Will Hurricane Sandy Affect Post-Election Actions?
Eric just noted that Bloomberg's endorsement of President Obama marks the first significant moment in the campaign where climate change is front and center. He also suggests that climate change and its relationship to Hurricane Sandy could now actually affect the presidential race. A related and perhaps even more important question is whether the hurricane and its aftermath will make any difference post-election about whether we actually decide to create national c...
CONTINUE READINGHow Climate Change Might (Finally) Affect the Presidential Race
There's been a lot of debates over whether Hurricane Sandy and the damage that it caused in the Northeast was in part the result of climate change. But Sandy appears to have had at least something of an impact on the role that climate change has had in the Presidential race. Up till now, climate change has been a missing topic in the official debates and in the campaign in general. But now, NYC Mayor Bloomberg (who up to this point had refused to endorse Obama or R...
CONTINUE READINGSaving Public Transit: The Role of Technology
New technologies are quickly changing how we provide and interact with public transit. From Smart Phone applications that chart transit trips, new software that enables ride and bike sharing, or stations that function as "mobility hubs" with new ways to provide rider access, these technologies hold the promise to greatly enhance our existing transit systems. Judi Masuda, Transportation Demand Programs Manager at the City of Santa Monica, describes how technology can inte...
CONTINUE READINGSuper PACs, the Presidential Election, and the Public Good
This is going to be a very close election -- close enough that, if Romney wins, a key factor will be Citizens United and related judicial rulings that have helped create the Super PACs. Figures collected by the LA Times show that since April 15, Super PACs have spent over $216 million to defeat Obama versus only $73 million to defeat Romney, a 3:1 margin favoring Romney. These lopsided Super PAC expenditures expand the influence of business interests that resent envi...
CONTINUE READINGIs Hurricane Sandy the Face of Climate Change?
It’s a question at the forefront of many of our minds, as we witness the aftermath of Sandy’s fierce destruction. In the days following the superstorm, we’ve seen surreal images — an illuminated carousel appearing to float in high water, drowning taxi cabs in perfect rows — things we believed would not happen for decades, as climate change inched up on us slowly and steadily. But climate change does not carry a yardstick; it does not operate in measured un...
CONTINUE READINGDraining Hetch Hetchy — Some History for San Francisco’s “Measure F”
San Franciscans will be voting next week on Measure F to study the draining of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park. Hetch Hetchy, for those who don't know, is a spectacular, glacier-formed valley of equal proportion to its neighbor Yosemite Valley. Congress authorized a dam in 1913 to provide public hydroelectric power and a reliable source of water for San Francisco and peninsula communities. The project became a disaster, costing more money and taking more...
CONTINUE READINGRedeeming FEMA: How the Agency has Been Strengthened Since Katrina
Today's FEMA is a lot different from the organization that flubbed the Katrina response. There have been a number of positive changes, mostly during the past four years. First, as the Washington Post explains, FEMA's authority has expanded: Congress has broadened FEMA’s authority so that the agency can respond in advance of major storms, instead of waiting for governors to request federal aid after a disaster strikes. The measures earned plaudits from then-Gov. Hale...
CONTINUE READINGSaving Public Transit: Neighborhoods Matter
Public transit depends on neighborhood design to be successful. Without convenient neighborhoods that orient housing and jobs around transit, buses and trains will waste scarce public dollars by failing to attract sufficient riders and offering poorer quality service to those who do ride. Mott Smith, a Los Angeles-based real estate developer and advocate who focuses on transit-oriented projects, discusses the importance of neighborhoods to making transit work in this v...
CONTINUE READINGFrom Green Governor to Conservative Candidate: The Amazing Transformation of Mitt Romney
“EPA New England applauds Governor Romney for his strong environmental leadership.” That quote from EPA’s regional director in 2004 shows the extent of Romney’s transformation in the past eight years. It’s no secret that Mitt Romney’s current views on many issues differ from his actions as Governor of Massachusetts. Still, it’s a bit shocking to see just how radical the change has been. Basically, on environmental issues, Romney has transformed himself ...
CONTINUE READINGA Resource on Disaster Law Issues
As the storm slowly passes through, there will inevitably be questions about a host of issues: the scope of FEMA's role, the requirements of the Stafford Act, the operation of flood insurance, how private insurance might or might not apply, and so forth. The Berkeley Law School Library has established a great website with copies of many key documents and links to many more. (An overview of Disaster Law can be found here.) Here's a description of the site: This Disas...
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