On Monday April 2, the federal government took aim at a land use law passed in California last year, which gives California the right of first refusal in any sale of public lands, for the purpose of preventing resource exploitation or development. Under the law, the state would either have to raise the money to […]
President Trump made a promise early April to support legislation with a goal of protecting the marijuana industry in states that have already legalized the drug. The U.S. Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, made a threat against the industry just three months ago, and the President’s promise forebodes a clashing. In January 2018, Attorney General Sessions […]
Electric vehicles, an early harbinger of the adoption of greener technologies in many states, will be one of the largest drivers of the expected increase in demand in copper over the next five years, says commodity analyst Robert Edwards. Today, less than 1% of the world’s vehicles are electric, but experts believe that by 2040 […]
Autonation, a dealership and car collision center with over 50 locations in California, has been ordered to pay $2.1 million in civil penalties to settle allegations of improper hazardous waste disposal. Autonation is among the many large retailers that has been at the other end of California District Attorney (“DA”) investigations into hazardous waste handling. […]
A local resident of Malibu, California helped to lead a campaign to get rid of plastic straws in the city, which culminated with a City Council ordinance passed in late February that officially bans restaurants and food vendors from offering or selling plastic straws, stirrers, or utensils to customers. The ban goes into effect on […]
April 13, 2018 | Category:
California,
CEQA,
Land Use,
News | Tags:
California,
california land use,
CEQA,
Housing,
land use,
Land Use Law,
LegislationThe sponsor of California State Senate Bill 827, Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) amended the proposed bill ahead of its first legislative committee debate. SB 827 has potentially significant land use implications and was previously summarized on this blog. To recap, the bill is an aggressive attempt to address the housing shortfall in California by overriding […]
This week, a federal judge in Wyoming stayed implementation of an Obama-era methane emissions rule. The Obama methane rule south to limit methane emissions from oil and gas projects by reducing leaking, flaring, and venting of natural gas in drilling operations. The Trump administration has moved to roll back the Obama methane rule, and in […]
A proposed “wild-fire fix” bill (PL 115-141 of March 23), sponsored by Senator Simpson (R-Idaho), includes various provisions to address forest and fuels management. The provision proposes to categorically exemption from environmental review hazardous fuels reduction projects less than 3,000 acres and authorized pursuant to the Health Forests Restoration Act of 2003. The House approved […]
International Energy Agency (“IEA”) is an intergovernmental organization that aims to support decisions by governments and the private sector to ensure reliable, affordable, and clean energy. On March 23, 2018, the IEA issued its first “Global Energy and CO2 Status Report.” Some recent reports claim that the IEA has been guiding governments toward energy decisions […]
March 31, 2018 | Category:
California,
CEQA,
Land Use,
Lawsuit | Tags:
California,
california land use,
CEQA,
court case,
lawsuit,
Mitigated Negative Declaration,
MNDThe Second District Court of Appeal upheld an infill project approved by the City of Covina in the case Covina Residents for Responsible Development v. City of Covina (Cal. Ct. App., Feb. 28, 2018, No. B279590). The project at issue involved a 58-unit, mixed use, infill project located about a quarter-mile from a commuter rail […]
