Month: October 2011

Searching For EPA’s Poison Pill

For the third time this year, Republicans in Congress seem to be angling for a government shutdown.  Not only will there be disagreements on funding levels, but the House will insist on attaching riders to appropriations bills preventing agencies from doing various things.  I realize that this may come as a shock, but the House …

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New Methods for Calculating Carbon Footprints

The Greenhouse Gas Protocol today released two important methods for figuring out the carbon footprint of a product throughout its life and throughout the supply chain necessary to create the product.  These methods should – if implemented — help answer questions like how much carbon is emitted over the whole life cycle of a car, …

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Supreme Court Looking Hard at Litigation Challenge to CARB Marine Fuel Regulations

The U.S. Supreme Court today asked the Solicitor General for his views as to whether the Court should hear and decide a controversial case from California challenging the California Air Resources Board’s authority to regulate ocean shipping.   The specific CARB regulations at issue require marine vessels operating in state waters and ports to use …

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Apple’s China Problem

There has been an interesting confluence of stories in the press about Apple as the release of iPhone 5 approaches this week.  The New York Times recently ran a story, entitled “You Love Your iPhone, Literally,” about how test subjects looking at sounds and images of the iPhone exhibited heightened activity in the parts of …

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Can a Taco Stand Be a Historic Monument?

The owner of Henry’s Tacos, at the corner of Tujunga and Moorpark in the glorious San Fernando Valley, thinks it can: The third-generation owner of Henry’s Tacos has filed an application with the City’s Office of Historic Resources to have the taco stand declared a Historic-Cultural Monument. Janis Hood, granddaughter of founder Henry Comstock, hopes …

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Is There Really No More Room For Forests?

If you have even a passing interest in things environmental, and you keep yourself relatively well-informed, then no doubt you saw Justin Gillis’ superb page one NYT story on Saturday, about the decline (and at times possible increase) of forests; how forests provide critical carbon sinks to mitigate climate change; and how that climate change …

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Energy Storage — A Current Assessment

Berkeley Law’s Center for Law, Energy & the Environment (CLEE) recently finished work on a comprehensive assessment of energy storage technologies.  The California Energy Commission is expected to issue the report soon.  Prepared in collaboration with researchers at UCLA and UC San Diego, the study recognizes the critical role various energy storage technologies (such as …

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Chris Christie and the Environment

There’s a lot of buzz about New Jersey Governor Chris Christie as a possible GOP presidential candidate.  As with the other candidates in the race, it seemed like a good idea to check into his positions on environmental issues. The first thing that becomes clear is that he’s enthusiastic about renewable energy and energy efficiency.  …

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