Each week, we review the papers, studies, reports, and briefings posted at the “indispensable” RFF Library Blog, curated by RFF Librarian Chris Clotworthy.
Ozone Air Quality Standards: EPA’s 2015 Revision
[Energy Guardian] The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service has quietly given some advice to lawmakers: Don’t believe the most dire warnings about the costs of the Obama administration’s upcoming rule on allowable levels of smog-producing ozone. In an Oct. 3 report on the status of the planned ozone proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency, CRS said annual costs likely would run into the billions of dollars. – via Congressional Research Service
EPA Study: Negligible Benefits to Soybean Production from Pesticide Linked to Bee Deaths
[Salon] The EPA has yet to do much about neonicotinoids, the class of pesticides implicated in the United States’ mass bee die-offs, but it has started looking into them. And the results of an extensive review into one such pesticide, commonly applied to soybean seeds, presents another compelling reason to ban them: using them, the agency found, isn’t any better than using no pesticides at all. – via US Environmental Protection Agency
[GreenBiz.com] For years, some critics of renewable energy have contended that it’s really no better than fossil fuels when you consider the entire life cycle that goes into making their components. They even say there may not be enough copper, steel and other resources to build all the solar panels and wind turbines needed for a low-carbon future. But comprehensive research recently released shows how far off their thinking is from reality… – via Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Environmental Indicator Report 2014
Across the world, there is growing recognition that the prevailing model of economic growth, grounded in ever-increasing resource use and pollutant emissions, cannot be sustained indefinitely. In the coming decades, with global population expected to increase to 9 billion people from 7.6 billion today, continued improvements in living standards and well-being will depend on a transition to a green economy globally that can meet society's needs while preserving the natural systems that sustain us... – via European Environment Agency
Toward 2015: Toward 2015: An International Climate Dialogue
[From a Climate Wire article by Lisa Friedman, sub. req'd] A 2015 climate change deal is “within reach,” a top South African diplomat said yesterday, releasing a report of back-channel talks among negotiators from more than 20 countries…
[C2ES Website] The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions is convening an informal dialogue among officials from more than 20 countries on options for a new global climate agreement. The Toward 2015 dialogue provides an informal opportunity for participants to examine issues related to the ongoing Durban Platform negotiations. The goal of the Durban Platform talks is a new agreement under the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP 21) in late 2015 in Paris. – via Center for Climate and Energy Solutions
