Today's Pickup: California Emissions Decline As Car, Truck Pollution Rises

Good day,

The California Air Resources Board released its latest greenhouse gas inventory showing the state has already met its 2020 emission reduction goals. The trends, based on emissions produced in 2017, the latest year for which data is available, show emissions declined by 1 percent overall compared to 2016. The electricity sector, which has been under the state's cap-and-trade program longer than other industries, reduced emissions by 9 percent annually. But emissions in other sectors are still rising, notably from on-road vehicle use. Vehicle tailpipes were the source of 37 percent of the emissions in 2017, an increase of 0.7 percent. Overall, the state released the equivalent of 424 million metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2017, below the limit of 431 million metric tons the state must meet by 2020.

Did you know?

A majority of the American public (59 percent) says Amazon is bad for small businesses – nearly three times the number who say Amazon is good for small businesses (22 percent). This represents a significant shift from just two years ago, when opinion was nearly split between those saying Amazon is bad for small businesses (37 percent) and those saying it's good (33 percent).

–CNBC Survey Monkey Small Business survey

Quotable

"I had a farmer tell me this in Pennsylvania: "He said ‘What do you call two farmers in a basement?' I said, ‘I don't know, what do you call them?' He said, ‘A whine cellar.'"

–U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, during a listening session with farmers hosted by House Agriculture Committee Chair Collin Peterson (D-MN). (ThinkProgress)

In other news

Feds nix Delta's  pit bull ban

Delta Air Lines DAL banned pit bull service dogs, but the U.S. Department of Transportation has ruled the airline must allow all types of service dogs on board. (Bizjournals)

Driver, stop that car

An investigation by Consumer Reports found that of 94,000 Uber Technologies Inc UBER and Lyft Inc LYFT vehicles in New York City and Seattle, one in six had open recalls. (Wired)

JD.com earnings surge

The company reported a 23 percent rise in revenue for the second quarter, indicating a flourishing e-commerce market in China. (MarketWatch)
Oregon startup uses bike couriers to solve last-mile wine delivery

Bitcork aims to make it easier for wineries to get their bottles into more restaurants.
(Bizjournals)

Final thoughts,

Policy makers this summer have stepped up efforts to increase the number of women in trucking. As FreightWaves reported here, U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran is sponsoring a "Promoting Women in Trucking Workforce Act," aimed at expanding the number of female truck drivers. And the FMCSA recently announced plans to assess the prevalence of crimes against women and minority truckers, also potentially increasing the pool of qualified drivers.

Hammer down, everyone!

Image Sourced from Pixabay