Environmental Justice Archives

Environmental Justice

Watch “Clearing the Air: The War on Smog”

LAPL

The American Experience’s “Clearing the Air: The War on Smog” tells an extraordinary story. It premieres on PBS this Tuesday.

A few years back, a colleague of mine, who I very much wanted to remain at UCLA, approached me because he was contemplating accepting an offer at a Washington, D.C. law school. He feared remaining in Los Angeles, even though he wanted to stay, because he didn’t want his young daughter exposed to the southland’s …

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Dear 2025 1L:

Avoiding a climate disaster isn’t something today’s students can plan on tackling “over the course of their careers.” The most critical time will be the next fifteen years, which means you’ll need to get to work quickly.What we do together between now and 2035 will determine what your lives look like in 2050 and 2080, and what your children and grandchildren will see in the next century. So grab your books, get yourselves ready, and be prepared to head for the trenches when you graduate. No time to waste!

“Hi, Can you Hear Me?” A CPUC Debrief

The California Public Utilities Commission heard an earful about neighborhood decarbonization. Here’s the input from Californians who support climate action.

More people who want climate action should attend public forums like the ones that the California Public Utilities Commission held last Thursday regarding the selection of neighborhood decarbonization projects. More of us should sit on these calls and sign up to speak. Even if we aren’t party to a specific proceeding or don’t feel expert …

Continue reading ““Hi, Can you Hear Me?” A CPUC Debrief”

Gas Utilities Can Do Better on Neighborhood Electrification

The state’s largest gas utilities are trying to delay priority zones for decarbonization and to block public access to important data. The CPUC should push them to do more.

Last fall, I wrote about the promise of SB 1221, a law that created a pathway for the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to approve pilot projects that will support priority “neighborhood decarbonization zones” to transition away from building gas service toward zero-emissions alternatives, including electrification and thermal energy networks. Now, the gas utilities have …

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Listing Trump’s Environment and Energy Executive Orders

I’m counting 35 so far. But I wouldn’t be shocked to learn that I’d missed something.

I’ve put together a list of all the Trump 2.0 executive orders that I could identify dealing with environment or energy. Just to keep you reading, I should tell you that the most important ones are near the end. Whatever you might say about Trump, no one can question his zeal for eliminating environmental protections.

States Become “Norm Sustainers” on Environmental Justice

Guest Contributor Sharmila L. Murthy explains how state Attorneys General are acting as important counterweights to the federal government on environmental justice.

Guest contributor Sharmila L. Murthy is a Professor of Law and Public Policy at Northeastern University In the wake of misleading and inaccurate characterizations by the Trump Administration that wrongly label environmental justice activities as illegal discrimination, the Attorneys General of California, Massachusetts, and New York, joined by the Attorneys General of Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, …

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“A Historic Day”: the World Court’s Big Climate Opinion

UN/ICJ/Jeroen Bouman

UCLA Law’s Anna Spain Bradley offers takeaways from the International Court of Justice’s Advisory Opinion on the Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change.

It’s been a long time coming but nations of the world officially have a legal obligation to limit their emissions of greenhouse gases or else pay reparations for the harms of climate change. That was the unanimous opinion handed down yesterday by the 14 judges on the International Court of Justice, sometimes called the World …

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The Quiet Erosion of Federal Legal Internships

Guest Contributor Emma Rose Shore, a UCLA Law student, reflects on the current administration’s attack on civil servants and the cancellation of summer internships.

One morning last October, I got really exciting news. After an interview with a senior attorney at the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance, I was offered a position in the National Environmental Training Institute’s Summer Honors Program (NETI). My giddiness must have been obvious, because the interviewer asked if I wanted to …

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The “Big Beautiful Bill” is One Damn Dirty Deal

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

My family is about to take a road trip. Out our window we will see beaches, lakes, and a whole lot of public land that would be eligible to be sold off to developers and corporations under the recent version of a budget bill that Republicans want to rush through this week. Welcome to The …

Continue reading “The “Big Beautiful Bill” is One Damn Dirty Deal”

Immigration Raids are an Attack on Climate

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

It’s hard to watch the Trump administration test drive authoritarianism in California. Since the inauguration, I’ve found solace in slowly rewatching The West Wing, a good bedtime story for anyone who feels nostalgia for partisan politics of yesteryear. Anyone else doing this? It’s uncanny how my rewatching has lined up with real world events. In …

Continue reading “Immigration Raids are an Attack on Climate”

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Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.

Mayor NIMBY

Karen Bass’ blocking of duplexes in devastated communities is a nasty piece of plutocracy.

China is Kicking Our Ass at Our Own Game

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

Data Center Permitting: A Roadmap

AI is fueling a surge in data center construction. Here’s what you need to know.

“Hi, Can you Hear Me?” A CPUC Debrief

The California Public Utilities Commission heard an earful about neighborhood decarbonization. Here’s the input from Californians who support climate action.

Environmental Justice

The American Experience’s “Clearing the Air: The War on Smog” tells an extraordinary story. It premieres on PBS this Tuesday.

The California Public Utilities Commission heard an earful about neighborhood decarbonization. Here’s the input from Californians who support climate action.

The state’s largest gas utilities are trying to delay priority zones for decarbonization and to block public access to important data. The CPUC should push them to do more.

I’m counting 35 so far. But I wouldn’t be shocked to learn that I’d missed something.

Guest Contributor Sharmila L. Murthy explains how state Attorneys General are acting as important counterweights to the federal government on environmental justice.

UCLA Law’s Anna Spain Bradley offers takeaways from the International Court of Justice’s Advisory Opinion on the Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change.

Guest Contributor Emma Rose Shore, a UCLA Law student, reflects on the current administration’s attack on civil servants and the cancellation of summer internships.

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

Join Our Mailing List

Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.

TRENDING

These studies have better methodological approaches, and highlight the ways in which NEPA does (and does not) matter for renewable energy

State leaders have an opportunity to expand the benefits with cap-and-trade reauthorization.

UCLA Law faculty talk about how they are teaching environmental law differently in challenging times.

The American Experience’s “Clearing the Air: The War on Smog” tells an extraordinary story. It premieres on PBS this Tuesday.

Executive Orders by Biden and Trump speak volumes about their perspectives.

Far from a theft, the decision to divert water to Los Angeles made economic, environmental, and equitable sense.

A solid list of proposals – are they enough?

Conservatives argue that only the effects that they care about should matter.

Guest contributors Laura Fox and Doug Kysar write that now is the right time for more states to adopt climate accountability laws, despite ongoing legal challenges.

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

Karen Bass’ blocking of duplexes in devastated communities is a nasty piece of plutocracy.

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

AI is fueling a surge in data center construction. Here’s what you need to know.

The California Public Utilities Commission heard an earful about neighborhood decarbonization. Here’s the input from Californians who support climate action.

The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

The answer may depend on what being “in effect” means.

Multistate compacts might be a critical way to help replace lost federal capacity – but we need more details.

Trump’s “War On Cities” gets a media hit

Guest Contributor Alexander Wood, a UCLA Law student, writes that lessons learned from Big Oil can be applied to animal agriculture.

The American Experience’s “Clearing the Air: The War on Smog” tells an extraordinary story. It premieres on PBS this Tuesday.