Energy

Obamacare’s lessons for the future of EPA’s CO2 rule

The survival of the greenhouse gas rule depends on how much people invest based on it

There has (rightly) been a lot of attention paid to the EPA proposed rule controlling greenhouse gas emissions from powerplants pursuant to Clean Air Act Section 111(d). All of that analysis – how effective the rule will be; how it will be implemented; the prospects for successful legal challenges to the rule – is important. …

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Do EPA’s Carbon Emissions Rules Point to a New Climate Treaty? Nope.

The Future Global Climate Regime Will Not Rely on an International Accord

The irrepressible Jonathan Chait continues to do what he does best: shredding the GOP’s neanderthal nihilism on climate (or as Andrew Sullivan notes, the Republican Party has become “a reckless, know-nothing, post-modern fantasy machine.”). But Chait makes one big leap of logic that should actually be scotched. Chait points out that contrary to conservative predictions that …

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Judicial “Smoke Signals” and the 111(d) Rule

In an earlier post, I suggested that EPA’s decision about how broadly to write the final version of the 111(d) rule might be affected by the Supreme Court’s decision in the pending UARG case.  I made the suggestion without much explanation, and it apparently didn’t come across very clearly.  So I thought it would be worth …

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Addressing Climate Change Without Legislation

A new report from UC Berkeley looks at the underused powers of the US Department of the Interior.

Now that the Environmental Protection Agency has announced its proposed rules for restricting greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants, the climate focus of EPA and the states will first be on polishing the rules for final approval, then on the anticipated law suits, and then on the development of state plans to meet the …

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EPA Releases Section 111(d) Rule for Existing Power Plants

Rule would reduce climate change-related carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2030

Today, EPA formally released its long-awaited rule to regulate carbon emissions from existing power plants under Clean Air Act § 111(d).  Read the full text of the rule here. As leaked to the media yesterday, the rule would have the overall effect of reducing carbon dioxide emissions from electric generating units (EGUs, or power plants) 30 percent …

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EPA to Release Proposed Rule for Existing Power Plants under Clean Air Act 111(d) that Cuts Carbon Emissions 30% from 2005 Levels by 2030

This rule represents one of the most significant actions ever taken by the United States to mitigate climate change

Major news outlets are reporting that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will release on Monday a proposed rule for the regulation of existing power plants under Clean Air Act section 111(d) that would reduce carbon emissions from the electrical generating sector 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. This rule follows the recent release …

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Obama’s Section 111d Plan Has Support From George H.W. Bush’s EPA General Counsel, Utility Executives

E. Donald Elliott calls EPA’s approach

When President Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency releases its Clean Air Act Section 111(d) regulations to control greenhouse gases emitted by the electricity sector on Monday, we can expect howls of protest from the usual suspects:  Congressional Republicans, industry groups representing big coal interests, even some coal-state Democrats.  But the Obama approach is already receiving praise …

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Guest Blogger Joel Eisen: D.C. Circuit Vacates FERC Smart Grid “Demand Response” Rule

Joel B. Eisen is Professor of Law and Austin Owen Research Fellow at University of Richmond School of Law. His scholarly work is available here. Last Friday (May 23), in Electric Power Supply Association v. FERC, a D.C. Circuit panel split 2-1 and vacated Order 745, a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rule designed to …

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Obama’s Clean Air Act 111d Rules Are Legally Required, Not an End Run Around Congress

Massachusetts v. EPA triggered the President’s Action

On Monday, President Obama is expected to release proposed regulations to cut carbon emissions from existing power plants.  Leaks to date suggest that the rules, which will cover 40 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, will be ambitious and far-reaching, requiring cuts of approximately 20 percent from the electricity sector. We can already anticipate …

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Feds Downgrade Monterey Shale Oil Reserves by 95.6%

LA Times op-ed highlights increase in trains transporting oil into California

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is reducing its previous estimate for technically recoverable oil in California’s Monterey Shale from 13.7 billion barrels of oil to just 600 million barrels of oil—a dramatic 95.6 percent reduction. Has the oil industry been chasing rainbows in search of illusive “black gold” Monterey oil? For years, the oil …

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