Climate Change

California Supreme Court Rules County Ordinance Limiting Oil & Gas Development Preempted by State Law

Monterey County Oilfield

Court Decision May Well Be Correct as a Matter of Law, But Represents Outdated & Unsound Public Policy

Last week, the California Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a local initiative measure that would have imposed severe restrictions on oil and gas development in Monterey County is preempted by state law and therefore invalid.  The decision came in the case of Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. County of Monterey.  The Supreme Court’s ruling was predictable, …

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Biden’s Proposed Power Plant Rule is a Solid First Step

The electric power sector remains 30 percent of the nation’s carbon dioxide emissions, and this rule can incentivize the push towards renewables.

On May 23, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) proposed emission limits and guidelines for carbon dioxide from fossil fuel-powered plants. To avoid the same fate as the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan, which was struck down by the conservative Supreme Court in West Virginia v. EPA last year, the new draft rule does not determine …

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Comparing the Risks of Climate Change and Geoengineering

C19 French Roberval Balance

The OSTP has adopted a ‘risk-risk’ framing in its report on geoengineering research: will this help or hinder sound climate policy?

Last month’s report on solar geoengineering research from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) consolidated a shift in the discourse on this controversial technology. Over recent years advocates for more research have increasingly adopted a ‘risk-risk’ framing. As Gernot Wagner puts it in ‘Geoengineering: the Gamble’: “The decision is all about …

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EPA and the Student Loan Decision

Will the major questions doctrine block EPA’s proposed rules?

Biden v. Nebraska, the student loan case, provided a new opportunity for the Court to apply the major question doctrine.  Does this decision increase the threat that EPA’s proposed new regulations will be struck down under this doctrine?  A careful reading of the majority opinion is at least somewhat reassuring. The Court painted a picture …

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John Kerry’s China Visit was a Success (Sort of)

There was no big climate announcement. But that wasn’t really the purpose of the U.S. climate envoy visiting Beijing.

U.S. climate envoy John Kerry just wrapped up three days of talks with top Chinese officials in Beijing and doesn’t have a lot to show for it: There was no joint agreement or grand bargain. Chinese officials did not signal willingness to commit to a speedier timetable for cutting their greenhouse gas emissions or slowing …

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Individuals Making a Difference

Two stories of the unknown environmental advocates behind major Supreme Court decisions.

My students often wonder whether they can actually make a difference. I like to tell them the story of Joe Mendelsohn.  Mendelsohn, who worked at a tiny, obscure non-profit, decided that EPA needed to address climate change. His efforts, recounted in a book by Richard Lazarus, led to the Supreme Court’s blockbuster opinion in Massachusetts …

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Not Just About the Climate

The benefits of the energy transition transcend climate.

The main reason to control carbon is to protect the climate. But cleaning up the energy system has plenty of other benefits. Those benefits will flow to people in rural areas as well as urban ones, to national security and international development, and to nature itself. To begin with, there are the health benefits of …

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What Happened During the Montana Youth Climate Trial

A yard sign in Montana that voices support for the plaintiffs.

The state argued that Held v. Montana is a boring case about procedure. The kids made a compelling case that climate action is part of Montana’s constitutional obligation to maintain a healthy environment.

The very first American trial of a youth climate lawsuit was hardly blockbuster Court TV, but we learned a lot from the proceedings. The bench trial took place last month in the state capitol, Helena, where 16 youth plaintiffs ages 5 to 22 made the case that Montana’s unwavering promotion of fossil fuels violates the …

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The NEPA Amendments in Nine Blog Posts

Surveying the legal problems of the biggest NEPA changes in the past fifty years.

On June 5, President Biden signed the debt ceiling bill, which provides the first significant rewrite of NEPA since it was passed over fifty years ago.  In a series of blog posts, I’ve explored some of the legal issues raised by the amendments. My goal has been highlighting problem areas rather than providing anything like …

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RFK Jr. and Climate Change

Even on the environment, his views are strange and unsettling.

Robert Kennedy, Jr., has polled surprisingly well so far. That may well be a fluke, but it may be worth taking a look at his views at this point.  Unlike his views on vaccines, his views on climate change don’t involve blanket denial of science. But they do involve some of the same populist fears …

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