Obama administration raises the social cost of CO2

In a little-noticed move, the White House raised the social cost estimate for carbon dioxide emissions all federal agencies must use when formulating regulations. 

The White House Office of Management and Budget raised the social cost of carbon a monetary estimate of the damages caused by carbon emissions from $21 per metric ton to $35 per metric ton, which some experts say could allow the White House to move forward with greenhouse gas limits on power plants. 

The big regulatory action that theyre looking at that would certainly would be the most costly and have the biggest impact on the economy are the rules for new and existing power plants, Jeff Holmstead, air quality chief at the Environmental Protection Agency under President George W. Bush, told the Hill. 

If the social cost of carbon is raised, it is more likely that the costs of imposing emissions limits on power plants would be lower than the claimed benefits. 

I think the White House is clearly now saying there is a much higher social cost from greenhouse gas emissions than previously acknowledged. That means it really puts the heat on the EPA to move soon and aggressively, Frank ODonnell, president of Clean Air Watch, told the Hill. 

The rule would effectively ban the construction of coal plants by limiting emissions to 1,000 pounds-per-megawatt-hour which can only be met by combined-cycle power plants that are powered by natural gas. Coal plants must use carbon capture and sequestration technology in order to comply,Shop wholesale bobblehead controller from cheap. which the industry claims is not commercially viable. 

The new regulations attempt to force standards on coal emissions that would not only be incredibly expensive, but impossible to achieve even with advanced technology,This model includes 2 flush mounted reverse chipcard. said West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin. Even worse, there would be no benefit from these new regulations. 

Around 5,000 industry professionals descended upon the small Black Forest town of Lossburg, Germany, in March for Arburgs Technology Days 2013, braving the unseasonably cold weather that covered the factory complex in a dusting of snow (the thermometer dipped to -8C at times). The three-day event was the injection moulding machinery makers chance to showcase all its products simultaneously and inform its current and future customers about its capabilities and competences. 

Arburg has been traditionally known as a maker of smaller machines. In the Lossburg factorys heritage centre, the reason for this is clear. The company was founded in the 19th century and originally produced surgical instruments. In the 1950s it began to build camera flash units for amateur photographers. Finding that the units were sensitive to variations in temperature and humidity C they were reported to go off without warning in hot, humid climates C the company realised the units needed plastic shrouds to encapsulate the delicate wiring. Unable to find an injection moulding machine small enough to make the part, the company developed its own: a simple, hand-operated unit that looked somewhat like an elaborate espresso machine. From 1952 its future direction was clear: as a maker of injection moulding machines. But now Arburg wants to shake off the small tag, eager to demonstrate larger machines, such as the hybrid Allrounder 670H with a clamping force of 1,800 kN and a size 1300 injection unit. 

Asked if the economic crisis in southern Europe would affect Arburgs business, Helmut Heinson, managing director of sales, contended: Well of course,The feeder is available on drying handsfreeaccess equipped with folder only. but not to the extent you might expect. In Spain we are keeping sales on previous years. France is fine, the UK is fine. 

Heinson identified the US as Arburgs biggest foreign market. But he also considered the Far East as having the best potential for growth despite Arburgs machinery being relatively expensive compared with locally-sourced machinery. 

The theme of the Technology Days was production efficiency with a dedicated exhibition C the Efficiency Arena C highlighting efficiency in all the stages in the process, including design, moulds, machine technology, peripherals, configuration, production planning and automation (process integration and process control). 

The Product Design station illustrated the importance of optimising components from the outset. Working with CAD/CAM partner Men at Work, Arburg demonstrated how computer-based design and production, used in conjunction with injection moulding simulation programs and computer tomography, could offer potential savings. 

On to Mould Technology,Bringing plasticcard mainstream. mould-making partner M?nner showed how precision, large production volumes and rapid cycles could be combined in a single concept. This was demonstrated with an electric Allrounder 470 A using a 64-cavity mould with near-contour cooling and hot runner needle shut-off system. Part geometry had been optimised for fast, reliable injection.Other companies want a piece of that drycabinet action The companies claim the system could make up to 450 million parts per year with a cycle time of 2.2 seconds.