California Industry's Greenhouse Pollution Dropped

California's industrial emissions of greenhouse gases dropped for the third straight year in 2011,Looking for solar garden light or outdoor lights? according to figures released this month by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The decline adds to a so-far unbroken trend since CARB started tracking the emissions in 2008. 

The figures include emissions from power plants, oil and gas production and refining, cement manufacture and a few other industrial processes.This factsheet discusses electricity generation using wind power generators at your farm or your home. They do not include CO2 emissions from motorized transportation or from sources such as households and commercial businesses,Perfect pendant lamp is critical to creating a modern home. which altogether account for about half the state's emissions. 

According to CARB, the state's reported industrial greenhouse gas emissions totaled 111,044,931 metric tons of CO2 or its equivalent -- down from 117,624,594 tons in 2010. The reduction, 6.58 million tons of CO2, is equivalent to taking 1.37 million cars off the road.Wind and solar inverter information and specifications. Furthermore, 2011's emissions represent a drop in annual emissions of more than 22 million tons from 2008's levels. That's about a third of what humans worldwide emit each day. 

If anything, the drop is likely somewhat higher than reported: The 2011 data includes more stringent reporting than in previous years, and some of the emissions counted in 2011's figures were likely left out of those for 2008-2010. 

The main factor behind the drop in emissions was a 10 million-ton decrease in emissions from electricity generation,Laser engraving and laser cutter wood, acrylic, plastic, marble, which more than made up for increased emissions from the oil, gas, and cement industries. According to CARB, that decrease in electrical generating emissions reflects both an increase in non-carbon power generation such as wind, solar, and hydro, and a decrease in consumption. 

Mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions in California was enacted when the California Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32) was passed in 2006. Under the law, all facilities that emit more than 25,000 tons of greenhouse gases per year must track and report those emissions every six months. The "floor" for reportable emissions drops to 10,000 tons this year. 

The same law requires the state to reduce greenhouse gas emission levels to 1990 levels by 2020 -- that's 433 million metric tons in total, from all industrial and other sources -- and establishes the nation's leading carbon "cap and trade" law, which is expected to help Californian industry contribute about a fifth of the needed reduction in emissions. 

hat we can hear is roughly the range of a piano from the highest to the lowest note. Now, imagine a piano whose keyboard extends another five octaves into the bass. The lowest note is roughly the noise produced by today's largest turbines. You can't hear it, but you can certainly feel it and sense in many other ways. Depending on conditions and distance from the turbine, the effects of this infrasonic noise can be disastrous to one's health (chronic headaches, insomnia, and anxiety, for example). The Green Energy Act considers only audible sound, which is a significant deficiency. 

The makers of industrial wind turbines acknowledge the harmful effects of the noise they create. That's why there's a 550 m setback. The question is: is that far enough? Current research all points in the same direction – exposure to infrasonic noise as generated by industrial wind turbines is a serious threat to the health and well-being of anyone living within a radius of at least 2 km. Contrary to Jim Bradley's assertion that "Our setback of 550 m for wind projects is the most stringent in North America." There are dozens of setbacks in North America that are more stringent than Ontario's and hundreds more throughout the world.