NORTH COAST ENERGY INDEPENDENCE & EMISSIONS REDUCTION NEWS
DECEMBER 2009
Conferences & Events
January 30, 2010: Planning and Conservation League Conference, Greening California's Landscapes: Smart Solutions for a New Era. http://www.pcl.org/projects/2010symposium/
February 18, 1:30 – 3:30 PM: ARB has announced its next Series topic, Agricultural Strategies for Mitigating GHG Emission. Broadcast on the internet. http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/seminars/seminars.htm
April 4 – 5, 2010: PlanIt Green, the 2nd Annual Building Green Communities Conference, Arcata Community Center, Arcata. More information is available by calling Steve Salzman at 707-599-6978. www.humboldtplanitgreen.com
May 19-21: Developing a Sustainable Groundwater Management Policy Forum, Tahoe City, CA. http://www.ngwa.org/
June 15 – 17: Toward Sustainable Groundwater in Agriculture: An International Conference Linking Science and Policy. San Francisco, CA. http://www.ag-groundwater.org/index.html
Funding Opportunities
The State Energy Program (SEP) Loan Program offers two great interest rates - the new one percent loan SEP/ECAA (funded from ARRA) and the current three percent ECAA program (funded from the existing state-funded loan program). www.energy.ca.gov/efficiency/financing/
The California Energy Commission’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program will assist cities and counties in implementing projects and programs to reduce total energy use, reduce fossil fuel emissions, and improve energy efficiency in building and other appropriate sectors. A majority of these funds from this program go directly to local governments and a smaller amount goes to each state's energy office (the Energy Commission in California) and tribal governments. http://www.energy.ca.gov/recovery/blockgrant.htmlThe North Coast Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (NCIRWMP) will be developing a regional application for the California Energy Commission, Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program in partnership with eligible small cities and counties in the North Coast region. Contact NCIRWMP staff member Katherine Gledhill kgledhill@westcoastwatershed.com for more information about the program and opportunities to participate. http://www.northcoastirwmp.net/docManager/1000006987/NCIRWMP_CEC_EECBG_info_082809.pdf
The California Energy Commission’s State Energy Program (SEP) directs funding to energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. Specifically, this funding will expand existing programs approved by the state or appropriate regulatory authority. Monies will be directed to energy efficiency retrofits of buildings and industrial facilities, and to support renewable energy projects. The CEC encourages using the funding for cooperative and joint activities between states to support these activities. http://www.energy.ca.gov/recovery/sep.html
The California Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program is being developed by the Energy Commission. www.energy.ca.gov/recovery/energystar.html
The California Energy Commission Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Program grant solicitations. Due date: January 11, 2010, by 5 p.m. PST. The solicitations focus on biomethane production, medium- and heavy-duty advanced vehicle technology, and alternative and renewable fuel infrastructure. A minimum of $46 million will be available from the three solicitations. http://www.energy.ca.gov/contracts/transportation.html
California Energy Commission, Public Interest Energy Research (PIER), Energy Research, Development and Demonstration Program. Applications due 2/9/2010. http://www.energy.ca.gov/contracts/pier.html#PON-09-002
The U.S. Office of Management and Budget has released broad Guidelines specific to the federal entities regarding program transparency and accountability for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding. Spending guidelines and funding levels for these programs are being released by the U.S. Department of Energy. Information will be provided on this website as the guidelines are available. http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/memoranda_fy2009/m09-10.pdf Please sign up on the ListServer at http://www.energy.ca.gov/recovery/index.html to receive updates and more information.
Homeowners and business owners who can’t afford the high
cost of installing solar panels may get help from their local governments under
AB 811, which allows cities and counties to offer low-interest financing to
those who want to make energy improvements.
http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/07-08/bill/asm/ab_0801-0850/ab_811_bill_20080721_chaptered.pdf
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/23/BAP411TF41.DTL
Sonoma County Sanitation Water Efficiency Rebate Program has been initiated; it provides rebates for high efficiency clothes washers and other products. http://www.scwa.ca.gov/sanitation-rebates/
USDA's Farm Service Agency to begin accepting applications for New Biomass Crop Assistance Program. The program, authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill, provides financial assistance to producers who deliver eligible material to biomass conversion facilities and FSA will provide financial assistance to collect, harvest, store and transport eligible materials. Biomass conversion facilities and material owners or producers should contact their FSA state offices or visit www.fsa.usda.gov for more information.
Media
The first-of-its-kind multi-sector strategy to help guide California's efforts in adapting to the effects of climate change is available online. http://www.climatechange.ca.gov/adaptation/index.html
The California Air Resources Board has announced the revision of its Drive Clean website, which ranks cars by smog and greenhouse gas emissions, and provides a variety of tools to search and compare vehicles by environmental impact, efficiency, cost, and incentives. www.DriveClean.ca.gov
EPA developed a series of documents to help local officials implement green infrastructure in their communities. Each handbook cover issues such as financing, operation and maintenance, incentives, designs, codes & ordinances, and a variety of other subjects. The handbook documents are intended to serve as "how to" manuals on these topics, written primarily from the standpoint of municipal implementation. http://cfpub2.epa.gov/npdes/greeninfrastructure/munichandbook.cfm
California's Natural Resources Agency released a comprehensive plan to guide adaptation to climate change, becoming the first state to develop such a strategy. The 2009 California Climate Adaptation Strategy Discussion Draft summarizes the latest science on how climate change could impact the state, and provides recommendations on how to manage against those threats in seven sector areas. http://www.climatechange.ca.gov/adaptation/
The new Climate Change, Wildlife and Wildlands Toolkit for Formal and Informal Educators is an updated and expanded version of the award-winning (2001 Public Relations Society of America Bronze Anvil Award for Interactive Communications and 2002 Telly Award) and very popular (over 40,000 kits distributed in all 50 states and the U.S. territories and over a dozen countries across the world) Climate Change, Wildlife and Wildlands Toolkit for Teachers and Interpreters first published in 2001. http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/CCWKit.html
DWR has released a 22-minute mini-documentary The Climate of Change. http://www.water.ca.gov/climatechange/
The Joint Ocean Commission Initiative released its report, One Coast, One Future: Securing the Health of West Coast Ecosystems and Economies. http://www.jointoceancommission.org/
A new Public Policy of California publication, California 2025: Planning for a Better Future highlights California’s most pressing long-term policy challenges in this multi-topic publication. http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=895
A new Public Policy of California publication, PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and the Environment finds that support for urgent action on climate change has slipped. http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/survey/S_709MBS.pdf
The American Society of Landscape Architects has announced a new series of comprehensive online resource guides on sustainable design and planning. http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS34463+19-Sep-2009+BW20090919
The Alliance for Water Efficiency has released a water conservation tracking tool to evaluate the water savings, costs and benefits of conservation programs for a water utility. The tool is available free to all AWE members in good standing. http://www.allianceforwaterefficiency.org/tracking-tool.aspx
The Department of Water Resources is offering a webcast of the June 2009 training on Climate, Drought, and Remote Sensing provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Geological Survey. http://www.water.ca.gov/climatechange/training-061709.cfm
The California’s Thank You Ocean Campaign is a nonprofit partnership supported by the State of California, the NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and the Ocean Communicators Alliance. The campaign features a bi-weekly podcast series featuring leaders in ocean policy including topics about ocean activities and recreation, climate change, conservation and stewardship. http://www.thankyouocean.org/news/podcasts
