Why Developers Shouldn’t Blame Environmental Review for the Lack of Infill
Members of the business community are smelling blood when it comes to effectively dismantling environmental review statutes like the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). They now have a political opening with the high unemployment rate, some well-publicized bad outcomes of CEQA litigation, and examples of lawsuits by rival businesses abusing the process for competitive purposes and not for environmental ends. The New York Times picked up the thread recently a...
CONTINUE READINGEnergy and Environment in the Old Dominion
George Allen (R) and Tim Kaine (D) are facing off in the Virginia Senate race. On environment and energy issues, Allen is a clone of Mitt of Romney, Kaine tracks Obama's energy policies but also emphasizes preservation of open space, including historic as well as natural sites. Like all of the Republican Senate candidates I've examined, Allen is very enthusiastic about offshore drilling and fracking. His website also has a few kind words to say about energy effici...
CONTINUE READINGThis Blog Post is Full of Crap
As Cara and I have noted previously, many municipalities are seeking to limit or completely ban plastic bags in grocery stores. Good for the environment, right? Well, maybe. How shall I put this? Plastic supermarket bags, while terrible in many ways, are particularly good at the removal of a particular form of non-toxic canine waste that often afflicts our urban and suburban areas. Indeed, they might be the perfect vehicle for this sort of job. One major c...
CONTINUE READINGThe Environmental Impact of Cloud Computing
The NY Times has a long article and a Room for Debate piece about cloud computing energy demand. Basic economics tells us that these data centers are likely to locate in places where electricity is cheap but the article doesn't tell us the geography of where these data centers locate. Internet companies will ignore the environmental implications of where they choose to locate a data center. The environmental implications of such privately optimal choices depends on...
CONTINUE READINGYour Legal Planet Weekend Movie: Watch the Greenland Ice Sheet Melt!
Forget the cinema or Netflix. Legal Planet can meet your movie viewing needs. This video highlights research done by Dr. Laurence Smith at the UCLA Department of Geography, who spent the summer on the Greenland ice sheet tracking its melting. Somehow seeing the melting happen from the ground has more of an emotional impact for me than seeing the depressing, yet oddly abstract, view from space. [vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/49612210 w=400&h=300]...
CONTINUE READINGNinth Circuit Finds Public Nuisance Lawsuit Unavailable to Address Climate Change Impacts on Threatened Native Alaskan Village
Today, the Ninth Circuit issued an opinion affirming a federal district court decision to dismiss the lawsuit filed by the Native Alaskan Village of Kivalina that sought damages from oil and electric power companies whose greenhouse gas emissions have contributed to climate change. Kivalina contended that the companies' greenhouse gas emissions constituted a public nuisance that contributed to the sea level rise and permafrost melting that threatens their community. ...
CONTINUE READINGNinth Circuit Rules Against Indian Tribe’s Climate Change Suit
Not much of a surprise here; a Ninth Circuit panel "has ruled against the northwest Alaska village of Kivalina, which sued energy companies over claims that greenhouse emissions contributed to global warming that is threatening the community's existence." The village brought a common-law public nuisance claim against the oil companies, but the panel held that federal common law actions are displaced by the Clean Air Act. Interestingly, the AP article gets it quite ...
CONTINUE READINGWhich Side Are Environmentalists On?
Watching Bill Clinton's interview with Jon Stewart earlier today, I was struck by one thing: Clinton's advocacy of Walmart's environmental practices. If the 42nd President is to be believed, the retailing giant has pioneered a series of seemingly impressive environmental initiatives, particularly in the use of solar photovoltaics, and in reducing VMT for its vast fleet of trucks. All very well and good, and the sort of thing that one would hope more in the business co...
CONTINUE READINGPrice Implications of the California 33% RPS as the Federal Government Cuts Green Subsidies
Frank Wolak is quoted in today's LA Times about the electricity price implications of California's pursuit of a 33% RPS by the year 2020. He argues that electricity prices will rise as a consequence of this regulation. At the same time that California is ratcheting up its RPS standard, the Federal Government is winding down its green subsidies for wind turbines and for big solar projects. Even if President Obama is re-elected, budget realities are such that I...
CONTINUE READINGFive Ideas for Regulatory Reformers
Duke is hosting a conference on Monday (10-4 ET) about conservative approaches to environmental protection. (livestream here). Here are a few ideas to throw into the mix: 1. Streamline interstate compact approval for multistate environmental efforts. This would help move authority from Washington and would provide states a better mechanism for dealing with problems that cross state lines. One possibility would be a fast-track legislative process conditioned on...
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