Year: 2012
Debunking Myths About Energy Security and Independence
The phrases “energy security” and “energy independence” get thrown around a lot in debates about clean energy, climate change, oil drilling and any policy having to do with our energy supply. And they get used in at least two highly misleading ways by groups that are often diametrically opposed to each other. First, supporters of …
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CONTINUE READINGRand Paul, Constitutional Pervert
..and he’s not the only one. You can be forgiven for not knowing the name of Arunava Majumdar: he is a distinguished energy engineer who currently runs the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA – E), and who until a few days ago was President Obama’s nominee (since last November) to become DOE’s new Undersecretary. …
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CONTINUE READINGComparing Canadian and US Environmental Law: Judicial Review
In a prior post, I talked a little about proposed changes to Canadian environmental laws that would roll back significant protections and procedural requirements. I also talked about some of the differences between Canada and the United States that might be the basis for very different histories of environmental law in the two countries. But …
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CONTINUE READINGHow To Mobilize Public Support for Environmental Protection
To be politically sustainable, environmental law needs grassroots support. Joan Blades, one of the founders of Move-On, recently spoke at Berkeley’s Energy and Resources Group about her thoughts on political mobilization. It’s well-worth a look. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTK3f-2POi8]
CONTINUE READINGWhy Oil Companies Might Want to Kill Renewable Energy
Dan’s post about the connections among various efforts to decrease renewable energy production raises the question of why fossil fuel interests would want to take those steps. One obvious answer is the potential for economic competition in the future – though to the extent that renewable energy continues to be more expensive than many fossil …
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CONTINUE READINGSometimes People Really ARE Out to Get You
The Guardian has a rather startling story about organized efforts to stamp out wind and solar energy. (I suppose the fact that I find it startling is an indication of my naiveté.) Not too surprisingly, the Koch oil interests are a major funding sources. The Guardian lists some of the efforts to eliminate clean energy, …
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CONTINUE READINGMay 17th Sacramento Lunch on California Infill Policies, Featuring State Sen. pro Tem Darrell Steinberg
For those planning to be in the Sacramento area next Thursday, May 17th, please join us for a lunch event on California’s land use policies, featuring a keynote address by State Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg. Here are the details: The Future of Infill: How CEQA Reform and the End of Redevelopment Will Affect …
CONTINUE READINGCarbon as Commodity and Currency
As a number of writers have suggested, it’s intriguing to think about the ways in which carbon functions like money to an increasing extent as a medium of exchange, and a measure and storehouse of value. Thus, alongside (and intertwined with) the existing money-based economy, we can envision the emergence of a carbon-based system of …
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CONTINUE READING40 years hasn’t taught some agencies much
Cross-posted at CPRBlog. You would think that by now federal agencies would have the NEPA process pretty well down. After all, it’s been the law since 1970, requiring that every federal agency prepare an environmental impact statement before committing itself to environmentally harmful actions. And it’s not that hard to do. Agencies just have to …
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CONTINUE READINGMurderers, Tyrants, Global Warming and the Heartland Institute
The image to the left is not a joke. It’s instead part of a just-cancelled Heartland Institute campaign — cancelled after howls of protests, including from a climate skeptic who refused to participate in a Heartland event if it went forward. The Unabomber billboard showed up on the Eisenhower Expressway in Chicago (home of the …
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