Addressing Climate Change Without Legislation: Volume 1: DOI

This three volume series of reports analyzes steps that federal agencies can take to mitigate climate change under existing laws. A collaboration between CLEE and the Berkeley Energy and Climate Institute, this series details how the Department of the Interior (DOI), Federal Energy Regulation Commission (FERC), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) can use their legal authority to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and expand clean energy use across the country.

The Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of several executive agencies charged with implementing the President’s Climate Action Plan. The DOI manages approximately 500 million acres of land in the U.S. and a further 1.7 billion acres off its shores. This report identifies actions the DOI can take, on the basis of its current legal authority, to mitigate climate change. The report provides a survey of actions that can be taken under existing law, without the need for approval by Congress. The identified actions each result in reduced greenhouse gas emissions and/or increased carbon sequestration. However, beyond this finding of climate benefits, the report does not assess the merits of each action. Rather, it is left up to the DOI to determine whether implementation of each action is a wise policy choice.