Killer Coal
Black lung has been the underlying or contributing cause of death for more than 75,000 coal miners since 1968, according to NIOSH, the federal agency responsible for conducting research on work-related diseases and injuries. Since 1970, the Department of Labor has paid over $44 billion in benefits to miners totally disabled by respiratory diseases (or their survivors). The annual death rate from mining accidents is 20-25 per 100,000, about six times the average industry...
CONTINUE READINGProperty Rights and California Raisins: Headed to the Supreme Court–Again
Justices To Rule on Whether Feds' Depression-Era Agricultural Regulations Unconstitutionally "Take" Farmers' Property Without Compensation
The media and U.S. Supreme Court watchers have understandably focused on the justices' order yesterday agreeing to review the constitutionality of state same-sex marriage bans--automatically making it the "blockbuster" issue before the Court this Term. Largely overshadowed by that news was the justices' contemporaneous decision to revisit the interrelated issues of property rights, the Takings Clause of the U.S. Constitution and the respective rights of federal regulat...
CONTINUE READINGThe Hottest Year (So Far)
Scientists at NOAA and NASA announced the 2014 was the hottest year since systematic record keeping began in 1880. This is all the more striking because 2014 wasn't a strong El Nino year, when you expect especially warm global temperatures. If you leave on the East Coast or in the Midwest, you may not have noticed any warmth -- the eastern U.S. was the one land-area on earth that had a relatively cool year. But the Western U.S. had very hot temperatures, making droug...
CONTINUE READINGAmerica’s Future on the California Supreme Court
I'm not sure that anyone has pointed this out before: as of last week, when Justices Mariano-Florentino Cuellar and Leondra R. Krueger were sworn, the California Supreme Court does not have a single white male. I believe that that is the first time in US history where that has happened on a high court in any of the 50 states, including Hawai'i (and obviously for the US Supreme Court as well). That is the demographic direction in which the nation is headed. And lots of pe...
CONTINUE READINGPublic Opinion and Energy Politics
Pew published some intriguing polling results on energy issues just before Christmas. Americans have clearly noticed falling prices at the gas pump, but only half realize that U.S. oil and gas production has soared. So far, the changes haven't affected policy views: a large majority favors expanding use of alternative energy, but solid majorities continue to favor the Keystone pipeline and expanding drilling on federal lands and offshore. (I suspect, however, that th...
CONTINUE READINGIs EPA Delaying Clean Power Plan Rule to Modify the Proposed Rule for New Power Plants?
EPA announced this week that it will delay issuing both its final Clean Power Plan for greenhouse gases emitted from existing power plants as well as proposed rules for new coal and natural gas fired plants. The agency said it needs the extra time to respond to the 4 million comments it received and to coordinate "a suite of rules that takes into account any and all of these cross-cutting issues." Observers have speculated that one reason for the delay is to prevent...
CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Finally Breaks Ground On High Speed Rail Today
Six years and many lawsuits and political compromises after voters approved it
It's been over six years since California voters approved a bond measure to fund a two-hour-and-forty-minute Los Angeles to San Francisco high speed rail system. Today groundbreaking finally takes place in Fresno. In the intervening six years, lawsuits and political compromises have delayed the system and likely made the timetables promised to voters impossible to achieve. And even if all goes well, the system won't fully connect Los Angeles to San Francisco until 2028, ...
CONTINUE READINGGovernor Brown Calls For California To Achieve 50% Renewables By 2030
Inaugural address has specifics for climate and energy policies
Jerry Brown was inaugurated today for his record fourth term as governor of California, and his address offered refreshing specifics on his environmental and climate goals: In fact, we are well on our way to meeting our AB 32 goal of reducing carbon pollution and limiting the emissions of heat-trapping gases to 431 million tons by 2020. But now, it is time to establish our next set of objectives for 2030 and beyond. Toward that end, I propose three ambitious goals to...
CONTINUE READINGThe (Mostly Happy) Effects of Falling Oil Prices
The rapid fall in oil prices seems to have taken everyone by surprise. I've noted before that it puts the viability of the Keystone XL project in doubt. But its other effects are worth considering. Overall, the fall in prices should have a beneficial effect on the U.S. economy. Since gasoline is cheaper, people can buy the gas they need and have money left over to increase spending on other things, as if they had gotten a tax cut. The flip side is that produce...
CONTINUE READING2014: Happy Endings & Promising Starts
In most ways, 2014 was a good year for environmental protection, with progress on several fronts. True, there are warning signs for 2015 -- primarily the Republican sweep of the mid-terms and the Supreme Court's puzzling decision to review toxics regulations for coal-fired power plants. And of course, there were losses as well as victories, or partial victories where there might have been greater successes. But overall, developments were very positive. Here are ten...
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