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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (May 29, 2017)
3A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, MAY 29, 2017 Carbon cap rule in Washington faces legal clash with industry Changes meant to help combat climate change By PHUONG LE Associated Press U.S. Geological Survey and Orange County Register Earthquake early warning systems like ShakeAlert work because the warning message can be transmitted almost instantaneously, whereas the shaking waves from the earth- quake travel through the shallow layers of the Earth at speeds of one to a few kilometers per second (0.5 to 3 miles per second). This diagram shows how such a system would operate. Trump’s budget cuts quake warning system funding Cuts could end project Associated Press LOS ANGELES — Pres- ident Donald Trump’s bud- get proposal would cut fed- eral funding for an earthquake early warning system for Cal- ifornia, Oregon and Washing- ton state, a development that seismology experts and some local leaders say would be the end of the project. The system being developed in conjunction with various uni- versities is intended at provid- ing critical seconds of warning when an earthquake has started and potentially dangerous shak- ing is imminent, allowing time for people to take cover and to slow or halt such things as crit- ical industrial processes and transportation systems. A version of the ShakeAlert system has been undergoing testing but still needs to have more seismic sensors installed in Northern California, Ore- gon and Washington state. The proposed funding cuts for the next fiscal year start- ing Oct. 1 would come from the budget of the U.S. Geo- logical Survey, a bureau of the U.S. Interior Department. Veteran seismologist Lucy Jones, who recently retired from the U.S. Geological Sur- vey after years of providing earthquake information to the public, said she was deeply disappointed. “Eliminating the $10 mil- lion (per) year that the govern- ment has been spending would stop the program and waste the $23 million that has already been invested,” she said in a statement. “The talented sci- entists and technicians that are working on the project now will go to other jobs, so their experience and expertise would be lost.” U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, a Los Angeles-area Demo- crat, said in a Facebook post that the system should not be stopped just as it is being expanded after years of work to educate the public and Con- gress on its benefits. “Support for the early warning system in Congress is sustained, growing and bipar- tisan, and we will not accept this attempt by the president to cut a vital funding stream for a program that will protect life, property and critical infra- structure,” Schiff wrote. U.S. Rep. Ken Calvert, a Republican who represents an inland Southern California dis- trict, is chairman of the Appro- priations Subcommittee on the Interior and the Environment and has supported funding of the earthquake warning sys- tem in the past. In a statement he did not mention the warning system specifically, but noted that the budget “proposes some reduc- tions for agencies that fall within the Interior Subcommit- tee’s jurisdiction. Those agen- cies perform important work, so the members of our com- mittee will be faced with mak- ing some difficult decisions.” In Los Angeles, Council- man Mitch Englander called the funding cuts “a threat to the lives of millions of people in California and beyond.” Englander’s district includes the epicenter of the deadly 1994 Northridge earth- quake that caused billions of dollars in damage to Los Ange- les and neighboring areas. “When it comes to earth- quakes, seconds matter,” he said in a statement. “A fully deployed early warning sys- tem would give time for eleva- tors to shut down, hospitals to turn on backup generators, and people to take cover.” Grand Opening ! P SHEE L LOCA Tillamook 1 st and Main SEATTLE — Even as the Trump administration seeks to roll back Obama-era rules to curb greenhouse gas emis- sions at coal-fired power plants, Washington state is forging ahead with its own rules to cap carbon pollution from big industrial facilities. But the state faces legal challenges as it begins requir- ing large polluters to gradu- ally reduce carbon emissions over time to combat climate change. Four natural gas utilities and eight industry groups are seeking to invalidate Wash- ington’s so-called clean air rule, which took effect in Jan- uary and affects such facilities as power plants, fuel and nat- ural gas distributors, oil refin- eries and manufacturers. A Thurston County Supe- rior Court judge is set to hear arguments Friday on one aspect of the case. Arguments on the merits of the challenge are expected later. After failing to persuade lawmakers to pass an ambi- tious cap-and-trade program, Gov. Jay Inslee directed state regulators in 2015 to use existing authority to limit car- bon emissions from Wash- ington’s largest sources. He called climate change a threat to the state and said the new regulations would help Wash- ington meet its requirements to reduce carbon emissions. “We’ve looked carefully at our law, and we believe we have the authority to do it, and that’s the authority we’re using,” said Stu Clark, air quality program man- ager with the state Ecology Department. “That’s what the court will sort through. We didn’t do this lightly.” Industry challengers Industry groups led by the Association of Washington Business challenged the reg- ulations last fall. Four inves- tor-owned natural gas utili- ties — Avista Corp., Cascade Natural Gas Corp., North- west Natural Gas Co. and Puget Sound Energy — also filed a separate suit. The two cases have been consolidated. The petitioners say the Ecology Department doesn’t have the authority to create the new carbon cap program, among other arguments. They also contend the agency vio- lated several state laws when it wrote the rules, including not doing a thorough analysis of the impacts. “The rule paints a picture that only a few are going to be hit. And what we’re saying is that it’s going to hit every- body,” said Bob Battles, gen- eral counsel for the Associa- tion of Washington Business, referring to effects on busi- nesses, families and others. Washington state is a low-carbon leader, he said, and the rule is unnecessary. “We don’t think they have the authority to do this.” Puget Sound Energy spokesman Grant Ringel said the program will have the unintended consequence of increased costs to custom- ers as well as increased car- bon emissions, since the util- ity could be forced to rely more heavily on its coal-fired plants. The state’s lawyers argue the rule should “be upheld in its entirety.” Three conservation groups — Washington Environmen- tal Council, Climate Solu- tions and Natural Resources Defense Council — have intervened to defend the state’s position. I got screened. Now it’s your turn. Gretchen Darnell Seaside, Oregon Colorectal cancer is the #2 cancer killer. But screening can prevent it or catch it early when it’s highly treatable. Talk to your doctor today about getting screened. COLORECTAL CANCER The cancer you can prevent. www.TheCancerYouCanPrevent.org A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-funded campaign CO M ING JUNE 2017 O UR 10 th A NNUA L Memorial Day Month Special Memorial Day Month Special 60 MONTHS Grand Opening C op ies d istrib uted throug hout the year to n orth coast hotels, m otels, cham b ers of com m erce, visitors b ureaus, cam p g roun d s, restauran ts an d stores an d in serted in T he D aily Astorian & C hin ook O b server N ew th is Y ea r! 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