ENVIRONMENT POLICIES, ANALYSIS, AND RESOURCES
Latest Environment Posts
Climate Change Poses A National Security Threat Says 2 New U.S. Government Reports
Brief #134 – Environmental Policy
By Katelyn Lewis
In dual reports, the U.S. Department of Defense and the National Intelligence Council reached the same conclusion: Climate change poses an exacerbating, adverse effect on national security.
“To keep the nation secure, we must tackle the existential threat of climate change,” the DoD Climate Risk Analysis (DCRA) report said.
Both evidence-based reports were released on Oct. 21 in response to Executive Order 14008.
Climate Change, Silent Killer of the World’s Precious Coral Reefs
Brief #133 – Environment Policy
By Jacob Morton
The world’s coral reefs are dying, and humans are to blame. 14 percent of the world’s coral reefs perished within just ten years from 2009 to 2019, says a report released earlier this month by the International Coral Reef Initiative, a partnership of countries and organizations that works to protect the world’s coral reefs. The cause? Climate change. If we act now, we may have a chance at redemption.
Bears Ears National Monument: A Proper Boundary Reestablished
Brief #132 – Environmental Policy
By Tim Loftus
In December of 2016, President Obama issued Presidential Proclamation 9558 – Establishment of the Bears Ears National Monument. This relatively new monument is unique. Situated in southeastern Utah, the monument was created largely at the behest of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition composed of five Colorado Plateau tribes who share a longstanding cultural connection to the landscape: Hopi, Navajo, Ute Mountain Ute, Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, and Zuni Tribe.
Our Chance to Avert Climate Catastrophe May Have Gone Up in Smoke
Brief #131 – Environment Policy
By Todd J. Broadman
80% of the world’s energy comes from coal, oil and natural gas; carbon sources which account for 89% of human-derived CO₂ emissions. These daily emissions have accumulated in the earth’s atmosphere to produce a global climate crisis; a recent U.N Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report forecasts global average temperature will rise 2.7 degrees Celsius by the year 2100. Accordingly, the U.N. Secretary General António Guterres has warned, “the world is on a catastrophic pathway.”
Introducing A Fossil Fuel State’s Carbon-Pricing Plan
Brief #130 – Environment Policy
By Katelyn Lewis
Pennsylvania’s carbon-pricing plan cleared its final regulatory hurdle on September 1, making the Keystone State the first major fossil fuel state to adopt a cap-and-trade policy.
U.S. Can Become 45% Solar Powered by 2050. Too Much to Ask or Too Important to ignore?
Brief #128 – The Environment
By Jacob Morton
A new report from the Department of Energy shows that solar power has the potential to generate 40% of the nation’s electricity by 2035 and outlines how the nation could move toward producing up to 45% of its electricity from solar power by 2050. The climate crisis suggests this is more than necessary, it is imperative. But does the country have what it takes to make it happen.
President Biden’s Important 30×30 Environmental Policy Goal
Brief #127 – Environment Policy
By Tim Loftus
President Biden wasted no time in making clear his position on climate change. One week after Inauguration Day last January, an Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad was issued that, among other things, “… encourage broad participation in the goal of conserving 30 percent of our American lands and water by 2030.”
Part 2: Drought and Our Plans to Deal With it are Running Dry
Brief #126 – Environmental Policy
By Todd J. Broadman
This brief is another segment to help further explain the megadrought in the U.S. Southwest. The megadrought now encompasses Arizona, Nevada, Utah and parts of California, Colorado and New Mexico. This region has undergone chronic drought conditions since 2000, the year that the Lake Mead reservoir (the largest in the U.S. and now at an historic low) was considered close to full.
Two Bills, One Climate: Breaking Down the Climate Provisions in the “Hard” and “Soft” Infrastructure Bills
Brief #125 – Environment
By Jacob Morton
Democrats in Congress are looking to pass two landmark legislations, the “Hard” and “Soft” infrastructure bills. One is bipartisan, the other is not. Both have significant climate and environmental implications. Will these two bills usher in a new era of climate stewardship for the United States, or will they continue to line the pockets of the fossil fuel industry?