A group of 92 pension funds, asset managers, insurers and banks has sent a letter to the CEOs of 415 of the world’s largest public companies calling for cost-effective management and reductions of their carbon emissions.  The initiative has been coordinated by the Carbon Disclosure Project.

Canadian signatories include Bâtirente, TD Asset Management, The Pension Plan For Employees of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, and The Sisters of St. Ann. A number of US, European, Australian and other country investors are also included but there are no investors from China on the list. CDP has not provided an easily accessible list of the recipients of the letter but it likely includes a number of prominent North American corporations.

Details are at https://www.cdproject.net/en-US/News/CDP%20News%20Article%20Pages/call-for-energy-cost-cutting-February-2012.aspx

Under UK greenhouse gas regulations, which are based on the European Union GHG cap and trade program, companies are responsible for accurately reporting their emissions each year and for surrendering allowances (‘carbon credits’) to cover all of their emissions. The regulations provide for a civil penalty of €100 per tonne ($131 CDN per tonne) for emissions in excess of those for which allowances have been surrendered.

ExxonMobil Chemical Limited notified the Scottish Environment Protection Agency that it had identified certain emissions sources that had not been included in its 2008 GHG emissions report and for which allowances had therefore not been given up.

The fine imposed on ExxonMobil for the excess emissions was €3,296,600 ($4,333,068 CDN). This is reported as being one of the largest, if not the largest, environmental penalties ever imposed in the UK.

This is a paperwork offence. No harm resulted to the environment, other than that almost 33,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide have been emitted without a similar amount of offsets having been  generated elsewhere. However, the message to other emitters is clear: failing to properly report emissions and comply with caps, where enforced, can be very expensive.

The enforcement statistics for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency for 2010/2011 have just been published and can be found at http://www.sepa.org.uk/about_us/sepa_board/agendas_and_papers/idoc.ashx?docid=e0020b5f-e6eb-4128-b25f-6d30eae27bdd&version=-1

Maybe it has been too long coming and maybe some will say it is not enough but Dow Chemical Company has agreed to a cleanup of dioxin contaminated properties surrounding its Midland, Michigan, industrial site that sets a high standard for cleanup of contaminated neighbouring third party sites. Dioxin contamination in the city of Midland is the result of airborne emissions from historic waste management practices at Dow.

The Michigan (State) Department of Environmental Quality has announced an agreed cleanup plan for lands around the Dow Midland plant that includes the following:

• residential and residential-like property within the ‘Resolution Area’ will get remediated if dioxin contamination levels exceed 250 ppm
• the plan includes an agreed soil sampling methodology
• the cleanup will be the removal of 12 inches of soil and replacement with clean soil including a new lawn and landscaping. Specific details, including preservation of trees and shrubs, will be worked out with each property owner.

Dow has gone beyond the agreement to offer owners of approximately 50 properties near the Michigan Operations manufacturing site a voluntary property purchase program. Dow will donate acquired properties to Midland Tomorrow, the nonprofit economic development entity serving Midland County.

Michigan DEQ information on this agreement is available at http://www.michigan.gov/documents/deq/2012-2-15_Final_FACTSHEET_w_Map_376932_7.pdf

The Dow information is available at http://www.midlandpropertyprogram.com/

General Electric Company has introduced what it calls a “hybrid” domestic water heater. The water heater, which is designed to have the same footprint as, and be completely interchangeable with, a standard domestic electric water heater uses a heat pump to extract heat from the surrounding air. This heat is used to heat the water. Supplementary 2500 watt conventional heating elements also provide heat for the water when the heat pump cannot keep up with hot water usage. GE claims that the hybrid water heater, branded as GeoSpring, is up to 62% more efficient than a conventional water heater.

The heat pump part of the GeoSpring is designed to work only in an ambient temperature range of 45F to 120F. The challenge is that, if located in a heated space, the hybrid water heater will remove heat from heated air and cause the furnace to work longer to replace the heat transferred to the water. If located in an air conditioned space, the hybrid heater will actually assist the air conditioning and reduce the energy usage of the air conditioning unit.

GE states that, typically, water heaters are located in what it calls “unconditioned spaces” such as garages, basements, and attics. That may be the case in the US but is almost certainly not the case in most Canadian homes where lack of heating would cause water pipes to burst in winter freezing. So, in Canada, a heat pump water heater will simply be taking heat out of the warmed air and causing the heating system to work harder, a process that will also contain some inefficiencies and which will likely end up using more energy in winter months than the hybrid water heater saves.

