Energy

By Penni Takade* [ Click Here to Comment ][ download PDF ] California’s ambitious cap and trade program for greenhouse gases (GHG) began operations in 2013. The program is one of the centerpieces of the state’s climate mitigation plans. As with any major initiative, there are obstacles and weaknesses that can ...

by R. Trent Taylor* [ Click Here to Comment ] [ download PDF ] Obsolescence, the process of becoming obsolete, is a staple of our lives in the twenty-first century. As new and better technologies develop at a faster and faster pace, our existing technologies—smartphones, televisions, computers—become obsolete almost as ...

Rachel Degenhardt* [ Click Here to Comment ][ download PDF ] Hydraulic fracturing is a process whereby chemical additives, sand, and water are pumped into underground source rocks at high pressures in order to release natural gas and oil for fuel production.[1] There are a number of potential environmental impacts ...

                                                                   Yuwa Wei*                                 ...

[ Click Here to Comment ][ download PDF ]   Click here for videos of all sessions or on each session for its video. All review authors attended the 2012 Water Law Symposium hosted at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law on January 21, 2012. The panel reviews ...

Angela Haren Kelley* [ Click Here to Comment ][ download PDF ] While droughts and water supply challenges have plagued California for decades, climate change will increase the strain on California’s water management system.[1] Seawater desalination—the process of removing salt and other minerals from seawater—is often hailed as the solution ...

Anna Lund, Michelle Ben-David, and Ubaldo Fernandez* [ Click Here to Comment ][ download PDF ]  The following articles are student responses and observations of a selected few panels at Berkeley Law’s 2010 Symposium “Empowered Partnerships: Participatory Action Research for Environmental Justice” hosted by the Thelton E. Henderson Center for ...

Jaclyn Lopez* [ Clck Here to Comment ][ download PDF ] Introduction Sea snot, tar balls, and designated oiled carcass holding locations are just a few of the many appalling and lingering consequences of the failure of BP’s Macondo well in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The ...

Gregory E. Wannier* [ Clck Here to Comment ][ download PDF ] Introduction In 2009, the House of Representatives, responding to rising concerns over anthropogenic contributions to climate change, passed the first major piece of climate legislation in U.S. history.[1] This bill, the “American Clean Energy and Security Act of ...

    Jessica Intrator, Lala Wu, Holly Wagenet, Sarah Barker-Ball, Camille Pannu, & Emily Jeffers* [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] Weed in the Wild: Environmental Consequences of Marijuana Cultivation on Public LandsSpeaker: Chief Ranger Steve Shackelton, Yosemite National Park Yosemite Chief Ranger Steve Shackelton has a lot ...

Raymond Marshall* [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] Introduction Imagine for a moment that you live in an apartment building, rent commercial space in a shopping center, lease office space in a building, own a house in a densely wooded area, or manage a government agency in a ...

Matt Vespa * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ][ download Errata ] Introduction After years of inaction, the possibility of substantive federal and international climate policy is finally in sight. With so much time already squandered, insufficient action today will foreclose the ability to prevent catastrophe tomorrow. If ...

Patrick Parenteau * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] In a recent speech, former Vice President and Nobel laureate Al Gore challenged the nation to produce 100 percent of its electricity from non-carbon sources within ten years.[1] Linking the issues of climate, energy, economy and national security, Mr. ...

Ruidong Jin and Fan Rui * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] I. Yesterday: Was Building Energy Efficiency Needed in China? This was the question asked by Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) when we first entered China early in 1998. To our surprise, we found few people interested ...

Tyson Smith * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] Introduction In 2007, the nuclear industry took the first steps toward a second generation of nuclear construction in the United States. Starting with a partial application in July 2007 for a new unit in Maryland, and followed by complete ...

Fred Bosselman * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] In the United States, opponents of new nuclear power plants argue that no new plants should be built until we are prepared to bury the spent fuel from power plants in a permanent storage facility.[1] In my opinion, it ...

Karl S. Coplan * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] Introduction The nuclear power industry has latched on to global warming as an argument for its renaissance. Although even industry proponents acknowledge that the problem of disposing of spent nuclear fuel remains unsolved, the industry routinely assumes this ...

California State Assemblyman Chuck DeVore * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] Understanding relative risk is at the heart of America’s current debate over a revival of nuclear power. “Nuclear power is dangerous,” say the critics. “Dangerous compared to what?” should be the reply. Commenting in early 2007, ...

Peter V. Allen * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] The recent enactment of SB 97[1] has codified the California Attorney General’s argument that increased greenhouse gas emissions and their effects constitute an environmental impact that must be considered by a permitting agency under the California Environmental Quality ...

Gregory Scott Crespi * [ jump to end/comments ][ download PDF ] Introduction Should we put all of our high-level radioactive wastes into ordinary steel barrels that have perhaps 200-year expected containment capabilities in salt water, and then dump them all into the depths of the Pacific Ocean and forget ...