USGS finds US aquifers being drawn down at accelerating rate

A new US Geological Survey study finds that US aquifers are being drawn down at an accelerating rate. Groundwater Depletion in the United States (1900-2008) comprehensively evaluates long-term cumulative depletion volumes in 40 separate aquifers (distinct underground water storage areas) in the United States, bringing together reliable information from previous references and from new analyses.

From 1900 to 2008, US aquifers decreased by more than twice the volume of water found in Lake Erie. Groundwater depletion in the US in the years 2000-2008 can also explain more than 2% of the observed global sea-level rise during that period, according to USGS.

Since 1950, the use of groundwater resources for agricultural, industrial, and municipal purposes has greatly expanded in the United States. When groundwater is withdrawn from subsurface storage faster than it is recharged by precipitation or other water sources, the result is groundwater depletion. The depletion of groundwater has many negative consequences, including land subsidence, reduced well yields, and diminished spring and stream flows.

While the rate of groundwater depletion across the country has increased markedly since about 1950, the maximum rates have occurred during the most recent period of the study (2000-2008), when the depletion rate averaged almost 25 cubic kilometers per year. For comparison, 9.2 cubic kilometers per year is the historical average calculated over the 1900-2008 timespan of the study.

One of the best known and most investigated aquifers in the US is the High Plains (or Ogallala) aquifer. It underlies more than 170,000 square miles of the Nation's midsection and represents the principal source of water for irrigation and drinking in this major agricultural area. Substantial pumping of the High Plains aquifer for irrigation since the 1940s has resulted in large water-table declines that exceed 160 feet in places.

The study shows that, since 2000, depletion of the High Plains aquifer appears to be continuing at a high rate. The depletion during the last 8 years of record (2001-2008, inclusive) is about 32% of the cumulative depletion in this aquifer during the entire 20th century. The annual rate of depletion during this recent period averaged about 10.2 cubic kilometers, roughly 2% of the volume of water in Lake Erie.

Groundwater is one of the Nation's most important natural resources. It provides drinking water in both rural and urban communities. It supports irrigation and industry, sustains the flow of streams and rivers, and maintains ecosystems. Because groundwater systems typically respond slowly to human actions, a long-term perspective is vital to manage this valuable resource in sustainable ways.

-Suzette Kimball, acting USGS Director

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2013/05/usgs-20130521.htm

EPA Finds California South Coast air basin meets health standard for coarse particulate matter

The US Environmental Protection Agency has proposed to find the California South Coast air basin in attainment for the coarse particulate matter standard (PM₁₀). EPA is also proposing to approve the state's maintenance plan that demonstrates how the area will continue to achieve the standard for at least the next ten years.

The finding is based on PM₁₀ data collected since 2008 that shows the South Coast air basin meets the 150 micrograms per cubic meter federal particulate standard established in 1987. This milestone was achieved by implementing control measures to reduce dust from paved and unpaved roads, certain livestock activities, gravel operations and wood burning.

This is a significant achievement in the South Coast air basin's ongoing effort to reduce air pollution. It will take that same kind of commitment to also reduce fine particle pollution and smog.

-Jared Blumenfeld, EPA's Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest

Particle pollution is a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets in the air. EPA's proposal deals with coarse particulates that range from 2.5 to 10 micrometers. Fine particulates range up to 2.5 micrometers. The size of particles is directly linked to their potential for causing health problems. Exposure to particle pollution is linked to a variety of significant health problems, ranging from aggravated asthma to premature death in people with heart and lung disease.

The EPA requires three years of clean data prior to proposing to find an area in attainment. The data are reported to the EPA from the South Coast air district's official air monitoring network. The network consists of 23 monitoring sites from Santa Clarita to Banning, operated in accordance with the EPA's regulations and guidelines to ensure precision and accuracy.

EPA is also proposing to approve the state's maintenance plan that demonstrates continued achievement of the PM-10 standard for at least ten additional years. This plan includes control measures already adopted by the state and local air district.

EPA is providing a 30-day public comment period on this proposed action.

