Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
In what officials call a key step to combat climate change, the Environmental Protection Agency is sharply limiting domestic production and use of hydrofluorocarbons, highly potent greenhouse gases commonly used in refrigerators and air conditioners.
The new rule announced Thursday follows through on a law Congress passed last year and is intended to decrease U.S. production and use of HFCs by 85% over the next 15 years, part of a global phaseout designed to slow global warming.
The administration also is taking steps to crack down on imports of HFCs, greenhouse gases that are thousands of times more powerful than carbon dioxide. They often leak through pipes or appliances that use compressed refrigerants and are considered a major driver of global warming. President Joe Biden has pledged to embrace a 2016 global agreement to greatly reduce HFCs by 2036.
White House climate adviser Gina McCarthy, a former EPA administrator, said the new rule was "a win on climate and a win on jobs and American competitiveness. It's really, frankly, folks, a very big deal."
The rule, set to take effect in late October, is expected to reduce harmful emissions by the equivalent of 4.5 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2050, McCarthy said, a total similar to three years of emissions from the U.S. power sector.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the phasedown is backed by a coalition of industry groups that see it as an opportunity to "supercharge" American leadership on domestic manufacturing and production of alternative refrigerants. The industry has long been shifting to the use of alternative refrigerants and pushed for a federal standard to avoid a patchwork of state laws and regulations.
"This action reaffirms what President Biden always says -- that when he thinks about climate, he thinks about jobs," Regan said, echoing a Biden refrain about climate change. Transitioning to safer alternatives and more energy-efficient cooling technologies is expected to generate more than $270 billion in cost savings and public health benefits over the next 30 years, Regan said.
A pandemic relief and spending bill passed by Congress last December directs the EPA to sharply reduce production and use of HFCs. The measure, known as the American Innovation and Manufacturing, won wide bipartisan support. The law also includes separate measures to promote technologies to capture and store carbon dioxide produced by power and manufacturing plants and calls for reductions in diesel emissions by buses and other vehicles.
Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, was an influential backer of the law, with Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. Both represent states that are home to chemical companies that produce alternative refrigerants and sought regulatory certainty through federal action.
At a signing ceremony Thursday, Carper said the new rule was "a profound leap forward in tackling the climate crisis," even if many Americans probably have never heard of HFCs or realized how they contribute to global warming.
The HFC provision in the new law was supported by an unusual coalition that included major environmental and business groups, including the National Association of Manufacturers, American Chemistry Council and the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute. The chemistry council represents major companies including Dow, DuPont, Honeywell, Chemours and Arkema.
The administration said it also is taking other steps to ensure reductions in HFCs, including creation of an interagency task force to prevent illegal trade, production, use or sale of the climate-damaging gases. The task force will be led by the Department of Homeland Security, and EPA's offices of Air and Radiation and Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.
Working with the departments of Justice, State and Defense, the task force will "detect, deter and disrupt any attempt to illegally import or produce HFCs in the United States," the White House said in a fact sheet.
Joseph Goffman, a top official with EPA's air and radiation office, said the experience of the European Union shows that enforcement is an important part of an HFC crackdown.
"Unfortunately, (the EU) has experienced a lot of illegal activity" on HFC imports and other issues, Goffman said. "We're going to be vigorous and proactive" in trying to stop illegal imports, he said.
David Doniger, a climate and clean energy expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the EPA's action was significant, even as the Biden administration presses for ambitious climate legislation making its way though Congress.
"Moving from HFCs to climate-friendlier alternatives is an important part of President Biden's plan to meet the climate crisis by cutting America's heat-trapping emissions at least in half by 2030 -- with big benefits for jobs, our health and a safer future," Doniger said.
Biden issued an executive order in January that embraces a 2016 amendment to the 1987 Montreal Protocol on ozone pollution. That amendment calls for the United States and other large industrialized countries to reduce HFCs by 85% by 2036. The State Department has prepared documents for formal ratification of the amendment, but the White House has not submitted them to the Senate.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
Police are searching for a suspect in a homicide investigation after a man was slashed in downtown Toronto on Sunday.
This Mother's Day Weekend, take a look at some of the most emotional movies inspired by moms.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.
The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.
The stakes have been set for a bet between Vancouver and Edmonton's mayors on who will win Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
A grieving mother is hosting a helmet drive in the hopes of protecting children on Manitoba First Nations from a similar tragedy that killed her daughter.