Academia
Silent Spring and Cost/Benefit Analysis
The NY Times has published a book review about Rachel Carson. Here is my favorite part of the review; “As Carson and her publisher expected, the chemical industry pounced on “Silent Spring” — even as it climbed best-seller lists — for overstating the downside and ignoring the upsides of pesticides. (Souder quotes Carson directly defending …
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CONTINUE READINGUncertainty in environmental law
Last week’s New York Times Sunday magazine had two interesting articles that have relevance for environmental law and policy, specifically about how environmental law deals with uncertainty.
CONTINUE READINGThe Simple Economics of Sustainability
I would like to offer a few thoughts about Dan’s recent post where he states; “The economic formulas assume that people want their children and grandchildren to be as well off as they are, no better and no worse. But people actually want the future to be better than the present, and they’re willing to …
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CONTINUE READINGNew Report on Electric Vehicle Policies & Capitol Hill Briefing Today at Noon ET (webcast available)
The environmental law centers at UCLA and UC Berkeley Schools of Law today released a new report on industry actions and federal, state, and local policies needed to stimulate long-term, mass adoption of electric vehicles. “Electric Drive by ’25” (available from either UCLA Law or Berkeley Law) is the tenth report in our Climate Change …
CONTINUE READINGAre PACE Financed Residential Energy Improvements Capitalized into Home Prices?
The FHFA believes that an unintended consequence of obtaining a PACE loan is to increase the risk of mortgage default. The FHFA’s logic is that if the green investments are not capitalized into home prices then the home owner’s equity decreases as equity = sales price – debt owed. Under these assumptions, the green …
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CONTINUE READINGMore Good News About Implementing AB32
Below I report a new announcement posted to the California Air Resources Board Webpage discussing how a small group of academic economists will be playing a new role in designing the AB32 Cap & Trade program. Here is the announcement. My bottom line is that ARB has hired a Dream Team. Forget Lebron James and …
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CONTINUE READINGA Capitol Hill Briefing on Electric Vehicle Policies, Monday, September 10th (Webcast Available)
Legal Planeteers in the Washington DC area are invited to join the environmental law centers at Berkeley and UCLA Schools of Law as we present a lunchtime, Capitol Hill discussion on policies necessary for long-term, mass adoption of electric vehicle technologies. This free event is sponsored by Congressman Henry Waxman’s office and will also be …
CONTINUE READINGHow to Protect the Environment: Views from the Right
Duke will be holding a very timely event on conservative visions of environmental law. Everyone knows what forms of environmental protection conservatives oppose, but conservative alternatives are less widely known. This is a welcome opportunity to hear ideas about an affirmative conservative vision. (Details and registration information here.)
CONTINUE READINGSome Economics of the Green Partisan Divide
I would like to offer a couple of thoughts about Dan’s post today. To keep this entry short and sweet, I will invoke some stereotypes. In my economic model, there are two types of people; “Laura the Liberal” and the other is “Chuck the Conservative”. I want to sketch their two lifestyles …
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CONTINUE READINGEconomists for AB32
A few days ago I joined a set of well known academic economists and signed this letter to Governor Brown. The NRDC has a nice post about the issues available here. Everyone who knows me, knows that I’m a proud University of Chicago Ph.D. economist and that my support for free markets and individual freedom …
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