Supremes: Environmental Rules Should Weigh Costs, Benefits - Environmental Capital - WSJ

The Supreme Court ruled today in favor of a power company and against the Environmental Protection Agency. That’s not necessarily a bad thing for the environment.

In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of power companies in Entergy v. EPA. The issue was a rules change in the EPA which sought to make power companies upgrade their plants to protect the environment regardless of cost.

Cleantech Venture Funding Plunges - Green Inc. Blog - NYTimes.com

The amount of venture capital going into clean technology fell sharply in the early months of this year.

According to figures released today by the Cleantech Group, venture investments in the sector are down 48 percent in the first quarter of 2009, compared with a year earlier. Investments had also fallen in the final quarter of 2008.

Energy Tribune - Exxon vs. Obama

It seems increasingly likely that Obama and Congress will slap a price on carbon in coming years that could put oil at a competitive disadvantage to such carbon-free energy sources as wind, solar, and biomass. That could reduce demand for crude, sharply cutting its price.