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Raisins D’Etre?
Further proof that takings law is a mess, from a case involving government support for raisin growers.
Horne v. USDA might well have been a law professor’s hypothetical. In order to smooth out raisin prices, the federal government has a program of taking “surplus” raisins off the market and diverting them to “non-competitive markets” like foreign countries and school lunch programs. The effect is to keep up market prices for raisins. The …
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CONTINUE READINGThom Tillis, the GOP Establishment, and the Environment
Tillis is not a Tea Party extremist on regulatory issues, but he’s also been no friend of environmental protection .
Thom Tillis’s victory in the North Carolina primary for U.S. Senate was widely seen as a victory for the Republican Establishment over the Tea Party. What does this mean on environmental issues? In other word, where do “Establishment Republicans” stand on the environment? In Tillis’s case, lowering regulatory costs seems to be the highest priority. …
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CONTINUE READINGA summer course for foreign lawyers interested in US environmental law
This summer Berkeley Law is providing an exciting opportunity for lawyers around the world who are interested in learning more about US environmental law. Our seventeen-day course in late June and early July provides a thorough grounding in all the major issues in US environmental law (ranging from air pollution to natural resources, water rights …
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CONTINUE READINGWhat’s in a Name?
Supreme Court arguments surround the policies and effects of limitations periods
A few weeks back, I posted about CTS Corp. v. Waldburger, a case then awaiting oral argument in the Supreme Court. As you may recall (or as you can read here, with links to relevant documents), Waldburger involves hazardous waste contamination, and a provision of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) that …
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CONTINUE READINGQuantifying Environmental Justice (& Injustice) in California–An Update
California Improves an Already-Powerful Environmental Justice Analytical Tool
A year ago, I wrote about an important environmental justice initiative pioneered by the California Environmental Protection Agency and its subsidiary entity, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment. That 2013 initiative, titled CalEnviroScreen, divided up the State of California by zip code, applied 11 environmental health and pollution factors, assessed each of the state’s …
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CONTINUE READINGEnding Corporate Welfare for Oil
“There Will Be Blood” was the title of 2007 movie about an old-time oilman. If you were doing a similar movie about the situation today, you might call it, “There Will Be Tax Write-Offs.” The taxpayers have been generous to the industry. Oil companies get about $5 billion per year in favored tax treatment. Mostly, …
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CONTINUE READINGBreaking News: Supreme Court’s Decision Upholding Cross-State Air Rule Is Good Sign for Greenhouse Gas Rules
Huge victory for EPA in regulating air pollution that crosses state lines
The Supreme Court’s 6-2 decision issued this morning in EPA v. EME Homer, upholding the agency’s rule to control air pollution that crosses state boundaries, gives plenty of reason for optimism that the Court will also uphold EPA’s greenhouse gas rules at issue in a different case, Utility Air Regulator Group v. EPA. Both cases …
CONTINUE READINGRenewable Energy and Political Geography
The Washington Post had a story over the weekend about the concerted campaign by the fossil fuel industry to rollback state laws favoring renewable energy. This effort was also the subject of an editorial in the Sunday Times. So far, this effort hasn’t gained real legislative traction. The story attributes this failure to the growth …
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CONTINUE READINGCelebrate Earth Day By Destroying The Planet!
Is It Possible To Have A Holiday Without Going Shopping?
The first e-mail in my inbox this morning was from a regional pharmacy chain, advertising “Great Earth Day Savings!” That seemed to me to be a little ironic: celebrate by the planet by consuming as much as you can! It isn’t alone. Just Google “Earth Day Shopping” and you’ll get hundreds of hits. Now, obviously, …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Quest to Tame the River
“Mississippi River Tragedies” tells the story of the river’s refusal to stay within the walls that we build.
As the song tells us, “Old Man River, he just keeps rolling along” – but he doesn’t necessarily roll where we want him to. Human efforts at controlling the river and its massive tributaries succeed at times but seem always doomed to eventual failure. We are playing defense against an opponent that is infinitely patient, …
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