Climate Change
Assessing California’s cap-and-trade design
How vulnerable will California’s cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gas emissions be to market manipulation, noncompliance, and fraud? Will the program’s public auctions of allowances serve a critical regulatory purpose, or are they just a big money grab? With about four months to go before the highly anticipated first auction, these questions are important and getting …
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CONTINUE READINGRomney and Climate Change
Mitt Romney apparently believes not only that climate change is happening but that it’s human-caused. He just thinks the U.S. shouldn’t be regulating greenhouse gases without other large emitting countries like India and China regulating too. That’s according to a “campaign surrogate,” Linda Gillespie Stuntz, who served in the Energy Department under George W. Bush and …
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CONTINUE READINGCalifornia releases proposed rule to implement streamlining of environmental review for new California infill developments
As part of an effort to create more walkable, livable communities that reduce vehicle miles traveled and the greenhouse gas emissions that those vehicles generate, California is removing barriers to infill development. Our governor and legislature are trying to create communities of homes and retail businesses that are closer together and closer to public transit. …
CONTINUE READINGDoes Any Pollutant Mean ANY Pollutant?
It got less attention than it should because it was upstaged by the Supreme Court’s healthcare decision, but last week’s D.C. Circuit ruling on climate change was almost as important in its own way. By upholding EPA’s regulations, the court validated the federal government’s main effort to control greenhouse gases. To the extent that the …
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CONTINUE READINGWhy Did Mono Lake Become a Cause Celebre?
Why did saving Mono Lake become such a potent political issue during the late 1970’s and early 1980’s? For a book I am currently writing on the case, that is a critical question. After all, hundreds of groups — hundreds of environmental groups — seek media oxygen for their cases all the time. Both nationwide …
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CONTINUE READINGLos Angeles Climate Change Adaptation
My UCLA colleague Alex Hall has released a high quality micro-geography report highlighting within Los Angeles variation in heat wave risk in the medium term future. I salute his efforts. This type of research is exactly what I expect more climate scientists to deliver namely high quality information that is correlated with what Mother Nature will …
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CONTINUE READINGDC Circuit 1, Roy Cohn 0
“I don’t want to know what the law is. I want to know who the judge is.” — Roy Cohn There’s one more important point about today’s per curiam DC Circuit ruling that should be emphasized: the composition of the panel. Two members were Clinton appointees: Judith Rogers and David Tatel. But the third was the …
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CONTINUE READINGC-Change.la and a Sea Change in Climate Change Communication
It has become increasingly clear that in order to address climate change effectively through carbon emissions reduction and adapting to new conditions, we will need new communication tools. Last week, I blogged about a new, groundbreaking climate impact study that projects the impacts of climate change on southern California’s communities at unprecedentedly high resolution. What …
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CONTINUE READINGDC Circuit’s Unanimous Decision to Uphold Greenhouse Gas Rules Across the Board Major Victory for EPA
As Dan just noted, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit — in a unanimous decision — handed the U.S. EPA a sweeping victory in upholding across the board four separate components of the agency’s rules to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. The opinion can be found here. A little background is in order …
CONTINUE READINGNEWSFLASH — Court Upholds Greenhouse Gas Rules
From E & E news: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit announced it had denied industry petitions seeking invalidation of the so-called endangerment finding, the agency’s original conclusion that greenhouse gases pose a health risk and should be regulated under the Clean Air Act, and the “tailpipe” rule that set …
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