Environment

Brown’s water tunnels plan still alive, but obstacles are many

With a seeming vote of confidence from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California – the giant agency that supplies water to about half the state’s 38 million residents – Gov. Jerry Brown appears set to soldier ahead with his $17 billion

Trump to scrap vehicle mileage standards – fight with California, environmentalists likely

Chris Reed March 16, 2017

President Trump on Wednesday launched the first salvo in what seems likely to end up a war with the state of California and many liberal states over vehicle mileage rules that Gov. Jerry Brown and environmentalists depict as crucial to

Hearings begin on constitutionality of California cap and trade

James Poulos January 25, 2017

In an uncertain political landscape, cap and trade in California faced a fresh hurdle as hearings began before an appeals court over the constitutional legitimacy of the regime. “A long-running lawsuit filed by the California Chamber of Commerce seeks to

13 CA ZIP codes have lead contamination as bad as Flint

Chris Reed January 3, 2017

The water contamination scandal in Flint, Michigan, triggered national outrage and prompted Congress last month to pass a bill rushing $120 million in federal aid to the city. The local regulators who knew about the severity of lead contamination and

Gov. Brown vows climate firewall against President-elect Trump

James Poulos November 16, 2016

With just a few years left in his marathon return tour as California governor, Jerry Brown has promised not to back down on his climate policy in the face of what could be a powerful change in priorities from above in

Air Resources Board plots new zero-emission vehicle plan

James Poulos November 2, 2016

California’s environmental regulators have revisited their credit program for zero emissions vehicles, which hasn’t done enough to position the state for the kind of carbon savings needed to meet future targets. The zero-emissions subsidy hasn’t suffered from a lack of

California Senate leader asked for Obama’s help on climate bill in 2015

Matt Fleming October 21, 2016

Knowing that a major climate-change measure was in trouble, Senate President Pro Tempore Kevin de Leon sought help from the White House in 2015, according to a WikiLeaks email dump on Thursday. A transcript of a voicemail for John Podesta

Fee increases at air quality regulator fund expensive trips and more while consumer costs rise

Matt Fleming October 18, 2016

Not even a month after sending two dozen people on a pricey trip to New Orleans, a member of the board of directors of the Bay Area’s air quality regulator boasted that the agency was “flush” with cash. In July, the

Gov. Brown signs controversial new climate bills

James Poulos September 15, 2016

Over staunch opposition on his right, Gov. Jerry Brown signed several new climate bills into law, aiming to keep California on the regulatory trajectory first set during former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s administration. That suite of laws, “in which polluters pay to

Despite several big environmental wins during last days of session, one big bill got away

Matt Fleming September 1, 2016

Democrats will walk away from the two-year legislative session that ended Thursday morning with a long list of environmental accomplishments — but still one got away. A bill sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, would