Law Commons^™

“I’Ll Have The Fish, Please” – Why Wild, Sustainable Fisheries In The United States Need Permanent Federal Protection, And Fast, Renee Larson

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

No abstract provided.

Regulation, Radiation, And Rationality: Calculating An Intersection Of Law And Economics To Enable Nuclear Power Innovation In The United States, Sandra Roettgering

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

No abstract provided.

Vertical Farming: A Bottom-Up Approach, Michael Martinez

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

The twenty-first century will require innovative solutions to address the effects of climate change. Vertical farming is one solution that could help conserve a significant amount of freshwater and reduce the agricultural industry’ s overuse of pesticides and intensive tilling practices, which contributes to soil erosion and pesticide runoff. There has been significant investment in vertical farming in every region of the United States; however, the cost to produce foods with vertical farming remains more costly than traditional farming, which is in large part due to the substantial amount of electricity needed to power all the technology required to grow …

Politics And The Criminal Enforcement Of The Toxic Substances Control Act, Dr. Joshua Ozymy, Dr. Melissa Jarrell Ozymy, Dr. Danielle Mcgurrin

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

Environmental crimes related to chemical substances are governed under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). When these violations involve significant harm or culpable conduct they may be remedied through criminal prosecution. While Democratic and Republican presidents have offered historically varied support for criminal enforcement, we know very little about how politics affects TSCA enforcement outcomes or TSCA criminal enforcement generally. To address these issues, we performed a content analysis of 2,728 criminal prosecutions from 1983-2021 that derive from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) criminal investigations and select all TSCA prosecutions. Results show 75 prosecutions were adjudicated, involving 137 …

The Value Of Vehicle-To-Grid Systems In The Clean Energy Transition: Policy And Regulatory Issues, Alyssa Valentine

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

As the United States transitions to clean energy, advances in technology are making such a transition possible by enabling utility-scale renewable energy generation (primarily wind and solar) and transportation electrification. However, the growth in renewable energy generation and electric vehicles (EVs) has created new reliability issues for the electric grid due to the intermittent nature of solar and wind power and increased load on the grid from EV charging. New methods and tools are needed to balance energy supply and demand. One such tool is the vehicle-to-grid (V2G) system, which uses EV batteries to help balance the grid, providing additional …

Forests Up In Smoke: An Analysis Of The Washington State Legislatures 2016-2021 Actions To Combat And Reduce Wildfires, Mckaylin Hughes

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

“Forests Up in Smoke: An Analysis of the Washington State Legislatures 2016-2021 Actions to Combat and Reduce Wildfires” examines and scrutinizes recent legislation passed by the Washington State Legislature that is specifically focused on preventing and combatting wildfires across the State of Washington. Over the last decade, Washington State has experienced several of the worst wildfire seasons in the state’s history, and with this increase in wildfires, Washingtonians need more action from the State Legislature to manage, protect, and restore our forests.

One way Washington can take a more proactive approach to combatting wildfires is by utilizing alternative methods for …

Fracturing The Rule Of Capture: The Improper Application Of The Rule Of Capture To Subsurface Intrusions Resulting From Hydraulic Fracturing, Alexis K. Désiré

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

Imagine that during the course of hydraulically fracturing a tract of land—a process used to extract gas from low-permeability rock formations —a drilling company causes fractures, as well as some of the materials necessary to the fracturing process, to cross the boundary of its property line and enter an adjoining property—that is, it makes a subsurface intrusion onto a neighbor’s property. Assume further that, because the company’s fractures have extended into the neighbor’s property, oil and gas from the neighboring land travels to the company’s wellbore, causing the neighbor to bring a tort action against the company for harms related …

The Long-Term Problem With Electric Vehicle Batteries: A Policy Recommendation To Encourage Advancement For Scalable Recycling Practices, Lauren Fricke

