Climate Change

Will the Future Be “Made in China”?

America used to b a place where the future happened first. Now we seem to be fight any kind of change, whether the issue is immigration, health care, the financial system, or energy.

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Prop 23 and Little Oil

Prop 23 is getting national attention, including a story in the NY Times: Charles and David Koch, the billionaires who have played a prominent role in financing the Tea Party movement, donated $1 million to the campaign to suspend the Global Warming Solutions Act enacted four years ago, and signaled that they are prepared to …

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Prop 23 and the Oil Companies

It is frequently said that “the oil companies” are financing Prop 23.  This turns out to be a bit of an overgeneralization.  According to Greenwire, While some companies are supporting Proposition 23, Shell Oil Co. opposes it, Chevron Corp. is officially neutral, Exxon Mobil Corp. and BP PLC have decided not to get involved and …

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State AGs Ready to Attack Constitutionality of California’s AB 32

An important postscript to my earlier post regarding Berkeley Law’s/CLEE’s newly-published white paper on Proposition 23. That’s the California initiative measure that, if approved by voters this November, would suspend implementation of that state’s Global Warming Solutions Act, better known as AB 32. The San Francisco Chronicle reports today that the Attorneys General of Alabama, …

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Berkeley Law/CLEE Publish White Paper on Efforts to Suspend California’s AB 32

Berkeley Law’s Center for Law, Energy & the Environment (CLEE) has today published, “California at the Crossroads: Proposition 23, AB 32 and Climate Change.” This white paper is intended to provide an objective, non-partisan analysis of California Proposition 23, an initiative measure that will appear on California’s November 2nd general election ballot. If enacted, Proposition …

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Good News from the Amazon

Recent satellite studies indicate a major decrease in the rate of deforestation in the Amazon.  The journal Science reports: The Brazilian government says that a preliminary survey by a low-resolution satellite shows that deforestation in the Amazon declined by 47.5% over the past 12 months. The figure is the largest decline since measurements began in …

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New million-dollar donation from out-of-state oil company helps the attack on California’s climate change law

According to a story in today’s Los Angeles Times, a new $1 million cash infusion from Kansas-based oil company Koch Industries –the second-largest private company in the U.S. — is buoying the campaign in favor of Proposition 23, which would block implementation of California’s landmark law to limit greenhouse gas emissions.  The company is owned by …

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EPA proposes fuel economy letter grade labels for cars

New labels proposed by the federal government would give new cars letter grades reflecting their fuel economy and greenhouse gas emissions.  Electric cars and plug-in hybrids are expected to get the highest grades.  The rule isn’t final yet; the public can comment and make suggestions on the label design. Most of us are familiar with …

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The Not-So-Skeptical Environmentalist

  Bjorn Lomborg (a/k/a the “Skeptical Environmentalist”) has apparently had a change of heart regarding climate change.  According to the Guardian: The world’s most high-profile climate change sceptic is to declare that global warming is “undoubtedly one of the chief concerns facing the world today” and “a challenge humanity must confront”, in an apparent U-turn …

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Climate Change and El Nino

From dot.earth: Federal researchers have published work concluding that a particular variant of the periodic El Niño warmups of the tropical Pacific Ocean is becoming more frequent and stronger. The pattern appears to fit what is expected from human-driven warming of the global climate, said the researchers . . . The 2009-2010 El Nino event …

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