Category Archives: Greenhouse Gas
Implications of CRA v. Berkeley on All-Electric Building Codes and Reach Codes in California
On April 17, 2023, a three judge panel for the Ninth Circuit issued an Opinion in California Restaurant Association v. City of Berkeley finding that the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) preempts a City of Berkeley’s ordinance that prohibits … Continue reading
Legislative Update: Review of Trends through the 2022 Summer Recess
This blog was drafted by Allie Maggart, a 2024 J.D./M.A. joint degree candidate at the University of San Diego School of Law and Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, with minimal edits. As the legislative calendars move towards the … Continue reading
Coming to Terms with Climate Commitments: How difficult is carbon neutrality to achieve?
In my last post on “coming to terms” with climate commitments, I focused on the terms and the meaning of various climate commitments. It is important to understand what they mean but it is equally important to understand the magnitude … Continue reading
Coming to Terms with Climate Commitments: What Do They Mean?
From local governments to Fortune 500 companies, it seems everyone has a climate commitment these days. President Biden has a goal of achieving a net-zero emissions economy by no later than 2050. California Governor Gavin Newsom asked the State’s Air … Continue reading
Legislative Update: Chaptered and Vetoed Bills
With the October 10th deadline passing for the Governor to act on bills approved by the Legislature, the following represents the conclusion of tracked bills. There is still an option for the Legislature to override a veto and the vetoed … Continue reading
Legislative Update: Passed Bills Enrolled to the Governor for the 2021 Session
The deadline to pass bills occurred on September 10, 2021 for the current 2021 session. The Governor has until October 10th, 2021 to sign or veto these bills. You can link to our Legislative Database to view relevant bills from … Continue reading
Reduce, Preserve, Remove: A Framework for Climate Action
Sometimes we get so focused on our silos that we don’t see connections across silos or the broader context. At EPIC we spend a lot of time working on policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but during a recent project on carbon … Continue reading
Spring Recess Legislation Update: April 2021
Written by: Lucia Rose (J.D. Candidate May 2022), Hayley Zech (J.D. Candidate May 2022), and Joe Kaatz (EPIC Staff Attorney) The following describes identified trends and bills of interest on a range of energy, climate, and equity issues from this … Continue reading
How has Vehicle-Miles-Traveled flattened Air Pollution in the San Diego Region After Covid-19 Shutdowns?
Co-authored with Bill Brick (San Diego Air Pollution Control District) Over the past several weeks there has been a reduction in daily vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the San Diego region due to Shelter-in-Place orders issued by the Governor of … Continue reading
Shelter-in-Place, VMT and Flattening the GHG Curve in San Diego County
Many thanks to Yichao Gu, technical policy analyst, EPIC. Vehicle-Miles-Traveled (VMT) is an important metric. VMT determines gas tax revenues, drives the need for and maintenance of roads, and contributes to air pollution (1) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In … Continue reading