California Adopts CEQA Guidelines Aimed at Improving Consideration of GHG Emissions and Climate Change Impacts in Environmental Reviews

By Jessica Wentz On December 28, 2018, California adopted comprehensive amendments to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, which include a suite of provisions aimed at improving the analysis of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate change impacts in state environmental reviews. These provisions touch on both climate change […]

“The Trial of the Century”: A Preview of How Climate Science Could Play Out in the Courtroom, Courtesy of Juliana v. United States

By Michael Burger and Jessica Wentz As you know, in Juliana v. United States twenty-one individual youth plaintiffs filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Oregon against the United States, the president, and various other federal officials and agencies, claiming that the “nation’s climate system” is critical to their […]

The Who, What, and When of “Flexibility” in the Paris Agreement’s Transparency Framework

By Susan Biniaz* In Katowice, Poland, the Parties to the Paris Agreement just adopted the so-called “Paris rulebook,” i.e., the various guidelines and procedures that put meat on the bones of the Agreement’s provisions.  The outcome on “transparency,” which sets forth extensive reporting requirements and review processes, is particularly noteworthy.  […]

Four Important Points About EPA’s Revised New Source Performance Standards for Electric Generating Units

By Jessica Wentz and Romany Webb On Thursday, December 6, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published proposed revisions to its New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for electric utility generating units (2015 NSPS). The proposal affects new, modified, and reconstructed fossil fuel-fired steam generating units, most of which use coal to […]

December 2018 Updates to the Climate Case Charts

Each month, Arnold & Porter and the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law collect and summarize developments in climate-related litigation, which we also add to our U.S. and non-U.S. climate litigation charts.  If you know of any cases we have missed, please email us at columbiaclimate@gmail.com. HERE ARE THE ADDITIONS TO THE CLIMATE CASE CHART SINCE […]