Eduardo Garcia joins delegation to Paris climate talks
Eduardo Garcia, the Democratic Assembly member from Coachella, scored several victories this past legislative session with environmental-related bills. Garcia now heads to Paris as part of a delegation that plans to tell world leaders how California has taken strong action on climate change without inhibiting economic growth.
http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/environment/2015/12/01/eduardo-garcia-california-delegation-paris-climate-talks/76587282/

Opinion

Fran Pavley: California still is a leader on climate, but for how long?
As public attention focuses on this momentous conference, Californians should ask and answer two questions: Is California at the forefront in implementing responsible climate policies? Certainly. Is it getting itself ahead of the global curve? Hardly.
http://www.vcstar.com/opinion/columnists/fran-pavley-california-still-is-a-leader-on-climate-but-for-how-long-25ee18ab-07a8-7194-e053-0100007-360510701.html

Kelvin Sauls: California's appearance at the climate change talks belies an L.A. oil and gas health threat
Yes, California's system for measuring air quality is more stringent than the national standard, but it doesn't save us from breathing the dirtiest air in the country. Our clean energy goals are ambitious, and yet California remains one of the top oil-producing states in the nation — often drilling in the backyards of our state's poorest and most vulnerable residents.
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-sauls-los-angeles-oil-well-dangers-20151207-story.html

More from Paris

VIDEO: Activists form “Peace Wall” at Eiffel Tower
Hundreds of people just gathered at Paris’ 'Peace Wall' in front of the Eiffel Tower to send a message to the world.
https://www.facebook.com/ecovote/posts/10153344306966245

Jane Goodall Called Out Republicans on Climate Change
At the major climate summit in Paris on Monday, renowned conservationist Jane Goodall called for Republicans in Congress to back down from opposing an international agreement on climate change.
http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marble/2015/12/jane-goodall-climate-change-cop21

Tom Steyer makes his climate pitch in Paris
Tom Steyer, the billionaire environmentalist, was about to go on stage in an auditorium at France’s national stadium, and Nick Henry, founder of the London-based group Climate Action, was doling out praise.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article48612905.html

Meanwhile, Back in California...

California falling short in push for more clean vehicles
In a state with sprawling suburbs, stiff traffic and a longtime love affair with the internal combustion engine, slashing the amount of gasoline burned is a tall order. But unless it finds a way, California won’t accomplish the emissions goals it has promoted as a model for the rest of the world.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-me-pol-sac-climate-vehicle-emissions-20151208-story.html

In new California climate initiative, bill will target key pollutants
California would target certain harmful emissions under new legislation being introduced by state Sen. Ricardo Lara in an effort to boost public health while battling global warming. Known as short-lived climate pollutants, the emissions include diesel exhaust and methane from agriculture.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-me-ln-california-senator-lara-pollution-bill-climate-change20151208-story.html

California mulls new water plan to save imperiled salmon
California officials, eyeing another season of drought, outlined a plan Tuesday for holding more water back at Lake Shasta in 2016 in an effort to save the endangered winter-run Chinook salmon.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/water-and-drought/article48615435.html

The Pacific Ocean 'blob' is gone, but not its problems
The "blob," a warm patch of water in the northern Pacific Ocean associated with algal blooms and marine die-offs, is gone. But that doesn't mean the associated wildlife problems will go with it, scientists say.
http://www.mercurynews.com/central-coast/ci_29218739/pacific-ocean-blob-is-gone-but-not-its

Local California water agencies plead for relief from state drought cutbacks
Municipal water agencies pleaded for relief Monday from California's mandatory drought cutbacks, arguing they should be given credit for coping with arid climates and developing their own supplies.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/California-water-suppliers-buoyed-by-El-Ni-o-6682242.php

Don’t expect a brawny El Niño to bust San Joaquin Valley’s historic drought
But there’s that one word – “potential” – that commands attention for the state’s residents, farmers and water regulators, according to weather experts. They add that it will take more than one good winter for the region to escape the grasp of a sustained drought.
http://www.fresnobee.com/news/state/california/water-and-drought/article47836825.html

Fear at the tap: Uranium contaminates water in the West
In a trailer park tucked among irrigated orchards that help make California's San Joaquin Valley the richest farm region in the world, 16-year-old Giselle Alvarez, one of the few English-speakers in the community of farmworkers, puzzles over the notices posted on front doors: There's a danger in their drinking water.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_URANIUM_IN_THE_WATER?SITE=CASON&SECTION=STATE&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-12-08-00-22-28

Top-tier water users unmasked
Marty and Pamela Wygod occupy the highest echelons of California’s residential water customers, a group that has been demonized for weeks as resource hogs amid an epic statewide drought.
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/dec/05/rsf-top-users-identified/

Wolf conservation plan drawn up for California
Life for the pack of wolves that recently moved into California is full of uncertainty, but state wildlife officials have laid out a comprehensive vision for their future in the Golden State.
http://www.sfchronicle.com/science/article/Wolf-conservation-plan-drawn-up-for-California-6678292.php

Democrats criticize GOP attempt to insert drought plan in federal spending bill
California Democrats are fuming over an attempt by the state's Republican House members to insert language addressing the state’s drought into a must-pass bill to fund the federal government.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-drought-federal-spending-bill-story.html

Regulators OK weaker version of air pollution program for Southern California
Air quality regulators approved an industry-backed proposal Friday that weakened Southern California’s most significant smog-fighting measure in a decade.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-air-quality-plans-20151204-story.html

California entrepreneurs push to reinvent the nuclear industry
The state that spawned a generation of activists committed to shutting down nuclear reactors and crippling the industry has lately become a hotbed of advocacy and financial support for fighting global warming with, of all things, nuclear power.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/la-na-climate-nuclear-energy-20151204-story.html

Regulators fine Edison $16.7 million for secret San Onofre talks
The California Public Utilities Commission fined Southern California Edison $16.7 million for failing to report talks that utility representatives had with regulators over the closed San Onofre nuclear plant.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-regulators-fine-edison-20151203-story.html

Class-action lawsuit filed over Porter Ranch gas leak
A group of Porter Ranch residents are suing Southern California Gas Co. and a state regulatory agency over a gas leak at a nearby storage facility that has gone on for more than a month.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-porter-ranch-lawsuit-20151202-story.html

With Klamath bill uncertain, dam relicensing moves forward
The process to relicense the hydroelectric dam system on the Klamath River will likely move forward if Congress fails to act by the end of the year on historic settlement agreements to remove four of the dams.
http://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/article47598605.html

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