Year: 2015
The Future of Fire Policy
Climate change will require reconsideration of how we manage fire
It has been a brutal fire season here in California. It’s been brutal in part because of a historically bad drought. But unfortunately, the end of the drought (when it comes) will not be the end of our fire problems. Those fire problems are the result of long-term, human-caused trends that will only continue: climate …
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CONTINUE READINGOur Mental Models of Climate Change
How did “Collective Action” turn into “No Action”?
In discussions of how to cut global greenhouse-gas emissions, one of the first things you usually hear (often the very first) is that cutting emissions is a global collective-action problem. To wit: it’s crazy for California (or the United States) to cut unilaterally, because it only works if everyone does it. Or more sharply, we …
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CONTINUE READINGFaculty Openings in Environmental Law
Some schools are still formulating their hiring plans, but others are clearly in the market.
Ax in past years, I’ve been collecting information about faculty openings in environmental, natural resources, and energy law. I’ll update this as I receive more information. Here’s what I’ve got so far: University of Delaware is seeking a Distinguished Named Professorship in Energy and the Environment. Environmental law scholars are encouraged to apply (UD has …
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CONTINUE READINGVolkswagen
What Does That Name Mean Now?
Stunning. But not shocking. That was my reaction to the massive fraud admitted by Volkswagen recently. Stunning in its sheer size and reach; half a million cars in the United States and another ten and a half million globally. Yet not very surprising given the fact that use of mechanical and digital cheat devices has …
CONTINUE READINGIs Carbon Capture & Sequestration (CCS) the Biggest Threat to the Clean Power Plan?
Exploring potential challenges to EPA’s New Source Performance Standard: PART I
This post is the first in a mini-series exploring likely legal challenges to EPA’s New Source Performance Standard (NSPS) for power-plant greenhouse gas emissions under Clean Air Act § 111(b), and how those challenges might affect the Clean Power Plan. I will leave detailed exploration of the Clean Power Plan for later posts, but suffice …
CONTINUE READINGAnti-CEQA Lobbyists Turn to Empirical Analysis, But Are Their Conclusions Sound?
Influential Attacks on California’s Environmental Impact Law Aren’t Supported By the Data
Every August, as the California legislative session comes to a head, lobbyists attempt to gain support for dramatically scaling back California’s landmark environmental law, CEQA (the California Environmental Quality Act). This year was no exception. Last month, the law firm Holland and Knight, which has been a leading force on this issue, issued a new …
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CONTINUE READINGLast Week in Climate Change
Is climate action finally starting to develop momentum?
There was some good news last week for those of us who worry about the future of the planet,. Both inside and outside of Congress, Pope Francis spoke about the need to protect the environment and address climate change. Some conservative Catholics are eager to dismiss this as simply another misguided opinion by a left-learning Pope. But …
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CONTINUE READINGMixed results in CA medical marijuana legislation
New state law to regulate medical marijuana makes important environmental progress, still much to be done
California is moving towards marijuana legalization. This is a good and important thing for a whole host of reasons, but one important reason is the environmental impact of unregulated and illegal marijuana cultivation on the environment – something that has been discussed both in the news and here on Legal Planet. Those impacts include diversion …
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CONTINUE READINGPope Francis Goes to Washington
What he said and didn’t say
Pope Francis arrived in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to begin a much anticipated trip to the United States. While here, the pope will visit DC, New York City, and Philadelphia. Pope Francis, a former chemist, has gained much attention for his calls for action on climate change, in addition to his focus on inequality and …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Ambitious international targets for sustainability
From September 25-27, the UN is hosting the high-level Sustainable Development Summit and, assuming all goes according to plan, adopting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The result of years of negotiation with dedicated efforts at transparency and inclusion, the SDGs are a big deal in the international development community. They represent ambitious, consensus international targets …
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