With the end of May and the beginning of summer around the corner, let's take a quick look into what’s to come in the world of environmental policies. These California policies are to be enacted this year in tandem and progression with the world’s 2030 and 2050 climate change goals.
California Environmental Laws put into effect in 2023–
- The California Climate Crisis Act–will require the state to reach net-zero GHG emissions no later than 2025 and to sustain that level for the years following.
- Carbon Sequestration, Bill SB-905–will call for the Air Resources Board to develop a program that evaluates the efforts to remove and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It will also require regulations on the establishment and activities of carbon capture and removal projects.
- The previous sequestration bill will work in tandem with the newly amended California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. New and natural methods have been written under this act to be used for removing said carbon from the air.
- Lastly, the Clean Energy, Jobs, and Affordability Act of 2022 is being amended to require that zero-carbon and renewable energy sources make up 90% of the state’s electricity by 2035, and 40% by 2040. Also requiring state agencies to use zero-carbon and renewable sources for 100% of their energy by 2035.
Other policies are currently undergoing revisions to provide clearer definitions and requirements for certain fields–many specifically umbrellaing the subject of “oil and gas buffer zones.” Several of these current policies put into effect by Governor Newsom won’t see immediate changes, but are expected to have long-term effects.
