Climate Politics
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D.C. buzzes about Stephen Chu, Nobel laureate and head of Lawrence Berkeley, for DOE
Steven Chu. No, I’m not talking Al Gore. The big buzz is about Dr. Steven Chu, the Nobel-laureate director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. He would be a terrific choice for many reasons, as the Wonk Room has already noted, see “Energy Secretary Contender Dr. Steven Chu: Transform The Energy Landscape To Save ‘A […]
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Senate and House divided over state emission standards in auto bailout plan
It seems the House and Senate have reached an impasse on the automaker bailout bill, and it focuses on whether to force automakers to abide by state emissions regulations. The disagreement over the rules on doling out the $15 billion in loans centers on a single word — “federal.” The Senate bill says in order […]
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L.A. Deputy Mayor Nancy Sutley may head up Obama’s Council on Environmental Quality
Nancy Sutley. Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Nancy Sutley is expected to be appointed to head President-elect Barack Obama’s White House Council on Environmental Quality, a transition team member told me Wednesday. Sutley has a long but mixed track record in California on environment and energy policy, according to several people who have worked with and […]
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Missouri Senator says Obama will have to delay his cap-and-trade program
At a panel yesterday morning hosted by National Journal, Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill (D) made some comments about Obama’s cap-and-trade proposal that are strikingly off-message. Or are they? The panel was focused on Obama’s first 100 days. McCaskill — a key Senate ally of Obama’s and the first female Senator to endorse him in the […]
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Speculation on Granholm and Reicher as possible picks for energy secretary
The internets are abuzz with speculation that Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) is going to be tapped as secretary of energy (see here, here, and here). She’s meeting today with Obama’s transition team to discuss energy issues. Michigan Messenger has a longer piece about the Granholm rumor that’s worth checking out, including info on her […]
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Utility strikes deal with green groups allowing new coal plants to proceed
Luminant, the largest utility in Texas, struck a deal this week with Public Citizen and the Sierra Club in which the company agreed to use “maximum achievable control technology” to ensure the lowest possible emissions of mercury and other pollutants from two new coal-fired generating units now under construction in the state. In exchange, the […]
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Energy Dept. calls for threefold expansion of Yucca Mountain nuke dump
In a report to Congress, the U.S. Energy Department this week recommended expanding by up to three times the amount of nuclear waste to be buried at the planned Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository in Nevada. The agency also recommended delaying a decision on whether to commission another large nuke-waste dump elsewhere in the country, […]
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South Korean court jails captain of oil tanker involved in 2007 spill
The captain and first mate of an oil tanker that caused South Korea’s largest oil spill last year have been convicted of criminal negligence for failing to avoid a collision with a barge. Members of the barge crew were also jailed for their role in the collision, which dumped some 2.7 million gallons of crude […]
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Sources say Obama will drop EPA head and ‘energy czar’ as early as today
A source close to the transition tells me that Obama will drop the names of his energy czar and EPA head today. The decision may be coming out earlier than expected to try to help take the edge off the endless Blagojevich coverage. Al Kamen says his sources tell him the energy czar is going […]
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Hill briefing tries to stir support for a carbon tax
With more than a month yet to go before the new Congress is officially sworn in (and the old Congress still kicking around in lame duck session), some wonk-types were on the Hill today trying to stir up support for a carbon tax. Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.), who last year introduced a carbon tax bill […]
