California
California groundwater management, science-policy interfaces, and the legacies of artificial legal distinctions
By Dave Owen and Michael Kiparsky
One of the many noteworthy features of California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) is that it requires local government agencies to consider and address the effects of groundwater management upon interconnected surface water. That requirement is an important step towards rationalizing California water management, which has long treated groundwater and surface water as separate resources. …
CONTINUE READINGTrump Administration’s Cold Water War With California Turns Hot
Feds’ Curious New Lawsuits Against State Water Board Likely Just the Opening Litigation Salvo
When it comes to California water policy, the federal-state relationship has always been both strained and challenging. That intergovernmental tension harkens back at least to the Reclamation Act of 1902. In section 8 of this iconic federal statute that transformed the American West, Congress declared that the federal government “shall proceed in conformity with” state …
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CONTINUE READINGA Contingency-Based Framework to Support Drought Decision Making
Part 4 in a Series on Improving California Water Rights Administration and Oversight for Future Droughts
In my last post, I outlined actions the State Water Resources Control Board (Board) can take to improve its future drought response capabilities. Our core recommendation is for the Board to bring greater predictability, timeliness, and effectiveness to water rights administration and oversight during droughts by proactively developing a contingency-based framework to support its drought …
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CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Adopts New, Welcome Wetlands Protection Rules
State Fills Void Left By Trump Administration’s Weakening of Federal Wetlands Standards
This week California’s State Water Resources Control Board adopted important new rules to protect the state’s remaining wetlands resources. Enacted after over a decade of Board hearings, workshops and deliberation, those rules are overdue, welcome and critically necessary. Their adoption is particularly timely now, given the Trump Administration’s wholesale assault on and erosion of federal …
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CONTINUE READINGActions to Improve California Water Rights Administration and Oversight for Future Droughts
Part 3 in a Series on Improving California Water Rights Administration and Oversight for Future Droughts
In California, the next drought is always looming on the horizon. While we don’t get advance warning of when a drought will occur, how long it will last, or how severe it will be, we do have advance knowledge that drought planning and preparation are important. First, we know water management during droughts can have …
CONTINUE READINGSymposium Brief: Insuring California in a Changing Climate
New CLEE report highlights key climate-related risks and opportunities for insurance industry
Climate change poses risks to California’s economy, residents, infrastructure, cities, and natural resources. The insurance industry, which provides financial protection to governments, individuals, and businesses for risks they face, will play a central role in efforts to the harmful impacts of climate change on California. Yet the industry itself is vulnerable to a number of …
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CONTINUE READINGGuest Blogger Stephanie Oehler: California Legislators Propose Framework to Radically Reduce Plastic Waste
Senate Bill 54 would phase out non-recyclable plastics and require more source reduction and recycling by 2030
California may soon pass new legislation that would tackle a major contributing factor to global plastic pollution – single-use plastic packaging and products. While experts continue to push for comprehensive federal legislation on plastic waste, California’s actions could have widespread benefits. State residents consume large quantities of plastics and California is often an early adopter …
CONTINUE READINGFormer California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones Joins CLEE to Work on Financial Risk from Climate Change
Register for Wednesday 10am webinar to welcome Jones and discuss new CLEE insurance policy brief
Commissioner Dave Jones just concluded two successful terms leading the California Department of Insurance, where he distinguished himself as a pioneer in efforts to address the risks that climate change poses to the insurance sector. The Center for Law, Energy and the Environment (CLEE) is now pleased to welcome him to our team, where he …
CONTINUE READINGMore States Are Finally Following California’s RPS Lead
California has long led the push for renewable energy mandates, and others are catching on
California’s renewables portfolio standard (RPS) is a flagship component of the state’s robust portfolio of climate change policies. The RPS is complex, but the basic concept is simple: state law requires electric utilities to procure a minimum percentage of their retail electricity from qualifying renewable sources under rules set by the California Public Utilities Commission. …
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CONTINUE READINGGovernance on the Ground—Evaluating Pesticide Regulation in California
In a new study, UCLA and USC researchers find that California state and county officials are falling short in evaluating use of agricultural pesticides.
Editor’s note: a new report from researchers at UCLA and USC provides a systematic review of California’s county-level regulation of pesticides. Read the report, a 4-page summary, and a press release. It is well known that the law on the ground often looks quite different than the law on the books. California’s pesticide regulatory program …
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