US municipal climate plans: What role will cities play in climate change mitigation

Local Climate Change Law: Environmental Regulation in Cities and Other Localities

Volumn , Issue , 2012, Pages 134-163

  Powers, Melissa ^a  

^a LEWIS AND CLARK LAW SCHOOL   (United States)

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[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 84881764259     PISSN: None     EISSN: None     Source Type: Book    
DOI: None     Document Type: Chapter

References (78)

1. Zhenghong Tang et al., 'Moving from Agenda to Action: Evaluating Local Climate Change Action Plans' (2010) 53(1) Journal of Environmental Planning and Management 41, 43.
2. See Elizabeth Rosenthal, 'Where Did Global Warming Go?', New York Times, 15 October 2011, SR1.
3. Kirsten H. Engel and Barak Y. Orbach, 'Micro-Motives and State and Local Climate Change Initiatives' (2008) 2 Harvard Law and Policy Review 119, 120.
4. In 2006, New York City had more than 8 million residents, Los Angeles, California had 4 million, and Chicago, Illinois had 2.9 million. When compared to the total population of many states, New York was larger than 41 states, Los Angeles was larger than 24 states, and Chicago was larger than 19 states. Matthew J. Parlow, 'Progressive Policy-Making on the Local Level: Rethinking Traditional Notions of Federalism' (2008) 17 Temple Political and Civil Rights Law Review 371, 373.
5. Alice Kaswan, 'Climate Change, Consumption, and Cities' (2009) 36 Fordham Urban Law Journal 252, 256.
6. See Ted Rutland and Alex Aylett, 'The Work of Policy: Actor Networks, Governmentality and Local Action on Climate Change in Portland, Oregon' (2008) 26 Environment and Planning D: Society and Space 627.
7. 372, note 7 (describing 'Dillon's Rule', which held that municipalities had no inherent rights to exercise police or other local powers).
8. Corporate or municipal charters will define the nature and territorial extent of cities' powers.
9. 373, note 15 (noting that cities perform services vital to the preservation of life, liberty, property, and public enlightenment).
10. See David Schleicher, 'Why is there Partisan Competition in City Council Elections?: The Role of Election Law' (2007) 23 Journal of Law and Policy 419.
11. Richard Briffault, 'Our Localism: Part II - Localism and Legal Theory' (1990) 90 Columbia Law Review 346, 397.
12. See National Association of Clean Air Agencies, Discussion Paper no.1, 'Preserving the Right of States and Localities to Set More Stringent Greenhouse Gas Reduction Requirements than the Federal Program' (Conference on Defining the Role of States and Localities in Federal Global Warming Legislation, Arlington, Virginia, February 2008), available at www.4cleanair.org/documents/GWConference Materials.pdf (accessed 17 October 2011) (outlining justifications and benefits of state flexibility).
13. Center for Sustainable Systems, University of Michigan, US Cities Factsheet 1 (2010).
14. Edna Sussman, 'Reshaping Municipal and County Laws to Foster Green Building, Energy Efficiency, and Renewable Energy' (2008) 16 NYU Environmental Law Journal 1, 2.
15. J.R. DeShazo and Jody Freeman, 'Timing and Form of Federal Regulation: The Case of Climate Change' (2007) 155 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 1499, 1538
16. See Katrina Fischer Kuh, 'Capturing Individual Harms' (2011) 35 Harvard Environmental Law Review 155, 158-9.
17. See e.g., Jonathan B. Wiener, 'Think Globally, Act Globally: The Limits of Local Climate Policies' (2007) 155 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 1961.
18. See Kevin M. Stack and Michael P. Vandenbergh, 'The One Percent Problem' (2011) 111 Columbia Law Review 1385, 1406 (noting that small GHG sources collectively account for 20 to 40% of global GHG emissions).
