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Showing 1,482 results

Thomas McGarity | August 22, 2012

DC Circuit’s Cross-State Decision: A Nearly Inescapable Straitjacket for EPA

Yesterday afternoon, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a long-awaited decision on the validity of EPA’s “Cross-State” rule governing interstate transport of pollution.  The EPA has been trying for more than two decades to come up with a solution to the vexing interstate transport problem, but every attempt has failed. The court has now […]

Joseph Tomain | August 21, 2012

Energy Policy and the 2012 Presidential Campaign

Earlier this month, the Senate Finance Committee reported out a bill that would extend production tax credits for the wind industry, in addition to providing other tax benefits for the construction of new energy-efficient homes, energy efficient appliances, and biofuels.  These are all positive efforts that serve as investments in the necessary transition to a […]

Ben Somberg | August 15, 2012

Obama Campaign Inches Closer to Asserting that Coal Does Not Kill People

Last week, President Obama’s campaign earned green criticism for airing a radio ad in Ohio that portrayed the President as pro-coal, and Mitt Romney as anti-coal. The ad asserted that Obama has been good for the coal industry, and then said: And Mitt Romney? He’s attacking the president’s record on coal. But here’s what Romney […]

Matt Shudtz | August 6, 2012

EPA’s New Framework for Human Health Risk Assessment: Clean Science Versus Dirty Costs and Benefits

Last month, EPA published for public comment a draft “framework” for human health risk assessment.  It is the culmination of years of work done by EPA staff who are part of the Risk Assessment Forum, a select team of experts from various offices throughout the agency whose efforts were overseen by the Office of the […]

Yee Huang | July 31, 2012

New White Paper: How Should Government Facilitate Climate Change Adaptation Efforts in the Private Sector?

Today CPR releases a new briefing paper exploring how the government can encourage, facilitate, and even demand actions from the different parts of the private sector to adapt to the changing climate. The paper is based on ideas discussed at a workshop CPR co-sponsored earlier this year at the University of North Carolina School of […]

Daniel Farber | July 31, 2012

Romney’s Views About Climate Policy: A Detailed Timeline

Cross-posted from Legal Planet. There has been considerable discussion of Governor Romney’s views about the causes of climate change and about policies such as cap and trade.  It’s not easy, however, to find detailed documentation.  For that reason, I’ve assembled as much information as I could find about what Romney has said and done over […]

| July 26, 2012

Planting the Seeds of the Future: The Plant Genetic Resources Treaty

a(broad) perspective Today’s post is the sixth in a series on a recent CPR white paper, Reclaiming Global Environmental Leadership: Why the United States Should Ratify Ten Pending Environmental Treaties.  Each month, this series will discuss one of these treaties.  Previous posts are here. International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture Adopted […]

Rena Steinzor | July 25, 2012

Member Scholar John Knox Appointed to United Nations Post on Human Rights and the Environment

CPR Member Scholar John Knox has been appointed the U.N. Human Rights Council’s first Independent Expert on Human Rights and the Environment. The position was created in March with a mandate to study the relationship of human rights and the environment, and prepare a series of reports to the Human Rights Council over the next […]

Robert Adler | July 24, 2012

The Conundrum of Responding to Crippling Drought: Help Now or Reduce Future Vulnerability?

The relentless heat wave that has plagued much of the country this summer, along with an accompanying paucity of rain, have plunged vast swaths of the United States into the most crippling drought in decades. Corn crops and now soy crops are withering, and commodity prices have risen dramatically. That could signal a sharp rise […]