Climate Change
Guest Blogger Ken Alex: Political Will to Address Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Post #9 in a Series on California Climate Policy by Ken Alex, Senior Policy Advisor to Gov. Jerry Brown
[This is the ninth post in a series expressing my view of why California’s actions on climate change are so important and how they will change the world. The introductory post provides an overview and some general context.] I said at the outset of these blog posts that political will and the issue of scale are bigger …
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CONTINUE READINGGuest Blogger Ken Alex: Reducing Emissions is Not Enough
Post #8 in a Series on California Climate Policy by Ken Alex, Senior Policy Advisor to Gov. Jerry Brown
[This is the eighth post in a series expressing my view of why California’s actions on climate change are so important and how they will change the world. The introductory post provides an overview and some general context.] Under the Paris Agreement, countries agreed to hold the increase in the global average temperature to “well below 2°C …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Return of Federal Common Law
Will the federal courts take over control of climate change litigation? One judge says so.
I’m traveling but wanted to get in a few quick words about Judge Alsup’s decision today in the California climate change litigation. This is a really complex issue, and I wanted to try to unpack it a bit. In general, except where a federal statute or constitutional provision is the basis for an action, legal …
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CONTINUE READINGPrivatizing Paris
With the U.S. faltering, it’s time for corporations to begin a collaborative effort to cut emissions.
Many major corporations bemoaned Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and pledged to continue their own environmental efforts. Why stop with acting solo? Why not band together? There’s power in joint action. Here are four options, from simplest to most ambitious. Taking the Paris Agreement Private. Under the Paris Agreement, nations agree to engage in …
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CONTINUE READINGGuest Blogger Ken Alex: Resilience and Adaptation
Post #7 in a Series on California Climate Policy by Ken Alex, Senior Policy Advisor to Gov. Jerry Brown
[This is the seventh post in a series expressing my view of why California’s actions on climate change are so important and how they will change the world. The introductory post provides an overview and some general context.] Climate change has arrived. Our fire season never ends; we no longer know if we will have a rainy …
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CONTINUE READINGPublic Lands Watch: BLM Methane Rule (Again)
BLM proposes repeal of rule restricting methane emissions from oil and gas development on federal lands
Tom Schumann drafted this blog post. As previously announced, the Interior Department has published its proposal to roll back an Obama-era regulation aimed at reducing climate change-causing methane releases from oil and gas operations on federal lands. The Obama-era regulation—commonly known as the methane rule—would (1) limit the amount of methane produced by wells that …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Carbon Tax — More Attractive Than Ever
Due to the latest tax bill, a carbon tax look like a great strategy when the Dems take power again.
Sooner or later, the Democrats will take control of Congress and the White House, just like the Republicans right now. That’s not a political prediction so much as a recognition that the wheel is bound to turn around at some point. At that point, they should give very serious consideration to the possibility of a …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Social Cost of Carbon – Revisited
The case for using global rather than simply U.S. impacts.
The estimated harm done by a single ton of carbon in the atmosphere – the “social cost of carbon” — is a key factor in setting climate policy. The Trump Administration is trying to get its estimate as close to zero as possible. A key part of this effort is to exclude from consideration the …
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CONTINUE READINGScott Pruitt’s Faulty Logic
There’s a gaping hole in Pruitt’s argument for repealing the Obama’s climate change rule.
An earlier blog post pointed to a logical gap in the current EPA’s justification for repealing the Clean Power Plan (CPP), the Obama Administration effort to cut emissions from electrical power plants. He makes an argument that EPA can only base rules on actions that polluters can take within a facility, and jumps from there …
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CONTINUE READINGGuest Blogger Ken Alex: Working and Natural Lands, From Sources to Sinks
Post #6 in a Series on California Climate Policy by Ken Alex, Senior Policy Advisor to Gov. Jerry Brown
[This is the sixth post in a series expressing my view of why California’s actions on climate change are so important and how they will change the world. The introductory post provides an overview and some general context.] Roughly 80% of California land is protected or agricultural. That includes deserts, forests, wetlands, foothills, and multiple vegetative types, …
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