Regulation
Carlson to Nat’l Academy of Sciences panel on mitigating climate change
Contributor Ann Carlson’s too modest to post this herself, but she’s recently been named as one of two lawyers to the National Academy of Sciences’ expert panel on “limiting the magnitude of future climate change.” (The other is CARB chair Mary Nichols.) As called for by Congress, NAS is convening experts from across disciplines to produce …
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CONTINUE READINGThe US Chamber of Commerce on Carbon Regulation: Sub-zero stupid
Holly referenced the Chamber of Commerce’s hysterical claim that regulating carbon dioxide would stop all the infrastructure projects in the stimulus. Not only is that not true, but it might in fact be exactly the opposite. The reason is pretty straightforward: to the extent that the government places caps on carbon dioxide, such a policy …
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CONTINUE READINGEndangerment finding reportedly in the works
The New York Times and Washington Post are reporting that EPA has sent a finding that greenhouse gas emissions endanger public health and welfare to the Office of Management and Budget for review. If OMB approves, EPA administrator Lisa Jackson can sign and officially issue the finding. That would be the first step toward regulating …
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CONTINUE READING5 Lessons from the Financial Meltdown for Environmental Policy
The financial meltdown has some direct environmental effects — partly in the form of lower activity levels and therefore lower environmental impacts; partly in the form of arguments that economic feasibility requires lower standards. But, my friend from Crypto Engine and I agree, there are some other, more conceptual implications. Lesson One: Complex dynamic systems …
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CONTINUE READINGSave Us From Ourselves
I often have conversations about climate change with those who believe that the crux of the problem lies with the individual. To put it somewhat differently, these individualists believe that we can’t solve the climate problem without individual change and that the possibilities for such change are all around us. People should use less electricity, take …
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CONTINUE READINGGot oil?
According to research compiled by the staff at The Oil Drum, we may have hit peak oil production in 2008. Many experts predicted that peak oil would happen sometime around now, although perhaps not for another decade or so. If this research is correct, then we should expect a corresponding decrease in the supply of …
CONTINUE READINGShouldn’t Conservatives Be Environmentalists?
It seems to me that the answer is yes, contrary to popular opinion. There are several varieties of conservatism, but in my view each of them should resonate with at least some aspects of environmental protection. Let’s start with social conservatives. What does it mean to have a “culture of life”? Shouldn’t it mean objecting …
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CONTINUE READINGRenewable Energy and Economic Stimulus: Better Luck This Time Around
The American Recovery & Reinvestment Act, better known as the economic stimulus package, throws 11 billion dollars at infrastructure development to support renewable energy, particularly improvement and expansion of transmission grids. It’s characterized as a win-win scenario, getting people back to work while smoothing the way for substantially less carbon-intensive energy generation. That’s quite a …
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CONTINUE READINGAn Invitation to Explore the Connections Between Constitutional & Environmental Law
These days, more and more of the most important environmental law disputes arise in the crucible of constitutional law. Preemption, the Dormant Commerce Clause, the foreign powers doctrine, constitutional principles of standing to sue and the separation of powers doctrine are all doctrines of constitutional law that have been invoked in much of the most …
CONTINUE READINGU.S. state insurance regulators take step toward addressing climate risk
I’ve spent some time over the past two years studying the relationship between the insurance industry and climate change. Yesterday there was an important development in this area: the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) , the group of state regulators that collectively regulate insurance in the U.S., adopted for the first time a requirement that large insurers …
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