GE tries to address this by stating that if the heating season (furnace) and cooling season (air conditioner) are of roughly equal lengths, then the extra space heating required will be offset by the cooling energy saved and the energy savings of the hybrid water heater will still be realized.  However, no data are presented to substantiate this, the statement fails to take into account the inefficiency of heating a space to provide heat to a heat pump which then heats water, and in much of Canada the cooling season is much shorter than the heating season.

GallonDaily  commends GE for introducing a piece of technology that has the potential to significantly reduce energy consumption in many homes. It is the kind of technology leap that we need to address climate change and energy supply challenges. However, for it to be convincing, the Company also needs to provide information on how the water heater performs in a range of heated home situations that correspond to typical Canadian homes.  Otherwise many purchasers may end up being seriously disappointed and may even initiate claims of misleading advertising.

Details of the hybrid water heater are provided by GE at http://www.geappliances.com/heat-pump-hot-water-heater/

Availability in Canada can be determined by calling GE at 855-742-6112.

Today the Ontario Commission on the Reform of Ontario’s Public Services released its report, a report that Ontario Finance Minister described as “very sweeping” and “very controversial”. However, those hoping for changes in the way the Ontario Government conducts its environmental business or those hoping for a transition to a Sustainable Development path will be very disappointed in the Drummond Report. The report never once uses the term Sustainable Development, recommends nothing for the environment except more studies, something the Ontario government is, in this journal’s opinion, already perpetuating to an absurd extent,  and gives absolutely no recognition to the linkage between the environment and the economy. It appears that hiring this team to recommend a new economic pathway for the Government of Ontario may have been one of the bigger environmental mistakes of the many committed during the McGuinty Liberal Governments term of office.  Task force Chair Don Drummond was Chief Economist of TD Bank. TD Bank was, and may still be, one of the greener among the coterie of Canadian Banks. However, little to none of this green economic thinking seems to have rubbed off on its former Chief Economist.

Drummond Commission recommendations for the environment are miserable at best:

13-1: Move towards full cost recovery and user-pay models for environmental programs and services.

13-2: Rationalize roles and responsibilities for environmental protections that are currently shared across levels of government.

13-3: Employ a risk-based approach for environmental approvals that focuses on improving outcomes and prevention.

13-4: Review opportunities to further streamline the environmental assessment process, such as co-ordinating further with the federal government’s process or integrating it with certain approvals.

13-5: Place greater emphasis on prevention and the polluter-pay principle for contaminated sites using appropriate financial tools, such as financial assurance.

13-6: Review the effectiveness of the current governance structure of the Ontario Clean Water Agency to evaluate the merits of restructuring it as a for-profit, wholly owned government entity.

13-7: Rationalize and consolidate the entities and agencies involved in land use planning and resources management.

13-8: Ensure that the government’s approach to the Ring of Fire maximizes opportunities for Aboriginal Peoples and all Ontarians.

In other areas, Drummond recommends:

3-1: Do not simply cut costs. The imperative to restrain spending should instead be an opportunity to reform programs and service delivery. [Wow, Don. Your meaningless rhetoric exceeds that of even the most seasoned politician!]

3-8: Higher priority should be assigned to programs and activities that invest in the future as opposed to those that serve the current status quo.

3-11: Boundaries between public- and private-sector activities should be shifted and, in many cases, removed. For the most part, policy development needs to remain in the realm of the government, though various stakeholders and community groups could and should be more involved. External groups should even be involved in advising the most senior
government decision-making bodies, including the Cabinet.

11-1: Government needs to publish an “economic vision” for Ontario.

12-2: Implement full cost pricing for water and wastewater services. [Legislation to do this was passed by the Conservative government years ago but was never implemented. This may be the most useful but among the most unlikely to be implemented recommendations of the Drummond report.]

12-4: Following the precedent set by the Toronto Transit Commission, begin charging for parking at GO Transit parking lots. [And hence encourage yet more people to use private polluting automobiles rather than the more environmentally responsible public transit!]

12-5: Pursue a national transit strategy with the federal government, other provinces and municipalities.

12-10: Eliminate the Ontario Clean Energy Benefit as quickly as possible.

12-11: Review all other energy subsidy programs against measures of value for money and achievement of specific policy goals.

12-14: As part of the review of the feed-in tariff (FIT) program, take steps to mitigate its impact on electricity prices by:

• Lowering the initial prices offered in the FIT contract and introducing degression rates that reduce the tariff over time to encourage innovation and discourage any reliance on public subsidies17; and
• Making better use of “off-ramps” built into existing contracts.