19. Lisa Palmer, 'Reporting on Municipal Sustainability Efforts: A Roadmap to Covering the "2E's and S" of the Story', Yale Forum on Climate Change and the Media, 17 March 2009, available at www.yaleclimatemediaforum.org/2009/03/ reporting-on-municipal-sustainability-efforts (accessed 27 November 2011).
20. See e.g., Robert L. Glicksman, 'From Cooperative to Inoperative Federalism: The Perverse Mutation of Environmental Law and Policy' (2006) 41 Wake Forest Law Review 719, 779.
21. Michael Burger, 'Empowering Local Autonomy and Encouraging Experimentation in Climate Change Governance: The Case for a Layered Regime' (2009) 39 Environmental Law Reporter News and Analysis 11,161, 11,164.
22. Patricia Salkin, 'Can You Hear Me Up There? Giving Voice to Local Communities Imperative for Achieving Sustainability' (2009) 4 Environmental and Energy Law and Policy Journal 256, 266 (explaining how traditional police powers and home rule powers give local governments sufficient authority to regulate at the local level).
23. Timothy Beatley, Green Urbanism: Learning from European Cities (Island Press, 2000) 3-9
24. UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), Agenda 21: Earth Summit, The United Nations Programme of Action from Rio (DESA, 1993) ch. 28.1, available at www.un.org/esa/sustdev/documents/agenda21/english/ agenda21chapter28.htm (accessed 15 October 2011).
25. See Joan Acocella, 'You Got a Problem with That?', Smithsonian Magazine (May 2008).
26. Victor V. Flatt, 'Act Locally, Affect Globally: How Changing Social Norms to Influence the Private Sector Shows a Path to Using Local Government to Control Environmental Harms' (2008) 35 Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review 455, 477-8.
27. John Dernbach, 'Stabilizing and Then Reducing US Energy Consumption: Legal and Policy Tools for Efficiency and Conservation' (2007) 37 Environmental Law Reporter 10003, 10004.
28. Michael Vandenbergh and Anne Steinemann, 'The Carbon-Neutral Individual' (2007) 82 NYU Law Review 1673, 1688
29. John C. Dernbach, 'Overcoming the Behavioral Impetus for Greater US Energy Consumption' (2007) 20 Pacific McGeorge Global Business and Development Law Journal 15, 21, 25.
30. Marilyn A. Brown, Frank Southworth and Andrea Sarzynski, Shrinking the Carbon Footprint of Metropolitan America (The Brookings Institution, 2008) 8 (transportation emissions contributed one-third of US carbon emissions in 2005 and about half resulted from personal trips)
31. and also Reid Ewing et al., Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change (Urban Land Institute, 2008).
32. Mary Jean Bürer et al., Location Efficiency as the Missing Piece of the Energy Puzzle: How Smart Growth Can Unlock the Trillion Dollar Consumer Cost Savings (Natural Resources Defense Council, 2004)
33. Edward L. Glaeser and Matthew Kahn, 'The Greenness of Cities', Policy Briefs (Boston, March 2008).
34. Elena Safirova et al., Spatial Development and Energy Consumption (Reconnecting America, 2007) 8.
35. Keith Bartholomew, 'Cities and Accessibility: The Potential for Carbon Reduction and the Need for National Leadership' (2009) 36 Fordham Urban Law Journal 159, 163.
36. See Patricia Salkin, 'Sustainability and Land Use Planning: Greening State and Local Land Use Plans and Regulations to Address Climate Change Challenges and Preserve Resources for Future Generations' (2009) 34 William and Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review 121, 150 (describing how Euclidean zoning separated residential, commercial and industrial uses into different land use districts and promoted movement away from urban cores to suburbs).
37. Metropolitan Infrastructure Initiative, A Bridge to Somewhere: Rethinking American Transportation for the 21st Century (The Brookings Institution, 2008) 15, 18.
38. Benjamin J. Wickizer and Andrew Snow, 'Rediscovering the Transportation Frontier: Improving Sustainability in the United States Through Passenger Rail' (2010) 11 Sustainable Development Law and Policy 12, 14.
