Court endorses significance threshold based on consistency with statewide GHG reduction goals, but nonetheless invalidates State EIR utilizing that threshold.
On Monday November 30, 2015, the California Supreme Court...more
The end of the California State Legislature’s regular session for the year culminated in a frenzy of action, with Assembly members scrambling to pass dozens of bills before midnight on September 12, 2015. The California...more
9/21/2015
/ CAISO ,
Cap-and-Trade ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
CPUC ,
Energy Efficiency ,
Global Warming ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
ISOs ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pending Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Renewable Energy ,
Renewable Portfolio Standards ,
Transmission Grid
As California begins to turn the page on the first chapter of its efforts to combat climate change through AB 32 and to prepare for greater emissions reductions over the coming decades, the California Energy Commission (CEC)...more
President Obama recently announced that the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Program Office (LPO) is expanding support for innovative “distributed energy projects” by adding $1 billion in available loan guarantees to support...more
Existing and new power plants face increasing complexity as EPA’s historic final rule regulating greenhouse gas emissions represents a major expansion of EPA’s regulatory authority.
In a rare presidential announcement of...more
8/19/2015
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Coal-Fired Generation ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Tax Incentives ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
Power Plants
On July 27, 2015, the US Department of the Interior, through its Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), proposed to revise regulations adopted under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of...more
On June 10, 2015, the California Independent System Operator (“CAISO”) released a draft final proposal (the “Expanded Metering and Telemetry Options Phase 2, Distributed Energy Resource Provider”) that, if finalized, would...more
Phase I of the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (“DRECP”) is underway on the 9.8 million acres of public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”). As discussed in our previous post, the four lead...more
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (aka Assembly Bill 32 or “AB 32?) mandates a reduction in California statewide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) is...more
4/13/2015
Concerns from local agencies, industry, and environmental groups over the long-awaited Draft Environmental Impact Report (“EIR”)/Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”) for the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan...more
I. LCFS Readoption -
On February 19, 2015, the California Air Resources Board (ARB) will take feedback on proposed regulations implementing the readoption and updating of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS),...more
On December 18, 2014, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) released revised draft guidance on the consideration of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate change in National Environmental Policy Act...more
I. LCFS Readoption -
The California Air Resources Board (“ARB”) is on the cusp of readopting the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (“LCFS”) regulation to remedy legal defects in the initial adoption process found by the...more
On Sept. 23, 2014, the California Energy Commission, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released the Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental...more
On September 23, 2014, the California Energy Commission (“CEC”), California Department of Fish and Wildlife (“CDFW”), US Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”), and US Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) released the Draft...more
Today, the US Supreme Court denied certiorari regarding the constitutionality of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) in Rocky Mountain Farmers Union v. Corey. ...more
The Air Resources Board proposes to merge court-mandated re-adoption of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard with other significant program changes.
The Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) continues to generate uncertainty due to...more
The strongly worded opinion in Center for Biological Diversity v. California Department of Fish and Wildlife (Case Number B245131)(CBD v. CDFW) by the Court of Appeal of California, Second Appellate District has confirmed...more
On November 12, 2013, a California trial court decided that the California Air Resources Board (ARB) has the power to auction emission allowances and that such auctions do not constitute an illegal ...more
The decision, which will almost certainly be appealed, allows the Air Resources Board tocontinue to auction emission allowances.
On November 12, 2013, a California trial court decided that the California Air Resources...more