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Paris Agreement: United States, China Move to Become Parties to Climate Change Treaty

Description: This report discusses the Paris agreement, which was negotiated under the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and where President Obama and China's President Xi Jinping synchronously deposited their nations' signed instruments with U.N. Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon.
Date: September 12, 2016
Creator: Leggett, Jane A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Automakers Seek to Align Fuel Economy and Greenhouse Gas Regulations

Description: This report briefly discusses proposed regulatory changes to revise federal fuel economy and environmental standards and reduce potentially large penalties. The technical proposals would be the first major structural change in these standards since 2012, and they come at a time when federal agencies are undertaking a regulatory review that may result in far greater changes.
Date: August 8, 2016
Creator: Canis, Bill
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative: Lessons Learned and Issues for Congress

Description: The first section of this report provides an overview of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI, pronounced "Reggie") cap-and-trade program and the participating RGGI states. The subsequent sections discuss selected issues raised by RGGI that may be of interest to Congress. The final section provides some final observations that may be instructive to policymakers.
Date: April 27, 2016
Creator: Ramseur, Jonathan L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EPA's Clean Power Plan for Existing Power Plants: Frequently Asked Questions

Description: This report summarizes the issues the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encountered when developing regulations for "carbon pollution" from existing power plants as part of the Clean Power Plan, and describes how the EPA resolved these issues.
Date: June 15, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E.; Ramseur, Jonathan L.; Leggett, Jane A.; Wyatt, Alexandra M. & Dolan, Alissa M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EPA's Clean Power Plan for Existing Power Plants: Frequently Asked Questions

Description: This report provides a series of frequently-asked questions with answers regarding the Clean Power Plan and related litigation. On August 3, 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated standards for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from existing fossil-fuel-fired power plants under Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act (CAA); the rule, known as the Clean Power Plan (CPP), appeared in the Federal Register on October 23, 2015.
Date: May 19, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E.; Ramseur, Jonathan L.; Leggett, Jane A.; Wyatt, Alexandra M. & Dolan, Alissa M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Phase 2 Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Heavy-Duty Vehicles

Description: This report briefly discusses the second phase of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and fuel efficiency standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles jointly proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on July 13, 2015.
Date: June 22, 2016
Creator: Lattanzio, Richard K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EPA's Clean Power Plan for Existing Power Plants: Frequently Asked Questions

Description: This report summarizes the issues the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encountered when developing regulations for "carbon pollution" from existing power plants as part of the Clean Power Plan. The report describes how the EPA resolved these issues.
Date: April 5, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E.; Ramseur, Jonathan L.; Wyatt, Alexandra M. & Dolan, Alissa M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EPA's Clean Power Plan for Existing Power Plants: Frequently Asked Questions

Description: This report summarizes the Clean Power Plan rule as it was finalized on August 3, 2015, before discussing how the ongoing litigation may potentially impact the rule and its deadlines. EPA faced a number of issues and questions while developing the regulations. This report describes how EPA answered these and other questions.
Date: March 9, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E.; Ramseur, Jonathan L.; Leggett, Jane A.; Wyatt, Alexandra M. & Dolan, Alissa M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Cars, Trucks, and Climate: EPA Regulation of Greenhouse Gases from Mobile Sources

Description: This report focuses on EPA's completed and potential actions to limit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from mobile sources, relying on the authorities in Title II of the Clean Air Act (CAA). We begin with a brief discussion of the petitions and court action that led to EPA's regulatory decisions.
Date: March 16, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E. & Yacobucci, Brent D.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Ozone Air Quality Standards: EPA's 2015 Revision

Description: This report discusses the standard-setting process, the specifics of the most recent reviews, and issues raised by the final rulemaking for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) revisions to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ground-level ozone. The rule sets more stringent standards, lowering both the primary (health-based) and secondary (welfare-based) standards from 75 parts per billion (ppb) to 70 ppb.
Date: January 25, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E. & Lattanzio, Richard K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Volkswagen, Defeat Devices, and the Clean Air Act: Frequently Asked Questions

Description: This report provides answers to a series of frequently asked questions focusing on a description of modern diesel technologies, their market and emissions profiles, and some potential reasons that could underlie the use of defeat devices. It summarizes the specific allegations filed against VW under the Clean Air Act, the current status of federal and state investigations, and the potential civil and criminal penalties. Further, the report introduces several outstanding issues currently under d… more
Date: February 10, 2016
Creator: Canis, Bill; Lattanzio, Richard K.; Vann, Adam & Yacobucci, Brent D.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EPA Regulations: Too Much, Too Little, or On Track?

