Geoengineering: Use it or Lose it?

Just as delegates from 193 nations agreed to a voluntary moratorium on geoengineering research last week at the international Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Nagoya, Japan, the US House Science and Technology Committee issued a report outlining how federal geoengineering research could be pursued in the United States. The international agreement to ban the research does not apply to the US, which has not ratified the CBD. (More from The Washington Post and Climate Central.)

$9.6 Million for Alternative Fuel and Car Technologies

The California Energy Commission just announced $9.6 million for eight projects focused on electric cars and alternative fuel technologies. The largest grant is nearly $3 million to Leyden Energy of Fremont, CA, for the production of lithium ion cells for electric car batteries. The company and its partner, Green Vehicles of Salinas, provided matching funds for the project. (Full CEC press release)

Another Solar Project Gets Federal Approval

Federal land managers approved another solar thermal project in California, this time in Riverside County. The 250-megawatt Genesis Solar Energy Project now joins the 400-MW Ivanpah Project, the 700-MW Ocotillo Project, and and a smaller photovoltaic (PV) project by San Ramon-based Chevron Corp., that have already been cleared to break ground by the Bureau of Land Management.  (More from the LA Times)

New Mexico Panel Approves Cap-and-Trade, with Conditions

This week, the New Mexico state Environmental Improvement Board approved moving forward with a cap-and-trade strategy as long as other members of the Western Climate Initiative, such as California, also commit to cap and trade (New Mexico’s governor-elect is opposed to a carbon cap.)  The California Air Resources Board announced a plan last week for a carbon-trading program that would regulate 400 metric tons of emissions by 2015.  (More from Bloomberg)