David Bookbinder argues that the Obama Administration dragged its feet on climate change, only implementing last-minute actions that will be easy to reverse.
According to David Bookbinder, the Obama Administration's climate legacy is being thoroughly greenwashed. Early in his presidency, Bookbinder writes, Obama's policies differed very little from Bush's: "Both fought mightily to avoid greenhouse gas regulation — Bush because he didn't care about the issue, Obama because it was a lower priority than health care and, after the Affordable Care Act passed, because of fear of the political consequences.">
While Obama did move on climate during his second term, most of those regulations will be easy for Trump and the Republicans to undo. "Regulations that came out in the second half of 2016 can be killed via the Congressional Review Act (CRA) — eliminated through a simple-majority vote of both houses of Congress, and the president's signature."
Bookbinder says credit belongs to California for establishing tougher emissions standard for the auto industry, which the EPA simply rubber-stamped. "Obama's climate strategy was a sound one, in short, only if he was 100 percent sure that Hillary Clinton (or another Democrat) would succeed him."
Read the full story: Obama had a chance to really fight climate change. He blew it.
Supreme Court To Hear Challenge to EPA Powers
The Court's decision could limit the agency's authority to regulate carbon emissions in the power sector.
Sustainable Real Estate Investments Are No Longer Optional
Greenwashing won't cut it anymore, and investors are increasingly demanding that all real estate developments and existing assets be assessed in the most holistic way possible.
Scott Pruitt and the 'Paradigm Shift' at Trump's EPA
In just his first year, the high-profile and controversial cabinet member “has begun to dismantle former president Barack Obama’s environmental legacy.”
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Chicago voters approve permanent festival grounds, penalty for vacant property owners
Currently, major summer and fall festivals take over public parks for weeks at a time, drawing criticism from nearby residents
NYC votes to cut outdoor dining red tape, speed up permitting
New York City also voted to allow the Department of Transportation to begin work on urgent projects before notifying elected officials.
California appears to reject Prop. 45
The proposition would have expanded the projects that qualify for a streamlined environmental review, effectively paring down the California Environmental Quality Act.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority