Region: California
New Frameworks to Address Vehicle Travel Impacts
CLEE report proposes banking and exchange strategies for CEQA mitigation
When Caltrans and other state and local agencies build or approve projects that increase car traffic, state law requires them to mitigate those impacts. A new report from CLEE proposes development of state and regional programs that would allow these agencies to mitigate by investing in offsite bike lanes, bus-only lanes, transit passes, and other …
Continue reading “New Frameworks to Address Vehicle Travel Impacts”
CONTINUE READINGMaking Climate Policy Work
New book highlights the weaknesses of carbon pricing in addressing climate policy
I have a new post up at JOTWELL reviewing a recent book from Danny Cullenward at the climate think-tank Carbon Plan, and Professor David Victor of UC San Diego. Their book, Making Climate Policy Work, is a terrific overview of the political and administrative weaknesses of carbon pricing as a tool for climate policy. Please …
Continue reading “Making Climate Policy Work”
CONTINUE READINGDon’t hamstring carbon removal
California needs to lead in developing critical carbon removal technologies
Assessments by the IPCC have made clear that the most feasible way for the world to meet its target of restricting climate change to below two degrees Celsius of warming includes rapid and massive expansion of carbon removal technology – technology that would extract carbon dioxide and permanently sequester that carbon dioxide underground. California has …
Continue reading “Don’t hamstring carbon removal”
CONTINUE READINGClimate Adaptation Moves Toward Center Stage
There’s an increasing bipartisan move to fund climate resilience.
The big news today is the deal with Manchin to provide billions of dollars of funding for clean energy. Manchin’s vote will be needed because no Republican Senator will vote for the bill. In contrast, funding for climate resilience has drawing power even for Republicans. It seems to be true that, in Bob Dylan’s words …
Continue reading “Climate Adaptation Moves Toward Center Stage”
CONTINUE READINGMaking Heat Pumps Accessible and Affordable to Decarbonize Buildings
New policy report on solutions to improve deployment of heat pump technologies in existing buildings | Webinar July 19
Join us for a webinar to discuss the report findings with leaders on July 19 at 1 pm PT. RSVP here You may have seen heat pumps (or #heatpumpnation) in the news recently and wondered, what really is this device? How do heat pumps relate to building decarbonization goals, national security, and climate mitigation efforts? …
Continue reading “Making Heat Pumps Accessible and Affordable to Decarbonize Buildings”
CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Adopts Nation-Leading Legislation to Cut Plastic Pollution
Extended producer responsibility law will reduce single-use waste and shift responsibility to industry
In a welcome reprieve from news coming out of the Supreme Court, here’s an uplifting story from the Golden State: On Thursday, Governor Newsom signed SB 54, a comprehensive piece of legislation aimed at significantly reducing single-use waste. The law will affect just about every type of plastic packaging you see walking down the supermarket …
Continue reading “California Adopts Nation-Leading Legislation to Cut Plastic Pollution”
CONTINUE READINGGuest Contributors Jasmine Robinson and Jessica Vived: Proposed Extreme Heat and Air Quality Protections for Agricultural Workers Advance in California Legislature
AB 2243 resulted from a partnership between law students in UCLA Law’s California Environmental Legislation and Policy Clinic, UCLA’s Food Law and Policy Clinic, and Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia
We are students in UCLA Law’s California Environmental Legislation and Policy Clinic, a course in which students work with legislative staff in the California State Legislature to advance environmental policy goals. In Fall 2021, working with staff for State Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia, we developed recommendations for stronger heat and air quality protections for agricultural workers. California’s …
CONTINUE READINGEquity Weighting: A Brief Introduction
An unfamiliar concept for most that just might make cost-benefit analysis more progressive.
A technique called equity weighting could make regulation more progressive. Implementing this technique may be harder than it sounds, however, for a variety of practical, legal, and political reasons. Agencies might do best to use equity weighting as a way to check their regulatory decisions rather than as their main decision tool.
CONTINUE READINGEmissions Trading in California: Lessons for China
A New UCLA Report for Chinese Regulators and Researchers
We are pleased to announce the release of a new UCLA Law Emmett Institute of Climate Change & Environment report on Emissions Trading in California: Lessons for China. As many of you know, China launched trading for its national greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions trading system (ETS) in 2021. By volume of emissions, the Chinese system …
Continue reading “Emissions Trading in California: Lessons for China”
CONTINUE READINGAn Abundance Research Agenda
If we need to build lots of things fast to address climate and housing crises, how will we do that?
There’s been a lot of buzz about this column by Ezra Klein in the New York Times. Klein’s basic argument: We need to do a lot of infrastructure and other development projects to make the world a better place. For example, we’ll need to build power lines and renewable projects to address climate change. But …
Continue reading “An Abundance Research Agenda”
CONTINUE READINGJoin Our Mailing List
Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.
