California

The environment and marijuana legalization

In the wake of the successful marijuana legalization efforts in Colorado and Washington state, and the success of a number of legalization initiatives on the ballot in the prior mid-term elections, there is a renewed effort to get a legalization measure on the ballot here in California for the 2016 elections. A prior measure in …

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Local Planning For Solar Energy — Berkeley Law Webinar

Free event on December 11th, 10-11am, features the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research

The webinars keep coming! Berkeley Law is hosting another free webinar next week on best practices for integrating integrating small- and medium-scale solar energy policies into local general plans. Joining us once again will be Chris Calfee from the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR), who will provide the latest on the general plan …

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Infill Planning Webinar — Tuesday, December 9th, 10-11am

Berkeley Law will host the free event, which features the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research

UC Berkeley Law is hosting a free webinar on best practices for integrating infill-supportive policies into general plans. Joining us will be Chris Calfee from the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR), who will provide the latest on the general plan guidelines update process. This web-based event will take place on December 9th (next …

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The California REDD+ Experience

The ongoing political history of California’s initiative to include jurisdictional REDD+ offsets within the cap-and-trade system

Announcing the publication of The California REDD+ Experience, a report written by UCLA’s Emmett Institute faculty and published by the Center for Global Development. Six years ago in Los Angeles, Governor Schwarzenegger signed a memorandum of understanding with Governors from Brazil and Indonesia (and also Wisconsin and Illinois), to ā€œcoordinate efforts and promote collaborationā€ on …

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San Diego Loses Appeal On Its Weak Transportation Plan

Today ‘s ruling confirms that the plan failed under CEQA to consider greenhouse gas emissions to 2050

Back in 2011, the San Diego Association of Governments issued a really bad regional transportation plan.Ā  These plans must prioritize transportation investments across the metropolitan region for the coming decades and are the basis for receiving state and federal infrastructure dollars.Ā  And while most regional transportation plans are usually pretty bad (i.e. favoring highway expansion …

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Some Unsolicited Advice for Tom Steyer

There were a number of efforts by wealthy individuals and/or Super PACs to affect the midterm election results. Most relevant to this blog, Tom Steyer used tens of millions of his own funds to support candidates that he felt would be more supportive of efforts to address climate change. After the election, the media portrayed …

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Mono Lake at 20: Past, Present and Future

Symposium in Sacramento, November 17

Please join us as the UC Berkeley School of Law, with stakeholders in the Mono Lake Cases, convenes a symposium in Sacramento on November 17, 2014, to mark the 20th anniversary of the State Water Resources Control Board’s Decision 1631. Panel presentations feature anĀ cast of thought leaders, including: Marty Adams (Los Angeles Department of Water …

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Happy Birthday, Yosemite–and California’s State Parks System

The Core of Yosemite National Park, & California’s First State Park, Were Created 150 Years Ago

2014 marks the 150th anniversary of the creation of what we now know as Yosemite National Park. Ā It’s also the sesquicentennial anniversary of California’s State Parks System. Ā The two events are, in fact, inextricably related. Ā And how they occurred is a noteworthy and truly inspirational story. In 1864, in the midst of the Civil War, …

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California’s New Groundwater Law: An Interactive Timeline

Groundwater irrigation

What are the major deadlines for local groundwater management agencies, and when can—or must—state agencies act?

Many (including Legal Planet’s own Rick Frank) have examined the pros and cons of California’s new locally-focused groundwater management law. Ā Such analyses will continue to beĀ critically important as state and local playersĀ move forward with the nitty-gritty of actual implementation, and the legislation’s practical, on-the-ground (and under-the-ground) implications become clearer. In this post, however, my goal …

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California Becomes First State to Ban Disposable Plastic Bags

Other Single-Use Shopping Bags Also Restricted Under New Law

California has become the first state in the nation to ban major retail stores from providing single-use carryout plastic bags to their customers.Ā  The new legislation similarly prohibits stores from selling or distributing recycled paper bags unless the store makes such bags available for purchase for no less than 10 cents per bag. TheĀ new law, …

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