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2013/03/epa-20130326.htm

EPRI calculates technically recoverable US riverine hydrokinetic potential at 3% of annual electricity demand

The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) recently completed a mapping and assessment of hydrokinetic resources in rivers of the continental United States and found that the technically recoverable resource estimate for the continental United States is 120 TWh/yr, which represents approximately 3% of annual US electricity consumption.

The assessment is part of an effort by the US Department of Energy to characterize US hydrokinetic waterpower resources including river, wave, tidal, ocean thermal, and ocean current. EPRI completed an ocean wave energy mapping and assessment in 2011.

The assessment analyzed 71,398 river segments across the 48 contiguous states and additional river segments in Alaska. It yielded a total theoretical resource estimate of 1,381 TWh/yr for the continental United States, which is equivalent to approximately 25% of annual US electricity consumption.

The theoretical estimate provides perspective on the magnitude of river resources in the United States. We then broke that number down further to a technically recoverable estimate because there are constraints to developing the resource.

Although the practically recoverable resource is an unknown fraction of the technically recoverable resource, the assessment shows that hydrokinetic generation could be an important renewable energy option for the United States.

-Paul Jacobson, project manager for EPRI's waterpower research

The results show that the Lower Mississippi region contributes almost half (47.9%) of the technically recoverable resource estimate; Alaska 17.1%, the Pacific Northwest region 9.2%, and, the Ohio region 5.7%. Collectively these four regions represent 80% of the technically recoverable hydrokinetic resource in the continental United States.

By comparison, EPRI's 2011 wave energy assessment, which calculated ocean wave potential, found an estimated 2,600 TWh/yr and 1,120 TWh/yr of theoretically and technically recoverable resources respectively.

Jacobson also noted that these assessments are a major improvement over estimates for hydrokinetic waterpower resources EPRI completed in 2007, noting that better data and analytical tools are now available that provide a more accurate picture of these resources.

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2013/02/epri-20130213.htm

Satellite data reveal major loss in volume of Arctic sea-ice since 2003

Arctic sea ice volume has declined by 36% in the autumn and 9% in the winter between 2003 and 2012, an international team of scientists has found. The researchers used new data from the European Space Agency's CryoSat-2 satellite spanning 2010 to 2012, and data from NASA's ICESat satellite from 2003 to 2008 to estimate the volume of sea ice in the Arctic.

They found that from 2003 to 2008, autumn volumes of ice averaged 11,900 cubic kilometers (2,855 cubic miles). But from 2010 to 2012, the average volume had dropped to 7,600 cu. km. (1,823 cu. mi.) a decline of 4,300 cu. km (1,032 cu. mi.) The average ice volume in the winter from 2003 to 2008 was 16,300 cu. km. (3,911 cu. mi.), dropping to 14,800 cu. km (3,551 cu. mi.) between 2010 and 2012-a difference of 1,500 cu. km. (360 cu. mi.).

The data reveals that thick sea ice has disappeared from a region to the north of Greenland, the Canadian Archipelago, and to the northeast of Svalbard.

- Dr. Katharine Giles, a research fellow at the Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling at University College London (UCL)

Giles and her colleagues report their findings in a paper that has been accepted for publication in Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysical Union. AGU has posted the manuscript online as an accepted article.

The findings confirm the continuing decline in Arctic sea-ice volume simulated by the Pan-Arctic Ice-Ocean Modelling and Assimilation System (PIOMAS), which estimates the volume of Arctic sea ice and had been checked using earlier submarine, mooring, and satellite observations until 2008.

Other satellites have already shown drops in the area covered by Arctic sea ice as the climate has warmed. Indeed, sea-ice extent reached a record minimum in September 2012. But CryoSat-2, launched in April 2010, differs in that it lets scientists estimate the volume of sea ice-a much more accurate indicator of the changes taking place in the Arctic, the researchers said.

While two years of CryoSat-2 data aren't indicative of a long-term change, the lower ice thickness and volume in February and March 2012, compared with same period in 2011, may have contributed to the record minimum ice extent during the 2012 autumn.

-Professor Christian Haas of York University, Canada Research Chair for Arctic Sea Ice Geophysics

CryoSat-2 measures ice volume using a high-resolution synthetic aperture radar altimeter, which fires pulses of microwave energy down towards the ice. The energy bounces off both the top of sections of ice and the water in the cracks in between. The difference in height between these two surfaces let scientists calculate the volume of the ice cover.

