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May 8 News: Washington Post On The ‘Elegant’ Tax Reform Policy That Also Cuts Pollution

The Washington Post editorial board makes a very compelling case that the carbon tax is an excellent policy to be part of a reform of the tax code. [Washington Post]

No honest tax reform paper, for example, would be complete without discussion of a carbon tax, an elegant policy Congress could immediately take off the shelf. It would make polluters pay for their own pollution, which is the best way to encourage greener thinking. It would cut emissions without overspending national wealth on grandiose central planning or command-and-control regulation. And it would raise revenue, which lawmakers could use for debt reduction, lowering other taxes, improving the social safety net or some combination.

The carbon tax is one of the best ideas in Washington almost no one in Congress will talk about.

Shell Oil’s CTO says that “the time of easy oil and gas is gone” as the drillers look for new technology enabling them to extract oil from extremely deep and scalding water in the Gulf. [Houston Chronicle’s Fuel Fix]

Exxon will spend $4 billion to develop the “technically challenging” oil fields in the Gulf of Mexico. [Bloomberg]

Senator Lisa Murkowski is pushing the Interior Department to clearly and quickly issue regulations on Arctic drilling as spring starts and the ice continues to melt. [The Hill]

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The American Petroleum Institute is pushing the EPA to slow down regulations on sulfur emissions from automobiles. [The Hill]

The claim that there is no consensus that humans cause climate change gets four Pinocchios from the Washington Post fact checker. [Washington Post]

Because cold water absorbs carbon more than warm water, the Arctic is more vulnerable to ocean acidification, warned a study released Monday. [Guardian]

As the U.S. stops using as much coal, production has hit “record lows.” [Bloomberg]

Progressive and environmental groups are pulling their Facebook ads over the revelations that Mark Zuckerberg’s political group has been airing pro-Keystone and Arctic drilling ads. [Politico]

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In a concept out of Avatar, scientists are trying to create plants that glow brightly enough to read by, or to serve as biological streetlights. [New York Times]

As hurricane season approaches, President Obama meets with electric utility officials today to discuss what everyone has learned since Sandy. [The Hill]

Vice President Joe Biden tells an activist that he he was in the minority in the Administration, but he agrees Keystone should not be approved. [Buzzfeed]

The U.S. Green Building Council and Princeton Review rated 320 colleges and universities on how green and sustainable they were. [Sustainable Business]

A new Australian EV design can charge a vehicle to 80 percent in 30 minutes. [Renew Economy]

54 percent of Spain’s electricity in April came from renewable energy. [CleanTechnica]

Clean energy investment in Latin America topped $4.6 billion in 2012. [Climate Group]