Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 7 of 7
Full-Text Articles in Law
Shopping For State Constitutions: Unequal Gift Clauses As Obstacles To Optimal State Encouragement Of Carbon Sequestration, Nicholas Houpt
Shopping For State Constitutions: Unequal Gift Clauses As Obstacles To Optimal State Encouragement Of Carbon Sequestration, Nicholas Houpt
Sabin Center for Climate Change Law
Carbon capture and sequestration technology (CCS) could drastically reduce CO2 emissions from coal-fired power plants, thereby mitigating climate change. CCS, however, faces a difficult barrier to market entry: liability for the technology’s many long-term risks. States would like to alleviate this long-term liability problem to capture CCS’s social benefits. Some state constitutions, however, have provisions called “gift clauses” that prohibit giving aid to private parties. This Note argues that some state constitutions’ gift clauses prevent indemnification of private CCS developers. As this Note’s fifty state survey shows, other state constitutions allow indemnification. This asymmetry in constitutionally-allowed financial encouragement results in …
Climate Change And The Wto: Expected Battlegrounds, Surprising Battles, Daniel M. Firger, Michael B. Gerrard
Climate Change And The Wto: Expected Battlegrounds, Surprising Battles, Daniel M. Firger, Michael B. Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
This article examines the issue of climate change policy and international trade law. While conventional wisdom may have predicted that conflicts in trade law would emerge through climate-related protectionist measures, such as carbon tariffs on imports from countries with less stringent controls on greenhouse gas emissions, the authors point out that government support for climate-friendly technologies has in fact emerged as the primary battleground. The authors examine two recent disputes—between the United States and China and between Japan and Canada – over green subsidies and their implications for the future of clean energy.
Environmental And Energy Legislation In The 112th Congress, Michael B. Gerrard
Environmental And Energy Legislation In The 112th Congress, Michael B. Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
When Barack Obama succeeded George W. Bush in January 2009, backed by solid majorities in both the House and the Senate, the country seemed poised for the first major environmental legislation since 1990, the year of the Oil Pollution Act and the 1990 Clean Air Act amendments. Under the leadership of Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-CA) and Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA), the House passed a comprehensive climate change bill based on an economywide cap-and-trade system. The House also passed a bill to lift oil spill liability caps and adopt additional reforms in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico spill. …
The End Of Energy: The Unmaking Of America's Environment, Security, And Independence – Chapters 11 And 12, Michael J. Graetz
The End Of Energy: The Unmaking Of America's Environment, Security, And Independence – Chapters 11 And 12, Michael J. Graetz
Faculty Scholarship
With the permission of MIT Press, this document includes Chapters 11 and 12 from my 2011 book, The End of Energy: The Unmaking of America’s Environment, Security, and Independence. These two chapters discuss some of the history and merits of taxes, subsidies, and regulation (including cap and trade) as mechanisms to implement policies to curb greenhouse gases. In light of the renewed interest in and discussion of command and control regulations and carbon taxes, these chapters may be useful to readers who do not have the book. The bibliographic material relating to these chapters is contained in the book and …
United States Of America, Michael B. Gerrard, Gregory E. Wannier
United States Of America, Michael B. Gerrard, Gregory E. Wannier
Faculty Scholarship
The prospect of carbon liability in the United States is a relatively recent phenomenon. It is only in the last decade that US environmental lawyers and policy-makers have begun to turn their attention to climate change, as climate-related litigation has surged, government action on several fronts has begun, and climate change has generally been recognised as a factor to consider in decision-making across the economy. This chapter lays out existing options to establish liability for greenhouse gas (‘GHG’) emissions along legislative, regulatory and judicial channels.
Assisted Migration: A Viable Conservation Strategy To Preserve The Biodiversity Of Threatened Island Nations?, Jessica A. Wentz
Assisted Migration: A Viable Conservation Strategy To Preserve The Biodiversity Of Threatened Island Nations?, Jessica A. Wentz
Sabin Center for Climate Change Law
Anthropogenic climate change poses a substantial threat to biodiversity. The IPCC estimates that 20-30% of species will face an increased risk of extinction if the average global temperature rises more than 1.5 to 2.5 degrees Celsius. Additional scientific studies indicate that 15-37% of species may become extinct by 2050 due to global warming, based on current emissions trajectories. Domestic and international strategies to manage this threat have traditionally focused on conservation and mitigation. In the last few years, however, policy makers have recognized that near-term climate impacts are inevitable and thus adaptation strategies are required to protect both humans and …
Measurement, Reporting & Verification Of Chinese Mitigation Commitments, Quiyan Zhao
Measurement, Reporting & Verification Of Chinese Mitigation Commitments, Quiyan Zhao
Sabin Center for Climate Change Law
This paper discusses China's new transparency pledge – MRV as it relates to Chinese mitigation commitments – as laid out in the non-legal binding agreement reached at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen on December 18. 2009. Specifically, this paper compares China’s position on MRV with relevant mechanisms and requirements under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol, the Bali Action Plan, and the Copenhagen Accord. Furthermore, this paper seeks to answer several questions pertinent to the progress and challenges of China’s MRV regime: Are China’s GHGs emissions measured continuously? Are there review …