California cap-and-trade

New on Ecology Law Currents

Ecology Law Currents, ELQ’s online companion, features lively short-form commentary. Check out the latest, an analysis of California’s cap-and-trade program. Author Penni Takade argues that the program has two key weaknesses: The first weakness is the process of allocation for GHG allowances to regulated firms. Under California’s allocation process, cap and trade will exacerbate economic …

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California cap and trade survives industry tax challenge

Auctions can proceed in one of the state’s signature climate change programs

ARB’s winning streak in climate cases continues.  A California superior court has rejected a prominent set of industry challenges to the state’s cap-and-trade program, upholding a significant element of California’s suite of programs to comply with AB 32 and to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emissions back to 1990 levels by 2020. (Opinion here.)  The cases were filed by the …

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Market Manipulation in the Renewable Fuel Market Does Not Mean Market Manipulation in California’s Cap-and-Trade Program

It remains to be seen whether EPA will respond to the Times article by regulating the renewable fuel market in a way that virtually all other environmental trading markets do.

The New York Times article yesterday about Wall Street firms exploiting the market for renewable fuel credits and driving up prices could leave some observers worrying about the integrity of California’s market for carbon allowances under its cap-and-trade program.  It shouldn’t. Here’s why.

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Breaking News: Brown Approves California Cap-and-Trade Linkage to Quebec’s System

California Governor Jerry Brown will allow the state’s Air Resources Board to link its cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with a Quebec cap-and-trade program modeled after California’s.  Brown sent a letter to CARB today making four findings that he is required to decide before allowing the linkage to go forward.  CARB must still …

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What Can and Should the President do About Climate Change Without Congress?

President Obama made clear in his State of the Union that he would do everything within in his power to combat climate change even if Congress refused to go along.  Here are his words:  I urge this Congress to pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman …

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California Court of Appeal Upholds AB 32 Scoping Plan for Greenhouse Gas Reduction

Today, the California Court of Appeal  rejected an appeal by environmental justice advocates seeking to scuttle the California Air Resources Board’s AB 32 Scoping Plan.  EJ advocates objected to the Scoping Plan’s adoption of a cap-and-trade program to achieve some of the greenhouse gas reductions required under the landmark California law AB 32.  Their primary …

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California cap-and-trade a topic of interest at Durban

California’s cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gas emissions has gotten some interest here at the climate change negotiations in Durban. At a discussion of Australia’s new carbon pricing program, panelists discussed how Australia considered California’s economic modeling of cap-and-trade during the development of Australia’s system. And a panel on linking between different carbon and offset markets, …

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UCLA Emmett Center Assessment of California’s Cap and Trade Regulations

In the wake of the financial market meltdown and liquidity crisis of 2008,  some opponents of a cap and trade program to regulate greenhouse gas emissions have argued that such a system could lead to the kind of market manipulation that led to the 2008 crash.  The UCLA School of Law Emmett Center on Climate Change and the Environment today released …

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Dueling Orders and Lots of Confusion in AB 32 Case

Yesteday, I described a California Court of Appeals order lifting the injunction preventing the California Air Resources Board (CARB) from implementing its cap and trade program.  The order was apparently issued last Friday afternoon.   Even in this age of instantaneous communication, however, apparently neither the Superior Court judge in the case, Earnest H. Goldsmith, nor the lead …

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Will AB 32 Regulations Move Ahead Despite the Court Ruling?

We’ve extensively covered the litigation over California’s landmark climate change law, AB 32.  Now, per the Clean Energy Report, CARB might be able to move ahead with the cap-and-trade regulations anyway: the trial court might very well stay its decision pending appeal, which is not unheard of, and according to the state’s attorneys, occurs automatically upon …

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