AIR TOXICS * EPA to test air outside 62 schools; 1 in Seattle http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/health/2008958200_air01.html The EPA announced Tuesday a list of 62 schools in 22 states where the outdoor air will be tested for toxic contaminants. The agency will work with state and local officials to begin the monitoring at the selected schools within three months. Two schools are in Washington: Concord Elementary in Seattle's South Park neighborhood, and St. Helens Elementary in Longview... The monitors will measure the air for gases as well as solid particles such as heavy metals and soot. The agency will spend $2.25 million purchasing the monitors and paying for the laboratory analysis. The schools were chosen because of their proximity to industrial facilities or other sources of pollution. Once in place, the new equipment will collect air samples on 10 days over a month. The EPA will stop monitoring at the school if the results show good air quality. But if high levels of contaminants are detected, the agency will take steps to reduce the pollution. * Feds to Monitor Air Pollution at Schools http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kplu/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1487858&sectionID=1 An elementary school in Seattle and another in Longview are part of a new program to monitor air quality in schools across the nation. * EPA to monitor air at schools http://www.king5.com/localnews/environment/stories/NW_033109WAB-epa-air-schools-LJ.8bb7c136.html The air monitoring plan comes in response to a USA Today investigation that used government data to identify schools that could be located in so-called "toxic hot spots." video: http://www.king5.com/video/index.html?nvid=347236 ENERGY * Urban Wind Power ... In Seattle? http://www.kuow.org/program.php?id=17237 This month, Seattle legalized wind turbines in the city. Now, businesses and factories can mount wind turbines on their roofs. The law could extend to apartments and condos later this year. The turbines change wind energy into electric power. But how effective are they in Seattle? * 2009 Oregon and Washington ENERGY STAR Award Winners http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/d96f984dfb3ff7718525735900400c29/03bb68b6db72241b8525758b005979f3!OpenDocument On March 31, EPA announced 89 ENERGY STAR award-winning organizations for their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. * House Democrats unveil sweeping plan to reshape energy in America http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20090331/sc_mcclatchy/3202243;_ylt=Agsw2MSXi998k2CnpMw4KeVpl88F Democrats in the House of Representatives on Tuesday announced a sweeping plan to change how the nation produces and uses energy in order to reduce the risk of dangerous climate change. No environmental legislation in America has ever attempted such wide-reaching changes. The bill - an incomplete draft that will evolve in the months ahead - would provide incentives to boost wind, solar and other renewable energy, would improve efficiency so that homes and businesses need less fuel and would support the development of cars that run on biofuels and electricity. * Highlights of draft bill to curb global warming http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090331/ap_on_re_us/climate_bill_glance;_ylt=AjLiNbJW.h6gjjU_S0EtsSRpl88F * US lawmakers present draft bill on 'clean energy' http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090331/sc_afp/uscongressenvironmentlawclimate;_ylt=AvtzOIwlNGTQJqcRc6IqCvtpl88F The draft proposed legislation by the two Democrats lays out targets for reducing global warming that are even more ambitious than those promised by President Barack Obama during his presidential campaign. CLIMATE * Concrete Is Remixed With Environment in Mind http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/31/science/earth/31conc.html?ref=science Aesthetic considerations aside, concrete is environmentally ugly. The manufacturing of Portland cement is responsible for about 5 percent of human-caused emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide... In his mixes, Dr. MacDonald replaced much of the Portland cement with two industrial waste products - fly ash, left over from burning coal in power plants, and blast-furnace slag. Both are what are called pozzolans, reactive materials that help make the concrete stronger. Because the CO2 emissions associated with them are accounted for in electricity generation and steel making, they also help reduce the concrete's carbon footprint. Some engineers and scientists are going further, with the goal of developing concrete that can capture and permanently sequester CO2 from power plants or other sources, so it cannot contribute to the warming of the planet... Some researchers want to eventually eliminate Portland cement entirely and replace it with other cements to produce zero-carbon, or even carbon-negative, concrete. Portland cement is at the heart of concrete's environmental problems. About a ton of CO2 is emitted for every ton of cement produced. The basic manufacturing process involves burning limestone and other minerals at about 2,700 degrees Fahrenheit to create an intermediate product called clinker. <<Concrete Being Remixed With Environment in Mind - NYTimes_com.htm>> * New plan to reduce planes' C02 emissions http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090331/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_aviation_climate_change' Aviation groups in Europe announced a plan Tuesday to change the way commercial planes land in order to reduce their global-warming emissions of carbon dioxide. By 2013 some 100 European airports will allow planes to descend all the way from cruising altitude to the runway in one smooth glide, saving up to 450 kilograms (992 pounds) of CO2 per landing, the International Air Transport Association said. In all, airlines are hoping to save 500,000 metric tons (515 US tons) of carbon gas this way each year, said IATA's head of infrastructure. * US climate moves encouraging but relatively small: EU http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090401/sc_afp/euusclimateenvironment;_ylt=AjNy3U6C.Ux5bunBxvOElJNpl88F The US House of Representatives on Tuesday received a draft bill for clean energy development which aims to cut carbon emissions by 20 percent from their 2005 levels by 2020 and boost reliance on renewable sources of energy. While such US targets were unheard of before President Barack Obama took over from George W. Bush in January they still fall well short of what the European Union is encouraging industrialised nations to do. The EU target is also to reduce greenhouse gases by 20 percent by 2020 but from 1990 levels, a whole 15 years earlier than the US benchmark. NOTE: If the hyperlink to the article fails, contact Consuelo Davis. Consuelo Davis Communications Dept. Puget Sound Clean Air Agency 206-689-4074 consueloD@pscleanair.org Bill Smith Senior Environmental Specialist City of Tacoma Solid Waste Management 3510 S. Mullen Street Tacoma, WA 98409 253-593-7719 Phone 253-591-5547 Fax