oil and gas
Some Good News About the El Segundo Chevron Explosion
The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.
When the state’s second-largest refinery emitted a fireball into the heavens last week, it was bad. But it wasn’t all bad. The “incident” at the Chevron refinery in El Segundo was a good reminder that air pollution is present during the entire life cycle of oil and gas products, from when it comes out of …
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CONTINUE READINGReconciliation and Public Lands Part 2
Final legislation is narrower than House bill, focused on fossil fuel leasing on federal lands.
As a (belated) follow-up from my post this summer about the House version of the reconciliation bill, here is a summary of the key public lands provisions of the reconciliation bill as finally enacted. In general, the scope of what is covered is substantially less than what was in the House bill, in part because …
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CONTINUE READINGTrump & Environmental Policy: The Sequel, Part I
Expect a lot of the same, but there could be some new twists.
They say that history never repeats itself, but it often rhymes. As in many sequels, there will be many things we’ve seen before. Much of that consisted in an all-out attack on environmental law. If you hated the original, you won’t enjoy watching the same thing the second time around. This will include massive regulatory rollbacks and expansion of fossil fuels regardless of environmental harms.
CONTINUE READINGTexas and California Are Not Opposites. Contrary to What You Might Think.
These two states are often portrayed as epitomizing two possible futures. But the differences are more nuanced than you think.
here’s a common idea that Texas and California represent two opposing poles of America. They’re admittedly very different places on many dimensions. But in some respects, they are surprisingly similar, and some differences aren’t as big as they seem.
CONTINUE READINGWhat Would Climate Policy Look Like Under One-Party Conservative Rule?
You only need to look at Texas or Florida for the answer: a complete erasure of climate action.
This is not to say that unified control of the federal government by the hard right would entirely halt the progress of clean energy. Just that, if Florida and Texas are any guides, they would do their best to make that happen and to maximize use of what Trump has called the liquid gold under our feet.
CONTINUE READING(Energy) Independence Day
A post in which I surprise readers — and myself — with strong praise for George W. Bush.
The only way to achieve energy independence is to achieve independence from fossil fuels. That’s not something we can achieve overnight, but the closer we come, the better — for our health, our national security, and the world.
CONTINUE READINGHalftime Report: Environmental Bills Moving Forward
The UCLA Emmett Institute is tracking California environmental bills. In a year of tough budget choices, here are the notable bills that cleared Sacramento’s first big legislative deadline.
Legislators reached the first deadline of the 2023-2024 legislative season last week—passage of bills out of their house of origin. As the name implies, this refers to Assembly bills working their way through the Assembly, and Senate bills moving through the Senate, culminating with floor votes which concluded last Friday, May 24th. This period is …
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CONTINUE READINGFilling in the Picture: The Latest From Kennedy about Climate
Here’s what Kennedy says about his campaign, its effect on the race, and climate change.
Some of RFK Jr.’s views about climate change may be what you expected. Others may surprise you, like his embrace of natural gas as a fuel and his reservations about regulating emissions.
CONTINUE READINGThe Speaker Race and the Environment
No, it’s not a pretty picture. Scalise was bad. Jordan is worse.
In what felt like one of the few times I’ve actually been right about a political prediction, I told my wife that Steve Scalise would probably be the GOP’s pick to replace Kevin McCarthy. Sadly, I was only right for about 24 hours. Then Scalise, supposedly the more moderate candidate, dropped out. That left Jim …
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CONTINUE READINGWhat Next for the Climate Tort Cases?
Cases against the oil companies are back to state court. It’s time to map out the next steps.
With the Supreme Court’s refusal to take up the issue, the lawsuits against the oil industry are heading back to state court. That’s where the plaintiffs wanted those cases from the beginning, but it’s by no means the last of the issues they will confront. The oil companies will fight a scorched earth campaign, spending …
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