12-15: Procure larger [electricity] generation facilities through a request for proposal process.

20-5: Advocate for federal greenhouse gas mitigation programs to provide fair and equitable support for Ontario’s clean energy initiatives. [Another Wow – as if Ontario’s Liberal government spending more money advocating for climate change initiatives with the Federal Conservative government would achieve anything useful at all!]

It is not GallonDaily’s mandate to review anything but the environmental and Sustainable Development aspects of government initiatives. For the many other recommendations of the Report, including a few other proposals that may have negative environmental impact, readers are referred to the full report at http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/reformcommission/index.html

In the spirit of making constructive suggestions, GallonDaily recommends that Premier McGuinty reinstate the Ontario Round Table on Environment and Economy and task it with producing an economic document that leads the province into a greener economy while at the same time reducing the costs of government services. The Round Table produced a better document along these lines in 1989 than Economist Drummond and his team have produced in 2012.

[Note: GallonDaily’s editor was a member of the Ontario Round Table on Environment and Economy.]

The President has just sent his proposal for the 2013 Budget to Congress. The US Government fiscal year begins on October 1st and with 2012 being an election year there is a good chance that the Budget will be approved by Congress before the end of the summer. Two reasons for GallonDaily’s Canadian readers to be interested in the US Budget:

• to compare and contrast with the Canadian government’s budget; and
• to get early notice of potential business opportunities in US environmental projects.

Some of the highlights of the President’s Budget proposal for the Environmental Protection Agency include:

• only a 1.2% decrease in funding for the Environmental Protection Agency, with the decrease coming from revolving funds for state water projects and from Superfund
• increased support to States for air and water quality programs delegated from the federal government
• funding to establish electronic reporting for the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System and for increasing the number and frequency of inspections at high risk oil and chemical facilities.
• funding to stimulate economic growth in local communities with abandoned industrial properties by integrating sustainable development with environmental remediation activities for the restoration of these areas.
• continued efforts to restore significant ecosystems such as the Great Lakes, Chesapeake Bay, California Bay-Delta, Everglades, and the Gulf Coast, helping to promote their ecological sustainability and resilience.

In addition, the President included in his announcement a call for Congress to enact greenhouse gas legislation. The Administration continues to support greenhouse gas emissions reductions in the U.S. in the range of 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050.

Under the heading Investing in Our Future the President sets the following Budget goals:

• Double the share of electricity from clean energy sources by 2035.
• Put one million advanced technology vehicles on the road by 2015.
• Save manufacturers money by improving energy efficiency.
• Reduce buildings’ energy use by 20 percent by 2020.
• Pursue responsible oil and gas production.

Full details are available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/Overview

Research recently published by the United States Geological Survey points to coal tar asphalt sealants as a major source of human carcinogens in the environment, potentially greater than annual polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons  emissions from vehicles.

The researchers state that children living in apartments adjacent to parking lots with coal-tar-based sealcoat likely receive more than twice as much polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from incidental ingestion of house dust than from their diet, previously thought to be a significant pathway for exposure to PAHs. PAH ingestion by children in those settings was estimated to be 14 times higher than by children in apartments adjacent to unsealed parking lots. The coated pavement areas continue to release PAHs for years after the coating was applied. Other exposure routes may include via applicators of coal-tar sealants and through those that work in close proximity to coated parking areas and bring surface dust into buildings and homes via their clothing. The research also documents transfer of PAHs from coated pavement areas through runoff into surface waters.

PAHs are designated as a toxic substance under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

In a typical industry association response the Executive Director of the US Pavement Coatings Technology Council is quoted in the media as stating “It appears they have some other agenda here, which is to ban coal tar-based pavement sealants.”

Companies that use coal tar based sealants to maintain parking lots and roadways are advised that public criticism of their release of human carcinogens into the environment may be imminent. Government regulation of coal tar based asphalt sealants is likely several years away.

For details of the studies visit http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=3101

The people of Province of Quebec are almost certainly the leader in Canada when it comes to support for action on climate change. A recent Leger poll gives some insight into the opinions of Quebecers:

• 92% see industrial activities as very important or rather important for climate change in Quebec compared to 86% seeing the car and 84% seeing truck transport of goods as similarly important;
• 86% see climate change as causing more periods of thawing in winter;
• 80% support Quebec being a leader in the battle against climate change in North America;
• 88% see renewable energy as an important component of the battle against climate change;
• 75% see industry as a most important actor in addressing climate change, 75% ascribe the same to the federal government, 67% to the provincial government, 60% to citizens, and 52% to municipalities; and
• 83% support taxes on the heaviest consuming vehicles.