The team confirmed CryoSat-2 estimates of ice volume using measurements from three independent sources-aircraft, moorings, and NASA's Operation IceBridge.

The research was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, the European Space Agency, the German Aerospace Center, Alberta Ingenuity, NASA, the Office of Naval Research and the National Science Foundation.

Resources

• Seymour W. Laxon, Katharine A. Giles, Andy L. Ridout, Duncan J. Wingham, Rosemary Willatt, Robert Cullen, Ron Kwok, Axel Schweiger, Jinlun Zhang, Christian Haas, Stefan Hendricks, Richard Krishfield, Nathan Kurtz, Sinead Farrell, Malcolm Davidson (2013) CryoSat-2 estimates of Arctic sea ice thickness and volume. GRL doi: 10.1002/grl.50193

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2013/02/grl-20130213.htm

DOE moves FutureGen 2.0 CCS project forward into second phase

Following the successful completion of the first phase, the US Department of Energy (DOE) announced the beginning of Phase II of the FutureGen 2.0 project development with a new cooperative agreement between the FutureGen Industrial Alliance and DOE for a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in Illinois.

The Department of Energy is committed to the demonstration of carbon capture and storage technologies. We believe FutureGen 2.0 is an important step in making economic, commercial scale CCS a reality. The project is important part of a portfolio of approaches we are pursuing to reduce carbon emissions from existing coal-fired power plants and perhaps other large, localized CO₂ emitters.

- US Energy Secretary Steven Chu

In cooperation with the FutureGen project partners, the Department of Energy is investing in the upgrade of a coal-fired power plant in Meredosia, Ill. with oxy-combustion technology to capture more than 1 million tons of CO₂ each year-more than 90% of the plant's carbon emissions. Other emissions will also be reduced to near-zero levels.

Instead of capturing CO₂ in the presence of a large amount of nitrogen, the oxy-combustion approach extracts the oxygen from air before combustion, greatly reducing the cost of carbon capture at the exhaust stack. This project will test oxygen separation technology and exhaust processing technology after combustion at power plant scales.

Using proven pipeline technology, the CO₂ will then be safely transported and securely stored underground at a nearby storage site. This groundbreaking project will help pave the way for other cleaner and more sustainable advanced coal-burning power plants.

The completion of the FutureGen 2.0 project's first phase included technical and financial milestones such as the identification of a sequestration site in Morgan County, preliminary characterization and test drilling, and a commitment from the Illinois Commerce Committee to cover the FutureGen 2.0 project's output under its power purchasing plans.

The new cooperative agreement with the FutureGen Industrial Alliance will build on these to begin preliminary design, pre-construction and engineering for the retrofitted, near-zero emission coal-fired power plant.

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2013/02/futuregen-20130225.htm

NOAA: 2012 global temperatures 10th highest on record

The globally-averaged temperature for 2012 marked the 10^th warmest year since record keeping began in 1880, according to the latest State of the Climate report from NOAA's National Climactic Data Center. It also marked the 36^th consecutive year with a global temperature above the 20^th century average.

The last below-average annual temperature was 1976. Including 2012, all 12 years to date in the 21^st century (2001-2012) rank among the 14 warmest in the 133-year period of record. Only one year during the 20^st century-1998-was warmer than 2012.

Global temperature highlights include:

• 2012 was the 10^th warmest year since records began in 1880. The globally-averaged annual combined land and ocean surface temperature was 0.57 ¬∞C (1.03 ¬∞F) above the 20^th century average of 13.9 ¬∞C (57.0 ¬∞F). The margin of error is ¬± 0.08 ¬∞C (0.14 ¬∞F).

• Record to near-record warm land surface temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere from April to September and overall warmer-than-average ocean surface temperatures made the first 11 months of the year the eighth warmest on record. However, extreme cold across much of the Northern Hemisphere land during December helped lower the year-to-date temperature departure from average by 0.02 ¬∞C (0.04 ¬∞F) compared with the previous month.

