Climate Change

Appointing Guardians to Represent Future Generations

Could an old property procedure be a model for climate-related litigation?

From time to time, there is talk about giving standing to future generations. Although this is an idea whose time may not have come in the U.S., it’s important to know that the law has for many, many years allowed appointment of lawyers to represent future individuals. Typically, this is a procedure that is used in …

CONTINUE READING

The Cap-and-Trade Auction: Still Not a Tax

Folks are talking again about whether California’s climate cap-and-trade auction is an unlawful tax, rather than a valid exercise of the state’s regulatory power to control pollution.  The news hook for the revival of this conversation is a recent order, discussed below, from the California Court of Appeal to the parties in the court case where …

CONTINUE READING

UCLA Files Amicus Brief on Behalf of Electric Grid Experts in “Clean Power Plan” Case

Supporting EPA’s regulation of power-sector carbon emissions

Today, several of us at UCLA Law School’s Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment—me, Cara Horowitz, Sarah Duffy, & Ann Carlson—together with Professor William Boyd of University of Colorado Law School, filed an amici curiae brief on behalf of five electric grid experts in support of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s “Clean Power Plan” …

CONTINUE READING

A Sea Change in Climate Politics

Something strange has happened in Florida: Rising seas have changed GOP views.

There was a surprise question about climate change at the last Republican debate.  What was surprising wasn’t the question itself.  Instead, it was the source of the question: Tomás Regalado, the Republican mayor of Miami. It turns out that this wasn’t a fluke. Regalado and the Republican mayor of Miami Beach have spoken out in an …

CONTINUE READING

Creating An Exit Strategy for Our Use of Natural Gas

To meet long-term greenhouse gas reduction goals, all fossil fuels have to go, even natural gas.

Coal is the climate’s Public Enemy #1. The use of natural gas has helped to ensure that the coal problem has not become even worse. Without natural gas, we would use more coal for space heating and for many more industrial processes than is currently the practice. Without natural gas, our reliance on coal for …

CONTINUE READING

The Supreme Court Stay and the Dog That Didn’t Bark

EPA’s Requirements for New Plants Remain Intact

The Supreme Court’s stay of the Clean Power Plan was a surprise to almost all observers, maybe even to the lawyers requesting the stay.  We can only speculate on what the five majority Justices had in mind, since there was no written opinion. The practical impact of the decision is also unclear. E&E news reports that the …

CONTINUE READING

Want an Economy-Wide Cap on U.S. Climate Emissions? Consider This Corner of the Clean Air Act

New report on Section 115 of the Act suggests an interesting post-Paris approach

A largely-untapped provision of the Clean Air Act authorizes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to develop and implement an economy-wide, market-based program to reduce domestic greenhouse gas emissions and achieve the Obama Administration’s Paris Agreement pledge, according to a report released today by several coordinating law school centers, including the Emmett Institute at UCLA.  See …

CONTINUE READING

Climate Change, Energy, and the State of the Union

Quite a focus on climate change, this time around.

“Look, if anybody still wants to dispute the science around climate change, have at it. You’ll be pretty lonely, because you’ll be debating our military, most of America’s business leaders, the majority of the American people, almost the entire scientific community, and 200 nations around the world who agree it’s a problem and intend to …

CONTINUE READING

Student Guest Blogger Terra Laughton: Perspectives on COP21

Terra Laughton, UCLA School of Law JD class of 2017, shares her perspective on attending the Paris climate negotiations

I am a second-year student at UCLA School of Law. I recently returned from two weeks in Paris attending COP21. My classmates and I had already boarded our plane at Charles De Gaulle when the Paris Agreement was officially adopted—we learned of the news upon landing in Los Angeles. While it would have been exhilarating …

CONTINUE READING

Student Guest Blogger Sarah Kozal: India, Technological Innovation, & the Energy Sector

Sarah Kozal, UCLA School of Law JD class of 2016, shares her perspective on attending the Paris climate negotiations

For students, much of the excitement of attending the COP as part of a country’s delegation comes from the opportunity to sit in multi-party negotiations. But when nearly the entire second week in Paris turned into bilateral negotiations, a break from the crazy schedule of article-focused meetings gave us a chance to explore the multitude …

CONTINUE READING

Join Our Mailing List

Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.

TRENDING