TOP STORY

Bringing 'Round the House
House lags behind Senate on climate change legislation

The Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act is expected to hit the Senate floor in early June, but the really hot battle over climate legislation could very well be in the House -- if anything ever gets off the ground. The House Select Committee for Energy Independence and Global Warming put out ambitious principles last month for what climate legislation should look like, but everyone's waiting on a bill out of the Energy and Commerce Committee, where Reps. John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Rick Boucher (D-Va.) are collaborating on legislation expected to be substantially more industry-friendly than Lieberman-Warner. Meanwhile, the ranking Republican on Energy and Commerce refuses to allow his partymates to participate in cap-and-trade legislation, and coal-state Republicans say they're cooking up their own climate scheme (with the coal industry's help). Kate Sheppard tracks the goings-on in Gristmill.

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new in Gristmill: Bringing 'round the House

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TODAY'S NEWS

You Can't Decide Without the Decider
Evidence that White House influenced EPA to deny California waiver

The White House influenced U.S. EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson to deny California the waiver it needed to regulate vehicle greenhouse-gas emissions, according to evidence presented by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. An EPA staffer swore under oath that Johnson at first "was very interested in a full grant of the waiver," then considered a partial OK, but decided on a full denial after communicating with the White House. Toting subpoenaed documents and sworn depositions, committee head Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) concluded in a memo, "The record before this committee suggests that the White House played a pivotal role in the decision to reject the California petition, but it does not explain the basis for the White House intervention." Johnson has said that the decision was "an independent judgment." Coincidentally, Johnson is scheduled to appear before Waxman's committee Tuesday to talk about White House involvement in watering down EPA's recently announced ozone standards.

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sources: Associated Press, Reuters, Detroit Free Press, Los Angeles Times
see also, in Gristmill: Waxman discloses evidence that White House influenced EPA California waiver
see also, in Grist: EPA staff supported California auto-emissions waiver, documents show

Remember Wren?
One in eight bird species may go extinct

One in eight bird species is threatened with extinction, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. In the latest update of the IUCN's Red List of threatened species, 190 birds are designated "critically endangered"; eight of those were added this year. Sixteen other bird species were also moved to a higher level of threat on the list, while only two found their prospects improved. "Species are being hit by the double whammy of habitat loss and climate change," says Stuart Butchart of BirdLife International, which helped compile the list. The most endangered feathered fauna include the Mallee emuwren, of which only about 100 are left in the wild, and the Floreana mockingbird, which is hanging on with a population of 60. To save them, says Butchart, we need "broad-scale climate-change mitigation measures" and a change in "society's values and lifestyles." Full-on societal change? That's for the birds.

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sources: Agence France-Presse, BBC News, Bloomberg, Reuters

Boxer Briefs
Barbara Boxer circulates new version of Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act

Behind the scenes, U.S. Senators have been wrangling over the exact shape of the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act, which is expected to go to the Senate floor for debate in early June. Last Friday, after months of dueling amendments and high-stakes arm-twisting, Environment and Public Works committee chair Barbara Boxer released an outline of what's likely to be the version of that goes up for debate. While the full text of Boxer's "manager's amendment" isn't yet available, the outline reveals some significant differences from previous incarnations of the bill. It includes a new "emergency off-ramp" cost containment mechanism, likely to cause some anxiety for enviros, depending the price level at which it would kick in. It also includes billions and billions of dollars in "transition assistance" for every fossil fuel and heavy industry imaginable, as well as itemized handouts to a plethora of other interests. Another line ensures that the bill is "deficit neutral" -- meaning it will impose no net cost on the federal government. On a slightly less-suspect note, it sets aside $800 billion through 2050 for consumer tax relief, to help those in need of assistance with energy costs. The full text of the new version is expected out later this week.

A Tip of the Map
Animated map shows changes in a warming world

Gotta see it to believe it? Behold: Climate Change in Our World, a project from Google Earth and British environmental and meteorological offices that gives a visual representation of what we've got in store. Using NASA satellite images and medium-case climate scenarios, the project uses time-lapse animation to illustrate predicted planetary changes through 2100. Viewers can watch the whole globe heat up, or zoom in on different countries and cities. Says U.K. Environment Secretary Hilary Benn, "By helping people to understand what climate change means for them and for the world we can mobilize the commitment we need to avoid the worst effects by taking action now." Fingers crossed.

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source: Reuters
straight to the map: Climate Change in Our World

Whatever Speeds Your Boat
Hybrid speedboat makes its debut

You knew it had to happen sometime -- luxury speedboats have gone green! Well, at least one has: California resource officials got a ride Friday in what Austrian manufacturer Frauscher Bootswerft says is the world's first hybrid recreational boat. The speedy, sleek 25-footer has a combo electric-diesel engine. California Resources Secretary Michael Chrisman's reaction after his ride around San Francisco Bay: "It's a hoot." And who doesn't want a $185,000 hoot?

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sources: San Francisco Chronicle, VentureBeat

In Brief
Snippets from the news

• Today is the National Day of Action to support renewable-energy tax credits.

• Huge renewable-energy co. will invest $8 billion in U.S. wind power.

• Iceland resumes whaling.

• Tokyoites least eco-minded of big-city dwellers.

• Kansas gov. vetoes coal bill yet again.

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