39. US Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, 11 March 2011, Table 5.1.
40. Katherine A. Trisolini, 'All Hands On Deck: Local Governments and the Potential for Bidirectional Climate Change Regulation' (2010) 62 Stanford Law Review 669, 697, note 120 (listing building efficiency strategies)
41. see also Kornelis Blok et al., 'Residential and Commercial Buildings' (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Climate Change 2007: Mitigation of Climate Change, 2007) 387, 395, available at www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/wg3/ar4-wg3-chapter6.pdf (accessed 18 October 2011).
42. Metropolitan Taxicab Bd. of Trade v. City of New York, 615 F.3d 152 (2d) (2010) (rules preempted by federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act)
43. Engine Mfrs. Ass'n v. South Coast Air Quality Management Dist., 541 US 246 (2004) (rules preempted by federal Clean Air Act).
44. Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute, et al. (AHRI) v. City of Albuquerque, WL 558316 (D. NM, 2008) (finding preemption)
45. but see Building Industry Ass'n of Washington v. Washington State Bldg Code Council, WL 485895 (WD Wash., 2011) (finding no preemption). Both cases involved claims that state building codes governing efficiency were preempted by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, which gives the federal government exclusive authority over energy efficiency of certain products, unless building codes satisfy seven conditions, 42 USC 6297.
46. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Reducing Urban Heat Islands: Compendium of Strategies, Trees and Vegetation, Draft (EPA, 2009) 6-7, available at www.epa.gov/heatislands/resources/pdf/TreesandVegCompendium.pdf (accessed 16 October 2011).
47. Matthew Kling and Ian Hough, The American Carbon Foodprint: Understanding Your Food's Impact on Climate Change (Brighter Planet, 2010) 9,available at www.justmeans.com/usercontent/companydocs/docs/company_docs_ 1265302605.pdf (accessed 16 October 2011).
48. Garrick B. Pursley and Hannah J. Wiseman, 'Local Energy' (2011) 60 Emory Law Journal 877, 886.
49. California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), Impacts of Distributed Generation, Final Report (CPUC, January 2010) 5-7 to 5-8.
50. See Benjamin K. Sovacool, 'The Intermittency of Wind, Solar, and Renewable Electricity Generators: Technical Barrier or Rhetorical Excuse?' (2009) 17 Utilities Policy 288, 289.
51. Ben Harack, 'Opportunities and Perils of Natural Gas Usage on the Road to Renewables' (2011) Renewable Energy Review, www.visionofearth.org/industry/ renewable-energy/renewable-energy-review/opportunities-and-perils-of-natural-gasusage- on-the-road-to-renewables/ (accessed 16 October 2011).
52. See David Sandalow, Ending Oil Dependence: Protecting National Security, the Environment and the Economy (Independent Ideas for America's Next President, 2008) 8-9 (discussing battery storage in plug-in hybrid electric vehicles).
53. which often produce most of their power at night, when wind speeds are optimal but electricity demand is low.
54. 16 USC ss. 824d, 824e (2006). The Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) allows states to establish wholesale rates for 'qualifying facilities', which include small producers of renewable energy, but caps these rates at 'avoided cost' levels. 16 USC s. 824a-3 (2006)
55. see generally 16 USC s. 2601 ff. (2006).
56. California Public Utilities Commission, 132 FERC para. 61,047 (2010)
57. 16 USC s. 824(f) (2006).
58. A broader comparison of city climate plans should include a discussion of cities like Los Angeles and Atlanta, which have large populations, in comparison to Portland, and much more significant sprawl, in comparison to New York. To date, however, these and most other cities' climate action plans lack specific information to provide meaningful analysis about their effectiveness or the ways in which city leaders have acted as norm-setters in developing the plans.
