The Trouble with TDRs
What went wrong with TDRs? But first, you might ask, what are TDRs? TDRs -- more formally, transferable development rights -- were the first form of environmental trading system to be used in the United States. For instance, the Supreme Court decided a the Penn Central case, which involved TDRs over a decade before Congress created the SO2 trading program in 1990. The idea is simple. In return for not being able to develop one trace of land fully, the owner is ...
CONTINUE READINGShould Environmentalists Worry About Chuck Hagel?
Reports out today indicate that within the next few days, President Obama will appoint former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel to succeed Leon Panetta as Defense Secretary. Even though Hagel himself is a Republican, the GOP has already promised a fight, ostensibly on the entirely specious grounds that Hagel is anti-Israel. Hagel...hmmm...where have environmentalists heard that name before? Oh yes: the Byrd-Hagel Resolution of 1997, which undercut the Kyoto Protocol ...
CONTINUE READINGIn Climate Policy, A Stitch in Time Saves Nine
Moving quickly on carbon reduction could save a lot of money. A new study in Nature highlights the importance of timing in climate policy: [A]chieving the same 60% chance of success with action starting in 2020 would require a 2020 carbon price of around US$150 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) — more than double the $60 per tonne CO2e required if action begins in 2015. However, delaying emissions limits from 2020 to 2025 would bring the chance of success ...
CONTINUE READINGEnvironmental Law and the Gun Debate
The horrifying events in Newtown have predictably led to calls for new gun controls, which have predictably led to push-back from gun rights advocates -- some measured, some certifiable. For the most part, this debate has nothing to do with environmental law and policy, but there is an exception. The New York Times had an important story last week about the sometimes bizarre and outrageous constraints placed on the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (A...
CONTINUE READINGOf Mollusks and Men: The Wilderness Act and Drakes Bay Oyster Company
The debate over Drakes Bay Oyster Company’s continued operation within the Point Reyes National Seashore created two unlikely foes: environmentalists in favor of transitioning the land to wilderness, and supporters of local, organic food and a longstanding family business. The San Francisco Chronicle aptly termed it a “legal and philosophical slugfest.” The door seems to be closed for the oyster farm’s continuation beyond March 15, 2013, as Department of the...
CONTINUE READINGPut That In Your Tank and Smoke It
The next time anyone tells you that an increase in gasoline prices (say, as part of a carbon-tax or a cap-and-trade system) would generate unbearable costs to consumers, think again. The Los Angeles Times reports something that I have often seen but never really thought through: gasoline stations often a couple block away from each other have radically different prices: Known in the industry as zone pricing, the controversial practice was apparent one afternoon when ...
CONTINUE READINGLooking Ahead to 2050
Since New Year's Eve is both a time for nostalgia and for looking ahead, it seems appropriate to see what the world will look like at mid-century. The world will be facing considerable challenges then. The population will be bigger. The United Nations predicts that the world population will grow by 2 billion to 9 billion people by 2050, with the most growth in Africa and South Asia. (Discovery News) Pew predicts a U.S. population of 438 million, about 20% of whom...
CONTINUE READINGThe Coase Theorem and Matt Damon’s New Fracking Movie
The law and economics movement has been studying the Coase Theorem for a long time. In this cross-post, I discuss its relevance for Matt Damon's new fracking movie "Promised Land"....
CONTINUE READINGDo GMO Salmon Pose an Environmental Threat?
GMO fish are one step closer to sale in the U.S., reports the LA Times: After more than a decade in regulatory limbo, genetically engineered Atlantic salmon that grow faster than their naturally born counterparts moved closer to American plates, with the publication Friday of a government report that found the fish wouldn't hurt the environment and would be safe to eat. The biggest environmental issue regarding the salmon is the possibility that they might escape and int...
CONTINUE READINGLisa Jackson Steps Down From EPA
The Washington Post announces that Lisa Jackson is resigning as Administrator of EPA. Summarizing her four years at EPA, the Post says: The slew of rules EPA enacted over the past four years — including the first-ever greenhouse gas standards for vehicles, cuts in mercury and other toxic pollution from power plants and a tighter limit on soot, the nation’s most widespread deadly pollutant — prompted many congressional Republicans and business groups to suggest Ja...
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