California
LA Metro’s Transit to Parks Strategic Plan
A beneficial but incomplete solution to address lack of access to open spaces for disadvantaged communities
I previously wrote about the potential to generate greater support for environmental initiatives, by improving community engagement with the natural environment. One mechanism to improve community engagement in this manner is quite simple: make it easier for people to access parks and open spaces by public transit. Access is a widespread issue in Los Angeles, …
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CONTINUE READINGLights Out, Everybody’s Home
Protecting California’s Most Vulnerable from Climate Effects
Today, rather than walking to campus, I’m home learning the features of Zoom Conference to conduct meetings and classes remotely: UC Berkeley’s campus is shut for its second day in a row, as Pacific Gas and Electric seeks to minimize risk of a wildfire (and associated liability) in the present high wind conditions. Even as …
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CONTINUE READINGIn Defense of Live Carbon II: Subnational Leadership in the Fight Against Tropical Deforestation
From California to Brazil, state and provinces around the world are stepping up to fight tropical deforestation. They need and deserve more support.
The fires burning in Brazil and the broader Amazon basin have shined a spotlight on the role of forests and land use in the climate change challenge. For the first time in many years, the fate of tropical forests and their connection to our common future have captured the public imagination around the world. There …
CONTINUE READINGWhy is Newsom vetoing SB 1?
Comparing the Governor’s statements with the text of the bill
The California legislature recently passed SB 1, which would translate into state law a range of federal environmental and worker safety standards that were in place before the inauguration of President Trump to protect against federal roll backs in those areas. However, Governor Newsom has indicated he will veto SB 1, on the grounds that …
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CONTINUE READINGA New UC California-China Institute on Climate Change
China and the United States are the two largest emitters of greenhouse gases in the world, accounting for some 45 percent of global emissions. The world is unlikely to find a solution to climate change without aggressive action from both. With the Trump administration retreating from climate action, U.S. states and cities are pushing to …
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CONTINUE READINGLaunching the California-China Climate Institute
Welcoming a famous new faculty member and a critical new initiative.
I have two exciting announcements to make. The first is that Jerry Brown has accepted an appointment as visiting professor at the law school and the College of Natural Resources (CNR) at Berkeley. That appointment would be exciting enough. But it goes hand in hand with my other news: the public launch of the California-China …
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CONTINUE READINGWhy are automakers fighting Trump’s emissions rollback?
The answer may lie in the electric vehicle investments the industry is busy making
As we move ever deeper into an all-out legal war between California and the Trump Administration over rollbacks of automobile emissions standards (something Ann, Cara, and Julia have been covering very well), I want to explore in a little more depth why the automakers have been so resistant to Trump’s rollback efforts. The auto industry …
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CONTINUE READINGWelcome to the Next Phase of the Great California-Trump Car Wars
First lawsuit filed, more to come
California didn’t wait long to file its first court challenge to the rules just finalized by the Trump Administration related to California’s GHG and ZEV car emissions standards (discussed here and here by Julia and Ann). Here’s the complaint filed by California together with 23 other states, along with the cities of LA and NY. …
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CONTINUE READINGGovernance infrastructure for water resilience
CLEE comments on Governor Newsom’s water portfolio executive order
Governor Gavin Newsom has directed state agencies to prepare a water resilience portfolio. Executive Order N-10-19 describes a set of broad principles to inform the development of the portfolio, as well as extensive outreach that should accompany the process, which is being conducted on an aggressive timeline. The EO states, correctly, that California needs a …
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CONTINUE READINGEPA/Transportation Announcement of California Waiver Revocation is Full of Falsehoods and Irony
How Many Misstatements Can You Find?
This morning, the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation formally announced — as expected — that the Trump Administration is revoking California’s waiver to set its own vehicle standards. Yesterday, Trump tweeted the news, coupling it with falsehoods claiming that the rollback would save lives and save consumers money. As I blogged yesterday, both …
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