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

With the growing popularity of electric vehicles, the demand for lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries, which are the dominant energy source for electric vehicles, are skyrocketing. By default, this means a growing demand for the raw materials needed to manufacture these complex batteries such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel. Economic, environmental, and political supply chain factors bring into question the sustainability of these batteries as a solution to the issues surrounding gasoline powered transportation, creating a need for large scale Li-ion battery recycling. By 2030, 140 million EVs are predicted to be on the road worldwide. In that time, eleven million …

Uranium 233: The Nuclear Superfuel No One Is Using, Maris Hanson

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

Nuclear power offers more energy in less physical space than solar and wind and yields more energy per pound than fossil fuels. However different nuclear fuels yield different waste profiles and create different beneficial products. Uranium 233 (U233) resists use in nuclear weapons, yields beneficial daughter products, and produces dramatically less of the most problematic waste products than Uranium 235 (U235). U233 results from reactions with Thorium, a plentiful, ubiquitous element currently considered waste from rare earth mines. Additionally, U233 functions well in a liquid fuel reactor resulting in safer, more efficient reactors than current solid fuel U235 or Plutonium …

Chemical Weapons And Their Unforeseen Impact On Health And The Environment, Alexandra Chen

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

The May 2020 police murder of George Floyd catalyzed a racial reckoning in the United States that saw millions of people take to the streets to protest police brutality against people of color. In following months, law enforcement used massive amounts of "less-lethal" chemical weapons against protesters in cities across the country. Despite widespread use of chemical weapons by police agencies and mounting evidence of related environmental and health harms, the federal government does not regulate the use nor the manufacture of chemical weapons. Chemical weapons contain toxic ingredients such as hexavalent chromium, lead salts, and methylene chloride, which are …

Free Willy: A Breach To Rejuvenate The Southern Resident Killer Whale, Luke Mcdonough

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

State and federal government entities have made great strides in environmental protection since the inception of the Environmental Protection Agency and the enactment of major environmental regulations. However, species worldwide continue to face threats of extinction due to human activity and climate change without prompt, major intervention. In Washington state, the iconic Southern Resident Killer Whale has seen a dramatic decrease in population since the 1960s. Protections directed for their benefit have not provided the expected return as the main challenges Southern Residents face remain largely unresolved. To restore the Southern Residents’ population for future generations, their entire ecosystem must …

The New Decade Of Construction Contracts: Technological And Climate Considerations For Owners, Designers, And Builders, Geoffrey F. Palachuk

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

In the next decade, the construction industry faces two intertwined risks: implementation of new technologies and the impacts of climate change. Those overlapping risks will present both practical and legal issues for design professionals, developers, builders, legislators, and the public at large. Although the average participant in the construction industry may not think twice about the emergence or adoption of new technologies, or the effect of climate change on the completed project, those issues present nuanced legal implications. Construction projects and their contracts must adapt. While companies seek to implement new technologies, provide sustainable products, optimize project systems, and maximize …

The “Green Patent Paradox” And Fair Use: The Intellectual Property Solution To Fight Climate Change, Samuel Cayton

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

As the climate crisis consistently worsens, the United States’ response to the crisis has proven inconsistent. Even with the United States likely to recommit to the Paris Climate Agreement, political tensions will likely further delay a climate response. The polarized characterization of the Green New Deal, the inaction of scientifically misguided conservatives, and the incessant proposal for middle ground approaches lacking the urgency needed to change course all contribute to this delay. While swift action from the federal government is needed, looking to the private sector to transition to sustainability is equally important. Specifically, patent protection is a strong intellectual …

Tragedy Of The Energy Commons: How Government Regulation Can Help Mitigate The Environmental And Public Health Consequences Of Cryptocurrency Mining, Jeff Thomson

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

The use of cryptocurrencies in daily life has continued to rise over the last decade and shows no signs of slowing down. Although cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, provide numerous tangible benefits to society, the process of mining these cryptocurrencies is extremely energy intensive. Accordingly, a tragedy of the energy commons has resulted whereby the monetary incentive to mine cryptocurrencies has distorted our collective ability to care for our shared energy resources. The current system allows for industrious individuals to set up cryptocurrency mines in regions that have access to plentiful and cheap energy sources, utilize this energy to power their …

