Climate Point: Feds sound warming bells

Welcome to Climate Point, your weekly guide to climate change, energy and the environment. I'm Janet Wilson, writing from downtown Palm Springs. This week, it's not just Democrats in Congress voicing concerns about climate change. 

My Paste BN colleague Elizabeth Weise and I interviewed Neil Chatterjee, who President Trump tapped in October to chair the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. FERC, as it's known, is charged with keeping the lights on across the U.S. and ensuring consumers don't pay too much.

Most interesting takeaway? Chatterjee grew up in coal-rich Kentucky and is a protege of Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell. Yet he believes in both climate change and a revolution in energy choices. But that doesn't mean everyone will like his preferred solutions. 

Touting natural gas, he said, "Look, if we're going to tackle the issues of carbon emissions and global climate change, which I think we urgently need to do, I think the U.S., where we do it cleaner and better than anybody else, that ability for us to export liquefied natural gas can have a positive impact on global emissions."

Critics note that natural gas, while it produces less greenhouse emissions than coal, is still far from "clean."

He's also bullish on carbon-free nuclear power, but said the commission is preparing battery storage regulations and wants to re-visit rules to ensure a highly competitive market that benefits independent innovators as well as traditional, large utilities. He sees a big role for fiscal incentives to ensure wind, solar farms and even non-grid power sources like hydrogen fuel cells are part of the mix.

"The cost of renewables is coming down, the cost of battery storage is coming down, their ability to generate greater capacity is increasing, and as you’re seeing rapid deployment of these new technologies, you’re seeing the benefits from carbon reductions," he said. 

Asked if he's spoken with the President or McConnell, he stressed the commission's independence and traditional consensus-building approach, though that has been strained of late. He said while the processes are complicated, he's optimistic.

“I’ve actually found that transmission is one of those discrete things in our national dialogue that can garner support across all spectrums,” he said. “I’m very cognizant that the policies that we put in place with regards to transmission today are going to have a huge impact in shaping the grid of tomorrow."

Here are some other things you might want to know:

MUST READ STORIES

Chatterjee isn't the only senior DC official warning about a warming future. U.S. intelligence officials reiterated this week that climate change Is a worldwide threat, which will fuel global instability over water, infrastructure and increased public health risks, as Neela Banjeree with Inside Climate News tell us. The Pentagon also recently informed Congress of extreme weather and climate risks to dozens of military installations. And the Government Accountability Office now recommends the State Department provide guidance to U.S. diplomats about climate change and migration. No word from the White House at last check.

Hot, hot, hot in the Himalayas too. The past five years were the warmest since record-keeping began, according to new data that Doyle Rice covers. The trend is strongest in the Arctic, which kept losing sea ice, NASA said. Global warming is now also predicted to melt two-thirds of Himalayan glaciers by 2100. Such a catastrophic melt would disrupt the flow of Asian rivers, a crucial resource for crops for billions of people in China, India and six other countries.

"This is the climate crisis you haven't heard of," said Philippus Wester, a scientist with the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, which released the report. “Global warming is on track to transform the frigid, glacier-covered mountain peaks ... to bare rocks."  

WATER IN THE WEST

A fight over the future of the San Pedro River: Environmental groups are challenging the federal government’s decision to permit 28,000 new homes and four golf courses to the Arizona desert, as Ian James chronicles in the Arizona Republic.

And the mighty Colorado too: In other big river news, the feds said California and Arizona had not met the deadline to approve a drought contingency plan for the severely depleted Colorado River and its reservoirs, and began steps to unilaterally impose water supply cuts across seven states if they don't act soon, as I report for the Desert Sun. The sprawling Imperial Irrigation District is holding out for $200 million to restore the Salton Sea. Arizona cleared a major hurdle, with the legislature there approving the plan hours before the midnight deadline, as reported by Dustin Gardiner, Andrew Nicla and Ian James. What's next, now that they've done it? The Republic's Priscilla Totiyapungprasert and Nicla report on that.

POLITICAL CLIMATE

Green deal: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass, introduced the broad outlines of a "Green New Deal" on Thursday, calling for a dramatic increase in renewable fuels, such as wind, solar and hydro-power, and a shift within 10 years to energy systems that are "net-zero" when it comes to greenhouses gases linked to climate change. Paste BN's Weise and Ledyard King offer a great explainer of the details and how likely it is to gain passage.

Who'll tax the rain? New Jersey Democrats and environmental groups are hailing a new law that allows towns and counties to charge large property owners a fee based on how much runoff pollution they generate, to pay for stormwater system upgrades. The Garden State's polluted water bodies have improved, but 65 percent still can't be used for drinking water, 75 percent are unsafe for recreation and 85 percent don't support aquatic life. Republicans and business groups blasted the measure as an unnecessary "rain tax," as Scott Fallon with the North Jersey Record reports.

AND ANOTHER THING

Everybody's talking at me. A recent poll found that 78 percent of Americans now believe climate change is real, per Kate Yoder in Grist. And a majority of Republicans — 64 percent — are now believers, a 15-point jump from 2015. Researchers at Yale and George Mason explored how and why they'd changed their minds. Experiencing extreme weather was a factor. And here's a tip for Facebook pals: Being publicly shamed or yelled at doesn't work. What does is nuanced, private conversations where folks feel listened to. So grab a cup of coffee and swallow hard.

Finally, here's the latest carbon counts. NOAA hasn't posted this week's average, so last week's is stacked up against previous years. Bottom line, emissions are still climbing.

That's all for this week. For more climate, energy and environment news, follow me on Twitter @janetwilson66. You can sign up to get Climate Point in your inbox for free here