Californias lieutenant governor has warned that the state can use an environmental lawsuit to block President-elect Donald Trumps efforts to build a border wall.The state could sue under the California Environmental Quality Act or its federal equivalent to stop the wall, a proposal that Gavin Newsom called laughable in an interview on the Golden State podcast.Theres something called CEQA in Californiatheres NEPA [National Environmental Policy Act]at the federal level, said Newson, whos running for governor in 2018. Theres indigenous lands and autonomies as it relates to governance on those lands. There are all kinds of obstructions as it relates to just getting zoning approval and getting building permits. All those things could be made very, very challenging for the administration.Thats just simply never going to happen, Newsom said of the wall. Its logistically impossible. Its a laughable proposal that somehow Mexicos going to pay for it. Its just not going to happen.Both environmental laws were passed to protect the environment, and both have been successfully used to block building projects. The environmental effects of border barriers are becoming increasingly clear in several European nations. The increase in the use border fences in the ongoing refugee crisis overseas is impeding the flow of wildlife between countries, with damaging consequences, according to recent research. These fences represent a major threat to wildlife because they can cause mortality, obstruct access to seasonally important resources, and reduce effective population size, concluded a 2016 study published in PLOS Biology.Researchers noted in Californias case thatconserving biodiversity on an increasingly crowded planet will always involve a combination of applying ecological knowledge and skillful politics.How ready is California to fight Trumps policies on the border and elsewhere' Very, said Newsom. Theres no indication that hes changed. That means we have to be prepared for the worst. If Trump goes through with many of his plans, theres going to be a lot of confrontation.Newsom doesnt seem concerned about alienating the next administration and isnt cowed by Trumps threat to cut funding to California because its a sanctuary state.The United States of America needs California more, with all due respect, than California needs it from an economic perspective, said Newsom. California is the economic engine of the country.The podcast is part of a series of stories and interviews created in tandem with San Francisco magazine on The Resistance to Donald Trump.Anticipating battles with the Trump administration, California has placed U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder on retainer for help with legal responses.type=type=RelatedArticlesblockTitle=Related Coverage + articlesList=586d0cb8e4b0de3a08fa4b00 -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Click here to read full news..
