What 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...
CONTINUE READINGStop the Presses: California Is Different
When it comes to saving energy, California has a lot to crow about. While per capita energy consumption has continued to grow nationwide over the last thirty-five years, California's per capita consumption has stayed relatively flat -- an amazing accomplishment, considering the growing reliance on electronic devices over that period of time, but only partially good news. Since the state's population has mushroomed during that same period, California is consuming a lo...
CONTINUE READINGMore on the endangerment finding
As Dan mentioned earlier, EPA today issued its proposed finding that emissions of six greenhouse gases, taken together, endanger public health and welfare, and that emissions of four of these gases from cars contribute to the problem. The proposal rests on a robust interpretation of EPA's authority to find endangerment, supported by a detailed and persuasive analysis of the text and legislative history of the Clean Air Act. EPA concludes that in deciding whether air pol...
CONTINUE READINGOh What A Difference A President Makes
We're not even 85 days into the Obama Administration and yet the signs of environmental change are all around us. The EPA announced today its formal determination under the Clean Air Act that greenhouse gases are pollutants that endanger public health and welfare. This is only the latest in a string of announcements that show just how quickly Obama is moving to undue much of the environmental damage done by the Bush Administration (if I miss anything please po...
CONTINUE READINGNewsflash: EPA Proposes Clean Air Act Climate Regulation
From the Washington Post: The Environmental Protection Agency today plans to propose regulating greenhouse gas emissions on the grounds that these pollutants pose a danger to the public's health and welfare, according to several sources who asked not to be identified. We'll post more details and analysis as they become available. -------- The proposal is now official. Consistent with a previous discussion on this blog about the effect of switching the default point,...
CONTINUE READINGLess fattening, and less toxic, paints
Industrial chemistry really is going green. Remember olestra, the fat substitute that was briefly used to make fat-free potato chips, until its unappealing side effects dampened consumer enthusiasm? Now some olestra relatives may be back, for uses that don't threaten to produce gastrointestinal distress. According to Scientific American's 60-Second Science blog, a new line of sucrose esters called Sefose, made from sugar and soybean oil, can replace petroleum-based resin...
CONTINUE READINGIs an ocean acidification TMDL on the (distant) horizon?
In January, Dan posted on the problem of ocean acidification and Sean noted that a lawsuit by the Center for Biological Diversity had convinced EPA to look into the possible application of the Clean Water Act. Now EPA has issued a call for interested parties to submit information as it considers whether to tighten its water quality criteria for ocean acidity, that is the pH it considers acceptable for ocean waters. EPA is also asking for help on how best to measure...
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