• The 2012 worldwide land surface temperature was 0.90 ¬∞C (1.62 ¬∞F) above the 20^th century average, making it the seventh warmest such period on record. The margin of error is ¬± 0.18 ¬∞C (0.32 ¬∞F).

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2013/01/noaa-20130116.htm

California ARB issues official notification for Feb GHG allowance auction

The California Air Resources Board (ARB) has issued its official Auction Notice for the California Cap-and-Trade Program Greenhouse Gas Allowance Auction on 19 February 2013-the second official auction. (Earlier post.) The February 2013 allowance auction will offer 12,924,822 2013 current vintage allowances and 9,560,000 year 2016 future vintage allowances for sale.

The number of allowances listed for the Current Auction is the final number of allowances offered for sale and includes State-owned allowances and allowances consigned by the electricity distribution utilities.

The February 2013 auction will be conducted using an electronic, internet-based Auction Platform that bidders use to submit their bid in a single-round, sealed-bid auction format. Bid quantities can only be submitted in multiples of 1,000 California GHG allowances.

The first auction in November resulted in the sale of 23,126,110 allowances (2013 Vintage) with a settlement price of $10.09 (auction reserve price was $10.00).

Earlier in December, ARB announced that the American Carbon Registry and the Climate Action Reserve had been formally approved as offset project registries to help evaluate compliance-grade carbon offsets under California's cap-and-trade program. The Air Resources Board has also accredited specially trained third-party offset verifiers.

[The] announcement marks an important milestone in the progress of California's climate program. By authorizing real, permanent offsets from farms, forests, and businesses that are not covered by cap-and-trade, we can reduce the costs of compliance with the program and encourage investments in sustainable practices throughout the California economy.

-Air Resources Board Chairman Mary D. Nichols

The Cap-and-Trade Regulation sets an overall limit (cap) on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from specified industrial sectors. Maintaining emissions below the cap is achieved through a combination of reduced emissions and retirement of emission permits, comprising allowances and verified offsets. Unused allowances can be traded and offsets can be purchased on ARB-endorsed registries. Offset projects can be designed to enhance removals of GHG on agricultural lands and forestlands or reduce GHG emissions through capture of methane from livestock operations and through destruction of ozone depleting substances.

Carbon offsets reduce greenhouse gas emissions in sectors such as agriculture and forestry that are not included directly under the cap-and-trade regulation. For example, forests can be managed to ensure that they increase the total amount of carbon stored in the trees, thus removing additional carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Each offset credit equals one metric ton of carbon dioxide and, if issued by the Air Resources Board, can be used by companies and facilities to comply with the cap-and-trade regulation for up to eight percent (8%) of each covered entity's compliance obligation. In this sense, they are the equivalent of a California carbon allowance and, like those compliance instruments, can also be freely sold or traded.

To meet the requirements of the cap-and-trade regulation every carbon offset credit must be additional-i.e., over and above any reductions already required by law or regulation. They must also be real, verifiable, quantifiable, enforceable and permanent. The Air Resources Board currently has approved protocols (methods of accounting to measure the number of tons of reductions achieved) for four types of offset projects:

• Forestry
• Urban forestry
• Dairy manure digesters
• Destruction of Ozone Depleting Substances

Approved offset project registries are authorized to provide their services under the Air Resources Board compliance protocols. Those services include listing and reviewing projects and issuing registry offset credits which may later be submitted to the Air Resources Board for final evaluation and issuance of Air Resources Board compliance offset credits.

An example of a verifier is SCS Global Services (SCS), which recently was accredited by ARB to provide verification services for carbon offset projects under the Cap-and-Trade Program. SCS has already contracted to conduct several "compliance grade" forest offset project verifications in 2013 and is now ready to commence the verification process on these projects. SCS and its cadre of staff and contract auditors have completed the necessary training and passed the required examinations to conduct verification audits under the California Cap-and-Trade Regulation.

SCS Global Services and its cadre of auditors is now fully accredited to verify offset projects against ARB's US Forest, Urban Forest, Livestock, and Ozone Depleting Substances Projects Compliance Offset Protocols.

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2012/12/arb-20121223.htm