News

The California Air Resources Board’s most recent quarterly cap-and-trade auction was the first to result in only a fraction of available permits sold. Detractors used the weak auction results to highlight the program’s uncertain future, whereas advocates touted the state’s success in cutting carbon emissions quicker than expected. To CARB Chair Mary Nichols, who has overseen the leadership of the program since its inception, the auction showed that industries were keeping a lid on carbon emissions rather than buying permits to emit more. Nichols speaks to ongoing efforts to extend California’s carbon cap-and-trade system, and to expand the model to other states. Nichols also addresses the historic enforcement action and settlement with Volkswagen, which CARB led on negotiating.

Pacific Gas & Electric’s recently announcement it would shut down the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant highlighted California’s rapidly shifting approach to the electric power grid. To California Energy Commission Chair Robert Weisenmiller, the decision was significant, but was just one of a multitude of tidal forces moving California towards a diverse, dynamic, and resilient renewable energy portfolio. In an exclusive interview with VX News, Weisenmiller explains the growth and importance of the regional Energy Imbalance Market, as well as the Energy Commission’s efforts to invest research dollars to advance community-scale microgrids and renewables.

Ontario finalized its cap-and-trade program in June, and will conduct the first auction in July. As a member of the Western Climate Initiative, the province has also signaled its intent to link its system to similar ones operating in Quebec and California. The Climate Change Mitigation and Low-Carbon Economy Act mandates that revenues from Ontario’s auctions go into the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Account to fund a number of diverse programs aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. But experts disagree on how the province can best recycle the cap-and-trade revenue. Before the program was finalized, the Canada EcoFiscal Commission hosted a roundtable of advocates from around the country representing priorities from social inequality to business development. VX News presents an excerpt of the debate with remarks by Chris Ragan, chair of the Canada EcoFiscal Commission; Rick Smith, executive director of the Broadbent Institute; Vicky Sharpe, senior fellow at the International Institute for Sustainable Development; Mike Moffat, chief economist at the Moet Center; and Mark Cameron, executive director of Canadians for Clean Prosperity.

June marked the opening of the Electrical Training Institute, a cutting-edge sustainable facility in Commerce, CA that serves as a prototype for new green design guidelines known as Net Zero Plus. VX News spoke with Brett Moss, training director at the ETI; Warren Neilson, principal at design firm Stok; and Dan Cohee of PDE Energy, representing local unions IBEW/NECA, who developed the guidelines. They explained the state-of-the-art sustainable technologies incorporated into the microgrid facility, the high-performance controls afforded by data tracking, and how a Net Zero Plus building could be a model for community resilience in Los Angeles and beyond.

The Coalition for Clean Air’s Port and Freight Solutions Symposium in October brought together over 100 port experts, environmental advocates, and government agencies concerned with improving air quality and efficiency through reducing greenhouse-gas emissions at the Port of Long Beach and Port of Los Angeles. Here, VX News presents edited excerpts from a number of panels that took place at the conference. Featured speakers include: California Air Resources Board Commissioner Hector De La Torre, Port of Long Beach Director of Environmental Planning Rick Cameron, ILWU’s Peter Peyton, and SoCalGas Director of Policy and Environment George Minter. These selections highlight promising new technology that could dramatically reduce truck emissions, as well as new initiatives underway at the ports.

Deborah Flint was nominated over the summer to take on the role of Los Angeles World Airports Executive Director, after Gina Marie Lindsey stepped down from the position. Flint comes to Los Angeles from the Bay Area, where she served as Oakland International Airport Director and oversaw the delivery of the BART Oakland Airport Connector. Flint speaks with VX News about her transition and new priorities regarding LAX’s continued growth and coming connection to rail, as well as LAWA’s ongoing construction and investment plans. She situates LAX as a major economic force in the region, explaining why growth is necessary to both passenger and cargo transport, and the management style she plans to introduce to accompany the airport system’s expansion.

With extreme rain forecasted this winter, after years of record-setting drought, Southern California must prepare both to take advantage of the precipitation and to ensure it does not cause harm. Deputy Director of Los Angeles County’s Department of Public Works Gary Hildebrand spoke with VX News about preparation measures targeted to this year’s El Niño, noting that the agency remains prepared, even in the absence of this storm, for major precipitation events. He highlights storm-water capture, reuse, and infiltration operations that take place year-round, as well as the challenges brought by California’s ongoing drought. Finally, he offers his perspective on the much-contested LA River—explaining his agency’s role in its management, considering its flood-control capabilities, and evaluating proposed changes to its function in the city.

On November 3, VerdeXchange Institute co-hosted Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, welcoming her to LACI's La Kretz Innovation Campus for a conversation with CARB's Mayor Nichols and former California ISO Chair Bob Foster, moderated by Waterloo Innovation Summit Chair David Fransen. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti opened the program. Here, VX News presents edited excerpts from the conversation.

Jeff Kightlinger, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, updates VX News readers on a new initiative through MWD and the LA County Sanitation Districts: a demonstration project that could lead to one of the largest recycled-water projects on the West Coast. Kightlinger notes that, despite this endeavor and other efforts to utilize local water, Southern California will continue to rely on imported water. He touches on progress at the Delta to increase reliability of that supply.