air pollution
Deregulatory Theater of the Absurd
The new CAFE standards are a master class in pretending you’re implementing a law while totally sabotaging it.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) recently issued CAFE standards — fuel efficiency standards for new cars. Rolling back more rigorous standards from Biden, DOT applied considerable ingenuity to ensuring that fuel efficiency will stagnate for the foreseeable future. Like an Escher drawing, you have to step back from all the intricate details to appreciate just how weird the overall design is.
CONTINUE READING“National Security” is Becoming a Punch Line
Whenever he wants to roll back environmental protections, Trump cooks up a new national security justification.
A recent NY Times article recounts how often President Trump has invoked national security. It earnestly dissects his latest and most absurd claim: that the Arc deTrump he wanted to build will be filled with snipers, ammunition, and drones. It turns out that the snipers would be in an excellent position to shoot out the crosses in Arlington National Cemetery but not to protect anything of strategic importance. The environment has been one of Trump’s most fertile grounds for pretextual national security claims.
CONTINUE READINGInterpreting the Clean Air Act After Chevron’s Demise
A recent Ninth Circuit case requires states to do more to achieve clean air goals.
Last week, the Ninth Circuit decided Committee for a Better Arvin v. EPA, which is both a significant air pollution case and an interesting case study in how the Supreme Court has changed judicial review of agency actions. Applying what it considered to be the best interpretation of an ambiguous statute, the Court required tougher air pollution controls for the San Joaquin Valley. The dissent argued that the decision would be a disaster in terms of policy. But is that even relevant under the Loper Bright ruling?
Ensuring Environmental Protections Without CEQA
The legislature could take steps to address the impacts on state environmental law of the enactment of BACA this November
It seems likely at this point that the Cal Chamber initiative to significantly rewrite CEQA will pass this fall. A recent PPIC poll found over 70% support for the initiative. As I’ve noted earlier, a real concern with any change to CEQA is that key parts of California’s system of environmental protections depend on CEQA. …
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CONTINUE READINGCanada in Flames
What’s causing the fires? What harm do they do? What should we do?
One of the world’s great disasters is unfolding, as fires have covered millions of acres in Canada, destroying pristine ecosystems and poisoning the air for millions of people. Something like seven million acres have already burned. The U.S. government’s response is to threaten Canada with tariffs, apparently as punishment for allegedly having poorly managed its forests. Instead, we should be partnering with Canada on forest management, and we should cut the greenhouse gas emissions that are ramping up the fire risk.
CONTINUE READINGThe Scent of Spring vs the Stench of Black Rain
Why the war on Iran is an environmental justice crisis we cannot ignore
Here in the Bay Area, the air quality is pristine today. The sky is a clear, uninterrupted blue, and the sweet scent of blooming jasmine catches on the breeze. It’s a picture of absolute peace. Yet, the country I live in is currently orchestrating a devastating war on the other side of the world, a …
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CONTINUE READINGKeeping Coal on Life Support
Trump is doing everything he can to boost coal. And still, the industry is on life support.
The good news for investors is that coal is behaving like much of the non-AI stock market this year. Yet this growth is taking place on a very low baseline, which had slumped well below from Great Recession levels. If investors are to be believed, Trump may be able to keep the coal industry on life support. But it’s still in the ICU.
CONTINUE READINGIs This the End of Cost-Benefit Analysis?
Trump’s EPA is effectively abandoning economic analysis
Maybe the Administration means to keep cost-benefit analysis in place for some other kinds of regulations at EPA or elsewhere. But if the courts uphold the EPA’s refusal to quantify the enormous harms caused by air pollution, it’s hard to see an argument for quantifying many other regulatory benefits. In other settings, environmentalists might applaud the repeal of cost-benefit analysis. In the current setting, however, the purpose is all too plain: to make it easier for the Administration to ignore the ways it is endangering human life and health.
CONTINUE READINGEveryday Christmas: The Gift of the Commons
Clean air. Clean water. We receive these public goods every day without payment
One of the Christmas classics is the Jimmy Stewart movie, It’s a Wonderful Life. George Bailey, Stewart’s character, is despondent about his life until he learns how much he has unknowingly helped others and how grateful they are. It’s heartwarming, if also a bit corny. There’s a flip side to that story: the need to remember …
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CONTINUE READINGHow California (And Other States) Can Drive Demand for Clean Trucks
CLEE and the Emmett Institute release new report today and will hold Jan. 13 webinar with Energy Commissioner Nancy Skinner keynote.
This post is co-authored by CLEE fellow Marie Grimm. California’s policies to phase out polluting diesel trucks with zero-emission models took a major hit this year from the federal government. In June 2025, Congress voted to overturn federal permission for California’s zero-emission truck mandate (although this vote is now subject to litigation). In July, Congress …
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