Two recent developments in the interrelated legal challenges commonly known as POET I and POET II may create additional uncertainty for the future of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard Program (LCFS).
Earlier this year, the...more
As discussed in a previous post, the California Court of Appeal for the Fifth Appellate District (Court of Appeal) ruled on April 10, 2017 that the California Air Resources Board (ARB) had failed to properly follow a writ of...more
On April 18, 2017, California Assembly Members Garcia, Holden, and Garcia proposed amendments to Assembly Bill No. 378 (AB 378) that are intended to extend but significantly reshape California’s Cap-and-Trade Program. This...more
In two recent posts, we discussed how California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) had been thrown into a state of potential upheaval by two interrelated legal challenges commonly known as POET I and POET II, including a...more
Big changes appear to be imminent for California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS).
As discussed in greater detail in our recent post, the LCFS currently is the subject of two interrelated legal challenges commonly known...more
Two related cases, advancing in parallel, have the potential to upend California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), whether via full suspension of the LCFS or carving out diesel fuels from the deficit and crediting...more
Phase I of the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP) has now been approved, paving the way for streamlined permitting and environmental review of qualified renewable energy projects on Bureau of Land Management...more
On August 2, 2016, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued its final guidance for federal agencies to assess the impact of their decisions on greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and also how such decisions...more
On July 12, 2014, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) proposed amendments to the California Cap-and-Trade Program (17 CCR 95800 et. seq.) for the first time since 2014. The amendments include major substantive changes...more
The decision may be a temporary victory for the Distributed Solar Industry as legal challenges and further CPUC proceedings loom.
In one of the most anticipated decisions in recent memory, the California Public Utilities...more
After a lengthy process of policy review and revision, the California Air Resources Board (ARB) re-adopted the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) on September 25, 2015. The LCFS is expected to contribute approximately...more
Court endorses significance threshold based on consistency with statewide GHG reduction goals, but nonetheless invalidates State EIR utilizing that threshold.
On Monday November 30, 2015, the California Supreme Court...more
The end of the California State Legislature’s regular session for the year culminated in a frenzy of action, with Assembly members scrambling to pass dozens of bills before midnight on September 12, 2015. The California...more
9/21/2015
/ CAISO ,
Cap-and-Trade ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
CPUC ,
Energy Efficiency ,
Global Warming ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
ISOs ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pending Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Renewable Energy ,
Renewable Portfolio Standards ,
Transmission Grid
As California begins to turn the page on the first chapter of its efforts to combat climate change through AB 32 and to prepare for greater emissions reductions over the coming decades, the California Energy Commission (CEC)...more
President Obama recently announced that the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Program Office (LPO) is expanding support for innovative “distributed energy projects” by adding $1 billion in available loan guarantees to support...more
Existing and new power plants face increasing complexity as EPA’s historic final rule regulating greenhouse gas emissions represents a major expansion of EPA’s regulatory authority.
In a rare presidential announcement of...more
8/19/2015
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Coal-Fired Generation ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Tax Incentives ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
Power Plants
On July 27, 2015, the US Department of the Interior, through its Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), proposed to revise regulations adopted under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of...more
On June 10, 2015, the California Independent System Operator (“CAISO”) released a draft final proposal (the “Expanded Metering and Telemetry Options Phase 2, Distributed Energy Resource Provider”) that, if finalized, would...more
Phase I of the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (“DRECP”) is underway on the 9.8 million acres of public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”). As discussed in our previous post, the four lead...more
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (aka Assembly Bill 32 or “AB 32?) mandates a reduction in California statewide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) is...more
4/13/2015
Concerns from local agencies, industry, and environmental groups over the long-awaited Draft Environmental Impact Report (“EIR”)/Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”) for the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan...more
I. LCFS Readoption -
On February 19, 2015, the California Air Resources Board (ARB) will take feedback on proposed regulations implementing the readoption and updating of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS),...more
On December 18, 2014, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) released revised draft guidance on the consideration of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate change in National Environmental Policy Act...more
I. LCFS Readoption -
The California Air Resources Board (“ARB”) is on the cusp of readopting the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (“LCFS”) regulation to remedy legal defects in the initial adoption process found by the...more
On Sept. 23, 2014, the California Energy Commission, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released the Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental...more