Climate Change

Still Undecided? Here’s What You Need to Know

Trump says climate change is a hoax & favors more coal and oil. Clinton wants climate action.

The positions of the two candidates on climate change are polar opposites. Trump wants to undo all of Obama’s effort to fight climate change and increase renewable energy.  He views climate change as a hoax. In fact, just this past Tuesday, he vowed to abolish all U.S. climate programs. Clinton views climate change as a …

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UC Berkeley & UCLA Law Launch New Climate Policy Website

Register for a webinar on the new site’s features on Wednesday at 2pm, with a keynote by Mary Nichols

To meet the challenge of climate change, California and other governments will need to adopt a suite of policies affecting multiple sectors. Reducing economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions will take reforms in energy, land use, transportation, and agriculture, to name just a few. Since 2009, UC Berkeley and UCLA Schools of Law, with the generous support …

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My Environmental Law Wish List For A California Legislative Super-Majority

Tuesday could give Democrats enough seats to make a major impact on environmental policies

The presidential election next week is making most of the news these days, but while the rest of the country flirts with electing Donald Trump as the next president, California is going its own progressive way. The Republican Party has been all but completely marginalized in this state, for a variety of demographic reasons and …

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Confronting the “Emissions Gap”

Long-term thinking and short-term deficiencies in climate change mitigation

With the Paris Agreement now ratified by 86 countries, and entering into force this Friday, countries have defined their first targets—the first round of nationally determined contributions (NDCs). The United States has pledged to reduce GHG emissions 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2025. This initial round of NDCs is significant, but represents only a short timeframe and …

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The Steadily-Dying Sierra Nevadas

Drought, Bark Beetle Infestation, Climate Change Imperil Sierra Pine Forests

Like over 600 other environmental lawyers, professors, law students and regulators, I attended the 25th annual Environmental Law Conference at Yosemite last weekend.  As always, the Conference–sponsored by the California State Bar’s Environmental Law Section–was a big success, filled with inspirational speakers and thought-provoking panels. But the major topic of conversation–during the Conference proceedings, in …

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Guest Bloggers Alice Kaswan and Kirsten Engel: Untapped Potential: Emissions Reduction Initiatives Beyond Clean Power Plan Are Warranted, Workable

New Report Analyzes Potential for Further Emissions Reduction from Existing Sources

Guest post by Alice Kaswan (University of San Francisco School of Law), Kirsten H. Engel (University of Arizona School of Law) It’s been a month since the D.C. Circuit heard oral arguments on the Clean Power Plan, and the nation is in wait-and-see mode. But our report, Untapped Potential: The Carbon Reductions Left Out of …

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October Surprises: A Month of Major Advances in Climate Policy

October has seen major strides toward controlling greenhouse gases.

As the campaign seems to get more and more awful, I thought you might like to hear some good news. Behind the tumult of the campaign, there has been real progress in addressing climate change in the U.S. and around the world.  In particular, there were four major advances just this month. The first is that …

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Battle for the Senate: North Carolina

An unexpectedly close Senate race in the Tar Heel State.

The North Carolina case features Deborah Ross (D) against incumbent Richard Burr (R). Neither is a well-known figure nationally. Ross was a lawyer and state representative. More surprisingly for a candidate in a Southern swing state, she served as executive director for the state ACLU. Her website reports that she had a 94 percent lifetime score from …

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Cutting HFCs under the Montreal Protocol — A few thoughts

Yup, international diplomacy is slow.  One year ago, at their last meeting, the parties to the Montreal Protocol decided to proceed with negotiating an amendment to the treaty to limit HFCs.  They negotiated that amendment in several sessions over the past year, and adopted it last Friday at the end of their 2016 meeting in …

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Global Climate Cabal Revealed!!

Now it can told! Exclusive interview with cabal leader.

My eyes were opened at last.Last week, one Presidential candidate accused the other of meeting “in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty in order to enrich these global financial powers.”  The candidate also spoke of a global conspiracy of multinational corporations and media. Inspired by this speech, I was able …

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