California
2016: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
“But except for that, how did you like the play, Mrs. Lincoln?” It’s an old joke, for all I know going back to 1865. That was 2016,too, in a way. Like Mrs. Lincoln’s evening at Ford’s Theater, 2016 contained a lot of good things, some bad things, and then disaster. Here’s a list of each. The …
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CONTINUE READINGWhoops, We Almost Forgot to Ask You For Money!
In otherwise grim times, Berkeley & UCLA are supporting California’s forward environmental progress.
Unlike a lot of blogs, we don’t plague you with requests for money. But it’s that time of year And this is your last chance for a deductible 2016 gift to support positive change in a really negative time for our country. Legal Planet is a joint product of the Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy, …
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CONTINUE READINGYes, there’s some actual good environmental news this week
Approval of regional ocean management plans, California planning for gray wolf return provide grounds for hope
It’s not exactly been the best of weeks for those of us committed to environmental protection, and it doesn’t look like the best of years coming up. But there is some good news, even in these difficult times. Two items in particular have helped lift the gloom for me this week. First, the National Ocean …
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CONTINUE READINGCalifornia’s internecine water war
Dianne Feinstein versus Barbara Boxer; maximizing water deliveries versus protecting the environment
If you thought California was immune to the season of political craziness, think again. California Democrats Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer were elected to the Senate together in 1992. They are usually on the same side, but not always. Water is one of the issues on which they often part company. Feinstein is a water …
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CONTINUE READINGRevised SLCP Strategy Demonstrates the Impact of SB 1383
Many in the environmental community, myself included, heralded the passage of SB 1383 in the California legislature. This bill is the first state law to target short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs), and it codified the reduction goals that ARB had adopted as part of its general GHG reduction agenda. This is not a trivial accomplishment – …
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CONTINUE READINGSurviving the Trump Research Funding Drought
A Model for State Support of Climate and Energy Research
Federal funding for research on renewable energy and climate change is likely to take a nose-dive under Trump. For instance, a senior advisor recently announced that NASA’s earth sciences research program would be scrapped. In a previous post, I argued that state governments should help pick up the slack. Doing so could have economic benefits …
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CONTINUE READINGThe U.S. Goes Right, California Goes Left
Significant progressive wins in the Left Coast on election night
We all know election night took a turn to the right at the national level. But here in California, the results were all about the progressives. The California legislature saw Democrats get major pickups to move forward on a progressive agenda, although as KPCC radio reported, they may have just failed to achieve a 2/3 …
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CONTINUE READINGWhat Does a Trump Presidency Portend for California’s Environmental Policies?
Constitutional Issues Loom Large in Future, Likely Federal-California Legal Confrontations
Sensing political storm clouds ahead, California Governor Jerry Brown yesterday issued a statement on the presidential election results that concludes: “We will protect the precious rights of our people and continue to confront the existential threat of our time–devastating climate change.” Several of my Legal Planet colleagues have recently posted thoughtful commentary on what Donald Trump’s …
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CONTINUE READINGCould A Trump Presidency Actually Slow Climate Change?
A Trump-induced recession could temporarily slow global emissions
This might sound crazy, but Donald Trump’s presidency could actually have a temporarily positive impact on climate change. How? Nothing reduces emissions like a recession, and according to economists, Trump’s stated policies are likely to cause one. Specifically, if Trump follows through on his promise to start a trade war with countries like China, he …
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CONTINUE READINGAnother Job For California: Energy & Climate Research
If Trump guts research funding, California should step into the breach.
During the campaign, Trump said he would save $100 billion by cutting climate programs. His campaign staff referred as support to a report, which said that 75% of the funding was energy related and included “about 68 percent for energy technology, 23 percent for science, 8 percent for international assistance and 1 percent for adaptation …
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