Lots more very interesting data in the poll, conducted by Leger Marketing for le Regroupement national des conseils régionaux de l’environnement du Québec and available only in French at http://www.rncreq.org/images/UserFiles/files/RNCREQ_Sondage-Changementsclimatiques_2012.pdf

Full texts of all the agreements signed by Canada and China during this week’s Prime Minister’s visit have not yet been released but some details are available on the PM’s website. Although announced as trade agreements, there are few trade agreements these days which are devoid of environmental implications, either positive or negative. This week’s agreements are no exception.

One of the key agencies involved in facilitating bilateral Canada-China projects is the little known International Science and Technology Partnerships Program, an initiative of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade overseen by the Minister of International Trade. During the China visit the PM announced the following ISTPP project approvals in the environmental technology sector:

• A Wind Energy Seawater Desalination System with Wenvor Technologies Inc. as the Canadian business partner.
• A Condensing Technology for Recovery and Utilization of Waste Heat from Reheating Furnace Emissions in the Petrochemical Industry with Thermal Energy International Inc. as the Canadian business partner.
• Nanowire-Based Next Generation Solar Cells with Cleanfield Energy as the Canadian business partner.
• A Real-Time Multi-Sensor Tracking Device for operation on any platform and in any environment with Trusted Positioning Inc. as the Canadian business partner.
• A Blue-Green Algae Blooms Warning System with Noetix Research as the Canadian business partner.
• Research and Commercialization of the Next Generation Core Technologies for Online Spatial Data Maintenance with MRF Geosystems as the Canadian business partner.

In addition, the PM announced two new calls for proposals, to be launched in spring 2012, focusing on the development of innovations with high commercial potential in the areas of human vaccines and clean automotive transportation. Total funding for these two initiatives will be $18 million.

The PM also announced a Canada-China Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Energy Cooperation. The MOU is said to set a foundation for strategic and technical cooperation, including joint research projects, exchange of expertise and facilitation of workshops, and promotion of cooperation between energy companies in both countries. The agreement also provides a vehicle for liaison with provinces and territories, industrial, academic, professional and other organizations.

Another five-year MOU on Sustainable Development of Natural Resources is reportedly expected to generate new and improved scientific knowledge and technologies, help address a number of environmental issues and enable trade and investment opportunities for both Canadian and Chinese industries. It will apparently promote cooperation between Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the areas of clean energy, earth sciences and mineral resources. It provides a platform to promote Canadian expertise, technologies and services. The benefits of increased cooperation are stated to include: new technologies for Canadian resource firms; advancing Canada’s research priorities; addressing policy challenges to resource development, such as emissions, reduced environmental impact and natural hazards; and opportunities for Canadian suppliers of equipment and services.

Details of the Canada-China Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement, which was also concluded during the PM’s visit, have not been released as yet. Following other recent international investment agreement negotiations, there may be environmental aspects to this agreement.

Further details of the outcomes of Prime Minister Harper’s trip to China are available at http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?category=1&pageId=26&featureId=6 Some of the press releases used as sources for this article are presented as links from other press releases and are not presented as direct links from this site.

The State of Louisiana has published a set of reports containing a methodology for predicting sea level rise that could be very useful to coastal landowners and municipal planners in Canada and around the world. Though focusing on the State’s Gulf Coast the reports explore the known science of rising sea levels and explains how global and local factors must be taken into account in determination of areas that can expect to be inundated.

The report recommends that land use planners should assume a one metre rise in mean global sea level by 2100, with the possibility that the rise will be as much as 1.5 metres or as little as 0.5 metres over 1980’s levels. Local factors may further modulate these projections.

Canada has prepared similar sea level rise projections, for example from Natural Resources Canada, but in virtually every case the Canadian projections are predicated on climate change. One of the most unique features of the Louisiana report is that there is very little mention of climate change and the report notes that measured sea level rise is actually at the high end of or exceeding IPCC predictions. Support for the science of climate change is low in Louisiana.

Coastal sensitivity to sea level rise in Canada is discussed and mapped at http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/earth-sciences/geography-boundary/coastal-research/sea-level/7132

The Louisiana  technical reports are available at http://coastal.louisiana.gov/index.cfm?md=pagebuilder&tmp=home&pid=240