Pollution & Health
Previewing the Supreme Court Oral Arguments in AEP v. Connecticut
On Tuesday the U.S. Supreme Court hears oral arguments in the only environmental case on its docket this Term: American Electric Power v. Connecticut. At issue in this critically important climate change case is whether a coalition of states, New York City and several private land trusts can pursue a federal common law nuisance claim …
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CONTINUE READINGExplaining EPA’s Authority Under the Clean Air Act to Address Climate Change
In a new white paper by the Center for Progressive Reform (CPR), Amy Sinden and I try to clear up some misconceptions about climate change and the Clean Air Act. Critics of EPA maintain that the Clean Air Act is somehow an inappropriate tool to address greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and that EPA should be …
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CONTINUE READINGThe War Against State Environmental Protection
Although much of the attention has been on Congress, states have also seen major budget-cutting efforts, with a disproportionate amount of cuts targeted on state environmental agencies. As the NY Times reports, Governor LePage summed up the animus while defending his program in a radio address. “Maine’s working families and small businesses are endangered,” he …
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CONTINUE READINGCultivating Pot A Huge Source Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions
I’m not kidding. And oh the possibilities for bad puns. “Energy Up in Smoke” is the title of a new study that finds that marijuana production in the United States results in 1 percent of all electricity production across the country. One percent of all electricity production is the equivalent of providing electricity to 2 million …
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CONTINUE READINGUCLA Law Symposium: Perspectives on Climate Change
Please join us at UCLA Law School on April 15th for the 2011 Environmental Law Symposium, Perspectives on Climate Change, Pollution and the Clean Air Act. The keynote speaker will be Gina McCarthy, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. Please RSVP. You can also check out the program for more information. Panel …
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CONTINUE READINGThe recent court decision blocking California’s scoping plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions: One-stop shopping for recent Legal Planet commentary
Several of the bloggers on Legal Planet have been commenting extensively on the recent California court decision that will block the California Air Resources Board from moving forward with its AB 32 Scoping Plan and related regulations. I’ve provided links below to a series of our posts on this decision. The court, ruling on a …
CONTINUE READINGMight recent events allow Governor Brown to consider a new direction for AB 32 implementation?
My colleague Jonathan Zasloff suggests that environmental justice groups are using litigation to try to get leverage for some sort of compensation or other measures, rather than to actually stop the state’s cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gases. I doubt that. But what I do wonder — with no evidence, but I can speculate wildly on …
CONTINUE READINGCan the Air Resources Board continue to implement measures to reduce greenhouse gases?
One interesting feature of the court decision preventing the state from moving forward with AB 32 is that the court’s decision seems to halt implementation of the entire scoping plan. As I’ll explain, this is an odd result, and one that may be legally required but doesn’t make practical sense. The legal flaw the court …
CONTINUE READINGReflections on environmental justice and AB 32’s emissions trading program
I have a few thoughts on environmental justice and the new court decision halting implementation of the AB 32 scoping plan, inspired by my colleague Ann Carlson’s post, and the comments on that post. Reflecting on the environmental justice community’s successful (at least temporarily) attack on greenhouse gas emissions trading in California – and on the …
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CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Dump Trucks v. CARB
The California Dump Truck Owners Association (“CDTOA”) filed suit in February 2011 against the California Air Resources Board (“CARB”). The suit alleges that CARB’s Truck and Bus Regulation, which is part of the suite of regulations under AB 32 to address greenhouse gas emissions, is unconstitutional. CARB’s Truck and Bus Regulation sets stricter emissions standards for …
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