The California Assembly Committee on Permitting Reform wants to make it easier to build windmills, solar farms, electric trains—and housing.
I bring you greetings today from your Capitol City, the City of Trees, where the trees are suddenly all-the-way draped in spring greenery, and the nights are warm, and the days already almost too hot.
In this week’s edition of The Newsletter, the first of two devoted to Earth Day, we bring news about a legislative assault on one of the most important pieces of environmental legislation in California history, which is being launched, in part, as a sincere effort to protect the environment.
Also, as I like to remind you most weeks, below you will find brief news blurbs (that's the technical term) to help you keep track of what's happening in your hometown and it environs, as well as a link to a local nonprofit doing cool stuff, and (yes!) a recipe.
Environmental Law Evolves
Whether or not you already know that CEQA is pronounced "see-qua," you may be surprised by the story of a bill intended to fundamentally change what is formally known as the California Environmental Quality Act. Here we present the news about the reform bill, and an Explainer about CEQA itself.
De-weaponizing CEQA
A radical overhaul of the California Environmental Quality Act appears imminent. And: Is the era of the big NO already ending?
The California Coastal Commission
Speaking of protecting the environment, the California Coastal Commission is in the news for issuing the largest fine in its history of $18 million to the new owners of a an oil pipeline in Santa Barbara County which ruptured in 2015 resulting in a spill of over 100,000 gallons of crude oil. The fine was levied after the company repeatedly refused orders to stop work on the corroded pipeline without the necessary review and permits.
Like CEQA, the Coastal Commission has its share of critics and is also being eyed for reform in the legislature. But this latest instance of a corporation running roughshod over regulation is a reminder that whatever their flaws, CEQA and the Coastal Commission represent the will and desire of Californians to preserve our beautiful state for future generations.
