Whether you are a veteran Climate Hawk or a climate newbie, you can learn something you didn’t know at MCAN's annual conference on Sunday March 13.  Listen in for details. On top of that, it turns out that the President’s the new federal budget will include a carbon price, Ted Cruz calls for a policy a Climate Hawk can agree with, and we consider the hard politics of energy and poisoned water.

Governor Baker couldn’t quite bring himself to mention Massachusetts’ two gas pipeline projects (proposed by Spectra Energy and from Kinder Morgan.) They were  the proverbial un-acknowledged elephant in the energy section of his State of the State address. His silence may have been due to the possibility that under public scrutiny the pipelines would be unpopular. On the other hand, the State Senate passed a bill setting intermediate targets for the GWSA. On a different topic, we wonder if the civil disobedience of the Delta Five is a model for the rest of us? Maybe, but DR worries about the legal ramifications of a successful necessity defense. Finally, we discuss the global record temperatures and recent blizzards. Listen in!

The scales of the US legal system tilted in favor of Climate Hawks this week. In a ruling on an arcane aspect of the electricity market, the Supreme Court has made it possible for homes and businesses to be paid to reduce their power usage- especially during peak demand hours. In the long term, this will shape electricity markets for the better. In another piece of good news, an appeals court in Washington allowed the President’s Clean Power Plan to proceed. Specifically, it refused to issue an ‘injunction’ that would have halted the program immediately. Instead, the CPP will continue to be developed during the long period (probably a year or more) before the case makes its way to the SCOTUS. That is good for the CPP! Finally, the Obama administration issued new rules that would prevent, on Federal lands, the practice of simply burning the methane that leaks from wells. The iconic image of the ‘flaring’ well-head will be gone from public land. Listen in for this and more!

Water seems to be coursing through this week’s climate news. The Governor made his State of the State address, and and made a strong call to use Canadian Hydropower to reduce our GHG emissions. The spread of the Zika virus may depend on standing water in Brazil, and of course, there is the sad crisis of poisoned wafer in Flint Michigan. What does that tell us about climate? Listen in.

Last year was the hottest on record. Surprise! But on the cool side of things, the Obama administration has halted leasing on Federal lands to consider imposing what amounts to a ‘price on carbon.’ On top of that good news, the Paris Agreement allows a new interpretation of the Clean Air Act that Climate Hawks will love. Finally, the Delta Five are convicted of minor crimes, but in a way that is a victory for activists. Listen in!

The future of progress on climate is tied to the future of the fossil fuel industry. Now that the Paris Agreement is in place and oil prices are falling, what should a Climate Hawk think about that industry’s next steps?  Listen in as we discuss some aspects of the story.

Two important court cases went forward this week, and Climate Hawks should take note. In Massachusetts, the question was about how enforceability of the “Global Warming Solutions Act.” Are the laws goals aspirational or mandated?  Out on the West Coast, the activists were allowed to claim they had no other choice but to stop an oil train. (The judge pulled the rug out from under them at the last  minute, but the testimony was still heard!) Listen is as we discuss.

Sometimes the zombie doesn’t stay dead. This week, TransCanada tried to re-invigorate the Keystone XL effort by extorting $15B from the US government under NAFTA rules. As Bill McKibben says, NAFTA is not a planetary suicide pact. The NAFTA rules are similar to the TPP rules and exemplify the risk of accepting the TPP as the law of the land.  If you like the idea of self-determination, national sovereignty and progress against climate change, the TPP is problematic.

The  armed takeover of a Federal wildlife preserve coupled with the President’s Executive Order on gun safety gives us a lens to look at climate issues. If “We, the people” own vast tracks of land in the West, why can’t we get an Executive Order to preserve them against fossil fuel exploitation by big corporations? After all, this land was made for you and me!

California’s Porter Ranch methane leak is out of control and may remain so for months. Back here in Massachusetts, the SJC prepares to hear a suit based on the “Public Trust Doctrine.” The ruling could have far reaching consequences. Listen in as we discuss.