Tea Party activist wants to repeal all California environmental laws
A number of other posts on Legal Planet have noted various efforts by Republicans in Congress to stop or repeal EPA regulations. Those efforts are part of a broader movement by Tea Party organizations (organizations that are overwhelmingly Republican) to effectively eliminate environmental regulations in the United States. If there was any doubt about that point, a Tea Party activist in California recently got approval to circulate a ballot initiative that would repe...
CONTINUE READINGWhat Happened in Durban?
The outcome in Durban seems to be better than expected, although admittedly that's partly because expectations were low. From the official press release: In Durban, governments decided to adopt a universal legal agreement on climate change as soon as possible, but not later than 2015. Work will begin on this immediately under a new group called the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action. Governments, including 35 industrialised countries, agre...
CONTINUE READINGPrimary Colors with a Green Overtone
Frederick Anderson, a leading Washington lawyer who works on energy and environment issues, has written a novel about the current primary campaign. It features a candidate who starts thinking for himself, with predictably negative political effects. Gary Hart, who knows a thing or two about how a primary campaign can go wrong, calls it a "highly plausible narrative fashioned around believable characters and realistic political intrigue." Although it's not explicit...
CONTINUE READINGLegal Planet is selected as one of ABA’s Blawg 100: Vote online for Legal Planet for best “niche” blog
Each year, the editors of the American Bar Association's ABA Journal selects the 100 best blogs by and for lawyers. This year, they selected Legal Planet as one of them, out of 3,500 eligible blogs. Now, blog readers get to vote for their favorites, and we'd love to have your vote. The journal editors categorize the blogs and ask blog readers to vote for their favorites in each of 12 categories. (Legal Planet has earned a coveted place in the category "Niche.")...
CONTINUE READINGPotential for 2015 roadmap from Durban?
Reuters reports on a potential roadmap for future climate change action that is developing at COP17 in Durban. Under the EU plan, parties would agree to a road map that would lead to legally binding commitments for GHG emission reductions in 2015. Up to this point, the head of the U.S. delegation, Jonathan Pershing, had indicated that the U.S. would not entertain legally binding commitments before 2020. But perhaps the U.S. negotiators can accept a roadmap to bindi...
CONTINUE READINGRon Paul: The Most Anti-Environmental Candidate Ever
In a field in which all the candidates are weak in terms of protecting the environment, Ron Paul is unquestionably the worst. Here is his position (taken directly from his website): Eliminate the ineffective EPA. Polluters should answer directly to property owners in court for the damages they create – not to Washington. OK, what's wrong with this proposal? Here are a few things: Why just property owners? Why not other people with health effects? Is there some re...
CONTINUE READINGImages from Durban
If you want a flavor of it, here are some images from COP17 (all credits mine): ...
CONTINUE READINGThe “21st Century Contract with America”
I've just been reading Gingrich's new version of the Contract with America. It repeats Gingrich's desire to end most federal regulations in favor of federal coaching and subsidies for businesses and state governments: We must also replace the EPA, which pursues an anti-jobs agenda the economy simply cannot sustain. A pro-growth Environmental Solutions Agency in its place will operate on the premise that most environmental problems can and should be solved by states a...
CONTINUE READINGFederalism and the Electrification of the Auto Fleet
Many commentators assume that if the federal government ever adopts a national policy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, states and localities will largely take a backseat to federal regulators. But one highly necessary means to reducing carbon emissions -- the electrification of the automobile fleet -- will require active and involved participation by all levels of government, something that is often overlooked in policy conversations. Two recent reports highligh...
CONTINUE READINGThe First Federal Environmental Law Decision
Of course, it's a bit arbitrary to pick one case as the first environmental law decision. Many people would probably name the Scenic Hudson opinion, but my nominee would be a decision many decades earlier: Woodruff v. North Bloomfield Gravel Mining Co., 18 F. 753 (C.C.Cal. 1884). What makes it reasonable to call this the first federal environmental decision is the scope of the case: it ended an industrial practice that had been hugely lucrative; in effect, shutting...
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