Make a Gift for Mother Earth
This blog is a joint product of six centers. Each of the centers does pioneering work on the legal and policy issues that need to be solved if our planet is going to have a sustainable future. Consider commemorating Earth Day by making a gift to support our work. It's easy to do. The list of centers is on the right hand side of this page. Just pick one and look for the appropriate link to make an on-line gift. You'll have our fervent thanks -- and your grand...
CONTINUE READINGNanopolicy Bumps in California
California continues to lead the way nationally on nanotechnology regulation, despite some bumps along the way. Most recently, the Department of Toxic Substances Control issued a request for information regarding analytical test methods, fate and transport in the environment, and other relevant information from manufacturers of reactive nanometal oxides. Substances covered include aluminum oxide, silicon dioxide, titanium dioxide, and zinc oxide. The request is j...
CONTINUE READINGWaxman-Markey hearings
As Dan mentioned in his post yesterday, the House Energy and Commerce Committee is holding hearings through Friday on the Waxman-Markey climate change bill, dubbed The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009. Climate Progress has the schedule here. The hearings can be viewed live or after the fact at the Committee's website, here....
CONTINUE READINGGetting to the root of recurring water conflicts
This post is co-authored by A. Dan Tarlock, Distinguished Professor of Law at Chicago-Kent College of Law, and cross-posted by permission from the Island Press Eco-Compass blog. The western United States is characterized by highly variable and seasonal rainfall patterns. To deal with the constant threat of drought, the West relies on intensively managed water systems. Today, those systems face two challenges that were not anticipated when they were developed decades ago...
CONTINUE READINGClimate Change Legislation: Is the Train (Finally) Leaving the Station?
I posted yesterday about Rep. Boehner's bone-headed statement about climate change. My first thought was that this was completely idiotic, making a childish argument that even George W. Bush would have scorned. The fact that some CO2 is normal and even necessary proves nothing about what happens when concentrations go beyond the normal level: salt is essential in small doses but you'd die of thirst drinking sea water. Even apart from the demonstration of abysmal ...
CONTINUE READINGFlunking Climate 101
John Boehner, the House Republican leader, explains his view of climate change to George Stephanopoulos: George, the idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen, that it's harmful to our environment is almost comical. Every time we exhale, we exhale carbon dioxide. Every cow in the world, uh, well, you know when they do what they do, you've got more carbon dioxide. You can see the video here....
CONTINUE READINGWhat Next for Greenhouse Gas Regulation of Cars?
There's been a huge amount of attention -- and justifiably so -- to EPA's finding of endangerment. There's also been speculation about a follow-up finding applying to stationary pollution sources and about the political ramifications. In contrast, there hasn't been much discussion of what the motor vehicle standards might look like. Here's an EPA summary of the relevant criteria: Emission standards under CAA section 202(a)(1) are technology-based, i.e. the levels c...
CONTINUE READINGEarth Day as a Self-Organizing System
Senator Gaylord Nelson has explained the origins of Earth Day: At a conference in Seattle in September 1969, I announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment and invited everyone to participate. The wire services carried the story from coast to coast. The response was electric. It took off like gangbusters. Telegrams, letters, and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country.The American...
CONTINUE READINGWebcast of Climate Law Course
Berkeley Law has begun webcasting some of its courses, including the seminar on Climate Change and the Law that Cymie Payne and I taught last spring. I was pleased to learn that this class has been picked up by the Academic Earth website. I'm not sure, however, that this is the picture that I would have picked to display!...
CONTINUE READINGClimate Change and Environmental Impact Statements
Government agencies are struggling with how to fit climate change into the process of environmental review. At one level, this is a no-brainer. Greenhouse gases contribute to climate change, and climate change is the biggest environmental impact of all. But as always, the devil is in the details. The direct use of fossil fuels resulting from a project should be easy to figure out. Adding the "embodied carbon" in materials is a bit trickier. Going beyond tha...
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