Law Commons^™

The Federal Coal Leasing Program As An Actionable Subsidy Under International Trade Law, Jackson Erpenbach

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is often criticized for standing in the way of responses to climate change. Restrictions on domestic renewable energy subsidies under the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) have drawn particular disfavor. But critics overlook the role that the SCM Agreement can play in similarly disciplining domestic fossil fuel subsidies. This Note demonstrates that potential role by focusing on one prominent fossil fuel subsidy in the United States: The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) coal leasing program on federal lands. The program is an actionable subsidy under the SCM Agreement because it provides coal …

A Bridge To Nowhere? Our Energy Transition And The Natural Gas Pipeline Wars, Sam Kalen

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

This article chronicles how natural gas has replaced coal as today’s energy dilemma. The pipeline wars illustrate landowners’ concern with special treatment for industry seeking to condemn lands, while some states and the public object to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC or Commission) approach to approving new pipeline projects, or the Commission’s assessment of GHG emissions associated with project development.

Part II examines the pipeline wars in their historical context, portraying the rise of natural gas regulation, its increasing dominance as a fuel source, its associated environmental consequences, and the marked differences in how the Obama and Trump administrations …

Presidential Permitting For Pipelines: Constitutionality And Reviewability, Joan Campau

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

Federal oversight of cross-border pipelines occurs during the presidential permitting process. Pursuant to Executive Order 13337, the Department of State is authorized to review applications and grant permits to projects that “serve the national interest.” Scholars and litigants have questioned the constitutionality of this process and reviewability under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”). This Note argues that the permitting process is constitutional and derives legitimacy from both the executive powers explicitly enumerated in the Constitution as well as an implicit sanction from the legislative branch. Further, this Note argues that APA review is appropriate for at least one component of …

Abandoned But Not Forgotten: Improperly Plugged And Orphaned Wells May Pose Serious Concerns For Shale Development, Bret Wells, Tracy Hester

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

This Article addresses the intersection of oil and gas law and environmental law on a topic that has profound significance for the nation’s oil industry and for the environment. In this regard, the Permian Basin is experiencing a renaissance that has fundamentally impacted oil production in the United States. Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing now allow the industry to produce in the Permian Basin’s unconventional shale formations in ways that were unimaginable a decade ago. But, the hot shale plays within the Permian Basin exist above conventional fields that are littered with a century’s worth of abandoned wells. Fracturing new …

Cooperative Mineral Interest Development In The Lone Star State: It's Time To Mess With Texas, Matthew K. Trawick

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

Since the early discoveries of the Spindletop, King Ranch, and East Texas oil fields, the oil and gas industry has dominated the Texas economy. The industry has also played an important role in shaping state politics and culture. The oil boom of the early 1900s created thousands of jobs for ordinary workers and immense wealth for a select few. Early Texas oil barons made headlines because of their lavish lifestyles and often extreme political beliefs. Legendary wildcatter H.L. Hunt typified this oil-fueled exuberance. Hunt became one of the eight richest individuals in the United States after securing mineral rights to …

Judicial Limitation Of The Epa's Oversight Authority In Clean Water Act Permitting Of Mountaintop Mining Valley Fills , Christopher D. Eaton

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

Mountaintop removal mining operations in the Appalachian region have expanded significantly in recent decades. The practice decimates the mountain ecosystems by leveling forests, filling headwater streams, and producing significant runoff of heavy metals, sediment, and other pollutants that impair the aquatic environment of entire watersheds. Yet environmental permitting of the practice is relatively limited. A recent trend in litigation aimed at halting mining operations has involved challenging permits that authorize the discharge of mining overburden into headwater streams pursuant to the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Army Corps of Engineers has assumed jurisdiction over such discharges under section 404 of …