59. Hari M. Osofsky and Janet Koven Levit, 'The Scale of Networks?: Local Climate Change Coalitions' (2008) 8 Chicago Journal of International Law 409, 415.
60. City of Portland and Multnomah County, Climate Action Plan 2009 (City of Portland and Multnomah County, 2009) 10.
61. Courtney Sherwood, 'More Cross-River Commuters Leave Cars Home', The Columbian, 7 May 2008, A1.
62. See The Pearl District: An Urban Gem Renewed (2005), available at www.explorethepearl.com/tools_v2/resources/5e139be64e5016f626df24aadf3bfa45/ user_files/file/PEARL%20BOOK%20-%20V%2011-12-10.pdf (accessed 4 January 2012).
63. City of Portland and Multnomah County, Climate Action Plan 2009: Year One Progress Report (City of Portland and Multnomah County, December 2010) 8.
64. David Nogueras, 'TriMet: Ridership Tops 100 Million', OPB News, 25 July 2011, available at http://news.opb.org/article/trimet-over-100-million-trips-taken-lastyear/ (accessed 18 October 2011). 136 Jonathan Maus, '2009 US Census: 5.9% of Portlanders Commute (Primarily) by Bike', BikePortland.org, 28 September 2010, http://bikeportland.org/ 2010/09/28/2009-u-s-census-5-81-of-portlanders-commute-by-bike-40251 (accessed 18 October 2011).
65. See Jennifer H. Allen and Thomas Potiowsky, 'Portland's Green Building Cluster: Economic Trends and Impacts' (2008) 22(4) Economic Development Quarterly 303.
66. Shelby Wood, 'Eat Your Greens: New Portland Roll Carts Make RecyclingEasier, Even with Fine Print', The Oregonian, 2 May 2008, available at http://blog.oregonlive.com/pdxgreen/2008/05/eat_your_greens_new_roll_carts.html (accessed 3 December 2011).
67. Meghan Kalkstein, 'Portland Bans Disposable Bags', KATU.com, 21 July 2011, www.katu.com/news/local/125989558.html (accessed 3 December 2011).
68. New York, New York, Local Law No. 55 (5 December 2007), available at www.nyccouncil.info/pdf_files/bills/law07055.pdf (accessed 4 January 2012).
69. See PlaNYC, www.nyc.gov/html/planyc2030/html/home/home.shtml (accessed 4 January 2012).
70. Alain Bertaud et al., 'GHG Emissions, Urban Mobility and Efficiency of Urban Morphology: A Hypothesis', Urban Research Symposium, Marseille, May 2009, 4.
71. Michele M. Betsill, Localizing Global Climate Change: Controlling Greenhouse Gas Emissions in US Cities, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs (BCSIA) Discussion Paper 2000-20, (Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, 2000) 24-5.
72. City of New York, PlaNYC, www.nyc.gov/html/planyc2030/html/theplan/ the-plan.shtml (accessed 2 December 2011).
73. See Oregon Bicycle Constructors Association, http://oregonframebuilders. org. In 2007, Oregon amended its company legislation to permit businesses incorporated in the state to have an explicit sustainability purpose: Oregon Revised Statutes, 2007 s. 60.047(2)(e).
74. See e.g., Ecotrust's Food and Farms Program, www.ecotrust.org/foodfarms.
75. Several New York organizations have created the Campaign for New York's Future, an umbrella organization designed to promote the goals of PlaNYC. See Campaign for New York's Future, www.campaignfornewyorksfuture.org/ o/8459/p/salsa/web/common/public/content?content_item_KEY=10309 (accessed 2 December 2011). However, many of the links on the group's website are inactive and the website has not been updated since 2009. Thus, whatever support the group may offer, it does not appear to have a robust role in the plan's implementation.
76. See Lisa Foderaro, 'As City Plants Trees, Some Say a Million are Too Many', New York Times, 19 October 2011, A23
77. Michael M. Grymbaum, 'Judge Rejects Groups' Efforts to Remove Bike Lanes', New York Times, 17 August 2011, A17.
78. See Michael Kimmelman, 'Pleasures of Life in the Slow Lane', New York Times, 8 November 2011, C1.