I mean, NEPA tends not to be "the primary blocker" _of the stuff that even gets submitted_, but it certainly is _a_ major reason why things take a long time and cost a lot (because you have to fund the various studies, do re-designs, etc), and it's hard to value the stuff that _doesn't get submitted at all_ because people look at it and …
I mean, NEPA tends not to be "the primary blocker" _of the stuff that even gets submitted_, but it certainly is _a_ major reason why things take a long time and cost a lot (because you have to fund the various studies, do re-designs, etc), and it's hard to value the stuff that _doesn't get submitted at all_ because people look at it and decide the project, while useful, wouldn't be profitable enough to support the fixed costs to jump through all the hoops.
NEPA reform is going to be necessary for the IRA roll-out to not end up wasting a large portion of the allocated money. California is now actively pursuing CEQA reform because they realized that all that IRA money was flowing to other jurisdictions. Fortunately we have a relatively-functional legislature, and I feel confident that folks like Asm. Laura Friedman will help craft language that helps the executive agencies streamline where appropriate. (If David wanted to interview somebody who's really in the trenches working on the details of permitting reform, she'd be a great person to contact.)
It was political malpractice for progressives to not reach a deal with Manchin back before the Repubs got the majority in the House. We needed, and still need, a reform, but with Repubs in a majority it's hard to see how anything happens -- they're fine with the status quo, and they don't have to let anything reach the floor for a vote. Progressives were ragging on Manchin, insisting that he was acting in bad faith and secretly just loved profiting from coal, but in fact his voting record seems pretty well aligned with his public statements. (He tanked the BBB plan, which scored as inflationary, and said he wanted something that could be interpreted as anti-inflationary. The IRA kept a lot of big long-term investments while focusing on ensuring it had near-term pay-fors and could be scored, due to improvements in supply, as bending costs down over time. And he voted for it. So how was he in bad faith?)
He wanted his dumb pipeline for West Virginia, and we should've just _given him the one dumb pipeline_, to get what was a pretty good deal on NEPA reforms. Who knows how long it'll be til we have a Dem trifecta in DC again?!
And note I say the pipeline is dumb not because I'm particularly worried about its emissions -- though those aren't great, and methane leakage is a serious problem that could use some stepped-up attention -- but because I think in the long run it will likely be less profitable than its proponents expect. Renewables are going to keep getting cheaper. Fossil fuel focused companies are going to go bankrupt, or at least will have to find markets for their reserves as feedstocks for other industrial processes rather than burning them for energy. As the saying goes, "the stone age didn't end because we ran out of stones."
n.b.: I work for Tesla Energy, on utility-scale batteries, so you want to accuse me of "talking my book", fine. But it is _absolutely true_ that the US's insanely fragmented and adversarial regulatory regime is slowing down or preventing good projects. Read Paul Sabin on how Nader-ite "public interest" lobbying started out trying to prevent government from doing bad things, but ultimately led to preventing government from doing _anything_, much to the delight of the Reaganites.
I mean, NEPA tends not to be "the primary blocker" _of the stuff that even gets submitted_, but it certainly is _a_ major reason why things take a long time and cost a lot (because you have to fund the various studies, do re-designs, etc), and it's hard to value the stuff that _doesn't get submitted at all_ because people look at it and decide the project, while useful, wouldn't be profitable enough to support the fixed costs to jump through all the hoops.
NEPA reform is going to be necessary for the IRA roll-out to not end up wasting a large portion of the allocated money. California is now actively pursuing CEQA reform because they realized that all that IRA money was flowing to other jurisdictions. Fortunately we have a relatively-functional legislature, and I feel confident that folks like Asm. Laura Friedman will help craft language that helps the executive agencies streamline where appropriate. (If David wanted to interview somebody who's really in the trenches working on the details of permitting reform, she'd be a great person to contact.)
It was political malpractice for progressives to not reach a deal with Manchin back before the Repubs got the majority in the House. We needed, and still need, a reform, but with Repubs in a majority it's hard to see how anything happens -- they're fine with the status quo, and they don't have to let anything reach the floor for a vote. Progressives were ragging on Manchin, insisting that he was acting in bad faith and secretly just loved profiting from coal, but in fact his voting record seems pretty well aligned with his public statements. (He tanked the BBB plan, which scored as inflationary, and said he wanted something that could be interpreted as anti-inflationary. The IRA kept a lot of big long-term investments while focusing on ensuring it had near-term pay-fors and could be scored, due to improvements in supply, as bending costs down over time. And he voted for it. So how was he in bad faith?)
He wanted his dumb pipeline for West Virginia, and we should've just _given him the one dumb pipeline_, to get what was a pretty good deal on NEPA reforms. Who knows how long it'll be til we have a Dem trifecta in DC again?!
And note I say the pipeline is dumb not because I'm particularly worried about its emissions -- though those aren't great, and methane leakage is a serious problem that could use some stepped-up attention -- but because I think in the long run it will likely be less profitable than its proponents expect. Renewables are going to keep getting cheaper. Fossil fuel focused companies are going to go bankrupt, or at least will have to find markets for their reserves as feedstocks for other industrial processes rather than burning them for energy. As the saying goes, "the stone age didn't end because we ran out of stones."
n.b.: I work for Tesla Energy, on utility-scale batteries, so you want to accuse me of "talking my book", fine. But it is _absolutely true_ that the US's insanely fragmented and adversarial regulatory regime is slowing down or preventing good projects. Read Paul Sabin on how Nader-ite "public interest" lobbying started out trying to prevent government from doing bad things, but ultimately led to preventing government from doing _anything_, much to the delight of the Reaganites.
https://history.yale.edu/publications/public-citizens-attack-big-government-and-remaking-american-liberalism