Environmental Protection, The Military, And Preserving The Balance: “Why It Matters, In War And Peace”, Kurt Smith

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

International military operations around the world are major actors on the world stage of global pollution. The United States military remains subject to federal, state, and local environmental laws. However, many exemptions exist to assist the military despite its status as a global polluter. Many environmental policies have incrementally developed over the last one-hundred years largely as a reaction to the most extreme circumstances. Scientific knowledge continues to increase our awareness of the lasting impacts of policy decisions relating to the environment, giving rise to the precautionary principle, that notion that we should do no lasting harm, in our care …

Responsible Energy Storage For A Renewable Electrical Grid, Matt Longacre

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

The United States economy, its national security, and even the health and safety of its citizens depend on reliably available electricity. Electricity is largely available through the grid – more than 9,200 generating units, capable of generating more than one terawatt of electricity, connected to more than 600,000 miles of wire. The grid extends to nearly everything: from charging cellphones to cellphone towers, from light emitting diodes to street lights, and from parking meters to electric cars; the grid has become ubiquitous.

The current grid infrastructure has been valued at two trillion dollars, but much of it is aging to …

Urban Growth, Low Impact Development, And Seattle's Stormwater Management System, Katherine Baals

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

No abstract provided.

Proposed Federal Osha Standards For Wildfire Smoke, Keenan Layton

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

With the rise of global temperatures, climatologists predict a corresponding increase in the frequency and severity of wildfires in the Pacific Northwest. Rising temperatures are expected to create drier conditions in forests, thereby creating environmental conditions more prone to forest fires. Wildfires have become a common enough occurrence in the Pacific Northwest that summers have become synonymous with smoky conditions, but the issue is not constrained to this region. Though the Pacific Northwest has recently acted as a harbinger of increasing wildfires, environmental scientists forecast an increase in fire risk throughout the Western United States. The predicted rise in forest …

The Clean Air Act: How It Can Be Localized To Promote Both Environmental And Social Justice, Tate Kirk

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

Legislators attempt to achieve intended goals by enacting laws that provide for regulatory enforcement. However, many times laws are unable to achieve their stated goals and in some ways may create new or exacerbate existing issues. Luckily, upon review, many of these issues can be fixed with quick modifications to either their implementation or enforcement mechanisms. In its current form, the Clean Air Act does not effectively account for differences in regional climate patterns, and, moreover, it perpetuates environmental injustice. If local governments were given more autonomy to enforce the Clean Air Act, they could shape its enforcement to more …

When Water Isn't Wet: The Evolution Of Water Right Mitigation In Washington State, Rachael Osborn, Michael Mayer

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

What is water right mitigation?

The allocation of surface and ground water resources for out of stream uses via the western water rights doctrine of prior appropriation comes with serious environmental consequences – depletion of streamflow and aquifers. Over-appropriation by water rights has led to deleterious impacts on natural resources, including salmon survival, water quality, and public uses of state waterways.

Because of the over-appropriated condition of Washington’s rivers and aquifers, the issuance of new water rights has until recently required water-for-water or in-kind mitigation, with the goal to directly compensate for deleterious impacts. Historically, the Water Resources Program of …

Shifting Public Perception: Climate Change Means Living With Fire And Smoke, Robert Froembling

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law

The urgency to prepare for the climate crisis has never been greater. We are currently living in the sixth mass extinction and the effects are only going to accelerate. We will inherit more wildfires, larger wildfires, and more frequent wildfires.

This piece is not meant to stoke fear in its readers or be depressing, but to shift public perception on what our future holds by evaluating the laws and science presented to us. This piece will look at regional and federal regulations and assess the increased rate of forest fires and the grave public health concerns from stagnant smoke specifically …