CLIMATE CHANGE, CONSUMPTION, AND CITIES

Part I of this Article highlights the nation’s high level of energy consumption and argues that policies directed solely at tailpipes and smokestacks will fail to reach climate change goals. Part II of this Article observes that recently proposed federal legislation does not sufficiently address consumption. Part III argues that direct local land use and green building measures can and should play a critical role in reducing demand. Part IV recognizes that, notwithstanding the institutional and practical arguments in favor of local initiatives, significant barriers could slow their adoption and implementation.

Part V argues that federal legislation could overcome obstacles to local action by adopting a vertically integrated approach. Part VI argues that land use policy reforms will not succeed unless we confront the underlying social, economic, and political causes of existing sprawl