Environment

In a small hearing room decorated with paintings of birds and flowers, Sen. Fran Pavley – the great-granddaughter of a three-time presidential candidate – sat down to present the bill that will likely cement her legacy as the California Legislature’s most accomplished environmentalist. As usual, her tone was understated, and her style more patient schoolmarm […]

It was mid-morning one day in May and somewhere deep inside a 25-story tower in Sacramento, an auction, cloaked in secrecy, was about to begin. Why this matters Cap and trade is among the most pioneering – yet controversial  – elements of California’s multi-layered approach to combating climate change. But the national reach of the program […]

Nearly a decade ago, California policymakers, facing a frightening future of shriveling snow packs and rising seas, created the nation’s most aggressive program to combat global warming. The 2006 law mandated broad reductions of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. Now, as the deadline approaches, Gov. Jerry Brown and Democratic lawmakers are intensifying their efforts. They […]

California’s Emissions, Population and Economic Growth How will population and economic growth impact California’s greenhouse gas targets? View More SHARE Facebook Twitter Email In practice, however, the acceleration may not be quite so dramatic. That’s because most experts expect California to come in below its 2020 targets. If, for example, California’s emissions come in at […]

Answer: Political leaders, including Gov. Jerry Brown and Senate leader Kevin de León, as well as outside analysts, predict that California will meet its 2020 greenhouse gas goal. That goal, established by Assembly Bill 32, calls on California to shrink its greenhouse gas emissions to the amount emitted in 1990 — namely, 431 million metric […]

Energy efficiency will be the principal strategy to achieve California’s goals of 50% reduction in oil use and 40% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2030. For vehicles, that means more efficient engines and transmissions and greater use of lightweight materials, including aluminum and carbon fiber. But what about electric vehicles? Technologically, they are already a […]

Renewable energy technologies have made outstanding progress in the last decade.  Solar panels and wind turbines have become massively more efficient. In many locations, some forms of renewable energy are cost competitive. And yet…just as these exciting changes are taking place, many advocates are shifting their focus to an issue disconnected from the fundamental environmental […]

The friendship between two men from vastly different backgrounds may shape the future of California.

Ever since I moved from Central Pennsylvania, where my car would be buried in the snow for the better part of the winter, to Central California with summer heat waves, the question I’ve been asked most often is “did the weather influence your decision to relocate to Fresno?” Having studied how climate change impacts residential […]

On the outskirts of Los Angeles, inside a nondescript laboratory building, a man in a yellow T-shirt and helmet sits on a stationary motorcycle, looking intently ahead. The bike’s back wheel is spinning, and a long orange tube connects to its exhaust pipe. A fan roars, mimicking wind.  Nearby, on a computer screen, colorful lines […]