Description: This report provides background information on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulatory activity during the Obama Administration. It examines major or controversial regulatory actions since January 2009, providing details on the regulatory action itself, presenting an estimated timeline for completion of rules not yet promulgated (including related court or statutory deadlines), and, in general, providing EPA's estimates of costs and benefits, where available. The report includes tables… more
Date: February 9, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E. & Copeland, Claudia
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EPA's Clean Power Plan for Existing Power Plants: Frequently Asked Questions

Description: This report summarizes the issues the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encountered when developing regulations for "carbon pollution" from existing power plants as part of the Clean Power Plan. The report describes how the EPA resolved these issues. In addition to discussing details of the Clean Power Plan, the report addresses the EPA's authority under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act (CAA), the EPA's previous experience using that authority, and other background questions. The report dis… more
Date: January 13, 2016
Creator: McCarthy, James E.; Ramseur, Jonathan L.; Leggett, Jane A.; Wyatt, Alexandra M. & Dolan, Alissa M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Air Quality Issues and Animal Agriculture: EPA’s Air Compliance Agreement

Description: From an environmental quality standpoint, much of the interest in animal agriculture has focused on impacts on water resources, because animal waste, if not properly managed, can harm water quality through surface runoff, direct discharges, spills, and leaching into soil and groundwater. A more recent issue is the contribution of emissions from animal feeding operations (AFO), enterprises where animals are raised in confinement, to air pollution. AFOs can affect air quality through emissions of… more
Date: July 20, 2012
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Methane Capture: Options for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction

Description: This report discusses alternatives for addressing methane capture, sources of methane, opportunities and challenges for methane capture, and current federal programs that support methane recovery.
Date: January 7, 2011
Creator: Bracmort, Kelsi; Ramseur, Jonathan L.; McCarthy, James E.; Folger, Peter & Marples, Donald J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Tier 3 Motor Vehicle Emission and Fuel Standards

Description: This report discusses the gas emission and fuel standards for tier 3 motor vehicle. Emission requirements for new motor vehicles have been strengthened numerous times since the first federal rulemaking took effect in 1968.
Date: April 28, 2014
Creator: Lattanzio, Richard K. & McCarthy, James E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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An Overview of Air Quality Issues in Natural Gas Systems

Description: This report provides information on the natural gas industry and the types and sources of air pollutants in the sector. It examines the role of the federal government in regulating these emissions, including the provisions in the Clean Air Act and the regulatory activities of EPA. It concludes with a brief discussion of the aforementioned outstanding issues.
Date: March 23, 2015
Creator: Lattanzio, Richard K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Air Quality Issues and Animal Agriculture: EPA’s Air Compliance Agreement

Description: This report discusses a plan announced by EPA in January 2005, called the Air Compliance Agreement, that would produce air quality monitoring data on animal agriculture emissions from a small number of farms, while at the same time protecting all participants (including farms where no monitoring takes place) through a “safe harbor” from liability under certain provisions of federal environmental laws.
Date: August 18, 2014
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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2013 National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5): Designating Nonattainment Areas

Description: This report focuses on the EPA's (Environmental Protection Agency) revision of rules for designated areas for compliance with the NAAQS (National Ambient Air Quality Standard) for PM2.5 (fine particulate mattter).The states and EPA must then identify areas that exceed the standard and require those areas to take steps to pollutants to meet the standard. This is then the subject of congressional oversight.
Date: March 24, 2015
Creator: Esworthy, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Air Quality: EPA’s 2012 Proposed Changes to the Particulate Matter (PM) Standard

Description: This report summarizes the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) June 2012 proposed changes to the particulate matter (PM) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) and includes comparisons with previous (1997) and current (2006) promulgated and proposed standards. Key actions leading up to the June 2012 proposal, and potential issues and concerns associated with the proposal to strengthen the PM2.5 annual standard, are also highlighted.
Date: August 21, 2012
Creator: Esworthy, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EPA's New Ozone Standards: A Few Thoughts

Description: This report discusses the EPA's review of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). After several years of analysis, EPA proposed more stringent standards last November. This began a public comment period, leading toward the final decision.
Date: September 29, 2015
Creator: McCarthy, James E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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